Quiet Color

by chuck bell

There are many fans that have mourned the death of The Afghan Whigs, but as a native of Cincinnati, OH, their legacy is especially important to me on a personal level. Forming in 1986, singer/guitarist Greg Dulli, guitarist Rick McCollum, bassist John Curley and drummer Steve Earle (not that Steve Earle), took the DIY approach to breaking into the music scene in the Queen City. Early on, they formed their own record label, Ultrasuede, on which they would release their debut album, Big Top Halloween, in 1988. Their southern-tinged garage rock caught the attention of Sub Pop Records, who signed the band in 1989. At the time, Sub Pop’s roster was exclusively based in the Pacific Northwest, so their inclusion on the label was a major breakthrough. In 1990, they released their sophomore LP, Up In It, which found the band leaning less towards southern rock, and falling more in line with the grunge sound of their new peers.

Artist: The Afghan Whigs Song: Debonair

Artist: The Afghan Whigs Song: Retarded

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In 1992, the band released Gentlemen and the Uptown Avondale EP, a collection of Stax and Motown Records covers. Both of these records featured Dulli’s more soul-influenced vocal approach, which fully developed the band’s signature sound. On the strength of these albums, the band signed to Elektra Records in 1993, and released their major label debut, Gentlemen. Singles “Debonair” and “Gentlemen” cracked into the mainstream, with a decent amount of play on MTV and college radio. Earle left the band in 1996, and was replaced by Paul Buchignani. That same year, they released Black Love, their significantly darker 5th album, which managed to reach #79 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. Around the time of the release of Black Love, Dulli was commissioned to be the executive producer of the soundtrack for the film Beautiful Girls, starring Matt Dillon and Uma Thurman. The Afghan Whigs even makes an appearance in the film as the bar band, covering Barry White’s “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe.”

After another change in the lineup, with Michael Horrigan joining on the drums, the band released their final record, 1965, on Columbia Records in 1998. However, at this point, the members were all living in different areas of the country, and found it difficult to maintain the band. They officially disbanded in 2001, even though they had previously said that they were working on a new record. Since the breakup, all of the members have continued working on various projects that are still intact today. Curley is currently the bassist for the Staggering Statistics, and McCollum is the singer/guitarist for Moon Maan. Horrigan has been the bassist for Brendan Benson’s band for some time now. Dulli’s recent work has been most successful, between his revolving-door collective, the Twilight Singers, and the Gutter Twins, a collaboration with former-Screaming Trees frontman, Mark Lanegan. The Afghan Whigs briefly reunited in 2007, to contribute 2 new songs, “I’m a Soldier” and “Magazine,” to their greatest hits album, 2007’s Unbreakable: A Retrospective. In 2009, fans and friends of the band, including Joseph Arthur and Mark Lanegan, released the Afghan Whigs tribute album, Summer Kiss. Here’s hoping that they will reunite again…preferably at the Southgate House.