Similar in style and approach to quirky alt rock bands such as Mercury Rev and the Flaming Lips, the Louisville, Kentucky, USA-based My Morning Jacket struggled to translate critical praise into the commercial success enjoyed by those two bands.
Originating from the suburban town of Louisville, the band's roots stretch back to when cousins Jim James (b. James Oliges, Louisville, Kentucky, USA; vocals/guitar) and Johnny Quaid (guitar) would try and bring songs that James had penned to life. 1998 saw the emergence of Two-Tone Tommy (bass) as well as J. Glenn (drums), as the newly instated quartet began rehearsing on Quaid's grandparents' farm. A recording contract with the indie label Darla soon followed, resulting in the release in 1999 of My Morning Jacket's debut, The Tennessee Fire. A worldwide tour followed to support the release, but by the time the tour had ended and the band's attention was turned to a follow-up recording, drummer Glenn had been replaced by K.C. Gueting, while keyboard player Danny Cash was added to the line-up. My Morning Jacket's second album, At Dawn, followed in 2001 to rapturous acclaim and growing mainstream acceptance, but by the time the quintet began a series of US gigs supporting Guided By Voices the drum position was occupied by another new member, Patrick Hallahan.
All of the band's hard work eventually paid off, as they signed with a major label, ATO/RCA. An EP Sweatbees was released at the end of 2002 as an interim while the band worked on their major label debut, It Still Moves. Following the release of the latter, My Morning Jacket supported Arthur Lee and Love on the 2003 Forever Changes tour. Further personnel changes ensued at the start of 2004, with Quaid and Cash replaced by Carl Broemel and Bo Koster respectively. The new line-up teamed up with veteran producer John Leckie to record their second major label release, Z.
