6 String Drag

Honoring the Stanley Brothers tune “Five String Drag,” the Clemson, South Carolina alt-country outfit 6 String Drag revolves around singer and guitarist Kenny Roby, formerly the frontman of the punk band the Lubricators. Constrained by hardcore’s narrow scope, Roby dissolved the Lubricators in 1992 and, alongside bassist Rob Keller plus multi-instrumentalist Ed Campbell, launched the Welfare Liners to interpret vintage country, bluegrass, and honky-tonk numbers. Following several performances the Welfare Liners, now without Campbell, morphed into 6 String Drag; the initial roster also featured lead guitarist Glenn Cannon, drummer Ray Duffey, and pianist/trombonist David “Pops” Wright.

Roby’s original material spanned old-time country and direct rock, prompting the group to cut its self-titled debut album for Fundamental Records in 1994. Once Cannon and Wright departed, the band—now including guitarist Scotty Miller, distinct from the Game Theory leader and the V-Roys vocalist-guitarist of the same name—joined Steve Earle’s E Squared imprint and tracked the 1997 release High Hat in Nashville, earning strong critical notice. Miller subsequently exited and was succeeded by guitarist William Tonks.

The ensemble parted ways amicably in 1998, after which Roby pursued solo work while Keller reassembled the Welfare Liners name for a modern bluegrass project. An archive of previously unheard recordings from 1996 and 1998 surfaced in 2014 as The JAG Sessions; that year Roby, Keller, Duffey, and Miller reunited for a 6 String Drag show marking the fortieth anniversary of Raleigh, North Carolina’s Schoolkids Records. Positive response led to additional dates, and by February 2015 Royal Potato Family issued the band’s first twenty-first-century album, Roots Rock ’n’ Roll, followed by a tour of the South and Midwest. A refreshed lineup—Roby, Keller, Luis Rodriguez on guitar, keyboards, and trumpet, and Dan Davis on drums—debuted with the 2018 album Top of the World.