Golden Smog

Golden Smog
Place of origin	United States of America
Genres	rock music

Golden Smog
Origin	Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Genres	Rock, alternative country, blues
Years active	1989-present
Labels	Rykodisc Lost Highway
Members	Kraig Johnson Dan Murphy Gary Louris Marc Perlman Jeff Tweedy Jody Stephens
Past members	Chris Mars Noah Levy

Golden Smog is an alternative country-rock supergroup of loosely connected musicians mostly from the Minneapolis area. At various times, members of Soul Asylum, The Replacements, Wilco, The Jayhawks, Run Westy Run, The Honeydogs and Big Star have worked with Golden Smog. Given the fluid collaborative nature of Golden Smog the lineup has often changed, but relative constants who appear on all the recordings are guitarists Kraig Johnson (Run Westy Run), Dan Murphy (Soul Asylum) and Gary Louris (The Jayhawks), along with bassist Marc Perlman (The Jayhawks).

The group took their name from a nickname given to Fred Flintstone in The Flintstones episode "Hot Lips Hannigan", which, in turn, was a parody of singer Mel Tormé's nickname (The Velvet Fog).

History

Pre-history: The Take It To The Limit Band (1987) and Her Satanic Majesty's Paycheck (1989)

The definitive beginning of Golden Smog is hard to pinpoint given the mercurial nature of the band's lineup. However, some claim that the group that would evolve into Golden Smog debuted in January 1987, when a band billed as "The Take It To The Limit Band" played an (almost) all-Eagles cover show at the Uptown Bar in Minneapolis. This band consisted of Dan Murphy and Dave Pirner (both of Soul Asylum), Jim Boquist (later of Son Volt), and Martin Zellar (Gear Daddies). The show ended with a cover of then Bangles hit song "Walk Like an Egyptian." This same group later played a Rolling Stones-themed show in 1989 under the band name "Her Satanic Majesty's Paycheck."

First incarnation (1989–1998)

The group first came together under the name "Golden Smog" in the Minneapolis area in 1989. The band was conceived as a country-rock reaction to the punk and hardcore music that dominated the Twin Cities' musical scene at the time. Eventually Golden Smog became something of a fixture at local clubs, where they would play a handful of shows annually, consisting almost entirely of cover songs. This show marked Murphy's first public musical performance since his retirement from Soul Asylum in 2012. Murphy was joined onstage by Johnson, Louris, and Perlman as well as Miles Zuniga of the band Fastball. The band is now scheduled to reunite at First Avenue on April 2, 2022 with Jeff Tweedy and Jody Stephens both rejoining the band.

Discography

EPs

• On Golden Smog (1992) – A covers EP.

Albums

• Down by the Old Mainstream (1995)
• Weird Tales (1998)
• Another Fine Day (2006)
• Blood on the Slacks (2007)

Compilation albums

• Stay Golden, Smog: The Best Of Golden Smog—The Rykodisc Years (2008)

Compilation appearances

• "Shooting Star" (From On Golden Smog) on the Clerks soundtrack (1994)
• "Prison Wife" on Minnesota Modern Rock: The Pachyderm Sessions, (1995). Previously unreleased song
• "Looking Forward to Seeing You" (From Weird Tales) on the Alt.Country Exposed Roots compilation album (1999)
• "Looking Forward to Seeing You" (From Weird Tales) on the Rykodisc 20th Anniversary compilation album (2004)