Album: Big Whiskey And The Groogrux King (2009)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King was the seventh studio album of American rock act Dave Matthews Band. The set was produced by Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical Romance), who impressed Matthews with his passion. The DMB frontman told Rolling Stone "He had a confidence about him. He loves Earth, Wind & Fire and Fleetwood Mac, he talked about it like it was a holy thing. He listened to me. All we did was talk about music. He said he thought our next record was important."
  • This piece of mournful sax is by DMB founder member LeRoi Moore, who tragically died in August 2008 as a result of injuries sustained in an ATV accident near the band's hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia. Matthews explained to Billboard magazine: "I was trying to figure out how to get it on the record, then it just dawned on me if we were going to start with 'Shake Me,' that we should definitely go into 'Shake Me' with that piece that 'Roi did. When I sang it to Rob [Cavallo] and Doug [McKean] the engineer, it came out of the air. Through the wonders of technology, we imitated the spirit of what I said and I think it's really appropriate that Roi be the first voice on the record."
  • Drummer Carter Beauford explained to MTV News that the band paid tribute to their fallen comrade in the title of the album - "GrooGrux King" is a reference to LeRoi's nickname. Said Beauford: "It's a nickname for LeRoi, it's a nickname [for] myself. Now it's officially a name for Dave [Matthews], Stefan [Lessard] and Boyd [Tinsley], 'cause for the past 18 years they have been in the Groogrux academy. It's a vibe. It's a certain energy."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Bill Medley of The Righteous Brothers

Bill Medley of The Righteous BrothersSongwriter Interviews

Medley looks back on "Unchained Melody" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" - his huge hits from the '60s that were later revived in movies.

Mark Arm of Mudhoney

Mark Arm of MudhoneySongwriter Interviews

When he was asked to write a song for the Singles soundtrack, Mark thought the Seattle grunge scene was already overblown, so that's what he wrote about.

Christopher Cross

Christopher CrossSongwriter Interviews

The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.

Howard Jones

Howard JonesSongwriter Interviews

Howard explains his positive songwriting method and how uplifting songs can carry a deeper message.

Def Leppard Quiz

Def Leppard QuizMusic Quiz

Can you name Def Leppard's only #1 hit in America? Get rocked with this adrenalized quiz.

Trucking Songs That Were #1 Hits

Trucking Songs That Were #1 HitsSong Writing

The stories behind the biggest hit songs about trucking.