Song:Settle Down Like Rain
Album:Hollywood Town Hall
I guess The Jayhawks were pioneers in what would become the alt country movement of the 90s. They were able to get on a major label and built a fanbase from there. The Jayhawks are from Minneapolis. in 1985, Marc Olson was in the rockabilly band Stagger Lee. But he left the group and went solo after recruiting bassist Marc Perlman and drummer Norm Rogers. Gary Louris attended his first gig and approached Olson afterwards. Louris had been in bands like Safety Last and Schnauzer. The Jayhawks were formed that night and Olson, Louris and Perlman have been together ever since. The Jayhawks started performing locally and released an album independently in 1988. They were forced to go on hiatus when Louris was seriously injured in a car accident. But he returned in 1989 and the local label Twin/Tone released some of their demos as Blue Earth. Ken Callahan was the drummer during this time. The story goes that Twin/Tone president Dave Ayers was on the phone with Def American Records A & R head George Drakoulias and Blue Earth was playing in the background. Drakoulias asked Ayers about the music and The Jayhawks signed with Def American. The 1992 album Hollywood Town Hall was their major label debut. It got a lot of positive reviews and sold well. It opened up The Jayhawks to a wider audience. Olson left The Jayhawks in 1995 and was replaced by Tim O'Reagan. The Jayhawks seemed to split up after the 2003 CD Rainy Day Music which was their final album for Def American. But Louris and Olson toured together in 2005 and in 2009 The Jayhawks officially reformed. They signed with Rounder Records and released the CD Mockingbird Time in 2011. There are rumours that they may split up again. Sony released a Jayhawks comp CD in 2009. It is out of print but Hollywood Town Hall is available as a budget CD. Louris and Olson have also recorded solo. Here's the video for Settle Down Like Rain by The Jayhawks.
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