Alabama 3 are a British band mixing rock, dance, blues, country and gospel styles. Founded in Brixton, London, in 1989. In the United States, they are known as A3 to avoid a legal conflict with the well-established country music band Alabama.[1] They achieved international fame when the producers of hit TV series The Sopranos chose their track "Woke Up This Morning" for the show's opening credits.[1]
The band are particularly notable for their fusion of styles, lyrics full of ironic intent, their deliberately humorous personas and outrageous live performances. Every member of the group has an alias by which they are known, the band's founding members adopting the personas "Larry Love" (Rob Spragg) and "The Very Reverend Dr. D. Wayne Love" (Jake Black).
History
The band formed when Jake Black met Rob Spragg at an acid house party in Peckham and they decided that a fusion of country music with acid house was a musical possibility.[2] Other members of the band were accumulated over a lengthy period, but it is known that Rob Spragg was at university with Piers Marsh, the harmonica player and synth programmer for the band whilst Orlando Harrison, the group's current keyboardist, used to live with Jake Black.[2] Prior to the formation of the Alabama 3 Jake had gone through his "wilderness years" period of which there is little or no recorded output. This creative gulch lasted years following the demise of The Jangletties.
Starting their act under the alias "The First Presleyterian Church Of Elvis The Divine (UK)" they eventually switched names to Alabama 3 and, after having been dismissed by the mainstream media as a novelty act, the group finally signed to One Little Indian records in 1997 for the release of their debut album Exile on Coldharbour Lane.[3]
In August 2007, they toured under the name of "Alabama 3: Acoustic and Unplugged" with Devlin Love to promote their new album, M.O.R. (released September 10, 2007. Bassist John "Segs" Jennings has apparently left the band, saying he is "busy elsewhere and [he doesn't] have the time." [4] The latest album M.O.R includes a cover of Jerry Reed's 1970s hit "Amos Moses" and features The Proclaimers on the track "Sweet Joy" plus piano parts on the country stomp version of the Gil Scott Heron song The Clan by Brian Jackson. In September and October 2007, the band toured the UK in support of M.O.R. with Irish band Republic Of Loose supporting.
On Friday 29th February 2008 members of the band encored with Carbon/Silicon at the seventh and final Carbon Casino gig at The Inn On The Green, under the Westway. Mick Jones joined them onstage to add guitar and backing vocals to a version of "Woke Up This Morning".
Larry Love of Alabama 3 on stage at Carbon Casino 7
Current band members/aliases
The members of the band are:
Musical style
Alabama 3's sound is a blend of country, blues, and acid house. Their songs have sampled Jim Jones in "Mao Tse Tung Said" and Birmingham Six survivor Patrick Hill in "The Thrills Have Gone." Trouser Press reviewer Jason Reeher wrote that A3's "debut is brilliant and shambolic...owing huge debts to both Hank Williams and Happy Mondays."
Alabama 3's music in TV and film
On the Region 4 DVD release of the Sopranos' first season, the case incorrectly cites the "Woke Up This Morning" music video included in the Special Features as being performed by "Alabama 5".
Discography
Studio albums
Solo album
- Robert Love, Ghost Flight (2006) [7]
Singles and EPs
Live albums, imports, compilations and bootlegs
Notes and references
External links
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