| Nickel Creek | |
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 Sara Watkins, Mark Schatz, and Chris Thile in a 2003 concert.
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Southern California, USA |
| Genre(s) | Progressive, acoustic |
| Years active | 1989–2007 |
| Label(s) | Sugar Hill |
| Website | www.nickelcreek.com |
| Members | |
| Chris Thile Sara Watkins Sean Watkins |
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Nickel Creek was an American acoustic music trio. Although the group's music has roots in bluegrass, the trio now describes itself as "progressive acoustic". [1] Nickel Creek consists of three permanent members: Chris Thile (mandolin), Sara Watkins (fiddle), and her brother Sean Watkins (guitar). The trio has always recorded and toured with a bass player, but no bass player has ever been an official member of the band. Chris's father Scott Thile played bass with the group until 2000, followed by Byron House, and Derek Jones. Mark Schatz has played bass regularly with the group since 2003. [2] Over three official albums, Nickel Creek's musical style has shifted away from contemporary bluegrass to incorporate indie rock elements. The band has covered songs by Radiohead, Pavement, Elliott Smith, Bob Dylan, the Jackson Five and even "Toxic" by Britney Spears. [3] Despite the changes, the core influence of bluegrass remains evident in all three albums.
Contents |
History
Early days: 1989–1999
The band formed in California in 1989 with Scott Thile, Chris' father, playing string bass. The two families, the Watkins and the Thiles, met after Sean Watkins and Chris Thile had mandolin lessons with the same teacher, John Moore. The oldest of the children, Sean, was only twelve years old at the time. [4] Upon forming, the band decided the name of the band, which comes from a song by Byron Berline, who was Sara Watkins' fiddle instructor at the time.[5] Nickel Creek played many renowned bluegrass festivals throughout the nineties, but by the mid-nineties, the three members of the band had to be home-schooled to accommodate their busy schedule. "The school wasn’t really cool with us missing the first two weeks of school and the last week of school," recalled Sara Watkins, "just because there were some really great festivals back east." [6] In the early days, Nickel Creek released two albums: Little Cowpoke in 1993, and Here to There in 1997. Because of Here to There's limited release, and the band's refusal to re-release it, the album sells for a hundred dollars and up on eBay and other vintage compact disc websites. [7]
Nickel Creek: 2000–2001
For Nickel Creek's next album release, the trio was in need of a producer, and Alison Krauss filled that position. Sara Watkins discussed their affiliation with Krauss in a 2000 interview.
| “ | "We started discussing possibilities for a producer, but hadn't decided. We played a show at the Ryman and we were opening for a band that included Tony Rice and Dan Tyminski. Alison Krauss and Ron Block were there. They came up and talked to us afterwards and were really enthusiastic about our show. So, we thought, 'WHAT IF...' Alison WAS kind of excited and just maybe she'd produce our CD. And she DID! Barry Poss of Sugar Hill asked her and we were just thrilled. We really needed vocal help. We've never been that insecure about our instrumentals, but vocals were another thing. They were weak points for us but are getting stronger, thanks to the work Alison has done with us. Alison just brought so much to the production of the CD. She was very good at spotting things that wouldn't last on a CD." [8] | ” |
Krauss produced their self titled 2000 release on Sugar Hill, which is widely considered their first major release. It is their most successful album to date, certified gold in 2002 and platinum later on. Critics responded favorably to the album; All Music Guide giving it four and a half stars out of five. Nickel Creek received two Grammy nominations for the album: Best Bluegrass Album and Best Country Instrumental for "Ode to a Butterfly". In addition to the Grammy nominations, they were named one of the "Five Music Innvators of the Millenium" by TIME Magazine in May of 2000. [2]
To promote the album, Nickel Creek toured as both as a headlining and opening act in 2000 and 2001. The band opened eleven shows for act and opened eleven shows for Lyle Lovett in the summer of 2000, and played Austin City Limits in January 2001 with Dolly Parton. One month later, Parton invited Nickel Creek to perform as her back-up band at the 2001 Grammy Awards. The trio also had a spring tour with former Toad the Wet Sprocket lead singer Glen Phillips in a collaboration dubbed Mutual Admiration Society. A self titled album was set to be released, but the album's release was delayed until 2004. Nickel Creek also opened for Vince Gill and Amy Grant in the winter.[9] Shortly after Nickel Creek started touring, Scott Thile decided to stop playing with the band due to a lack of family time. He was later replaced by bassist Byron House, but in March 2001 a new bassist joined the touring band: Derek Jones. [9]
This Side: 2002–2004
In 2002, This Side was released. It was a major transition from their previous albums, the first three being purely bluegrass. Although the core influence of bluegrass remained throughout the album, many other genres were present, such as indie rock and folk rock (the band covered Spit on a Stranger by Pavement, and Should've Known Better by Carrie Newcomer). When discussing the album in an interview from Barnes & Noble, Chris Thile described the album, and said:
| “ | "We're not content to just go a little further. It's been three years since we recorded the first album, and I think people are forgetting that because all the attention has come in the last year. So the response is almost like, "Well, is it a concept record?" It certainly isn't; it's just who we are. People who ask that question have no concept of what we were like three years ago, before the first album came out. They also need to understand that [because of our youth], three years in our lives is a much larger percentage of how long we've lived. So there's going to be more change per year. We're growing and we're together all the time, so we're constantly trying to figure out new stuff."[10] | ” |
As with Nickel Creek, critics responded positively to This Side. Charles Spano on the All Music Guide said that "Thile and the Watkins siblings' originals, like the sleepy, subtle "Speak" and the darker "Beauty and the Mess," easily outdo the likes of folk-rockers Dave Matthews and Hootie & the Blowfish, while forging a new style to rejuvenate a genre that has always been a bit of a dark horse."[11] The band was also featured in Rolling Stone's "Best Of 2002" edition following the release of This Side. [2] On the This Side tour of 2002 and 2003, Nickel Creek performed mainly as an opening act, but also opened five shows for John Mayer in November 2002 and Gillian Welch with David Rawlings earlier in the year. [12]
Why Should the Fire Die?: 2005
After This Side was certified gold for selling 550,000 copies [13], Nickel Creek released Why Should the Fire Die? in August 2005. The album brought more rock and pop influences to Nickel Creek, just as This Side did. Chris Thile discussed the band's genre and style in a 2005 interview from Jambase: "We actually feel like more than a bluegrass band that stretched out. We are a band that incorporates bluegrass into our music. There's been a problem in perception. 'Bluegrass band leaves the fold' (uses a news announcer voice). No, no, no, no, no. Actually, it's a band that incorporates a little bluegrass into whatever the hell kind of music they play."[14] Sean Watkins also said:
| “ | "Well, actually, I think this record that we’re doing, it’s not moving farther away from bluegrass, I mean – we’ve always been far away from our bluegrass roots, I don’t think this record is much farther away than the last one. It’s just different. This record – I think it sounds more like we do I think than anything we’ve ever done. It’s a lot more rock I think than our first two, and there’s some stuff that’s farther out than we’ve gone, and there’s some stuff that’s very, that’s more roots–oriented. So I wouldn’t say that the whole thing is farther away."[15] | ” |
Why Should the Fire Die? was not as commercially successful as Nickel Creek's previous releases, selling only 250,000 copies. In addition, the single When In Rome did not chart on any of the Billboard listings.
Farewell (For Now): 2006–present
In late summer 2006, via Billboard and their official website, Nickel Creek announced that at the end of the year they would no longer be recording together as a group and their tour scheduled through 2007 would be their last for an indefinite period of time. According to Thile, "It's always been so natural, but lately it hasn't been quite as natural and we're running the risk of actually having to break up. We would rather leave it for a while, while it's still intact and healthy." Sean Watkins stated that all three members are ready to expand their musical horizons by experiencing real life again: "When you're on the road all the time and meet all these people who love your music, you can't always relate to them because stuff never happens to you. We're supposed to be writing songs that relate to other people... I need to be out there and having a different life than that. I am ready to write about real things again."[16] A year later when asked what made the trio take a hiatus, Watkins stated
| “ | "About a year ago, we decided it was time to give Nickel Creek a break. We were thinking about making another record, didn't really have the songs for it and were still worn out from the last record. It was great, but to do it all over again was a pretty daunting feeling. Originally we were going to name this summer's dates the "Victory Lap Tour," but our managers thought that would sound presumptuous and boastful. But we may run again someday, so we're calling it the "Farewell (For Now) Tour." It's a great way to do things we haven't done before and take chances without any repercussions. We don't have to play all the songs from our latest record because there's no expectations at this point. We can really do what we want!". [17] | ” |
In November 2006, Sugar Hill released Reasons Why: The Very Best, a compilation album of selected studio tracks from Nickel Creek's three latest albums, as well as two previously un-released tracks and all of the music videos from the trio's singles. Nickel Creek's last tour before the hiatus was announced via their website on February 13 2007. The Farewell (For Now) Tour started in April 2007 and ends in late 2007. In a recent statement, Nickel Creek said that they "wanted to do this in a positive way and take that last lap before our break. We want to see our fans one more time and play with the musicians that have inspired us over the years."[18] The tour has had several guest appearances by Glen Phillips, Ben Harper, Jon Brion, Fiona Apple, Bruce Molsky, Bela Fleck, and Tift Merritt, among others. Nickel Creek planned to record a live DVD at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville in November 2007 with special guests over the course of two nights. [19] However, in November 2007, it was announced that the "plans for the video shoot have been scrapped". [20] The performances still took place, and were the last before the hiatus. Looking back on the Nickel Creek experience, which spanned eighteen years, Sara Watkins said "A lot of the other stuff will be special in the way that anything is special when you realize that it’s not going to be around forever...Nothing is going be Nickel Creek except Nickel Creek. I’m not looking for anything to top this. It can’t be duplicated in my life."[21]
Awards and nominations
Wins
- 2000: IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year
- 2001: IBMA Instrumental Group of the Year
- 2002: Dish Network #2 Country Album of Year (This Side)[22]
- 2003: Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album (This Side)
- 2006: CMT Top 10 Country Compilations of 2006 (Reasons Why: The Very Best)
Nominations
- 2001: Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album (Nickel Creek)
- 2001: Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance (Ode to a Butterfly)
- 2001: CMA Award for Best Vocal Group
- 2001: CMA Horizon Award
- 2005: Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album (Why Should the Fire Die?)
- 2005: Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance (Scotch & Chocolate)
Discography
References
- ^ Nickel Creek dares to branch out. The Source Weekly (2006-07-14). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ a b c Nickel Creek. "Meet The Band". Nickel Creek. June 8, 2002. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
- ^ The Complete List of Non-Album Originals/Covers. nickelcreek.info (2006-11-12). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ Nickel Creek's Sean Watkins Blue Ridge Exclusive Interview. Blue Ridge (2006). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ Seida, Linda. "Chris Thile Bio on JamBase". JamBase. Retrieved December 27, 2007.
- ^ Nickel Creek: Mandolin With No Country. Paste Magazine (2006-08-01). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ Here to There. Thile Fans (2006-04-25). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ Sara Watkins. iBluegrass.com (1999). Retrieved on 2007-10-13.
- ^ a b Sara Watkins, Sean Watkins. "Nickel Creek Journals". Nickel Creek. August 17, 2000. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
- ^ "Nickel Creek Tackle Bluegrass Tradition and Pop Innovation on This Side". Barnes & Noble. August 16, 2002. Retrieved November 11, 2007.
- ^ Charles Spano. "This Side - Nickel Creek". All Music Guide. Retrieved November 11, 2007.
- ^ Sara Watkins. "Nickel Creek Journals". Nickel Creek. November 19, 2002. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
- ^ Nickel Creek Certified Gold
- ^ Chris Thile: Bringing In Some New Blood by JamBase
- ^ Nickel Creek's Sean Watkins Blue Ridge Exclusive Interview
- ^ Nickel Creek Going On Hiatus, Just Not Yet
- ^ Interview with Sean Watkins forom LiveWire
- ^ Nickel Creek Prepares First Leg of Farewell Tour
- ^ News on Nashville DVD
- ^ John. "Nickel Creek - no DVD after all". The Bluegrass Blog. November 7, 2007. Retrieved November 11, 2007.
- ^ Bluegrass group Nickel Creek says farewell (for now)
- ^ Dish Network Win News at Nickelcreek.info
| Country Music Portal |
External links
- Nickel Creek's official site
- Official Merchandise Store
- VH1 biography
- Acoustic Guitar article
- PopMatters interview (11/2005)
- August 2005 performance for World Cafe broadcast on NPR
- October 2005 interview on All Things Considered
- Nickel Creek's Song "Tomorrow is a Long Time" played on NPR's All Songs Considered
- Review Nickel Creek - Reasons Why
| Nickel Creek |
|---|
| Chris Thile • Sara Watkins • Sean Watkins |
| Discography |
| Albums: Little Cowpoke • Here to There • Nickel Creek This Side • Why Should the Fire Die? • Reasons Why: The Very Best |
| Singles: When You Come Back Down • The Lighthouse's Tale • Reasons Why This Side • Speak • Smoothie Song • When In Rome |
| Related articles |
| The Real SeanJon • Mutual Admiration Society |
