Love Tractor (1980–current) is a band from

Athens, Georgia Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta, and is a satellite city of the capital. The University of Georgia, the sta ...

, founded in spring 1980 by guitarists Mark Cline and Mike Richmond, and bassist Armistead Wellford, students at the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

. Like

The B-52's The B-52's, also styled as The B-52s, are an American new wave band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, keyboards, synth bass), Cindy Wilson (vocals, p ...

, Pylon and

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternative ...

, Love Tractor has been lauded by critics and music historians as one of the founders of the Athens, Georgia, alternative rock scene. Love Tractor toured extensively and recorded six critically acclaimed albums, consistently topping the college and alternative charts. Love Tractor was particularly known for their

instrumental rock Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes musical instruments and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental rock can be found in practically every subgenre of rock, often from musicians who specialize in the style. Instru ...

. After a return to the public eye in the late '90s, Love Tractor released their swan song, 2001's ''The Sky At Night''. The group went back on hiatus in 2002. In 2016 founding members Armistead Wellford and Mark Cline, along with

Bill Berry William Thomas Berry (born July 31, 1958) is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guitar ...

and multi-instrumentalist Douglas Stanley (of

The Glands The Glands were an American indie rock band from Athens, Georgia, United States. Their first CD, ''Double Thriller'', was self-released in 1996 and reissued on Bar/None Records in 1998. Their self-titled album was first released in 2000 on Capri ...

, who had been a major contributor to the band's 2001 album ''The Sky at Night''), released the instrumental single "A Trip To the Museum", heralding a return to the band's instrumental roots. On August 13, 2016 all original members of Love Tractor (Mark Cline, Mike Richmond, Armistead Wellford and Andrew Carter) reformed to perform at the Athens Popfest at the

Georgia Theatre Georgia Theatre is a live music venue and event space in Athens, Georgia. Many prominent national and local acts across all genres have performed at the Theatre, including rock, folk, country, indie, alternative, hip hop and electronic. The venue i ...

in Athens, Georgia. The band was accompanied on stage by guitarists Bryan Poole (

Elf Power Elf Power is an American indie rock band that originated in Athens, Georgia, United States. The line-up consists of guitarist/vocalist Andrew Rieger, keyboardist Laura Carter, guitarist Dave Wrathgabar, bassist Bryan Poole, and drummer Peter Al ...

Casper & the Cookies Casper & the Cookies is an American rock and pop band from Athens, Georgia, United States. History Multi-instrumentalist and singer Jason NeSmith (pronounced "KNEE-smith," no relation to Michael Nesmith of the Monkees), began using the pseudo ...

) and Jay Gonzalez (

Drive-By Truckers Drive-By Truckers are an American rock band based in Athens, Georgia. Two of five current members (Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley) are originally from The Shoals region of northern Alabama and met as roommates at the University of North Alabama ...

), drummer Joe Rowe (The Glands, Casper & the Cookies,

Pylon Reenactment Society Pylon Reenactment Society is an American rock band from Athens, Georgia. Since 2014, Vanessa Briscoe Hay, who was the singer of Pylon, has fronted the Pylon Reenactment Society, aka PRS, a band featuring members of more recent Athens bands like ...

), and synthesist Kevin Dunn (The Fans, Regiment of Women). This enhanced version of Love Tractor (including all three original members) continues to perform live and will be re-releasing the Love Tractor catalog on vinyl as well as previously unreleased songs and new material.

History

The band was formed in April 1980 by guitarists Mark Cline, Mike Richmond and bassist Armistead Wellford students at the

. The band played their first few gigs (including their debut on July 9 on Barber Street in Athens also known as Pylon Park) with only a drum machine, but drummers

Kit Swartz Kit Swartz was a television producer, for CNN, and he is currently a freelance photographer. He was a soundman at the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 with Cynde Strand. He was a cameraman for "Europe on the Brink", which won a 1992 CINE Golden E ...

(formerly of The Side Effects) and

(future

drummer) soon took over rotating duties as drummer. In 1983 Andrew Carter would take over as full-time drummer; after Carter's departure, John Poe of Guadalcanal Diary rounded out the lineup. Producer and studio keyboard player Alfredo Villar (of The Fans) contributed to the first two albums.Strong, Martin C. (1999) ''The Great Alternative & Indie Discography'', Canongate, Love Tractor originally performed only instrumental material, but minimal vocals from Richmond were added starting with their second album, ''Around the Bend''. In 1981 the band signed to

DB Records DB Records (stylized as DB RECS) was a record label owned by Danny Beard, active from 1978 to 1997. The label was operated out of the Wax'n'Facts record store in the Atlanta, Georgia neighborhood of Little Five Points. Through the 1980s, the ...

. Their first release was a self-titled album, produced by Bruce Baxter ( Pylon) and Alfredo Villar. 1983 saw a second album, ''Around the Bend''. While on a tour promoting that album's release,

Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' saw them at the

Danceteria Danceteria was a nightclub that operated in New York City from 1979 until 1986 and in the Hamptons until 1995. The club operated in various locations over the years, a total of three in New York City and four in the Hamptons. The most famous locati ...

; in his September 1983 review, he said:Folk-Rock: Love Tractor
a September 13, 1983 article from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

Most of Love Tractor's material moved at the steady pace of 1960's folk-rock, using winsome guitar leads above a cushion of rhythm guitar and a reassuring bass. Like instrumentals by
the Ventures The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the ...
or the
Raybeats The Raybeats were an American instrumental neo-surf rock combo from New York City that arose from the No Wave musical scene. The original line-up consisted of Don Christensen (drums), Jody Harris (guitar), Pat Irwin (guitar, saxophone, Acetone o ...
, Love Tractor's tunes use two or three recurring segments and little improvisation. But they don't repeat – they develop. Where song lyrics might have told a story, Love Tractor let the texture of the music thicken. The drumming would get busier, or the bass line pushier, or the lead guitar line more intricate; the clear, catchy melodies grew more urgent with each reprise. When a vocal would float in for a few moments, it was just one more unassuming, thoroughly melodic piece of a song.

After two albums, and a college-chart-topping cover of

Kraftwerk Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...

's "Neon Lights" (from 1984's "Till The Cows Come Home" EP), the band signed to Big Time (America)/RCA, releasing ''This Ain't No Outerspace Ship'' in 1987. After 1989's ''

Themes from Venus ''Themes from Venus'' is an album by the American band Love Tractor. It was released in 1988, and marked a return to an independent label, after the bankruptcy of RCA-affiliated Big Time Records. The band broke up after promoting the album, but re ...

,'' produced by

Mitch Easter Mitchell Blake Easter (born November 15, 1954) is a musician, songwriter, and record producer. Frequently associated with the jangle pop style of guitar music, he is known as producer of R.E.M.'s early albums from 1981 through 1984, and as frontm ...

, the band went on semi-hiatus. Wellford later joined Gutterball. The band stopped touring completely in 1992, but Cline, Richmond, and Wellford continued in Athens to write songs. Later, the original lineup recorded for

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

and

Razor and Tie Razor & Tie was an American entertainment company that consisted of a record label and a music publishing company. It was established in 1990 by Craig Balsam and Cliff Chenfeld. Based in New York City (with additional offices in Los Angeles an ...

Records. The band re-formed in 1996 as a performing entity eventually recording 2001's 'The Sky at Night' for Razor and Tie.Love Tractor plows into the future
Rock Athens March 1, 2001 Currently Love Tractor is in the middle of rereleasing their back catalog, with a new album expected in 2023.

Discography

*''Love Tractor'' (1982)

*''Around the Bend'' (1983)

*''Till the Cows Come Home'' (1984)

*''Wheel of Pleasure'' (1984) DB/Press London *''This Ain't No Outer Space Ship'' (1989) Big Time

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

*"Party Train" single (1989) Big Time

*"Athens Georgia Inside/Out" Soundtrack (1988)

IRS Records I.R.S. Records was an American record label founded by Miles Copeland III, Jay Boberg, and Carl Grasso in 1979. I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave ...

*''

'' (1988)

*''The Sky at Night'' (2001)

Razor & Tie Razor & Tie was an American entertainment company that consisted of a record label and a music publishing company. It was established in 1990 by Craig Balsam and Cliff Chenfeld. Based in New York City (with additional offices in Los Angeles an ...

*''A Trip to the Museum'' (2016) Cosmic Media Single *''"Love Tractor'' 1880 to 1920 + 200" Single HHBTM Records (2020)

References

{{Authority control Musical groups from Georgia (U.S. state) Musical groups established in 1980 Musical groups disestablished in 2002 Musical groups reestablished in 2016 1980 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)