Hat On, Drinking Wine
Encyclopedia
Hat On, Drinking Wine is an American rock band from Worcester, Massachusetts
featuring guitars, piano, bass, drums, as well as occasional folk and traditional instruments, such as the accordion
, tin whistle
, harmonica
, and mandolin
. The band's first CD, self-titled, was released on May 19, 2009, to favorable reviews from regional media, including Worcester Magazine and the Worcester Telegram and Gazette, which praised the group for their "conversational, confessional lyrics, the intimate, bare-bones vocals" and "the homespun and hands-on arrangements". Their sound blends conventional rock music
with styles and instruments from other musical traditions, including blues
, folk
, traditional Irish music, and reggae
.
The band was formed in the fall of 2006. It features Jarrett Conner on drums; Jared Forgues on bass guitar and mandolin; Jim Lang on piano, accordion, and tin whistle; Matt Robert on electric and acoustic guitars and harmonica; Ed Whalen on acoustic guitar and piano. Robert and Whalen share lead vocal duties. Lang, Robert, and Whalen all write songs for the band, sometimes individually and sometimes in collaboration. The band's live shows are marked by members frequently swapping lead vocals, harmony vocals, and instruments, as well as extended passages of lyrical improvisation.
The band's unusual name was taken from lyrics from the song "Madame George
" by Van Morrison
. They cite Van Morrison and Bob Dylan
as influences, as well as ensemble groups such as The Band
, Wilco
, The Jayhawks, and the Pogues.
Two of the band's members are also writers. Matt Robert wrote reviews of music, food (under the pseudonym Matt Quinn), and culture for Worcester Magazine from 2004–2008, and continues to freelance. Jim Lang is the author of three books, the most recent of which was On Course: A Week-by-Week Guide to Your First Semester of College Teaching (Harvard University Press, 2008).
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
featuring guitars, piano, bass, drums, as well as occasional folk and traditional instruments, such as the accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, tin whistle
Tin whistle
The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English Flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, Tin Flageolet, Irish whistle and Clarke London Flageolet is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is an end blown fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, American Indian flute, and...
, harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, and mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
. The band's first CD, self-titled, was released on May 19, 2009, to favorable reviews from regional media, including Worcester Magazine and the Worcester Telegram and Gazette, which praised the group for their "conversational, confessional lyrics, the intimate, bare-bones vocals" and "the homespun and hands-on arrangements". Their sound blends conventional rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
with styles and instruments from other musical traditions, including blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, traditional Irish music, and reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
.
The band was formed in the fall of 2006. It features Jarrett Conner on drums; Jared Forgues on bass guitar and mandolin; Jim Lang on piano, accordion, and tin whistle; Matt Robert on electric and acoustic guitars and harmonica; Ed Whalen on acoustic guitar and piano. Robert and Whalen share lead vocal duties. Lang, Robert, and Whalen all write songs for the band, sometimes individually and sometimes in collaboration. The band's live shows are marked by members frequently swapping lead vocals, harmony vocals, and instruments, as well as extended passages of lyrical improvisation.
The band's unusual name was taken from lyrics from the song "Madame George
Madame George
"Madame George" is a ten-minute song by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It appears on the album Astral Weeks, released in 1968. The song features Morrison performing the vocals and acoustic guitar...
" by Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
. They cite Van Morrison and Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
as influences, as well as ensemble groups such as The Band
The Band
The Band was an acclaimed and influential roots rock group. The original group consisted of Rick Danko , Garth Hudson , Richard Manuel , and Robbie Robertson , and Levon Helm...
, Wilco
Wilco
Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup has changed frequently, with only singer Jeff Tweedy and bassist John...
, The Jayhawks, and the Pogues.
Two of the band's members are also writers. Matt Robert wrote reviews of music, food (under the pseudonym Matt Quinn), and culture for Worcester Magazine from 2004–2008, and continues to freelance. Jim Lang is the author of three books, the most recent of which was On Course: A Week-by-Week Guide to Your First Semester of College Teaching (Harvard University Press, 2008).