The Raconteurs

From Stripespedia

The Raconteurs
2005 - present

(left to right:)

• Jack Lawrence - Bass Guitar, Vocals and Banjo (of The Greenhornes and The Dead Weather)
• Brendan Benson - Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards and Electronics
• Jack White - Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards and Electronics (of The White Stripes and The Dead Weather)
• Patrick Keeler - Drums and Percussion (of The Greenhornes)

(with:)

• Dean Fertita - Keyboards, Guitars and Percussion (2006)
• Mark Watrous - Violin, Keyboards, Percussion and Vocals (2008)

Contents 1 Biography/History 2 Discography 2.1 Albums 2.2 Singles 3 Facts 4 External Links

Biography/History

According to the band's official website, "The seed was sown in an attic in the middle of a hot summer when friends Jack White and Brendan Benson got together and wrote a song that truly inspired them. This song was "Steady, As She Goes" and the inspiration led to the creation of a full band with the addition of Lawrence and Keeler."

The four-piece came together in 2005 and recorded in their spare time for the remainder of the year.

On January 30, 2006, the band released "Steady As She Goes/Store Bought Bones" as a limited-edition 7-inch, 45 rpm vinyl record in Europe, and in North America on March 7, 2006. A CD version of "Steady, as She Goes" was released on April 24, 2006, with the B-side "Bane Rendition."

The video for "Steady As She Goes", directed by Jim Jarmusch, premiered on MTV2 on March 10, 2006, and it was also available on their website. An alternate second video for the song premiered exclusively on Yahoo! Music June 19, 2006, which featured Paul Reubens as a pit boss who would do anything to ensure a win for his racer, Jack Lawrence.

The Raconteurs' full length debut album, Broken Boy Soldiers, was released in the UK on May 15, 2006 and the US on May 16, 2006. It entered the UK charts at #2 and the US charts at #7. The album was released on Third Man Recordings/XL Recordings in the UK, and Third Man Recordings/V2 Records in the US. The album was recorded in Brendan Benson's attic located in Detroit, Michigan.

The Raconteurs released their second album, Consolers of the Lonely, on March 25, 2008. The first single, "Salute Your Solution", was released the same day. The album was announced only a week before its release date, purposely leaving no time for critics to review it before it was available for purchase.

The Raconteurs played their first Montreux Jazz Festival on the 7th of July, 2008. The set opened with 'Consoler of the Lonely' and closed with an intense 10+ minute rendition of 'Blue Veins'. They played four encore songs: 'Many Shades of Black', 'Broken Boy Soldier', 'Salute Your Solution' and 'Carolina Drama'. Claude Nobbs (the founder of the Festival) came out at the end and took a bow with them after saying "The Raconteurs: please come back."

Discography

Albums

• Broken Boy Soldiers (2006)
• Consolers of the Lonely (2008)

Singles

• "Steady, As She Goes"
• "Hands"
• "Broken Boy Soldier"
• "Level"
• "Salute Your Solution"
• "Many Shades Of Black"
• "Old Enough"

Facts

• The Raconteurs were forced to rename themselves as "The Saboteurs" for the Australian market when it was discovered that a Queensland band was already using the name "Raconteurs". The Queensland band refused to give up their name for the amount they were offered, and instead tried to extract a higher price from the Raconteurs' record company. A member of the Queensland band has said that they hadn't been informed of who was trying to buy their name and asked for the larger sum of money to see what would happen.

External Links

• TheRaconteurs.com, Official website (Flash required)
• "BrokenBoySoldiers.net", Raconteurs tablatures and lyrics