Golden Smog: Миннеаполистік Альтернативтік Кантри-рок Супертобы

Alternative Country Rock Music Supergroup

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).

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."

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 reunited at First Avenue on April 2, 2022 with Jeff Tweedy and Jody Stephens both rejoining the band. In December 2022 and again in December 2023, the group (still consisting of Gary Louris, Kraig Johnson, Dan Murphy and Marc Perlman) played a special holiday show at First Avenue. The 2022 gig was billed as an "Unplugged" show; the 2023 date featured guest drummer Steve Gorman.