Almanac Music: ‘Wagon Wheel’ – Old Crow Medicine Show
Old Crow Medicine Show started busking on street corners in 1998 New York state and up through Canada, winning audiences along the way with their boundless energy and spirit. They eventually found themselves in Boone, North Carolina where they caught the attention of folk icon Doc Watson while playing in front of a pharmacy. He invited the band to play at his festival, MerleFest, helping to launch their career. Shortly thereafter the band was hired to entertain crowds between shows at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN.
It’s been over twenty years since these humble beginnings. The band has gone on to receive the honor of being inducted as members of the Grand Ole Opry, and have won two Grammy Awards: ‘Best Folk Album’ for Remedy (2014) and ‘Best Long Form Music Video’ for Big Easy Express (2013). Additionally, their classic single, ‘Wagon Wheel’, received the RIAA’s Double-Platinum certification in 2019 for selling over 2,000,000 copies while the band’s debut album O.C.M.S. has been certified Gold (500,000 copies).
Old Crow Medicine Show has toured the world playing renowned festivals and venues such as: Bonnaroo, Farm Aid, Red Rocks Amphitheater, Cambridge Folk Festival, Coachella, London’s Roundhouse, The Ryman Auditorium, The Barclays Center, New Orleans Jazz Fest, The Fox Theater Atlanta, The Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Summerstage in Central Park NYC, Forecastle, the Newport Folk Festival, and several appearances on A Prairie Home Companion. They’ve toured with artists such as Willie Nelson & Family, Brandi Carlile, Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers, John Prine, The Avett Brothers and others. The band also took part in the historic Railroad Revival Tour, traveling from California to New Orleans on a vintage train, which was captured in the Emmet Malloy directed Grammy award-winning documentary, Big Easy Express.
Old Crow Medicine Show now has six studio albums to their name, three of which were released by Nettwerk Records – O.C.M.S. (2004) and Big Iron World (2006) produced by David Rawlings, and Tennessee Pusher (2008) produced by Don Was. Following that, ATO Records released the Ted Hutt produced, Carry Me Back (2012), on which the band continued to craft classic American roots music and Remedy (2014), also produced by Ted Hutt.
Old Crow Medicine Show was signed to Columbia in 2017 and immediately delivered a full-length tribute to Boy Dylan’s Blonde on Blonde, entitled 50 Years Of Blonde On Blonde (2017). During the same year, Nettwerk also released a Best Of Old Crow Medicine Show compilation. A year later, the band released the Dave Cobb produced Volunteer (2018) via Columbia. The band’s latest release Live At The Ryman (2019) was released on October 4th on Columbia Records via The Orchard.
OCMS live at the Grand Ole Opry 2019
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Yep, a killer band. We have been fortunate to see them live several times. At Mossvale Park in Gippsland with the late Justin Townes Earle. That was a hell of a show. Then a couple of years ago they blew the roof off The Forum playing Dylan’s album, Blonde on Blonde. A magic night. That didn’t end with the concert. We went next door to the whiskey bar for a nigh cap and then the band arrived.
I was at the Forum concert Rick, it certainly was a night to remember. I thought the sound was sensational there, and what a cracking version of ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ to finish off the show. Cracking great band live!
Here’s a fun fact – Wagon Wheel is bigger than Ben Hur in Vanuatu. There is a lot of airtime for modern pop, dancehall and hip hop songs, but without doubt a huge part of the population (particularly in the cities) knows and loves this slice of Americana…alongside Hotel California!