Golden Smog is an alternative country-

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

supergroup of loosely connected musicians mostly from the

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

area. At various times, members of

Soul Asylum Soul Asylum is an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their 1993 hit "Runaway Train" won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. The band was originally called Loud Fast Rules, with a lineup consisting of Dav ...

, The Replacements,

Wilco Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently d ...

The Jayhawks The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and country rock band that emerged from the Twin Cities music scene in the mid-1980s. Led by vocalists/guitarists/songwriters Gary Louris and Mark Olson, their country rock sound was influential ...

, Run Westy Run,

The Honeydogs The Honeydogs is a band from Saint Paul, Minnesota that opened at First Avenue in 1994. History The band's popularity grew after signing with record label Mercury Records, and their major label debut album '' Seen a Ghost'' in 1997.Horak, Ter ...

and

Big Star Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1971 by Alex Chilton (vocals, guiar), Chris Bell (vocals, guitar), Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). The group broke up in early 1975, and reorganized with a ne ...

have worked with Golden Smog. Given the fluid collaborative nature of Golden Smog the lineup has often changed, but relative constants who appear on all the recordings are guitarists Kraig Johnson (Run Westy Run), Dan Murphy (Soul Asylum) and

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 ...

(The Jayhawks), along with bassist

Marc Perlman The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and country rock band that emerged from the Twin Cities music scene in the mid-1980s. Led by vocalists/guitarists/songwriters Gary Louris and Mark Olson, their country rock sound was influentia ...

(The Jayhawks). The group took their name from a nickname given to

Fred Flintstone Fred Flintstone is the main character of the animated sitcom '' The Flintstones'', which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960 to 1966. Fred is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles Flintsto ...

in ''

The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...

'' episode "Hot Lips Hannigan", which, in turn, was a parody of singer Mel Tormé's nickname (The Velvet Fog).

History

Pre-history: The Take It To The Limit Band (1987) and Her Satanic Majesty's Paycheck (1989)

The definitive beginning of Golden Smog is hard to pinpoint given the mercurial nature of the band's lineup. However, some claim that the group that would evolve into Golden Smog debuted in January 1987, when a band billed as "The Take It To The Limit Band" played an (almost) all-

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...

cover show at the Uptown Bar in

. This band consisted of Dan Murphy and

Dave Pirner David Anthony Pirner (born April 16, 1964) is an American songwriter, singer, and producer best known as the lead vocalist and frontman for the alternative rock band Soul Asylum. Early life and work Pirner was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin and gr ...

(both of Soul Asylum), Jim Boquist (later of

Son Volt Son Volt is an American rock band formed in 1994 by Jay Farrar after the breakup of Uncle Tupelo. The band's current line-up consists of Farrar (vocals, guitar), Andrew DuPlantis (bass guitar), John Horton (guitar), Mark Patterson (drums), and Ma ...

), and

Martin Zellar Martin Zellar (born June 14, 1963) is a Minnesota-based musician and songwriter. Martin Zellar is the brother of writer Brad Zellar. Early career Zellar grew up in Austin, Minnesota. While still in high school, Zellar formed his first band, ...

( Gear Daddies). The show ended with a cover of then Bangles hit song "

Walk Like an Egyptian "Walk Like an Egyptian" is a song recorded by the American band the Bangles. It was released in 1986 as the third single from the album ''Different Light''. It was the band's first number one single, being certified gold by the RIAA, and became ...

." This same group later played a Rolling Stones-themed show in 1989 under the band name "Her Satanic Majesty's Paycheck."

First incarnation (1989–1998)

The group first came together under the name "Golden Smog" in the

area in 1989. The band was conceived as a country-rock reaction to the

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

music that dominated the Twin Cities' musical scene at the time. Eventually Golden Smog became something of a fixture at local clubs, where they would play a handful of shows annually, consisting almost entirely of cover songs. Membership in the early days of the band was loose and fluid, but in 1992, Dan Murphy and Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum, Gary Louris and Marc Perlman of The Jayhawks, Kraig Johnson of Run Westy Run, and drummer Chris Mars (of The Replacements) released Golden Smog's first CD, a covers EP entitled '' On Golden Smog''. All of the band members were credited under pseudonyms for this release as a result of contractual obligations to other record companies. Over the next few years, members of Golden Smog began adding original material to the group's repertoire, although cover songs would continue to be featured in concert and on record throughout their career. In 1995, the group released its full-length debut, '' Down by the Old Mainstream'' (recorded at Pachyderm Recording Studio), consisting of mostly original songs, with a handful of covers. By this time, Mars had left Golden Smog and the band consisted of Johnson, Murphy, Louris, and Perlman, along with two new members: Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy and Honeydogs drummer Noah Levy. As with the band's debut EP, all of the band members were credited under pseudonyms (which consisted of their middle names and the names of the streets where they grew up) as performers—although they all used their real names in the writing credits. At a New Year's Eve show in 1996/97

Jody Stephens Jody Stephens (born October 4, 1952) is an American drummer, who has played in Big Star (with Alex Chilton of the Box Tops) and Golden Smog (with members of the Jayhawks and Wilco). After the deaths of Chris Bell in 1978, and both Alex Chilto ...

(of

) took over for Noah on the drums, and subsequently became a full band member. Golden Smog then released their second full-length studio album ''

Weird Tales ''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, pri ...

'' in 1998, with all band members credited under their real names as both writers and performers.

Second incarnation (2005–2007)

After a period of inactivity, in 2005 a new incarnation of Golden Smog formed and recorded the ''

Another Fine Day ''Another Fine Day'' is Golden Smog's third full-length album. It was released on July 18, 2006. It reached number 95 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Background Golden Smog's lineup was chiefly made up of Kraig Johnson (Run Westy Run), Dan Murph ...

'' album in the village of

El Puerto de Santa María EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

, Spain, produced by Paco Loco. At this point the band consisted of Johnson, Louris, Murphy and Perlman; guest performers on several tracks included Tweedy, Spanish female vocalist Muni Camón, drummers

Linda Pitmon Linda Pitmon is an American drummer known for her work with the supergroups The Baseball Project and the Filthy Friends. Pitmon played percussion in band and orchestra in high school. She suffered from rheumatoid arthritis and drumming was a he ...

and Jody Stephens, and multi-instrumentalist

Ed Ackerson Ed Ackerson (July 18, 1965 – October 4, 2019) was an American musician and producer from Minneapolis. He produced or engineered dozens of records including works by prominent artists such as The Jayhawks, The Replacements, Motion City Soundtra ...

. In the summer of 2006, the Johnson/Louris/Murphy/Perlman version of Golden Smog undertook a concert tour, augmented by a touring keyboardist and drummer. This same line-up of the band then issued '' Blood on the Slacks'' in 2007; with no permanent drummer, various drummers filled the position on this disc, including Pitmon, Ackerson, Peter Anderson and even Marc Perlman.

Third incarnation (2019-2022)

Golden Smog reunited on July 12, 2019 to play a small "surprise" performance celebrating Dan Murphy's 57th birthday. This show marked Murphy's first public musical performance since his retirement from Soul Asylum in 2012. Murphy was joined onstage by Johnson, Louris, and Perlman as well as Miles Zuniga of the band

Fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. " Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thr ...

. A performance was scheduled for April 4, 2020, at First Avenue in Minneapolis. This show was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns. The band is now scheduled to reunite at First Avenue on April 2, 2022 with Jeff Tweedy and Jody Stephens both rejoining the band.

Discography

EPs

* '' On Golden Smog'' (1992) – A covers EP.

Albums

* '' Down by the Old Mainstream'' (1995) * ''

'' (1998) * ''

'' (2006) * '' Blood on the Slacks'' (2007)

Compilation albums

* ''Stay Golden, Smog: The Best Of Golden Smog—The Rykodisc Years'' (2008)

Compilation appearances

*"Shooting Star" (From ''On Golden Smog'') on the ''

Clerks A clerk is someone who works in an office. A retail clerk works in a store. Office holder Clerk(s) may also refer to a person who holds an office, most commonly in a local unit of government, or a court. *Barristers' clerk, a manager and adminis ...

'' soundtrack (1994) *"Prison Wife" on ''Minnesota Modern Rock: The Pachyderm Sessions'', (1995). Previously unreleased song *"Looking Forward to Seeing You" (From ''Weird Tales'') on the ''

Alt.Country Exposed Roots ''Alt.Country Exposed Roots'' was a 2 disc compilation released in 1999. Track listing Disc 1 # Lucinda Williams - "Passionate Kisses" (Lucinda Williams) - 2:39 # Blue Mountain - "Blue Canoe" ( Blue Mountain) - 4:42 # Gillian Welch - "My ...

'' compilation album (1999) *"Looking Forward to Seeing You" (From ''Weird Tales'') on the ''Rykodisc 20th Anniversary'' compilation album (2004)

References

External links

Official MySpace Page For Stay Golden, Smog: The Best Of Golden Smog -- The Rykodisc Years
*
Country Standard Time
Feature story and reviews of Golden Smog {{Authority control Rock music groups from Minnesota Musical collectives Rykodisc artists Lost Highway Records artists American supergroups Musical groups established in 1989 Wilco Musical groups from the Twin Cities