The Grifters was a nationally popular and influential 1990s indie rock band based in Memphis who released albums on Doink, Sonic Noise, Shangri-La Records, and Sub Pop Records.

The band originally formed in the late 1980s as A Band Called Bud, with vocalist/guitarist Scott Taylor, bassist Tripp Lamkins, and drummer Dave Shouse. After being renamed the Grifters (after the novel by Jim Thompson) by 1990, Shouse joined Taylor on guitar, with Stanley Gallimore taking over on the drums. Songwriting duties were shared between Shouse, Taylor and Lamkins. For several years in the 1990s they recorded primarily at Easley McCain Recording and were closely affiliated with Memphis' Shangri-La Records label for a time. The Grifters' albums and cover artwork expressed a concern with a highly subjective, gritty (and arguably heroin-drenched) personal experiential viewpoint and overflowing with a wide array of likeminded musical influences not yet totally digested, out of which The Velvet Underground emerges somewhat predominantly.

The Grifters Discography

as A Band Called Bud:

• Dad full length cassette (Doink Records, 1989)
• Shark 7" Flexi Split 7" with The Martini Age (Kreature Comforts,1989)

Albums

• So Happy Together LP/CD (Sonic Noise, 1992)
• One Sock Missing LP/CD (Shangri-La, 1993)
• Crappin' You Negative LP/CD (Shangri-La, 1994)
• Ain't My Lookout LP/CD (Shangri-la Records/Sub Pop, 1996)
• Full Blown Possession LP/CD (Sub Pop, 1997)

EPs

• Disfigurehead EP 7" (Doink Records, 1990)
• The Kingdom of Jones EP 7" (Doink Records, 1991)
• The Eureka E.P. 10"/CD (Shangri-La, 1995)
• The Doink Years 10" reissue of Disfigurehead and The Kingdom Of Jones (Shangri-La, 1996)
• The Doink Years CD reissue of Disfigurehead and The Kingdom Of Jones (Shangri-La, 2006)

Singles

• Soda Pop 7" (Shangri-La, 1992)
• Corolla Hoist 7" (Shangri-la, 1992)
• Under the Ground split 7" (with Crain; Simple Machines, 1993)
• Holmes 7" (Darla, 1994)
• Bronze Cast 7" (Shangri-La, 1994)
• Dildozer split 7" (with Fluffy Kitty; Cherry Smash, 1994)
• I'm Drunk split 7" (with Guided by Voices; Now Sound, 1994)
• Queen of the Table Waters 7" (Sub Pop, 1994)
• Stream 7" (Derivative Records, 1995)
• Slipknot 7" (Super 8 Records, 1996)
• Last Man Alive 7" (Sub Pop, 1996)
• Wicked Thing 7" (Sub Pop, 1997)

Various-artist compilation appearances

• "She Blows Blasts Of Static" on Altered States of America, cassette, (Lime Lizard, UK, 1993)
• "Black Fuel Incinerator" on Why Do You Think They Call It Pop? 10" (Pop Narcotic,1993)
• "Make It Happen" on Ten Cent Fix CD (Jiffy Boy, 1993)
• "Spaceship" on A Day in the Park CD (Now Sound, 1994)
• "Look What You've Done To Me Now" on The Smitten Love Song Comp. CD (Karate Brand, 1994)
• "Under The Ground" on Working Holiday! CD (Simple Machines, 1994)
• "The Want (live)" on Half-Cocked: The Motion Picture Soundtrack CD (Matador, 1995)
• "Roadside Monument" on Mike McGonigal's Chemical Imbalance: 1984-1996, Vol.3, No.1, (Chemical Imbalance, , 1995)
• two songs on Barristers: Two Years In The Alley CD, 1996
• "Empty Yard" on Red Hot + Bothered: The Indie Rock Guide Book to Dating CD (Red Hot/Kinetic, 1995)
• "Corolla Hoist (live at WMBR)" on MAGNET/Darla Single 7" (Magnet Magazine/Darla Records, 1996)
• "Wicked Thing" on Spring Lineup - A Compilation Of Sub Pop's Heavy Hitters Promo CD, (Sub Pop, 1997)
• "Holmes" on The Basement Recordings: Live at Cicero's, CD (On The Clock, 1997)
• "The Muffin Man" on Rudy's Rockin' Kiddie Caravan CD (Bloodshot Records, 1997)
• "Radio City Suicide" on Chicago Cab Soundtrack CD (Loosegroove Records, 1998)
• five singles on Shangri-La: 10 Years CD (Shangri-La, 1998)
• two singles on Darla 100 CD (Darla Records, 2000)
• "Hits Keep Comin" on The Unaccompanied Voice: An A Capella Compilation CD, (Secretly Canadian, 2000)
• "Confidential" on Shangri-la Projects: B-Sides, (Shangri-La, 2006)

Bootlegs

• No Particular Slogan 2xCD Singles Compilation
• That's Not French CD, Live At The Bottleneck, Lawrence, Kansas, 2000

Other formats

Video

• "Banjo" & "Whatever Happened To Felix Cole" - VHS video single (Shangri-La Records, , 1995)
• "Last Man Alive" (directed by Russell Bates , 1996)

Film Appearances

• 'Half-Cocked' directed by Suki Hawley & Michael Galinsky. Appear as themselves and perform "The Want" live

References

discogs.com Discogs.com's Discography (incomplete)

External links

• Grifters Official Website (built by fans)
• Grifters on Myspace (built by family)
• "Last Man Alive" music video (from Ain't My Lookout)