Robbie Fulks
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Robert "Robbie" Fulks (born March 25, 1963) is an American
alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...
singer-songwriter, instrumentalist and long-time
Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
resident. He has released 13 albums over a career spanning more than 30 years. His 2016 record ''
Upland Stories ''Upland Stories'' is an album by American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on April 1, 2016 on Bloodshot Records. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Upland Stories'' was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at ...
'' was nominated for a
Grammy 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 pre ...
for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at Night" was nominated for a Grammy for
Best American Roots Song The Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song is an award category at the annual Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the American Roots Music ...
.


Early life

Fulks was born in
York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, the son of a school teacher father. He grew up small towns in southeastern
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, the
Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States, and extends 550 miles southwest from southern Pennsylvania through Maryland, West Virgin ...
area of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, and the Piedmont region of North Carolina. Fulks' family moved often when he was young, until they eventually settled in North Carolina when he was 12. Fulks considers North Carolina his childhood home. Fulks has a younger brother named Jubal. Fulks was exposed to music through his family, where everyone played a different instrument, from his Aunt Stella on banjo, his Aunt Mildred on violin, his mother on autoharp to his father playing guitar. Through this immersion, Fulks picked up his aunt's banjo when he was six and started playing guitar at age 11. In 1980, he graduated from
Carolina Friends School Carolina Friends School is an independent, co-educational Quaker school located in Durham, North Carolina. It enrolls students from age 3 and pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The school was founded in 1962 by members of the Durham Friends M ...
. In 1980 at the age of 17, Fulks moved to New York City and attended
Columbia College, Columbia University Columbia College is the oldest undergraduate college of Columbia University, situated on the university's main campus in Morningside Heights in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded by the Church of England in 1754 as King' ...
with the class of 1984.


Career

While at Columbia University, Fulks often played at Gerdes Folk City and other places in the Greenwich Village. He also performed on campus in places such as the
Postcrypt Coffeehouse Postcrypt Coffeehouse is an all-acoustic music venue in the basement of St. Paul's Chapel at Columbia University in New York City, run completely by students. Founded in 1964, Postcrypt has hosted many up-and-coming folk musicians, including Jeff ...
. He eventually dropped out of college after two years to pursue music full time.


Chicago

Fulks moved to Chicago in 1983, and shortly after started teaching at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. In 1987, he joined
The Special Consensus The Special Consensus is an acoustic bluegrass group led by banjoist Greg Cahill.http://specialc.com Biography History In 1973, graduate student Cahill jammed with other bluegrass musicians at the University of Chicago Folk Festival. They began ...
Bluegrass Band, where he showcased his unique guitar flatpicking. In the early 1990s, he performed in the musical ''Woody Guthrie's American Song''. Meanwhile, he recorded his original compositions. Steve Albini engineered many of his early tracks, and the Chicago punk-country label Bloodshot Records began releasing them in 1993.


Nashville

While living in Chicago, Fulks worked for four years as a country songwriter, mainly for Music Row publisher API. Fulks' solo debut, ''Country Love Songs'', was released on Bloodshot Records in 1996 to positive reviews. The album was engineered by Steve Albini. The Skeletons, members of whom later formed the band
The Morells The Morells are an American rock band from Springfield, Missouri. They released an album titled ''Shake and Push'' in 1982. The band's members have included bassist and producer Lou Whitney, guitarist D. Clinton Thompson, keyboardists Kelly Brow ...
, played on much of the record. Tom Brumley and Buck Owens are also featured. It was followed by 1997's ''South Mouth'', which cemented Fulks' retro-alternative image. As fans had grown used to his rough and sparse sound, many were shocked by the release of Fulks' third album, 1998's ''Let's Kill Saturday Night'', on Geffen Records. Fulks recorded it during the spring of 1998 in Nashville with producer Rick Will. The record includes performances by Lucinda Williams,
Sam Bush Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American mandolinist who is considered an originator of progressive bluegrass music. In 2020, he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as a member of New Grass Revival. ...
, Bill Lloyd, and Al Anderson as well as guitarist Rob Gjersoe (
Jimmie Dale Gilmore Jimmie Dale Gilmore (born May 6, 1945) is an American country singer, songwriter, actor, recording artist and producer, currently living in Austin, Texas. Life and career Gilmore is a native of the Texas Panhandle, having been born in Amarillo ...
), bassist Lorne Rall, and drummer Dan Massey. When Geffen disbanded shortly after the release of the record, Fulks found himself without a label, so he started his own company, Boondoggle Records. He released an album of previously unreleased material called ''The Very Best of Robbie Fulks''. He often licenses his music for distribution by Bloodshot.


Output

2001 saw the release of ''Couples in Trouble'', a dark, brooding, and decidedly non-country album, and ''13 Hillbilly Giants'', a collection of covers of classic country numbers both obscure and well known. Both records were released by Bloodshot Records. Also in 2001, Fulks was an inaugural member of the judging panel for the Independent Music Awards, which supports independent artists. Fulks would not release another album until 2005. ''Georgia Hard'' on Yep Roc Records shows a return to his county roots. The album was notable for its use of long-time Nashville talent like Lloyd Green, Hank Singer, Dennis Crouch,
Dallas Wayne Dallas Wayne (born 1956) is a singer, songwriter, voice-over artist and on-air radio personality for SiriusXM Satellite Radio. A native of Springfield, Missouri, he grew up in Branson, Missouri and Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Dallas began performing ...
. He gained attention for a novelty single he wrote called "Fountains of Wayne Hotline," in which he imagined the power pop band Fountains of Wayne as having a hotline that struggling songwriters could call for help with their song structure. In April 2007, Fulks released a 2-CD album ''Revenge!'' (also on Yep Roc) of mainly of live concert recordings of older songs, but including some new material. One disc, labeled ''Standing'' features a full-band sound, while the second disc, ''Sitting,'' consists of Fulks with little or no musical accompaniment. ''Standing'' opens with the tongue-in-cheek studio track "We're on the Road", which describes life on tour and simulates a telephone call to Fulks from Yep Roc Records President Glenn Dicker, demanding a new record and denigrating the sales performance of the "path-breaking, not chart-breaking" album ''Georgia Hard.'' In 2009, Fulks self-released a 50-song, alphabetically organized mass of songs via his website, a compilation called ''50-Vc. Doberman.'' Fulks notes that this method, and electronic-only release in general, is not typical of musicians that work in his genre. In 2010, Fulks released his album ''Happy: Robbie Fulks Plays the Music of Michael Jackson'' via Yep Roc Records, in which he covered a group of Jackson's songs as a tribute to the recently deceased musician. He had been working on the record since 2005. In 2013, Fulks released ''Gone Away Backwards,'' which was recorded and mixed by Steve Albini. It was released on Bloodshot Records, his first release on that label since 2001's ''13 Hillbilly Giants.'' The album features banjo, mandolin, fiddle, and upright bass. "That's Where I'm From" is a song Fulks cites as being autobiographical. Four songs from ''50-Vc. Doberman'' were the genesis of ''Gone Away Backwards.'' The title of the record comes from the
Book of Isaiah The Book of Isaiah ( he, ספר ישעיהו, ) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Major Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BC ...
in The Bible. ''Gone Away Backwards'' is an acoustic record that goes back to his roots as a musician, Fulks says. He comments that the stylistic choice was a good fit with the musicians that appear on the recording: Robbie Gjersoe, Jenny Scheinman, and Mike Bubb. They recorded live without using any overdubbing or elaborate production around 25 songs over the course of three days. In 2014, Fulks joined some members of The Mekons, dubbed "mini-Mekons", on a trip to write and record on the island of Jura in Scotland. The resulting record, ''Jura'', was released in November 2015 and is made up of original songs written on the trip as well as traditional songs. In April 2016, Fulks released a new record, ''
Upland Stories ''Upland Stories'' is an album by American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on April 1, 2016 on Bloodshot Records. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Upland Stories'' was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at ...
.'' The album was nominated for a 2017 Grammy Award for best folk album, while the album's opening track, "Alabama at Night", was nominated for best American roots song.


Musical style

As a songwriter Fulks is difficult to categorize. Nathan Rabin of A.V. Club says he "has a genius for twisting and subverting country tropes," and "there's more to Fulks than tomfoolery and glibly satirical lyrics." Many of his compositions are silly, funny or spoof songs, such as "Godfrey" ("the sickly, unemployed, amateur children's magician") on the compilation children's album ''The Bottle Let Me Down'', while others are serious country songs. His music is widely described as either alternative country or folk. Fulks' songwriting often includes humor. Peter Applebome of ''The New York Times'' describes his work as "one part artful country, one part artful sendup of country, and one part a little of everything else." Fulks has an encyclopedic knowledge of country and pop music, and has produced a critically lauded tribute to Johnny Paycheck called ''Touch My Heart: A Tribute to Johnny Paycheck'' that was released by
Sugar Hill Records Sugar Hill Records is an American bluegrass and Americana record label. It was founded in Durham, North Carolina in 1978 by Barry Poss and David Freeman, the owner of County Records and Rebel Records. Poss acquired full control of Sugar Hil ...
in 2004. He considers himself adventurous, and is always willing to try new things and experiment. "Why not push the envelope and see what you are capable of doing rather than recycle the same old ideas over and over again," he said. His musicianship has been called "impeccable". Jim Fusilli of the ''Wall Street Journal'' suggests that "a world in which Fulks isn't a household name is somehow upside down." Fulks often plays at The Hideout, a bar and club in Chicago, and has done long-term residencies there. While there, Fulks performs anything from current popular hits to jazz to obscure country masterpieces. He says he rarely performs his own compositions at these shows, preferring to explore other music that has caught his attention at the time. His live performances feature improvised rearrangements of his original songs, off-the-cuff musical humor, and covers of songs by Michael Jackson,
Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
, Shania Twain, The Bangles, among others. Fulks has co-written with
Dallas Wayne Dallas Wayne (born 1956) is a singer, songwriter, voice-over artist and on-air radio personality for SiriusXM Satellite Radio. A native of Springfield, Missouri, he grew up in Branson, Missouri and Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Dallas began performing ...
, NRBQ's Al Anderson, to name a few. Fulks has a long-time association with engineer Steve Albini (
Big Black Big Black was an American punk rock band from Evanston, Illinois, active from 1981 to 1987. Founded by singer and guitarist Steve Albini, the band's initial lineup also included guitarist Santiago Durango and bassist Jeff Pezzati, both of Nake ...
, Shellac).


Personal life

Fulks has three children, sons Nick, Preston, and Tennessee, and one grandson, Logan. His wife is actress Donna Jay Fulks. Fulks' oldest son, Nick Fulks, and father-in-law, Donald Jerousek, were contestants on season 12 of ''
The Amazing Race ''The Amazing Race'' is an adventure reality game show franchise in which teams of two people race around the world in competition with other teams. The ''Race'' is split into legs, with teams tasked to deduce clues, navigate themselves in forei ...
.'' They placed third.


Awards

* 2016:
Grammy 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 pre ...
nomination, Best Folk Album, for ''
Upland Stories ''Upland Stories'' is an album by American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on April 1, 2016 on Bloodshot Records. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Upland Stories'' was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at ...
'' * 2016:
Grammy 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 pre ...
nomination,
Best American Roots Song The Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song is an award category at the annual Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the American Roots Music ...
, for "Alabama at Night" on ''
Upland Stories ''Upland Stories'' is an album by American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on April 1, 2016 on Bloodshot Records. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Upland Stories'' was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at ...
''


Discography


Solo records

*1996: '' Country Love Songs'' ( Bloodshot) *1997: ''South Mouth'' (Bloodshot) *1998: ''Let's Kill Saturday Night'' ( Geffen) *2000: '' The Very Best of Robbie Fulks'' (Bloodshot) *2001: ''Couples in Trouble'' (Boondoggle) *2001: ''13 Hillbilly Giants'' (Bloodshot) *2004: ''Live at Double Door 1/16/04'' (EMusic Live) *2005: ''
Georgia Hard ''Georgia Hard'' is the sixth studio album by the American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on May 17, 2005 on Yep Roc Records. Critical reception ''Georgia Hard'' received mainly favorable reviews from critics. For instance, Robert Christ ...
'' (
Yep Roc Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Nick Lowe, Paul W ...
) *2007: ''Revenge!'' (Yep Roc Records) *2009: ''50 Vc. Doberman'' 50 song digital release (Boondoggle) *2010: ''Happy: Robbie Fulks Plays the Music of Michael Jackson'' (Boondoggle)/(Yep Roc) *2013: ''Gone Away Backward'' (Bloodshot) *2016: ''
Upland Stories ''Upland Stories'' is an album by American country musician Robbie Fulks, released on April 1, 2016 on Bloodshot Records. It was produced by Steve Albini. ''Upland Stories'' was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album and the song "Alabama at ...
'' (Bloodshot) *2018: ''Revenge of the Doberman'' 53 song digital release (Self-released) *2019: ''16'' (Bloodshot)


Contributions, collaborations

* 1994: "Cigarette State" – ''For a Life of Sin: A Compilation of Insurgent Chicago Country'' (Bloodshot) * 1995: "She Took a Lot of Pills (and Died)" – ''Hell-Bent: Insurgent Country Volume 2'' (Bloodshot) * 1997: "Wedding of the Bugs" (studio version) – ''Straight Outta Boone County: Cowboy Songs, Home Songs, Western Songs, Mountain Songs'' (Bloodshot) * 1998: "Across the Alley from the Alamo" – ''The Pine Valley Cosmonauts
Salute the Majesty of Bob Wills Salute the Majesty of Bob Wills is a tribute album by the Pine Valley Cosmonauts, released on September 8, 1998, on Bloodshot Records. It consists of the Pine Valley Cosmonauts' covers of songs originally performed and written by legendary western ...
: The King of Western Swing'' (Bloodshot) * 1999: "Call of the Wrecking Ball" – ''Poor Little Knitter on the Road: A Tribute to The Knitters'' (Bloodshot) * 2000: "Bloodshot's Turning 5" – ''Down to the Promised Land: 5 Years of Bloodshot Records'' (Bloodshot) * 2002: "Godfrey" – ''The Bottle Let Me Down: Songs for Bumpy Wagon Rides'' (Bloodshot) * 2004: "Tears at the Grand Ol' Opry" – ''Hard-Headed Woman: A Celebration of Wanda Jackson'' (Bloodshot) * 2004: "Shakin' The Blues" (with Gail Davies) – ''Touch My Heart: a Tribute to Johnny Paycheck'' (
Sugar Hill Records Sugar Hill Records is an American bluegrass and Americana record label. It was founded in Durham, North Carolina in 1978 by Barry Poss and David Freeman, the owner of County Records and Rebel Records. Poss acquired full control of Sugar Hil ...
); Fulks produced this record also * 2006: "Browns Ferry Blues" – ''Old Town School Songbook: Volume One'' (Bloodshot) * 2006: "Dirty-Mouthed Flo" (live) – ''Bloodied But Unbowed: Bloodshot Records' Life In The Trenches'' (DVD) (Bloodshot) * 2006: "Dirty-Mouthed Flo" (live) – ''Bloodied But Unbowed: The Soundtrack'' (Bloodshot) * 2014: "
Sally G "Sally G" is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney and performed by Paul McCartney and Wings. It was released as the B-side to the single "Junior's Farm" in October 1974. Writing, recording and release McCartney composed the song during Wing ...
" ( Paul McCartney cover) – ''More Super Hits Of The Seventies'' (Mike-Shell) WFMU fundraiser CD * 2015: ''Jura'' with the mini-
Mekons The Mekons are a British band formed in the late 1970s as an art collective. They are one of the longest-running and most prolific of the first-wave British punk rock bands. The band's style has evolved over time to incorporate aspects of ...
(Bloodshot) – Record Store Day vinyl-only release on Black Friday; subsequently in general release * 2018: ''Wild! Wild! Wild!'' with
Linda Gail Lewis Linda Gail Lewis (born July 18, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and pianist. She has recorded with Stephen Ackles, Van Morrison, and with her brother, Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an A ...
(Bloodshot) * 2019: "Lonely Ain’t Hardly Alive" - ''Too Late to Pray: Defiant Chicago Roots'' (Bloodshot)


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fulks, Robbie American alternative country singers American country singer-songwriters Singers from Chicago Living people 1963 births People from Wilmette, Illinois Bloodshot Records artists Country musicians from Illinois Yep Roc Records artists Geffen Records artists Singer-songwriters from Illinois Columbia College (New York) alumni