The South African vocalist/guitarist Dave Matthews formed the Dave Matthews Band in Virginia in the early '90s. Featuring Matthews , Stefan Lessard, Leroi Moore, Boyd Tinsley , and Carter Beauford , the group's music presents a more pop-oriented version of the Grateful Dead crossed with the worldbeat explorations of Paul Simon and Sting . The band built up a strong word-of-mouth following in the early '90s by touring the country constantly, concentrating on college campuses. In addition to amassing a sizable following, their self-released album Remember Two Things sold well for an independent release; soon, they were attracting the attention of majors. Signing with RCA, the Dave Matthews Band released their major-label debut, Under the Table and Dreaming, in the fall of 1994. By spring of 1995, the record had launched the hit single "What Would You Say" and sold over a million copies.

A year and a half after the release of Under the Table and Dreaming, the record had sold over four million copies in the U.S. alone. In April of 1996, the Dave Matthews Band released Crash, which entered the charts at number two and quickly went platinum. Throughout 1996, the group toured behind Crash, sending it to double-platinum status. Also in 1996, Matthews launched an attack on bootleggers in conjunction with the Federal Government, targeting stores that were selling semilegal discs of live performances. The efforts of Matthews , his band, and his management resulted in an unprecedented crackdown on bootleggers in early 1997 -- with nearly all of the major foreign bootlegging companies placed under arrest by the United States -- thereby putting a moratorium on the entire underground industry.

To further combat the bootleggers, Dave Matthews released an official, double-disc live album, Live at Red Rocks 8.15.95, in the fall of 1997. It was an unexpected success, debuting at number three on the charts and selling a million copies within the first five months of its release. The live record paved the way for the April 1998 release of Before These Crowded Streets, the group's most ambitious album to date. Another live effort, Listener Supported, followed a year later. Summer tours also packed the late '90s, with sold-out shows across the U.S. The new millennium, however, saw the band back in the studio with Glen Ballard to record its fourth studio album. Everyday was issued in February 2001. The following summer, the band issued Busted Stuff. Debut single "Where Are You Going" was also featured on the soundtrack to the Adam Sandler flick Mr. Deeds.

Phish is another touring act that has attracted an impossible number of fans who travel relentlessly across North America to see their favourite jam-band. Such is the underlying theme of the Dave Matthews Band rise to stardom and their continued success throughout the past ten years.

DMB initially formed in 1991 in the quiet confines of Charlottesville, Virginia when South African-born vocalist/guitarist Dave Matthews decided to do something with the growing list of songs he had written. He recruited some backup musicians to add depth to his tunes, bringing together Carter Beauford (drums), LeRoi Moore (saxophone), Stefan Lessard (bass), Peter Griesar (keyboards), and Boyd Tinsley (violinist), and thus formed the Dave Matthews Band. Griesar would leave the band after a couple short years, leaving a finalized lineup of five members.

The band played their first gig in 1991 in Charlottesville. Immediately, impressed audience members told others about the quality of the act they had just scene and that debut gig turned into gigs, and then appearances across Virgina. The Dave Matthew Band struck a nerve with fans accustomed to mediocre bands playing mediocre songs. Immediately the band saw a future in their music, and tried to build upon it.

Proof of the band's initial popularity falls in the sales of their self-produced debut release, Remember Two Things. Despite no airplay or promotion, other than the band setting up shop at their numerous concert dates, the album sold at the incredible rate of 10,000 units monthly - an almost unheard number for an independent band. The album sold enough to even be certified gold by the RIAA. The sales of the album were based on the Dave Matthews Band relentless committment to touring, a characteristic that the band has always remained dedicated to.

The sales of Remember Two Things lead to a record deal with RCA, and the band released its major label debut Under The Table and Dreaming in 1994. Produced by Steve Lillywhite (U2, Rolling Stones), the album eventually became certified four times platinum by the RIAA. Despite success, the band remained focus on it's grass-root's dedication to simplistic, melodic sounds and an eclectic live show.

Despite the fact that many still did not hear of the Dave Matthews Band, their second RCA release, Crash, debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart and was eventually nominated for two Grammy Awards. DMB were now certified American icons, and their continued success virtually guaranteed.

Their next release, the quietly released Live at Red Rocks 8-15-95 proved, yet again, of the band's immense popularity. Despite the fact that it was released with no marketing or promotion, the album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart and was quickly certified platinum. The Dave Matthews Band quickly followed with 1998's Before These Crowded Streets, which was the band's first number one album and marked the start of an intense, year-and-a-half cross-country tour that became one of the biggest-grossing acts of the '90s

There was a time when every rock 'n' roll movement sprung from the grass roots. And while much has changed over the years, a band working entirely on its own -- outside the parameters of current trends -- can generate the kind of organic electricity that marketers spend a fortune trying to create. Case in point: the Dave Matthews Band.

Since Matthews -- a South African expatriate who settled in Charlottesville, Va., after leaving his homeland as a teenager -- put together the genre-blending combo, the quintet's charged live shows have made them one of the biggest pop-rock draws in North America.

Their self-released debut, 1993's Remember Two Things, sold at a rate of more than 10,000 copies per month -- a remarkable feat, considering the album was distributed exclusively from the band's office. Their major-label debut, Under the Table and Dreaming was produced by Steve Lillywhite (U2, Talking Heads, Rolling Stones) and captures every nuance of the band's live shows.

With singer/guitarist Matthews' vulnerable, expressive voice at the fore, the band (reedman LeRoi Moore, violinist Boyd Tinsley, bassist Stefan Lessard and drummer Carter Beauford) weaves a mesh of sound, that the Raleigh Spectator described as "stunning...as cool, as evil and as furious as rock has ever been."

"The way I look at it, we have five lead voices in this band," Matthews says. "I may be the first thing people notice, since I do the singing, but there are times when LeRoi's sax is the voice, and times when Boyd is at the front. And in Carter and Stefan, we have something that goes far beyond a simple rhythm section. There are very few times when the audience has just one thing to listen to."

The band's third album, 1996's Crash, contained the radio mega-hit "Crash Into Me," which was nominated for two Grammy Awards.

In October 1997, the DMB released a double CD of the group's August 1995 live performance at Red Rocks in Colorado. The following year, they released their first studio album in two years, Before These Crowded Streets, following it up with another tour. Two double-CD live sets followed in 1999: Listener Supported and Live at Luther College, the latter an acoustic duo showcase for Matthews and fellow guitarist Tim Reynolds

The Dave Matthews Band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in early 1991, when vocalist/guitarist Dave Matthews decided to put some songs he had written on tape. Instead of simply recording himself with a guitar, he opted to bring in some instrumental help to give his musical ideas more depth. Dave found assistance in drummer Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore, who were both accomplished jazz musicians in the local Charlottesville music scene. Based on the recommendation of distinguished local jazz guru John D'earth, 16-year-old musical prodigy Stefan Lessard came on board to play bass. Completing the band was keyboard player Peter Griesar, who left the band after a couple of years, as well as the talented and classically trained violinist, Boyd Tinsley.
The first official gig for the newly conceived Dave Matthews Band was May 11, 1991, at a private rooftop party in Charlottesville. Its first public show was at the city's 1991 Earth Day Festival. Local weekly gigs soon followed, and within a little time, word of the band's contagious new sound spread like wildfire throughout the region. Clubs started to fill up, tours began to cover more territory, and the fan base grew at an incredible rate.

On November 9, 1993, DMB released its first album, Remember Two Things, on its Bama Rags label. The album was recorded live at The Muse Music Club on Nantucket Island, in August of 1993. The album debuted on College charts as the highest independent entry, and went on to be certified gold by the RIAA -- a significant accomplishment for an independent album. Meanwhile, the band kept touring and its fan base continued to grow. By allowing fans to tape shows for their personal use, DMB created a highly interactive community that continues in spirit today.

During the first part of 1994, Dave Matthews Band recorded its RCA debut, Under The Table and Dreaming. Just before the album's release on September 27, 1994, Dave Matthews Band hit the road for their first official national tour. The tour lasted well over a year and included sold out theater dates across the country, a trip to Europe, and two summers playing on the main stage of HORDE. By the fall of 1995, when the band returned to the studio to record its next album, Under The Table and Dreaming had been certified four times platinum by the RIAA.

Crash, Dave Matthews Band's second album for RCA, was released on April 30, 1996, and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart. The band continued with a steady schedule of touring throughout 1997, headlining sold-out amphitheater dates across North America. DMB, though elevated to the level of national pop stardom, continued to do things precisely as it had from day one: organically, with a grass roots mentality.

On October 28, 1997, Bama Rags/RCA label released an official double-disc live Dave Matthews Band album, entitled Live at Red Rocks 8-15-95. Without any marketing or promotion, Live at Red Rocks debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart and was instantly certified platinum. The album provided fans with a high-quality and reasonably priced alternative to the over-priced, ill-produced, and illegal live DMB CDs that were beginning to flood the bootleg black-market. The overwhelming success of Live at Red Rocks, combined with the band's tremendous touring achievements, proved that Dave Matthews Band had grown from a grass roots phenomenon to one of the hottest bands in America.

On April 28, 1998, RCA released Dave Matthews Band's third studio album, Before These Crowded Streets. The critically acclaimed recording debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart; it was the band's strongest debut to date. DMB spent the following year and a half on the road, selling out stadiums, arenas, and amphitheaters across the country.

On January 19, 1999, Bama Rags/RCA released Live at Luther College: An Acoustic Performance by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds. Tim Reynolds was a guest guitarist on all of the Dave Matthews Band albums, and toured with the band as a guest musician. Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds toured as an acoustic duo during the winters of '96, '97, and '99. The second in a series of live Dave Matthews Band-related releases, Live at Luther College debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart and has since been certified platinum by the RIAA . As with Live at Red Rocks, the success of this second live album was based solely on word-of-mouth buzz.

The third installment in this ongoing live album series, Listener Supported, was released by Bama Rags/RCA on November 23, 1999. The album was recorded live at New Jersey's Continental Airlines Arena in September 1999, and a video of the performance, also titled Listener Supported, was released at the same time. The double-disc album was quickly certified double-platinum, and the video has sold over a million copies as well.

The band spent much of 2000 on tour, finishing as the top-grossing touring band in the U.S. In the fall, Dave Matthews joined legendary producer Glen Ballard in Los Angeles to fine-tune song arrangements for a new album, and the pair wound up co-writing 12 new songs in a matter of days. From this explosion of creative chemistry came the band's new album, Everyday, released February 27, 2001. Matthews played electric guitar for the first time, and Ballard helped the band focus and tighten their arrangements, resulting in the phenomenal success of Everyday, which has since gone triple platinum.

DMB spent the summer of 2001 touring the country and exposing sold-out audiences to songs from Everyday. On August 21, Dave Matthews Band, The Videos 1994-2001, was released on DVD and VHS. For the first time, the entire collection of Dave Matthews Band videos (the first 12) were presented together, along with director commentary and behind the scenes footage.

On October 23, 2001, the band released it's fourth live release, Live In Chicago, 12.19.98, featuring guest musicians such as Victor Wooten, Maceo Parker, and a full set with Tim Reynolds.
The band regrouped in January 2002 at the familiar Plant Studios in Sausalito, CA where they had recorded their 3rd RCA release Before These Crowded Streets. The band revisited tracks they had previously written and recorded in 2000 and collaborated on a couple of new tunes that had debuted in recent months. The resultant creation, Busted Stuff, was made available July 16th, 2002. Busted Stuff is a landmark record for DMB; for the first time ever, this album is without any musical guests. Included on the album are road-tested fan favorites such as “Bartender”, “Grey Street”, “Where Are You Going”, and "Grace Is Gone".

Following a successful tour throughout the US in Summer 2002, Dave Matthews Band released Live At Folsom Field, Boulder CO, the band's 5th live release overall. This double CD / DVD / VHS from the band's 7/11/01 performance, contains first ever live versions of songs from Everyday and Busted Stuff, such as "When The World Ends," "So Right," "What You Are," "If I Had It All," "Angel," "The Space Between," "Everyday" "Big Eyed Fish," "Digging A Ditch," and "Bartender." The DVD utilizes footage taken from 22 cameras, is recorded in 5.1 surround sound, and presents the finest audio quality of any DMB live release to date. A short tour in several US cities in December of 2002 was highlighted by 2 sold out performances at Madison Square Garden. On 12/21, Dave Matthews Band was joined on stage by James Brown.

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