''Bringing Down the Horse'' is the second album by American rock band

the Wallflowers The Wallflowers is an American rock solo project of American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jakob Dylan. The Wallflowers were originally a roots rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1989 by Dylan and guitarist Tobi Miller. The band h ...

. It was released worldwide on May 21, 1996. The album was produced by

T-Bone Burnett Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American record producer, guitarist and songwriter. He rose to fame as a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band during the 1970s. He has received multiple Grammy awards for his work in film ...

and includes four singles: "

6th Avenue Heartache "6th Avenue Heartache" is a song by the American rock band The Wallflowers. It was released in April 1996 as the lead single from their second album ''Bringing Down the Horse''. The song became their first hit, peaking at No. 8 on the US Modern R ...

", "

One Headlight "One Headlight" is a song by American rock band the Wallflowers. The song was written by lead singer Jakob Dylan, and produced by T-Bone Burnett. It was released in January 1997 as the second single from the band's second studio album, ''Bringing ...

", " The Difference", and " Three Marlenas". ''Bringing Down the Horse'' reached number four on the ''Billboard'' 200 and went quadruple platinum, becoming the Wallflowers' highest-selling album to date. Three songs from the album were nominated for

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

s; in 1997 the Wallflowers received two nominations, both for "6th Avenue Heartache". In 1998 the band received three additional nominations; two for "One Headlight" and one for "The Difference". "One Headlight" won in both categories it was nominated in. The song was the band's most popular single, reaching number one on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Mainstream Rock, Modern Rock, and Adult top 40 charts. "One Headlight" is also listed at number 58 in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

s list of the ''100 Greatest Pop Songs''. ''Bringing Down the Horse'' was issued on vinyl for the first time as a double LP set for the album's 20th anniversary, released by Interscope/

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

, on May 13, 2016.

Background

The Wallflowers released their debut album in 1992 on

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

and subsequently parted ways with the label shortly after the album's release. The band went back to playing clubs in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in hopes of securing another record deal. In the year it took to get another deal, the Wallflowers went through a number of personnel changes; the band's bass player Barrie Maguire and drummer

Peter Yanowitz Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

both left the band in 1993. Maguire was quickly replaced by Greg Richling, but the drummer position remained open. Soon after Yanowitz's departure, the Wallflowers were noticed by

Jimmy Iovine James Iovine ( ; ; born March 11, 1953) is an American entrepreneur, record executive, and media proprietor best known as the co-founder of Interscope Records. In 2006, Iovine and rapper-producer Dr. Dre founded Beats Electronics, which produces ...

and Tom Whalley of

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...

and the band was signed to the label in 1994.

Recording

After multiple years away from the studio, the Wallflowers were ready to record. However, they encountered some difficulty in finding a producer willing to work with them. The band sent demo tapes to many producers and one ended up in the hands of

. Burnett was impressed with what he heard and agreed to produce the band. The Wallflowers entered the studio to begin recording in 1994. Much of the album was recorded in the Los Angeles area. The band's lineup heading into the studio consisted of lead singer-songwriter/rhythm guitarist

Jakob Dylan Jakob Luke Dylan (born December 9, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter. He rose to fame as the lead singer and primary songwriter for the rock band the Wallflowers. Born in New York City to musician Bob Dylan and model Sara Lownds, Dylan beg ...

, bassist Greg Richling, keyboard player

Rami Jaffee Rami Jaffee (born March 11, 1969) is an American musician. He is best known as the keyboardist for the rock band Foo Fighters, whom he initially joined in a touring and session capacity in 2005. Jaffee has contributed to six of the band's studi ...

and lead guitarist Tobi Miller. Early in the sessions, however, Miller quit the band for undisclosed reasons, though he remained on good terms with the band. This left the band without a permanent lead guitarist or drummer. Those positions were temporarily filled by drummer

Matt Chamberlain Matthew Chamberlain (born April 17, 1967) is an American session musician, drummer, producer and songwriter. Biography Life and career Chamberlain was born in San Pedro, California on April 17, 1967. He began learning how to play the drums ...

and a number of guitarists including Mike Campbell of

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. Formed in 1976, the band originally comprised lead singer and rhythm guitarist Tom Petty, lead guitarist Mike Campbell, keyboardist Benmont Tench, drummer S ...

Fred Tackett Fred Tackett (born August 30, 1945) is an American songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Originally a session player on guitar, mandolin, and trumpet, he is best known as a member of the band Little Feat. In addition to his work with Little F ...

Jay Joyce John Joseph "Jay" Joyce is an American record producer, songwriter and session musician. In the 1990s, Joyce, with Chris Feinstein and Brad Pemberton, recorded and toured as Iodine and began working as a record producer, working with artists suc ...

and Michael Ward, who would go on to become a permanent member of the group.

Music and lyrics

''Bringing Down the Horse'' further explores roots sounds heard on the band's previous self-titled album but used a more refined approach. This album features an array of instruments normally associated with roots music including

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

dobro Dobro is an American brand of resonator guitars, currently owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally ...

s and

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

s. Dylan commented on the sound of the record: Upon entering the studio, Dylan, who wrote all the songs for ''Bringing Down the Horse'', had written some songs that were ready to record but needed more to complete the album. Due to the delay between the band's first album and this album, the songwriting process was staggered. Songs for ''Bringing Down the Horse'' were written in a span of roughly 5 years. One of the earliest songs, "

", was written before the band's first album; likely around 1990. Several other songs, such as "God Don't Make Lonely Girls", were written when the band was in between labels. During recording sessions, Dylan wrote seven additional songs for the album including "

", "Bleeders", " Three Marlenas", " The Difference", "Josephine", "Invisible City", and "I Wish I Felt Nothing". On the lyrical content, Dylan stated, "Every song, fortunately or unfortunately is about feeling massively defeated, because that's what I was living." Dylan later said he wrote "I Wish I Felt Nothing" with the band's pedal steel guitarist

Leo LeBlanc Leo LeBlanc (May 27, 1939 – April 2, 1995) was an American musician. He played the pedal steel guitar and dobro, primarily playing Country music. He was legally blind and could only see a few feet. LeBlanc performed on albums by Jerry Jeff Wal ...

in mind, who was battling cancer at the time. LeBlanc had been playing with the Wallflowers for several years and was prominently featured on several songs on ''Bringing Down the Horse'', including "Invisible City" and "I Wish I Felt Nothing". He died shortly after completing the album in 1995. Upon the album's release, the Wallflowers dedicated ''Bringing Down the Horse'' to LeBlanc.

Track listing

Personnel

The Wallflowers *

– lead vocals, rhythm guitar *

–

Hammond B3 Hammond may refer to: People * Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist * Hammond (surname) * Justice Hammond (disambiguation) Places Antarctica * Hammond Glacier, Antarctica Australia *Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in South ...

organ, backing vocals, keyboards, piano *Greg Richling – bass guitar * Michael Ward – lead guitar, backing vocals (

Mario Calire Mario Calire is an American drummer, based in Los Angeles, known for his affiliations with The Wallflowers and Ozomatli and his wide-ranging freelance work. A native of Buffalo, New York, Calire moved to California when his father, the keyboard ...

is credited as drummer but does not perform on this album; he joined the band after recording and prior to release.) Additional musicians *

Tom Lord-Alge Tom Lord-Alge (born January 17, 1963) is an American music engineer and mixer. He began his career at The Hit Factory in New York. Subsequently, he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground f ...

–

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, mixing *

–

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

Jon Brion Jon Brion is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and composer. He performed with the Excerpts, the Bats, 'Til Tuesday and the Grays before becoming an established producer and film score composer. Brion has ...

– lead guitar on "One Headlight" *

Stephen Bruton Turner Stephen Bruton (November 7, 1948 – May 9, 2009) was an American actor and musician. Background Born in Wilmington, Delaware, United States, he moved with his family to Texas at the age of two. He fell into the Fort Worth music scene after ...

– background vocals on "I Wish I Felt Nothing" * Mike Campbell –

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

on "6th Avenue Heartache" *

– drums *

Adam Duritz Adam Fredric Duritz (born August 1, 1964) is an American singer, best known as the frontman for the rock band Counting Crows, of which he is a founding member and principal composer. Since its founding in 1991, Counting Crows has sold over 20 mi ...

– background vocals on "6th Avenue Heartache" *

Don Heffington Don Heffington (December 20, 1950March 24, 2021) was an American drummer, percussionist, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the Los Angeles alternative country band Lone Justice, which he performed with from 1982 to 1985. Heffington was ...

– pedal steel guitar on "I Wish I Felt Nothing", "God Don't Make Lonely Girls" and "Invisible City";

Dobro Dobro is an American brand of resonator guitars, currently owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally ...

on "One Headlight" *

Gary Louris Gary Louris (born March 10, 1955) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter of alternative country and pop music. He was a founding member of the Minneapolis-based band the Jayhawks and their principal songwriter and vocalist after the ...

– background vocals on "One Headlight" and "The Difference" * Tobi Miller *

Michael Penn Michael Daniel Penn (born August 1, 1958) is an American musician, singer and composer. He is noted for the 1989 single " No Myth", a top 20 hit in the US and successful in several other countries. Early life Penn was born in the Greenwich Vi ...

– background vocals on "Angel on my Bike" *

Sam Phillips Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, ...

– background vocals on "One Headlight" and "Laughing Out Loud" *

David Rawlings David Todd Rawlings (born December 31, 1969) is an American guitarist, singer, and record producer. He is known for his partnership with singer and songwriter Gillian Welch. He and Welch were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Son ...

Patrick Warren Patrick Warren (born March 26, 1957) is an American musician, composer, and record producer. He is known for his work on the films ''Magnolia'', ''Fifty Shades of Grey'', ''Boogie Nights'' and ''Red State'', as well as the television series '' ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications

Release history

†This version contains bonus tracks

References

{{Authority control 1996 albums Albums produced by T Bone Burnett Country rock albums by American artists Folk rock albums by American artists Interscope Records albums The Wallflowers albums