Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies
The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies are a band from Nashville, Tennessee, USA, which was formed in April 1991. The band embraced a heavy southern bluesy jam oriented style which led to comparisons with groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers Band, The Black Crowes, Brother Cane and Cry of Love.
History
The core of the band was started by college buddies, Rick White (guitarist) and Terry Thomas (drummer). After meeting Bob Watkins (guitarist), the three started occasionally jamming together in 1989. It wasn't until Rick White met singer Mike Farris, in 1991, that things really came together. When Thomas called White and Watkins for another jam session at his space at Big Red storage, they brought Farris along with them. This meeting, April 24th 1991, was the inception of the band. The band recalls it as Divine Dispensation. They immediately bonded and wrote five songs the first night that would be on the SCW self-titled CD. With the addition of Steve Burgess (bass guitar), the lineup was complete. The band chose their name from a The Far Side illustration by artist Gary Larson captioned "Cheetah Wheelies". The band added "Screamin'" (officially omitting the last letter in a nod to colloquial southern slang) and began playing local bars. The band was soon playing all the local venues including Ace of Clubs and 328 Performance Hall, but it was their residency shows at a small blues club called The Grapevine Cafe, next door to the world-famous Exit/In near Vanderbilt University, that gained industry attention. These shows were always a sold-out affair and led to the band being signed to Atlantic Records in 1993 by the infamous Jason Flom.
The band released their debut, "The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies", in 1994.[1] The album reached #40 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.[2] The album was recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis and produced by Paul Ebersold. Their single, "Shakin' the Blues", reached the album-rock top ten.[3]
In 1996, the band released "Magnolia;" this album's varied musical styles ranged from "Magnolia", a slow-burn build-up rock and roll epic, to "Gypsy Lullaby", a delicate ode showing Farris' blistering vocals at their best. "Magnolia" was produced by Michael Barbiero and featured a guest appearance by Warren Haynes of Gov't Mule.
"Big Wheel," released in 1998, contained "Standing In The Sun" and "Boogie King", a song as much at home in the mosh pit as cruising the local drag. "Boogie King" was used on the soundtrack of the movie "Bride of Chucky." "Right Place, Wrong Time" was used in the "Malcolm in the Middle" episode "Home Alone 4" and included in "Songs from Malcolm in the Middle," the soundtrack to the television series which was released in early 2001.
The SCW went on to release five studio CDs, two live CDs total with two independent releases recorded at the Watkins home studio, Thundershack.
The band toured with many notable national acts through the 90s, including Meat Loaf, Joan Osborne and the Allman Brothers Band. SCW ended their touring career in 1999 opening a double bill arena tour with ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
The band officially went their separate ways in 2005. Their final show was at a successful festival event called Azkena Rock Festival, in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country in northern Spain.
Since the band's dissolution, Farris has released four solo albums: "Goodnight Sun" (2002), "Salvation In Lights" (2007) on INO Records, "Shine for All the People" (2014) on Compass Records, which won a Grammy for Best Roots Gospel album. He followed that up with "Silver & Stone" (2018) on Compass. The remaining Wheelies continued performing in various combinations. Members of the band have started or joined various side projects which continue to release recordings still. These bands include: Stack, Black Mountain Prophet, and Scale Hound.
Discography
- The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies (Atlantic Records, 1993)
- Magnolia (Atlantic Records, 1996)
- Big Wheel (Capricorn, 1998)
- Live Vol. 1 and 2 (Big Top Records, 2000)
- Shakin' the Blues (live) (Dark Reign Records, 2002)
- Ten Miles High EP (2005)
Charting singles
- "Shakin' the Blues" (1993) U.S. Mainstream Rock #9[4]
- "Ride the Tide" (1994) U.S. Mainstream Rock #20
- "Hello from Venus" (1996) U.S. Mainstream Rock #25
- "Magnolia" (1997) U.S. Mainstream Rock #29
- "Boogie King" (1998) U.S. Mainstream Rock #18
