Muddy Bottom Blues
Program #124 (October 6 at 8:00 p.m. and October 7 at 3:00 p.m.)
Although Mofro is based in the Florida city of Jacksonville, near where JJ Grey and Daryl Hance grew up, the band actually formed across the Atlantic in London.
The Floridians were in Great Britain to work on a recording contract that ended up going sour. While in London, the two musicians made the acquaintance of Nathan Shepherd, a keyboard player from Down Under, and Fabrice Quentin, a bassist who hails from France. Shepherd and Quentin joined them for a short time under the Mofro moniker.
Unfortunately, the band's situation took an almost deadly turn following a show in Jacksonville that was supposed to be the start of a U.S. tour. Following an evening at the city's Marquee Theatre, band members were involved in an auto accident. Grey's wife sustained serious injuries, while Shepherd needed a period of rehabilitation and he returned to Australia.
Their first album, Blackwater appeared in 2001, while 2004's Lochloosa, signaled the first of many personnel changes. The album featured included founding members Grey, Hance, and Quentin, plus keyboard player Mike Shapiro and drummer Craig Barnette.
While Grey kept the name Mofro on all subsequent recordings from 2007's Country Ghetto through 2015's Ol' Glory, he remained not only its front-man, but its only constant member; he employed different lineups to suit the material he recorded.
(provided by Allmusic)
