Cracker (band) 42647 224904678 2008-07-10T22:50:07Z 79.28.28.50 /* Former members */ {{References|date=February 2008}} '''Cracker''' is an [[United States|American]] [[alternative rock]] band featuring [[Johnny Hickman]] and [[Camper Van Beethoven]] singer and guitarist [[David Lowery]]. They are best known for the hit songs "Low," "Eurotrash Girl," "Get Off This" and "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)". In 1993, Cracker contributed the song "[[Good Times Bad Times]]" to the ''[[Encomium (album)|Encomium]]'' tribute album to [[Led Zeppelin]] (which was recorded after their rendition of "[[When the Levee Breaks]]" was deemed "too weird"). Cracker mixes influences and sounds ranging from classic [[country music]], [[psychedelia]], [[punk rock|punk]] and [[folk music|folk]] into their brand of "Americana" style [[Rock music|rock]]. == Experiences == Shortly after Camper Van Beethoven called it quits in 1990, Lowery began demoing material along with guitarist [[Johnny Hickman]] and bassist [[Davey Faragher]], eventually going by the name Cracker. By 1991, the newly formed band had signed a recording contract with [[Virgin Records]] and enlisted the help of several drummers/percussionists ([[Jim Keltner]], [[Rick Jaeger]],Michael Urbano and [[Phil Jones]]), issuing their self-titled debut in 1992, which featured radio hit "Teen Angst," which peaked at #1 on [[Modern Rock Tracks]]. A year later, Cracker issued their best-known album, ''[[Kerosene Hat]]'', which spawned the hit "Low." Drummer Michael Urbano performed on Kerosene Hat and toured with Cracker before leaving the band with bassist Davey Faragher. Three years later, ''[[The Golden Age (album)|The Golden Age]]'' was released, with "I Hate My Generation" as the lead single. However, the music scene was shifting away from guitar-driven alternative rock, and the single and album did poorly. The band tried again in 1998 with ''[[Gentleman's Blues]]'' featuring "The Good Life" as the lead single, but again the album sold poorly. A compilation called ''[[Garage D'Or]]'' was released in 2000, with one disc of "greatest hits" and three new songs, and another with outtakes, soundtrack contributions, demos and other obscurities. In 2002, the band released another studio album, ''[[Forever (Cracker album)|Forever]]'' which, once again, was met with limited commercial and critical success. Cracker's auxiliary personnel underwent numerous changes during the late '90s and early 2000s. The group left Virgin in 2003 with the independent release ''Countrysides''. A collaboration with [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]] band [[Leftover Salmon]], ''[[Oh Cracker, Where Art Thou? (album)|Oh Cracker, Where Art Thou?]]'' (2003), contained bluegrass versions of old Cracker songs. The band's most recent [[studio]] album ''Greenland'' was released on [[June 6]], [[2006]], and despite slow sales, was embraced by the band's fans as a return to form, and is largely considered their best record since ''[[Kerosene Hat]]''. == Current members == * [[David Lowery]] - Guitar/Vocals (1990-Present) * [[Johnny Hickman]] - Lead Guitar (1990-Present) * [[Frank Funaro]] - Drums (1996-Present) * [[Kenny Margolis]] - Keyboards, Accordion (1996-Present) * [[Sal Maida]] - [[Bass guitar|Bass]] (2006-Present) == Former members == * [[Davey Faragher]] - Bass (1990-1993) Michael Urbano - Drums (1992-1993 * [[Bob Rupe]] - Bass (1994-2000) * [[Brandy Wood]] - Bass (2000-2004) * [[Victor Krummenacher]] - Bass (2004-2006) * [[Joe Frezza]] - Guitar (1996-1997) * [[Johnny Hottsman]] - Drums (1994-1996)Drums * [[David Lovering]] - Drums == Discography == ===Albums=== * ''[[Cracker (album)|Cracker]]'' (1992) (#10 on the Heatseekers Hot 100) * ''[[Kerosene Hat]]'' (1993) (Gold) (#59 on the Billboard 200, #1 on the Heatseekers Hot 100) * ''[[The Golden Age (album)|The Golden Age]]'' (1996) (#63 0n the Billboard 200) * ''[[Gentleman's Blues]]'' (1998) * ''[[Garage D'Or]]'' (2000) * ''[[Forever (Cracker album)|Forever]]'' (2002) * ''[[O' Cracker Where Art Thou?]]'' (2003) * ''[[Countrysides]]'' (2003) * ''[[Greenland (album)|Greenland]]'' (2006) ===Singles & EPs=== * "Tucson" (1993) * "Low" (1993) * "Get Off This" (1994) * "[[Euro-Trash Girl]]" (1994) * "I Hate My Generation" (1996) * "Nothing To Believe In" (1996) * "The Good Life" (1998) * "The World Is Mine" (1998) * "Shine" (2002) * "Merry Christmas, Emily" (2002) * "Something You Ain't Got" (2006) * "Give Me One More Chance" (2006) * "Everybody Gets One For Free" (2006) ===Charting Songs=== {| class="wikitable" !rowspan="2"|'''Year''' !rowspan="2"| '''Title''' !colspan="4"| '''Chart positions''' !rowspan="2"| '''Album''' |- |<small>[[Billboard Hot 100|U.S. Hot 100]]</small> |<small>[[Modern Rock Tracks|U.S. Modern Rock]]</small> |<small>[[Mainstream Rock Tracks|U.S. Mainstream Rock]]</small> |<small>[[UK Singles Chart]]</small> |- | [[1992 in music|1992]] | "[[Happy Birthday to Me (song)| Happy Birthday to Me]]" ! - ! 13 ! - ! - ! ''[[Cracker (album)|Cracker]]'' |- | [[1992 in music|1992]] | "[[Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)]]" ! ! ''1'' ! 27 ! ! ''[[Cracker (album)|Cracker]]'' |- | [[1993 in music| 1993]] | "[[Low (Cracker song)|Low]]" ! 64 ! 3 ! 5 ! ! ''[[Kerosene Hat]]'' |- | [[1994 in music| 1994]] | "[[Euro-Trash Girl]]" ! ! 25 ! ! ! ''[[Kerosene Hat]]'' |- | [[1994 in music| 1994]] | "[[Get Off This]]" ! ! 6 ! 18 ! ! ''[[Kerosene Hat]]'' |- | [[1996 in music| 1996]] | "[[I Hate My Generation]]" ! ! 13 ! 24 ! ! "[[The Golden Age]]" |- | [[1996 in music| 1996]] | "[[Nothing to Believe in]]" ! ! 32 ! 40 ! ! "[[The Golden Age]]" |- | [[1996 in music| 1996]] | "[[Sweet Thistle Pie]]" ! ! ! 33 ! ! "[[The Golden Age]]" |} '''Compilations''': * ''[[The Virgin Years]]'' (1995) with '''Camper Van Beethoven''' * ''[[Garage D'Or]]'' (2000) 2 disc Greatest Hits Album and oddities collection * ''[[Hello, Cleveland! Live at the Metro]]'' (2002) * ''[[Get On With It: The Best of Cracker]]'' (2006) Virgin Records greatest hits collection (Not authorized by the band) * ''[[Greatest Hits Redux]]'' (2006) Band authorized re-recordings of major hits '''Tributes''': * ''[[If I Were A Carpenter (album)|If I Were A Carpenter]]'' (1994) - "[[Rainy Days and Mondays]]" * ''[[Encomium (album)|Encomium: A Tribute to Led Zeppelin]]'' (1995) - "[[Good Times Bad Times]]" * ''[[Eyesore: A Stab At The Residents]]'' (1996)- "[[Blue Rosebuds]]" * ''Sweet Relief II: Gravity Of The Situation: The Songs of Vic Chesnutt (1996) - "[[Withering]]" * ''[[Burning London: The Clash Tribute]]'' (1999) - "[[White Riot]]" * ''[[This Is Where I Belong: The Songs of Ray Davies & The Kinks]]'' (2002) - "[[Victoria (song)|Victoria]]" == External links == *[http://www.crackersoul.com/ Official Website] *[http://www.bloggingmuses.com/2006/10/23/band-cracker-gives-virgin-records-the-finger/ Cracker Gives Virgin Records the Finger] *[http://www.johnnyhickman.com/ Johnny Hickman] *[http://www.myspace.com/crackerhatesmyspace myspace.com/crackerhatesmyspace] *[http://www.iplaythedrums.com/ Frank Funaro] *[http://www.pitchatent.com/ Pitch-A-Tent Records] *[http://www.soundofmusic.org/ Sound of Music Studios] *[http://www.archive.org/audio/etreelisting-browse.php?collection=etree&cat=Cracker Live Music Archive] *[http://www.the-van.com/ The Van] *[http://www.corporatecountrysucks.com Interview and performance on Corporate Country Sucks TV Show] [[Category:1990s music groups]] [[Category:Music of Richmond, Virginia]] [[Category:American indie rock groups]] [[de:Cracker (Band)]] [[es:Cracker (banda)]] [[fr:Cracker (groupe)]]