Alabama Shakes

Alabama Shakes, American roots rock quartet that achieved commercial and critical success with a genre-defying sound and electrifying live performances. The group’s principal members were lead singer and guitarist Brittany Howard (b. October 2, 1988), bass player Zac Cockrell (b. February 16, 1988), drummer Steve Johnson (b. April 19, 1985), and guitarist Heath Fogg (b. August 10, 1984).

Frontwoman Howard began writing songs as a young teen and taught herself how to play guitar. She was soon joined by Cockrell, a high-school classmate, and the pair experimented with a variety of styles that ranged from American roots to the music of David Bowie. Johnson, a drummer who worked at a music store in the duo’s hometown of Athens, Alabama, brought a punk beat to Howard and Cockrell’s evolving sound. The trio began circulating a rough demo tape, and it caught the attention of Fogg, another Athens-based musician, who was already established in his own band, Tuco’s Pistol. Fogg asked Howard, Cockrell, and Johnson to open for his band, and the trio agreed, on the condition that Fogg perform with them. He consented, and the success of that performance eventually led to Fogg’s joining the band full-time.

In 2009 the group christened themselves the Shakes, and in May of that year they began a relentless touring schedule. While playing as much of their own material as time would allow, they punctuated their live shows with crowd-pleasing cover songs. Independent music tastemaker Justin Gage posted their song “You Ain’t Alone” on his Aquarium Drunkard music blog, and the band’s profile skyrocketed virtually overnight. They soon found themselves opening for fellow Alabama natives the Drive-By Truckers and performing in Nashville at the Third Man Records store belonging to Jack White. Renaming themselves Alabama Shakes, the group released a self-titled EP in September 2011 and continued to draw critical praise for their live shows, which were anchored by Howard’s arresting stage presence. The full-length Boys & Girls was released in April 2012 and sold a remarkable 500,000 copies. Characterized by a Southern rock sound, the album earned the band three Grammy Award nominations, and the single “Hold On” topped Rolling Stone magazine’s list of best songs of 2012.

The group’s sophomore effort, Sound & Color, was released in April 2015. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and marked the band’s first trip to the top of the charts. It was propelled by the soul anthem “Don’t Wanna Fight,” the album’s first single, which logged heavy airplay on alternative rock stations. Sound & Color embraced funk, blues, and soul conventions in a way that transcended mere revival. This departure was especially apparent on tracks such as “Gimme All Your Love,” which evoked the blues rock of Led Zeppelin, and “Miss You,” which channeled the passion of the Otis Redding classic “Try a Little Tenderness” while reversing that song’s gender roles. In 2016 the group won Grammy Awards for best rock performance and best rock song for “Don’t Wanna Fight,” while Sound & Color was named best alternative music album. The following year the band’s version of “Killer Diller Blues,” from Jack White’s American Epic Sessions, won a Grammy for best American roots performance.

Howard became restless, however. She started a side project, the punk rockabilly band Thunderbitch, in 2012. The group released its eponymous debut album in 2015. Two years later she formed another band, Bermuda Triangle. Alabama Shakes went on indefinite hiatus, and Howard’s adventurous solo album, Jaime, appeared in 2019. Its funky and political single “History Repeats” earned two Grammy nominations. The other members of Alabama Shakes renamed themselves Sun on Shade and produced a self-titled album in 2020.