Compulsive Gamblers were an American

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

group formed in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, in 1990 by

Greg Cartwright Greg Cartwright, also known by his stage name Greg Oblivian (born March 18, 1972), is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Memphis, Tennessee. From 2001 to 2022 he fronted Reigning Sound which was signed to Merge Records. After m ...

and

Jack Yarber Jack Yarber (born March 15, 1967), also known by his stage name Jack Oblivian, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist based in Memphis, Tennessee. He was a founding member of the garage bands The Compulsive Gamblers, and The Oblivian ...

, both future members of the

Oblivians The Oblivians are an American garage punk trio that has existed since 1993. In the 1990s, their blues-infused brand of bravado, crudely recorded music made them one of the most popular and prominent bands within the underground garage rock scene ...

History

First incarnation

Originally known as "The Painkillers", the band was founded in 1990 by future

frontmen Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber, both of whom shared vocal and guitar duties. With the addition of bassist Fields Trimble, keyboardist Philip "Flipper" Tubb, drummer Rod "Bushrod" Thomas, and fiddler Greg Easterly, the band soon adopted the name the "Compulsive Gamblers", and set to work recording their first 7-inch, '' Joker''. The album was released a year later, and was followed by two further 7-inch recordings, '' Church Goin''' and '' Goodtime Gamblers''. According to Cartwright, one of the themes of the Church Goin' 7-inch, and of the Compulsive Gamblers in general, was "the self destructive gambler, these people who just can't fix their lives and just fuck up at every turn. They need to do something. So that was the idea for "Church Goin'", but it wasn't fully realized...

The band struggled through 1990 and 1991 without any major gigs or a set band, but by the following year the band's fortunes had started to turn. By 1992 the band had a concrete lineup and had begun to form a unique sound, however, just as the Gamblers luck seemed to be looking up the band began to drift apart. In 1993 Cartwright was offered a place to stay and record in New York with singer Casey Scott, which for a time he accepted. Cartwright played guitar on Casey Scott's "Creep City" album that was released on Capitol Records in 1993. Around this time the other members of the band began to venture off on their own as well, leaving only Yarber and Easterly to try to keep the band afloat. Upon Cartwright's return to Memphis in the summer of 1993, he and Yarber decided to split their time between the Gamblers and a side project called the

By 1995, Thomas and Easterly had relocated to New Orleans, and Cartwright and Yarber focused their creative efforts solely on the Oblivians, resulting in the ultimate breakup of the first incarnation of the Gamblers. Label interest for the Compulsive Gamblers had always been fleeting, and the band was unable to garner much interest while the band was still together. As Yarber explained, the Compulsive Gamblers “did two 7-inches and recorded a bunch of songs on home recordings. We recorded in Easley McCain Recording, Easley (Recording studio), but we never really had an album...our CD came out after The Oblivians started playing.�

Eventually their 7" recordings were compiled in LP format under the title '' Gambling Days are Over'' and released by

Sympathy for the Record Industry Sympathy for the Record Industry (also known as Sympathy Records or Sympathy 4 the R.I.) is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by Long Gone John. The first Sympathy release was the Lazy Cowgirls' ''Radio Cowgirl'' LP ...

Second incarnation

After the breakup of the Oblivians, Cartwright and Yarber reformed the Compulsive Gamblers, this time as a three-piece with Rod Thomas back on drums. With this lineup they released the album '' Bluff City (Album), Bluff City'' in 1999. Bassist Jeff Meier and keyboardist Brendan Lee Spengler were added to the lineup following a European tour, and in this incarnation the band released the studio album ''

Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing ''Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing'' is the third and final studio album by The Compulsive Gamblers. The album was released June 20, 2000 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album's lineup consisted of Gamblers mainstays Greg Cartwright and Jack ...

'' and the live album '' Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago'', their final release before again disbanding

Line ups

Compulsive Gamblers I: (1991–1993, first three singles and "Gambling Days Are Over") Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals Bushrod Thomas: drums Fields Trimble: bass Greg Easterly: violin Compulsive Gamblers II: (after The Oblivians broke up, 1998, Bluff City LP/CD) Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals Bushrod Thomas: drums Compulsive Gamblers III: (Spring 1999 US Tour) Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals Jeff Meier: bass Bushrod Thomas: drums Compulsive Gamblers IV: (After the Spring 1999 US Tour, ''Crystal Gazing, Luck Amazing'' LP/CD) Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals Jeff Meier: bass Brenden Lee Spengler: organ Dale Beavers: guitar Other former Members: Greg Roberson (also former member of Reigning Sound) played on the ''Live & Deadly'' LP (Sympathy).

Discography

Singles

* "Joker" (Boiler Room, 1992, BR 001) * "Church Goin'" (Lemon Peel Records, 1992, LP001 - LP002) * "Goodtime Gamblers" (Boiler Room, 1995, BR 002)

Albums

* '' Gambling Days are Over'' (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 1995, SFTRI 372) * '' Bluff City (Album), Bluff City'' (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 1999, SFTRI 570) * ''

'' (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 2000, SFTRI 572) * '' Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago'' (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 2003, SFTRI 698)

References

* Demming, Mark
The Compulsive Gamblers: Biography
CMT. "www.cmt.com". Accessed May 19, 2007. * Mercury, M

"www.littlecrackedegg.com". Accessed May 22, 2007. * Tupica, Rich

"turn-it-down.blogspot.com". June 1, 2007. Accessed June 28, 2007. {{Authority control Punk blues musical groups Musical groups from Memphis, Tennessee Garage rock groups from Tennessee