Stillwater (fictional band)

Stillwater are a fictional 1970s rock band invented by Cameron Crowe for his 2000 movie "Almost Famous". The fourpiece are based upon classic rock bands of the early seventies era such as Led Zeppelin and the Allman Brothers Band. The line-up consists of: Jeff Bebe (portrayed by Jason Lee) on vocals, Russel Hammond (portrayed by Billy Crudup) on guitar, Ed Vallencourt (portrayed by John Fedevich) on drums and Larry Fellows (portrayed by Mark Kozelek) on bass. [ [http://www.infoplease.com/spot/crowe1.html Cameron Crowe - Interview — Infoplease.com ] ] [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181875 Almost Famous (2000) ] ] In reality, Stillwater's songs were written by Peter Frampton (who also had a small part in the film), Cameron Crowe and his wife Nancy Wilson of the rock band Heart, a fact indicated early in the credits although the music acknowledgments credit Russell Hammond and Stillwater as if they were authors and performers.

History

Since its humble beginnings in Troy, Michigan as the Jeff Bebe band, Stillwater displayed a penchant for no-nonsense, live and loud Rock-n-Roll. Roswell Management International (fronted by Hammond's close friend Dick Roswell) signed the group shortly after it's inception and shortly thereafter landed a recording contract. The raucous foursome's debut album, To Begin With..., was released in 1972 and featured the singles "Love Comes and Goes" and "Chance Upon You." It prompted the likes of Creem magazine and its subsidiaries to stand up and take note. The band then headed out across the country on tour, opening for such prolific heavyweights as Black Sabbath and The Allman Brothers. In 1973, the band released "Feverdog" as the first single from their upcoming sophomore effort, Farrington Road, and embarked on their first headlining tour, the now infamous 'Almost Famous Tour'. This tour entered rock folklore as one of the most hedonistic, wild and almost catastrophic tours in music history as Stillwater embarked on a non-stop runaway train of sexual debauchery, infighting, drug and alcohol abuse all the way across the country, from the Sunset Strip to Madison Square Garden, underlining it all with some truly great music.

Following the tour and their departure from Roswell Management International, the band retreated somewhat to record its last effort, 1975's Stillwater. Yet, with all the hype surrounding the groups touring antics and live performances, culminating in a Rolling Stone magazine cover story, the band failed to live up their world class billing and disbanded shortly thereafter. Critics decreed that the band had run its course and the once bountiful relationship between Bebe and Hammond had now become an estranged one.

Members

Jeff Bebe

Charismatic Jeff Bebe is the voice of Stillwater. Flamboyant and unpredictable Bebe is in his element on stage, feeding off the raw energy of his audience. Bebe is known for his powerful style with a wide vocal range that embodies folk/blues passion at its most poignant. Whilst in Troy, Michigan fronting the Jeff Bebe Band, the singer began collaborating with guitarist Russel Hammond. Hammond and Bebe immediately hit it off with a shared musical passion and Hammond joined the Jeff Bebe band who changed their name to Stillwater and began their powerful writing collaboration with reworks of earlier blues songs. A well-read individual, Bebe was influenced by the music and literature of decades gone by, which underpinned his lyrics on Stillwater albums.

Russel Hammond

Russel Hammond is the classic rock guitarist personified. Irresistable to women and effortlessly cool, he's a mysterious rogue who lets his guitar do the talking. A guitarist of great aplomb, Hammond was the Richards to Bebe’s Jagger, the Page to his Plant, the Duane to his Greg Allman. Sadly, however, as it became more apparent that Hammond was vastly more talented than Bebe, there was a paradigm shift in the band’s media persona. Ever the fan’s favourite, Hammond was the subject of jealousy from his other bandmates, particularly Bebe who saw himself as the face of the band. Rather than reconcile this position however, Hammond enflamed it as his creativity reached new heights, penning the track Feverdog and putting in some truly epic performances on stage. At this point, as he drew further apart from his bandmates, Hammond became the poster boy for excess, famously hurling himself from a fan’s rooftop into a pool at a party whilst on an acid trip decreeing, “I am a Golden God!” However after the events of 1973’s Almost Famous Tour died down, he rekindled his affirmation for his bandmates, particularly Bebe who he was particularly at odds with after the news broke that Bebe had in fact slept with Hammond’s girlfriend. They had survived ups and downs in their careers and personal lives, and remained the core of the band until its ultimate demise.

Larry Fellows

Bassist Larry Fellows is one half of the rhythm section that drives Stillwater, seldom without his Ray Ban Aviator sunglasses. Fellows is noted for his painstaking reliability and virtuosity. From the outset of the band Fellows defied the role of a modern bassist, abandoning root notes for fills and pushing back the boundaries of conceptual technique. The result was that, from Stillwater's first singles to their last, Fellows' bass work was some of the most complex and audible in rock music. He played fills, countermelodies, and all manner of material, and stood out doing it. Moreover, he tended to stand out precisely by not standing out, simply standing there and playing as Bebe and Hammond ran riot, providing an anchor that kept the band from flying off in all directions, both visually and musically.

Ed Vallencourt

Sticksman Ed Vallencourt is perhaps the shyest and most subdued of Stillwater offstage, but when the lights go down he is the heartbeat of the band. A master timekeeper, Jeff Bebe once stated he was so good at keeping time that you could; "set your watch by him". Ed came from a jazz background and like many of his drummer contemporaries was strongly influenced by the work of Elvin Jones, Philly Joe Jones, and Art Blakey. He brought this dynamic flowing style to the group and was given the freedom to perform interplay with bassist Larry Fellows while still maintaining a foundational rhythm. The speed and creativity of his comping style of playing was impressive, as any drummer trying to emulate it would attest. Historically, drums were relegated to the background, keeping rhythm along with the electric bass - a concept that Ed didn’t believe in, stamping his own signature contributions on Stillwater tracks. Along with Hammond’s revolutionary guitar work and songwriting, Vallencourt's playing helped forge the Stillwater sound. He did this, incidentally, using the traditional ‘classic grip’ method of holding the drum sticks.

Almost Famous tour

In 1973, Stillwater toured the US on their Almost Famous tour in support of their new record, Farrington Road, that featured the hit single Feverdog.

No More Airplanes Tour

After the disastrous flight that almost put an end to Stillwater in more ways than one, the band returned to their tour bus "Doris" for their 1974 national tour. As the tour commenced, the band enjoyed their first Rolling Stone magazine cover.

Albums

Stillwater released three albums:

* To Begin with...

* Stillwater

* Farrington Road

A 6 song career-spanning EP can be found accompanying the Region 1 Almost Famous: Untitled Bootleg Cut containing the songs: Feverdog, Chance Upon You, Love Comes and Goes, Love Thing, Hour of Need and You Had to be There.

References