About Hootie & The Blowfish
Hootie & The Blowfish was the most popular band in America for a short period of time. They stood out from the grunge music that populated the airwaves in the mid-90’s with their pop variation of blues-rock. Their easy going sound landed them a handful of singles in the Top 40 hits chart. Album sales reached over 21 million in the United States, with an album in their repertoire being certified platinum 21 times. Hootie & The Blowfish will have you dancing nonstop at their live concert!
Early Years
At the University of South Carolina in Columbia in 1986, Mark Bryan heard Darius Rucker singing in the dorm shower and instantly asked him to form a band. They covered songs as The Wolf Brothers before Dean Felber and Jim “Soni” Sonefeld came along to create Hootie & The Blowfish.
They released two cassette demo Eps in 1991 and 1992 and sold over 50,000 copies of another in 1993. In August of that year, they were discovered by A&R Representative Tim Sommer of Atlantic Records. Sommer recalls that no other labels gave Hootie a chance, due to their radically different sound from the popular grunge music of the era.
Discography
The band experienced instant glory with the release of their debut album, Cracked Rear View, in 1994. It was the best-selling album of 1995 and one of the fastest selling debut albums in history. In 1996, the band was awarded Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards and appeared on MTV Unplugged the night before the release of Fairweather Johnson, their second album.
Hootie & The Blowfish were making music for other platforms of media come 1998. They were featured on the concept album for the musical The Civil War, written by Frank Wildhorn. They covered “Can’t Find The Time” by Orpheus for the famous Jim Carrey movie, Me, Myself, and Irene. In 2009, Hootie & The Blowfish even performed live in a ballet.
Recent Ventures
In 2008, Rucker announced that Hootie & The Blowfish would be taking break for Rucker’s pursuit as a solo country musician. He recorded one solo album, Learn To Live, which featured several songs that reached #1 on the US Hot Country Songs chart. Rucker released 3 more albums by 2015, when the band would reunite on the Late Show with David Letterman for a one-time performance. Although the band still united for charity gigs during these years, it was not until December of 2018 when they announced their latest venture.
Hootie & The Blowfish Tickets
In December, Hootie & The Blowfish announced their 44 city Group Therapy Tour with Barenaked Ladies to commemorate 25 years since the Cracked Rear View album release. They recently signed a record deal with UMG Nashville and have announced an album for the summer of 2019.
