Sister Hazel | |
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.jpg) Sister Hazel performing in Orlando, Florida, in 2007 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Gainesville, Florida, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Labels |
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| Members |
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| Website | sisterhazel |
Sister Hazel is an Americanrock band fromGainesville, Florida, whose style blends elements ofjangle pop,folk rock,classic rock, andSouthern rock.[3][6] They are best known for their 1997 single "All for You."
Sister Hazel formed inGainesville, Florida, in 1993 and was named for Sister Hazel Williams, a localmissionary who ran a homeless shelter.[7] The group released itsself-titled debut album in 1994, through its independentrecord label Croakin' Poets. Shortly after its release, singer/guitarist Ryan Newell and drummer Mark Trojanowski joined the band. Newell played on the album before officially joining the group.
The band's second album...Somewhere More Familiar was released in 1997 and sold approximately 30,000 copies through its initial pressing, promptingUniversal Records to sign the band. Universal re-released...Somewhere More Familiar in late 1997.[8] A single from the albumAll For You hit No. 11 on theBillboard Hot 100 and remains the band's most successful single.
The band's third albumFortress was released in 2000 by Universal. The band worked with producersMike Clink (Guns N' Roses,Mötley Crüe,Heart), Richie Zito (Cheap Trick), and Paul Ebersold (3 Doors Down).[8] The album featured minor pop hits "Champagne High" and "Change Your Mind.”
In 2003, after the band split from Universal, they released their fourth studio album,Chasing Daylight, on the Sixthman label and toured throughout the year to promote the album. The band's internet presence emerged during this time period, and hardcore fans dubbing themselves "Hazelnuts" studied setlists, sharedbootleg concert recordings, and initiated a promotion scheme with the band through theirofficial website. 2003 also saw the simultaneous release ofLive*LIVE, a two-disc live album, andA Life in the Day, a live DVD.
In 2004, Sister Hazel released their next studio album,Lift. Songs fromLift were re-recorded for 2005'sLift: Acoustic Renditions, an EP of studio acoustic takes on five of the songs, offered exclusively throughApple'siTunes Store. In July 2005, theSister Hazel album was re-issued again by Sixthman, in response to claims that the album had become difficult to find in stores.
Sister Hazel then promoted their album,Absolutely, which was released on October 10, 2006. The band also continued to tour and hold annual fan gathering events,The Rock Boat and The Rock Slope.Absolutely is the band's highest-charting album on theBillboard charts followingFortress and it received 4 out of a possible 5 stars fromAllmusic, a tie withFortress's score.
On June 5, 2007, Sister Hazel released a "hybrid" album,BAM! Volume 1. It containsB-sides from theAbsolutely recording sessions and some from previous albums. Sister Hazel also released a holiday album calledSanta's Playlist on September 25, 2007.
On February 9, 2008, the band performed a live concert atDaytona International Speedway for theBudweiser Shootout. They released a live acoustic album on June 17, 2008,Before the Amplifiers, Live Acoustic on Croakin' Poets/Rock Ridge Music. The record features 16 tracks, including the band's hits, fan favorites, and live concert staples, all in a stripped-down, acoustic format. The album was recorded on January 12 at Nickel & Dime Studios in Atlanta (other bands who have recorded there in the past includeIndigo Girls,The B-52's,Shawn Mullins) in front of a hundred fans who were chosen at random from more than five thousand entries.
At the July 18, 2008, concert atWolf Trap Farm Park, drummer Mark Trojanowski took paternity leave for his newborn child. FormerVertical Horizon and currentDoobie Brothers drummerEd Toth played in his absence.
On July 9, 2009,Ford Motor Company announced a collaboration with Sister Hazel to promote the company's newSync technology, available on many Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles. The band was featured on a Ford website, syncmyride.com.[9]
The band released their seventh studio album of original songs (tenth album overall) on August 18, 2009. The album, entitledRelease, contains 12 tracks and is on the Rock Ridge Music label.[10] On the day of release,Release was the number one album on iTunes.[11]
Less than six months after releasingRelease, the band returned to the studio to work on their new album,Heartland Highway, was released on October 12, 2010. Its first radio single was "Stay a While".
The band's ninth studio album,Lighter in the Dark, was announced in the later part of 2015. It is their first country album, and was released on February 19, 2016.[12] The lead single from the album is "We Got It All Tonight". Two songs, "We Got It All Tonight" and "Karaoke Song", which features country artistDarius Rucker, were made available for instant download for those who pre-ordered the album.[13]
The band's namesake Dr. Hazel Kirkland Williams died on July 16, 2016, at age 91 in Gainesville.[14]
The band released an EPWater on February 9, 2018, which featured the lead single "Roll On Bye". Less than a week after the release ofWater, the band announced they had begun recording a follow-up EP inNashville,Tennessee. The EPWind was released on September 7, 2018. The next EP in the "Elements" series,Fire, was released on February 8, 2019. The final installment in the "Elements" series,Earth, was released on September 6, 2019. Each of the EPs in the series included a portion of a song at the end, intended to be linked together in a future release. On November 26, 2019, all the EPs were combined into a single release,Elements. The 25-song, double-disc set includes the final "Elements" song pieced together.
The band has had music featured in several movies and soundtracks includingMajor League: Back to the Minors,The Wedding Planner,Clay Pigeons,Bedazzled and10 Things I Hate About You. Sister Hazel also appear on theFleetwood Mac tribute album,Legacy: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac's Rumours with theircover version of "Gold Dust Woman". In 1999, they recorded a cover of "September Gurls" for theBig Star tribute album,Big Star, Small World. However, the track was not included when the album was released in 2006. The song "Where Do You Go" was featured onScrubs (Season 6, Episode 4, "My House"). "All For You" was featured in episode 7 of the first season ofThe Way Home (TV series)
While some of the band members feel like their sounds are simply Sister Hazel,[15] Ryan Newell has citedJimi Hendrix,Stevie Ray Vaughan,Jimmy Page,Van Halen, andEric Clapton as his influences.[16] The band has certainly been influenced by othersouthern rock andfolk music.[17]
Lyrics for Life is a non-profit organization for the benefit of pediatric cancer.[18] Sister Hazel had a benefit concert to support the Sarah Jones Scholarship Fund.[19]
Touring musicians
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certification | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [20] | US Country [21] | US Indie [22] | US Rock [23] | ||||
| 1994 | Sister Hazel
| — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997 | ...Somewhere More Familiar
| 47 | — | — | — | ||
| 2000 | Fortress
| 63 | — | — | — | ||
| 2003 | Chasing Daylight
| 177 | — | 6 | — | ||
| 2004 | Lift
| 184 | — | 20 | — | ||
| 2006 | Absolutely
| 86 | — | 4 | — | ||
| 2009 | Release
| 37 | — | 3 | 8 | ||
| 2010 | Heartland Highway
| 80 | — | 19 | 33 | ||
| 2016 | Lighter in the Dark
| 79 | 4 | 6 | 12 | ||
| 2020 | Elements
| — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024 | Sand, Sea & Crash Debris
| — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||
| Year | EP details | Chart positions | Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [20] | US Country [21] | US Indie [22] | US Rock [23] | |||
| 2018 | Water
| 96 | 9 | 2 | 14 | |
| 2018 | Wind
| — | 46 | 11 | — |
|
| 2019 | Fire
| — | 48 | 5 | — |
|
| 2019 | Earth
| — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||
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| Title | Year | Chart positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [31] | US Alt | US Main | US Adult 40 | US AC | AUS [32] | |||
| "All for You" | 1997 | 11 | 39 | — | 1 | 16 | 50 | ...Somewhere More Familiar |
| "Concede" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Happy" | 1998 | 73 | 37 | 31 | 27 | — | — | |
| "Change Your Mind" | 2000 | 59 | — | — | 5 | — | — | Fortress |
| "Champagne High" | 2001 | — | — | — | 22 | — | — | |
| "Beautiful Thing" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Your Mistake" | 2002 | — | — | — | 27 | — | — | Chasing Daylight |
| "Life Got in the Way" | 2003 | — | — | — | 36 | — | — | |
| "Just What I Needed" | 2004 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Lift |
| "World Inside My Head" | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Mandolin Moon"(featuringShawn Mullins) | 2006 | — | — | — | 26 | — | — | Absolutely |
| "This Kind of Love" | 2008 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Take a Bow" | 2009 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Release |
| "Vacation Rain" | 2010 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Stay Awhile" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Heartland Highway | |
| "We Got It All Tonight" | 2015 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Lighter in the Dark |
| "Roll on Bye" | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Water |
| "Small Town Living" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Wind | |
| "Here with You" | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Fire |
| "Good for You" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Earth | |
| "Coconut Trees" | 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Sand, Sea & Crash Debris |
The very definition of a mainstream jangle-pop band, Sister Hazel belongs in the company of Counting Crows, Third Eye Blind, Edwin McCain, Hootie and the Blowfish and matchbox twenty.
Acoustic jangle-pop band Sister Hazel achieved commercial success with its 1997 hit, "All For You."
They've had hits with "All for You" and "Change Your Mind," and their music blends Southern rock, classic rock and folk rock, but my favorite description of Sister Hazel called them a jangle pop band. "Jangle" — that's a good word.
| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
