Drive-by Truckers

Drive-By Truckers
Drive-By Truckers performing at The Gorge Amphitheatre, Washington, during the Sasquatch! Music Festival in 2010.
Background information
Origin	Athens, Georgia, United States
Genres	Alternative country, alternative rock, Southern rock, Americana
Years active	1996–present
Labels	ATO, MapleMusic Recordings (Canada), New West, Lost Highway, Play It Again Sam, Ghostmeat, Soul Dump
Associated acts	Adam's House Cat, The Screwtopians, Jason Isbell, Booker T. Jones, The Dexateens
Website	DriveByTruckers.com
Members	Mike Cooley Patterson Hood Brad Morgan Jay Gonzalez Matt Patton
Past members	Shonna Tucker Jason Isbell Spooner Oldham Earl Hicks Rob Malone Matt Lane Adam Howell Barry Sell John Neff

The Drive-By Truckers are an alternative country/Southern rock band based in Athens, Georgia, though two of five current members (Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley) are originally from The Shoals region of northern Alabama, and the band strongly identifies with Alabama. The band currently consists of Mike Cooley (lead vocals, guitar, banjo), Patterson Hood (lead vocals, guitar), Brad Morgan (drums), Jay Gonzalez (keys, guitar, accordion, backing vocals), and Matt Patton (bass guitar, backing vocals). Like many alternative country acts, the Drive-By Truckers record in analog (using 2 inch, 16-track open-reel tape recorders). The band's constant touring has developed its dedicated following.

Drive-By Truckers was cofounded by Patterson Hood (son of bassist David Hood of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section) and longtime friend, former roommate, and musical partner Mike Cooley in Athens, Georgia, in 1996. The two had played in various other bands including Adam's House Cat which was chosen as a top-10 Best Unsigned Band by a Musician contest in the late 1980s. After the demise of Adam's House Cat, Cooley and Hood performed as a duo under the name Virgil Kane. They eventually started a new band, Horsepussy, with bassist/vocalist Adam Howell (later to join DBT) and Aaron Bryant (brother of DBT webmaster Jenn Bryant) before splitting for a few years. During this split, Hood moved to Athens and began forming what would become Drive-By Truckers, "with the intent of luring Cooley back into the fold."

The band's online presence was created in 1996 by and is still maintained by long-time friend Jenn Bryant. It has been credited with helping the band gain momentum. The band also began to use another long-time friend, Wes Freed, to produce the band's signature visual style with his cover art and posters. Freed continues his collaborative work with DBT to date. In March 2014, the newly debuted English Oceans album cover was named Album Art of the Month by Consequence of Sound editor Dan Caffrey. However, the band's constant touring and lauded live shows largely developed their dedicated following.