Compulsive Gamblers
Encyclopedia
'Compulsive Gamblers' were a garage-rock group formed in Memphis
, Tennessee
, in 1990 by Greg Cartwright
and Jack Yarber
, both future members of the Oblivians
.
frontmen Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber, both of whom shared vocal and guitar duties. With the addition of bassist Fields Trimble, keyboardist Philip "Flipper" Tubb, drummer Rod "Bushrod" Thomas, and fiddler Greg Easterly, the band soon adopted the name the "Compulsive Gamblers", and set to work recording their first 7", Joker. The album was released a year later, and was followed by two further 7" recordings, Church Goin' and Goodtime Gamblers. According to Cartwright, one of the themes of the Church Goin' 7", and of the Compulsive Gamblers in general, was "the self destructive gambler, these people who just can't fix their lives and just fuck up at every turn. They need to do something. So that was the idea for "Church Goin'", but it wasn't fully realized..." http://www.littlecrackedegg.com/issue01/oblivians/oblivians2.html
The band struggled through 1990 and 1991 without any major gigs or a set band, but by the following year the band's fortunes had started to turn. By 1992 the band had a concrete lineup and had begun to form a unique sound, however, just as the Gamblers luck seemed to be looking up the band began to drift apart.
In 1993 Cartwright was offered a place to stay and record in New York with singer Casey Scott, which for a time he accepted. Cartwright played guitar on Casey Scott's "Creep City" album that was released on Capitol Records in 1993.
Around this time the other members of the band began to venture off on their own as well, leaving only Yarber and Easterly to try to keep the band afloat. Upon Cartwright's return to Memphis in the summer of 1993, he and Yarber decided to split their time between the Gamblers and a side project called the Oblivians
. http://turnit-down.blogspot.com/2006/06/jack-oblivian-interview.html By 1995, Thomas and Easterly had relocated to New Orleans, and Cartwright and Yarber focused their creative efforts solely on the Oblivians, resulting in the ultimate breakup of the first incarnation of the Gamblers.
Label interest for the Compulsive Gamblers had always been fleeting, and the band was unable to garner much interest while the band was still together. As Yarber explained, the Compulsive Gamblers “did two 7-inches and recorded a bunch of songs on home recordings. We recorded in Easley
(Recording studio), but we never really had an album...our CD came out after The Oblivians started playing.” http://scenestars.net/interviews/yarber.htm Eventually their 7" recordings were compiled in LP format under the title Gambling Days are Over
and released by Sympathy for the Record Industry
. http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/compulsive_gamblers/bio.jhtml
in 1999. Bassist Jeff Meier and keyboardist Brendan Lee Spengler were added to the lineup following a European tour, and in this incarnation the band released the studio album Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing
and the live album Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago
, their final release before again disbanding. http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/compulsive_gamblers/bio.jhtml
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Fields Trimble: bass
Greg Easterly: violin
Compulsive Gamblers II:
(after The Oblivians broke up, 1998, Bluff City LP/CD)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Compulsive Gamblers III: (Spring 1999 US Tour)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Jeff Meier: bass
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Compulsive Gamblers IV: (After the Spring 1999 US Tour, "Crystal Gazing, Luck Amazing" LP/CD)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Jeff Meier: bass
Brenden Lee Spengler: organ
Dale Beavers: guitar
Other former Members:
Greg Roberson (also former member of Reigning Sound) played on the "Live & Deadly" LP (Sympathy).
Albums
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, in 1990 by Greg Cartwright
Greg Cartwright
Greg Cartwright, also known by his stage name Greg Oblivian, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Memphis, Tennessee. He currently fronts Reigning Sound and lives in Asheville, North Carolina...
and Jack Yarber
Jack Yarber
Jack Yarber, also known by his stage name, Jack Oblivian, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist based in Memphis, Tennessee. He was a founding member of the garage-bands The Compulsive Gamblers, and The Oblivans and currently fronts Jack O & the Tennessee Tearjerkers.Yarber has also been...
, both future members of the Oblivians
Oblivians
The Oblivians were an American punk rock trio that existed from 1993 to 1998. In the 1990s, their blues-infused brand of bravado, crudely-recorded music made them one of the most popular and prominent bands within the underground garage rock scene....
.
First incarnation
Originally known as "The Painkillers", the band was founded in 1990 by future ObliviansOblivians
The Oblivians were an American punk rock trio that existed from 1993 to 1998. In the 1990s, their blues-infused brand of bravado, crudely-recorded music made them one of the most popular and prominent bands within the underground garage rock scene....
frontmen Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber, both of whom shared vocal and guitar duties. With the addition of bassist Fields Trimble, keyboardist Philip "Flipper" Tubb, drummer Rod "Bushrod" Thomas, and fiddler Greg Easterly, the band soon adopted the name the "Compulsive Gamblers", and set to work recording their first 7", Joker. The album was released a year later, and was followed by two further 7" recordings, Church Goin' and Goodtime Gamblers. According to Cartwright, one of the themes of the Church Goin' 7", and of the Compulsive Gamblers in general, was "the self destructive gambler, these people who just can't fix their lives and just fuck up at every turn. They need to do something. So that was the idea for "Church Goin'", but it wasn't fully realized..." http://www.littlecrackedegg.com/issue01/oblivians/oblivians2.html
The band struggled through 1990 and 1991 without any major gigs or a set band, but by the following year the band's fortunes had started to turn. By 1992 the band had a concrete lineup and had begun to form a unique sound, however, just as the Gamblers luck seemed to be looking up the band began to drift apart.
In 1993 Cartwright was offered a place to stay and record in New York with singer Casey Scott, which for a time he accepted. Cartwright played guitar on Casey Scott's "Creep City" album that was released on Capitol Records in 1993.
Around this time the other members of the band began to venture off on their own as well, leaving only Yarber and Easterly to try to keep the band afloat. Upon Cartwright's return to Memphis in the summer of 1993, he and Yarber decided to split their time between the Gamblers and a side project called the Oblivians
Oblivians
The Oblivians were an American punk rock trio that existed from 1993 to 1998. In the 1990s, their blues-infused brand of bravado, crudely-recorded music made them one of the most popular and prominent bands within the underground garage rock scene....
. http://turnit-down.blogspot.com/2006/06/jack-oblivian-interview.html By 1995, Thomas and Easterly had relocated to New Orleans, and Cartwright and Yarber focused their creative efforts solely on the Oblivians, resulting in the ultimate breakup of the first incarnation of the Gamblers.
Label interest for the Compulsive Gamblers had always been fleeting, and the band was unable to garner much interest while the band was still together. As Yarber explained, the Compulsive Gamblers “did two 7-inches and recorded a bunch of songs on home recordings. We recorded in Easley
Easley McCain Recording
Easley McCain Recording is an American recording studio, based in Memphis, Tennessee, notable for recording musicians such as Tav Falco's Panther Burns, Grifters, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Come, White Stripes, Townes Van Zandt, Pezz, Jeff Buckley, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Guided by Voices, Lydia...
(Recording studio), but we never really had an album...our CD came out after The Oblivians started playing.” http://scenestars.net/interviews/yarber.htm Eventually their 7" recordings were compiled in LP format under the title Gambling Days are Over
Gambling Days are Over
Gambling Days are Over is the debut album by the Compulsive Gamblers. It was released in 1995 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album, with the exception of the last three songs, was recorded on an 8-track recorder in vocalist Jack Oblivian's apartment...
and released by Sympathy for the Record Industry
Sympathy for the Record Industry
Sympathy for the Record Industry is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by record industry anti-mogul Long Gone John...
. http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/compulsive_gamblers/bio.jhtml
Second incarnation
After the breakup of the Oblivians, Cartwright and Yarber reformed the Compulsive Gamblers, this time as a three-piece with Rod Thomas back on drums. With this lineup they released the album Bluff CityBluff City (album)
Bluff City is the second LP recorded by the Compulsive Gamblers. It was released on April 27, 1999 by the independent music label, Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album was recorded after the band returned from a four year hiatus in which members Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber were recording...
in 1999. Bassist Jeff Meier and keyboardist Brendan Lee Spengler were added to the lineup following a European tour, and in this incarnation the band released the studio album Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing
Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing
Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing is the third LP recorded by the band, The Compulsive Gamblers. The album was released June 20, 2000 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album's lineup consisted of Gamblers mainstays Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber on guitar and vocals...
and the live album Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago
Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago
Live & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago is a live album recorded by the Compulsive Gamblers. It is the fourth and final album issued by the band, released on April 15, 2003 by the independent record label Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album contains 16 tracks recorded during two May 2002...
, their final release before again disbanding. http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/compulsive_gamblers/bio.jhtml
Line Ups
Compulsive Gamblers I: (1991–1993, first three singles and "Gambling Days Are Over")Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Fields Trimble: bass
Greg Easterly: violin
Compulsive Gamblers II:
(after The Oblivians broke up, 1998, Bluff City LP/CD)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Compulsive Gamblers III: (Spring 1999 US Tour)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Jeff Meier: bass
Bushrod Thomas: drums
Compulsive Gamblers IV: (After the Spring 1999 US Tour, "Crystal Gazing, Luck Amazing" LP/CD)
Jack Yarber: guitar, vocals
Greg Cartwright: guitar, vocals
Jeff Meier: bass
Brenden Lee Spengler: organ
Dale Beavers: guitar
Other former Members:
Greg Roberson (also former member of Reigning Sound) played on the "Live & Deadly" LP (Sympathy).
Discography
Singles- Joker 7" (Boiler Room, 1992, BR 001)
- Church Goin' 7" (Lemon Peel Records, 1992, LP001 - LP002)
- Goodtime Gamblers 7" (Boiler Room, 1995, BR 002)
Albums
- Gambling Days are OverGambling Days are OverGambling Days are Over is the debut album by the Compulsive Gamblers. It was released in 1995 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album, with the exception of the last three songs, was recorded on an 8-track recorder in vocalist Jack Oblivian's apartment...
CD (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 1995, SFTRI 372) - Bluff CityBluff City (album)Bluff City is the second LP recorded by the Compulsive Gamblers. It was released on April 27, 1999 by the independent music label, Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album was recorded after the band returned from a four year hiatus in which members Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber were recording...
LP/CD (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 1999, SFTRI 570) - Crystal Gazing Luck AmazingCrystal Gazing Luck AmazingCrystal Gazing Luck Amazing is the third LP recorded by the band, The Compulsive Gamblers. The album was released June 20, 2000 by Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album's lineup consisted of Gamblers mainstays Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber on guitar and vocals...
LP/CD (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 2000, SFTRI 572) - Live & Deadly: Memphis-ChicagoLive & Deadly: Memphis-ChicagoLive & Deadly: Memphis-Chicago is a live album recorded by the Compulsive Gamblers. It is the fourth and final album issued by the band, released on April 15, 2003 by the independent record label Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album contains 16 tracks recorded during two May 2002...
2xLP/CD (Sympathy For The Record Industry, 2003, SFTRI 698)