The Tractors
| The Tractors | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Oklahoma, United States |
| Genres | Country |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Labels | Arista Nashville, Audium, Boy Rocking |
| Associated acts | Bonnie Raitt |
| Website | http://thetractors.com |
| Members | Steve Ripley |
| Past members |
Ron Getman Jamie Oldaker Walt Richmond Casey van Beek |
The Tractors are an American country rock band composed of a loosely associated group of musicians, headed by guitarist Steve Ripley. Under the band's original lineup, The Tractors was signed to Arista Records in 1994, releasing their self-titled debut album that year; the album only produced one Top 40 hit on the Billboard country charts. To date, the band has followed up with five more albums.
Since their foundation, most of the band's original members have moved on to separate projects, although they often collaborate with frontman Ripley on The Tractors' more recent recordings. Ripley is the only official member of the group; he has stated that The Tractors is more of a "state of mind",[1] and the band contains a largely undefined cast of unofficial contributors.
Biography
The Tractors were formed in 1988 by Steve Ripley.[2] The original lineup comprised Ron Getman (electric guitar and slide guitar); Jamie Oldaker (drums); Walt Richmond (bass vocals, keyboards); Steve Ripley (guitar, lead vocals); and Casey van Beek (bass guitar, baritone vocals).[3] All five members had previously been backing musicians for other notable artists, including Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, and Leonard Cohen.[2] Oldaker had also worked with Bob Seger and Eric Clapton.[4]
By 1990 the group was signed to Arista Records, a newly formed record label based in Nashville, Tennessee.[2] In 1994 they released their self-titled debut album, which produced the single Baby Likes to Rock It and soon became the fastest-selling debut album from a country group to go platinum. A Christmas album called Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas soon followed.[3]
The Tractors were nominated for two Grammy Awards[5][6] and won the Country Weekly 1995 Golden Pick Award for Favorite New Group.
Their true followup, Farmers in a Changing World, was released in 1998.[7] The band's members, except for Ripley, soon departed for other projects, although they and Ripley remained close friends and made cameo appearances on subsequent albums.[8] Ripley released the next Tractors album, Fast Girl, with several other musicians on Audium Entertainment in 2001. After Fast Girl, the Tractors left Audium and formed their own label, Boy Rocking Records. In 2009 "Trade Union" was released on E1.
Sound
The Tractors achieved their distinctive sound in several ways, most notably from the use of only one microphone, or recording a song in only one take.[9] Ripley often constructs guitars and cords for use in the band.
Discography
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [10] |
US [11] |
CAN Country | CAN | |||
| The Tractors |
|
2 | 19 | 1 | 36 | |
| Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas[A] |
|
12 | 68 | — | — | |
| Farmers in a Changing World |
|
39 | — | 17 | — | |
| Fast Girl |
|
65 | — | — | — | |
| Big Night |
|
— | — | — | — | |
| The Kids Record |
|
— | — | — | — | |
| Trade Union |
|
— | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||
- Notes
- A ^ Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas was re-released in 2002 as Tractors Christmas
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [12] |
CAN Country [13] | |||
| 1994 | "Baby Likes to Rock It" | 11 | 8 | The Tractors |
| 1995 | "Tryin' to Get to New Orleans" | 50 | 28 | |
| "Badly Bent" | — | 80 | ||
| 1998 | "Shortenin' Bread" | 57 | 61 | Farmers in a Changing World |
| "I Wouldn't Tell You No Lie" | 72 | — | ||
| 2001 | "Can't Get Nowhere" | — | — | Fast Girl |
| "The Big Night" | — | — | ||
| "Fast Girl" | — | — | ||
| 2002 | "Ready to Cry" | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Other charted songs
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US | |||
| 1995 | "The Santa Claus Boogie" | 41 | 91 | Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas |
| "Santa Claus Is Comin' (In a Boogie Woogie Choo-Choo Train)" |
43 | — | ||
| 1996 | "The Santa Claus Boogie" (re-entry) | 63 | — | |
| 1997 | "The Last Time" | 75 | — | Stone Country: Country Artists Perform the Songs of the Rolling Stones |
| 1998 | "Santa Claus Is Comin' (In a Boogie Woogie Choo-Choo Train)" (re-entry) |
65 | — | Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | "Baby Likes to Rock It" | Michael Salomon |
| "The Santa Claus Boogie" | Michael McNamara | |
| 1995 | "Tryin' to Get to New Orleans"[14] | Michael Oblowitz |
| "Badly Bent" | ||
| "Santa Claus Is Comin' (In a Boogie Woogie Choo-Choo Train)" | ||
| 1997 | "The Last Time" | |
| 1998 | "Shortenin' Bread" | Michael Oblowitz |
| 2001 | "Can't Get Nowhere" |
References
- ↑ The Tractors - bio, page 1
- 1 2 3 Country Standard Time: The Tractors, November 1998
- 1 2 The Tractors bio
- ↑ Welcome to the official site of Jamie Oldaker
- ↑ http://articles.latimes.com/1995-01-06/entertainment/ca-17089_1_vocal-performance/2
- ↑ http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Music/9601/grammy_noms/grammy_list.html
- ↑ The Tractors - bio, page 2
- ↑ Country Standard Time: The Tractors stay on track
- ↑ The Tractors: A Fresh Breeze from Tulsa
- ↑ "The Tractors Album & Song Chart History - Country Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ↑ "The Tractors Album & Song Chart History - Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ↑ "The Tractors Album & Song Chart History - Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ↑ "Results - RPM - Library and Archives Canada - Country Singles". RPM. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ↑ "CMT : Videos : The Tractors : Tryin' To Get To New Orleans". Country Music Television. Retrieved October 14, 2011.