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Blind Melon

Blind Melon is an American rock band formed in 1990 in Los Angeles, California. The band consists of guitarists Rogers Stevens and Christopher Thorn, drummer Glen Graham, vocalist Travis Warren and bassist Nathan Towne. They are best known for their 1992 hit "No Rain", and enjoyed critical and commercial success in the early 1990s with their neo-psychedelic take on alternative rock. The band has sold over 3.2 million albums in the United States as of 2008.[1]

This article is about the band. For the album by the same band, see Blind Melon (album).

Blind Melon

  • 1990–1999
  • 2006–present
  • Rogers Stevens
  • Christopher Thorn
  • Glen Graham
  • Travis Warren
  • Nathan Towne

Blind Melon released two albums on Capitol RecordsBlind Melon (1992) and Soup (1995) – before their original lead vocalist Shannon Hoon died of a drug overdose on the band's tour bus in New Orleans on October 21, 1995. After four years of unsuccessfully searching for a replacement for Hoon, Blind Melon dissolved in 1999.[2] The remaining members reformed the band in 2006 with Warren and recorded one album with him, For My Friends (2008). Shortly after its release, Warren left Blind Melon but returned in 2010, when the band returned to performing occasional gigs. The group has been nominated for four Grammy Awards.[3]

History[edit]

Formation, debut and success (1990–1993)[edit]

Blind Melon formed in Los Angeles in March 1990 after West Point, Mississippi, transplants Rogers Stevens and Brad Smith, a guitarist and bassist respectively, met vocalist Shannon Hoon, a native of Lafayette, Indiana.[4] Guitarist Christopher Thorn, originally from Pennsylvania, was added shortly thereafter; the four eventually convinced drummer Glen Graham to relocate from Mississippi to complete the group after failing to find a drummer in Los Angeles.[4] Their moniker derived from a nickname Smith's father had used to describe hippies.[5] There is also a Cheech & Chong character named Blind Melon Chitlin', who is a parody of the 1920's blues musician Blind Lemon Jefferson.


The band debuted with a four-song demo, The Goodfoot Workshop, in 1991. Capitol Records A&R executive Tim Devine signed Blind Melon later that year and oversaw sessions with famed producer David Briggs for an unreleased EP to be titled The Sippin' Time Sessions.[6] The recordings were abandoned due to the band's dissatisfaction with the production quality, which they felt resulted in "slick and doctored" results.[7] Hoon's friendship and association with Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose accrued additional industry attention for the group, as he provided backing vocals on several Guns N' Roses tracks on 1991's Use Your Illusion I and II albums, including the single "Don't Cry". Blind Melon embarked upon a tour supporting Soundgarden late that year.[8]


At drummer Glen Graham's suggestion, the band relocated to Durham, North Carolina, while beginning work on what would become their self-titled debut album with producer Rick Parashar, known for producing Pearl Jam's Ten.[4] Sessions were held in London Bridge Studio in Seattle, Washington, and the album was recorded mostly live with minimal overdubs.[4] The record was released in September 1992, and initially sold poorly behind its lead singles, "Tones of Home" and "No Rain", until the latter became an MTV staple the following July. Featuring Heather DeLoach playing the "Bee Girl", the video for "No Rain" helped the band achieve international recognition. The album eventually attained quadruple-platinum status,[9] debuting in the Billboard top 40 on October 9, 1993.[10]

Soup and Hoon's death (1993–1995)[edit]

The group toured extensively in support of their debut, performing dates in Europe and Mexico and supporting such acts as Neil Young and Lenny Kravitz late in 1993.[8][11] Their activity the following year included a performance at Woodstock '94 in August and a supporting slot on the Rolling Stones' Voodoo Lounge Tour thereafter. Amidst rising success, the band began to experience personal and legal problems related to drug and alcohol abuse,[12][8] leading to multiple stints in drug rehabilitation for Hoon.[13]


In 1994, the members relocated to New Orleans, Louisiana,[13] to begin work on their second album, Soup, with producer Andy Wallace. The album was released in 1995, and featured predominantly shorter songs with a less conventional alternative rock approach, including New Orleans-style jazz and a hodgepodge of instrumentation throughout, such as horn sections and mandolin/banjo tracks. The lyrics to "St. Andrew's Fall" referenced a suicide jump, "Skinned" spoke about the life of Ed Gein, and "New Life" addressed the forthcoming birth of Hoon's child. "Mouthful of Cavities" featured backing vocals from Jena Kraus, who subsequently recorded a solo record with Thorn and Smith. Despite the debut of the lead single, "Galaxie", at number 25 on the Billboard charts,[14] Soup ultimately failed to meet sales expectations.[13]


Later that year, Blind Melon contributed a version of the song "Out on the Tiles" to the Encomium tribute album to Led Zeppelin, and cover of the Schoolhouse Rock! song "Three Is a Magic Number" to the Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks compilation. Their version of "Three Is a Magic Number", although never a charting single, became a fan favorite and featured in the films Never Been Kissed, Slackers, and You, Me and Dupree.[15] All Music Guide reviewer Theresa E. LaVeck has praised the tune's "'70s feel-good vibe" and "rolling jam-band rhythms".[16]


Against the advice of Hoon's drug counselor,[13] Blind Melon went on tour in support of Soup. The band initially employed a counselor to assist Hoon's rehabilitation, but this attendant was soon dismissed.[13] After several weeks on the road, Hoon was found dead on the band's tour bus of a heart attack caused by a cocaine overdose,[17] on October 21, 1995, in Uptown New Orleans.[13]

Aftermath and breakup (1995–1999)[edit]

The surviving members opted to continue their collaboration and recruit a new vocalist,[18] although it would ultimately take them over a decade to do so. In 1996, they issued Nico, an album of outtakes and demos named for Hoon's daughter, who was only 13 weeks old when her father died. Nico contained unreleased songs from the Soup recording sessions, as well as several songs recorded with only partial instrumentation. The closing track, "Letters from a Porcupine", was recorded as a telephone message left by Hoon on Thorn's answering machine. The album also included covers of Steppenwolf and John Lennon songs. Its profits went to a program that helps musicians with drug and alcohol addiction.[18]


Discussing his loss with The Guardian, Gia DeSantis, former KROQ DJ, producer and host at KDOC and head of video promotion at Capitol Records who worked with the band, said "Shannon had a magnetism. You couldn't take your eyes off him. They knew to bring in a new singer to sing his lyrics would not have had the same magnetism." She also mentions that "the band knew its chapter was closed following Hoon's death because he had become the public face of their music through their videos, particularly the one for No Rain" a video that made VH1's list of Top 100 Music Videos of All Time.[19]


During this period, the relationships between the band members disintegrated as they attempted to recruit a new frontman.[20] After failing to find a replacement for Hoon, Blind Melon officially dissolved their partnership on March 4, 1999, and the various members went on to other projects, including Thorn and Smith's activity in Unified Theory, a group they had founded the previous year.

– lead guitar (1990–1999, 2006–present)

Rogers Stevens

Christopher Thorn – rhythm guitar (1990–1999, 2006–present)

Glen Graham – drums (1990–1999, 2006–present)

Travis Warren – lead vocals, acoustic guitar (2006–2008, 2010–present)

Nathan Towne – bass, backing vocals (2017–present)

Current members


Former members


Timeline

(1992)

Blind Melon

(1995)

Soup

(2008)

For My Friends

List of alternative music artists

List of deaths from drug overdose and intoxication

Prato, Greg (2008). A Devil on One Shoulder and an Angel on the Other: The Story of Shannon Hoon and Blind Melon. Createspace.  0-6152523-9-7.

ISBN

Weitz, Brad (2012). From Your Friends - Art, Photos and Stories Inspired by Blind Melon. Lulu.

Weitz, Brad/Mester, Csaba (2012). Sweet Meloncholy. Take On 1 or 2 / Garage Art.  9780615740294.

ISBN

Official website

at AllMusic

Blind Melon

Live recordings by at the Internet Archive

Blind Melon

of Blind Melon Photos, Interviews, Articles

Archive