Artist Preview: North Mississippi Allstars

Brothers Luther and Cody formed North Mississippi Allstars in the 90s, during a special time for north Mississippi blues. North Mississippi Allstars have their own brand of blues infused rock and roll, combined with gritty but smooth vocals.

North Mississippi Allstars released their first album in 2000, Shake Hands with Shorty, which earned them a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album. The band earned two more nominations for their next two albums, establishing themselves as one of the most intriguing bands to come out of the South.

The brothers took a break to pursue other projects, all of which were successes. Luther’s band, The Wandering, earned him another Grammy nomination. Meanwhile, Cody broadened the scope of his musical career and became what one might call an artistic entrepreneur in the fields of music, film and TV. Cody has contributed to several major motion picture soundtracks, including Barnyard, Snoop’s Hood of Horror and Black Snake Moan.

As a producer Cody has worked with a wide range of musicians including Lucero, Cisco Adler, and Les Claypool. He also produced British blues guitarist Ian Siegal’s last 2 albums, The Skinny (2011) and Candystore Kid (2012), both of which were nominated for ‘Best Contemporary Blues Album’ at the annual Blues Music Awards. Despite all his work as a producer, Cody continues to be one of the industry’s premier drummers, demonstrated by his 2013 Blues Music Awards nomination in the ‘Best Instrumentalist/Drums’ category.

The brothers reunited in 2010 to record Keys to the Kingdom after the passing of their father. Jim had always told them, “You need to be playing music together. You are better together than you will ever be apart.” Inspired by his words, Luther and Cody went into the family’s home recording studio Zebra Ranch, to create a record that could help them cope with the loss and rejoice in his honor.

Luther and Cody continually expand the tradition of the Mississippi hill country blues that has inspired them from the beginning, but as Rolling Stone aptly notes, “the Allstars may be children of tradition, but they’re digging deep in undiscovered country”.

Check out their video for “Meet Me In The City” (we CANNOT stop listening to this track at Huckleberry HQ!) below & click here for more information on North Mississippi Allstars.