Friends of Dean Martinez
| Friends of Dean Martinez | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Alternative country |
| founding | 1995 |
| Website | www.friendsofdeanmartinez.com |
| Founding members | |
| Bill Elm | |
| Joey Burns | |
| John Convertino | |
| Current occupation | |
Steel guitar |
Bill Elm |
Electric guitar |
Mike Semple |
| Andrew Gerfers | |
Friends of Dean Martinez is an American band from Tucson , Arizona , formed by Bill Elm, Joey Burns and John Convertino. There is a relationship to the better-known band Calexico both historically and musically , as Joey Burns and John Convertino left Friends of Dean Martinez after the first album and then concentrated on Calexico, but Friends of Dean Martinez's music is in contrast to that by Calexico exclusively instrumental.
Band history
Joey Burns and John Convertino were members of the group Giant Sand , while Bill Elm joined Naked Prey . Originally the band was called "Friends of Dean Martin "; after Dean Martin's management threatened to file a lawsuit, the group decided to change the name. After the departure of Burns and Convertino, the sound solidified into the now consistent style, often referred to as desert rock, which occasionally reminds of soundtracks with Bill Elms' formative steel guitar and also evokes associations with the work of Ennio Morricone in some titles . Instruments such as vibraphone , organ or a string quartet occasionally complemented the sound, but the core is the combination of steel guitar , electric guitar and drums . This (with the occasional keyboard entry from Elm) is the instrumentation with which Friends of Dean Martinez can be seen at concerts and also appears as such on the live albums. Most of the tracks on the albums are original compositions, occasionally there are also adapted cover versions of American classics by Henry Mancini , George Gershwin and others.
Discography
| title | year | Label |
|---|---|---|
| The Shadow of Your Smile | 1995 | Sub pop |
| Retrograde | 1997 | Sub pop |
| Atardecer | 1998 | Knitting Factory |
| A place in the sun | 2000 | Knitting Factory |
| Wichita Lineman | 2001 | Glitterhouse |
| Live at Club 2 | 2001 | Glitterhouse |
| Under the waves | 2003 | Glitterhouse |
| Random Harvest | 2004 | Glitterhouse |
| Lost Horizon | 2005 | Aero |
In the US, a compilation by Wichita Lineman and Live at Club 2 was released under the name On the Shore . Live at Club 2 was later released as a new edition with a bonus album, Live in Berlin , an official bootleg.