Edie Brickell helped revive the loose, hippie-inflected folk-rock style during the late 1980s, arriving just ahead of its wider resurgence. Joined by New Bohemians, she landed an unforeseen Top Ten hit in 1988 with the dreamy, loose-limbed “What I Am,” a track that quietly resisted the decade’s emphasis on materialism. Although the group never repeated that level of commercial impact, the song stayed emblematic of its time and gave Brickell a foundation for an eclectic path across subsequent decades. After New Bohemians disbanded in the early 1990s, she explored solo work until a fresh period of activity emerged in the 2010s, first via the Gaddabouts and then through multiple collaborations with Steve Martin; that run eventually prompted New Bohemians to reunite and issue Rocket in 2018 followed by Hunter and the Dog Star in 2021.
Born and raised in Oak Cliff, the Dallas suburb, Brickell attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts while still a teenager. She did not start singing publicly until she reached Southern Methodist University, where she was persuaded to join New Bohemians, a group already containing other Booker T. Washington graduates. Bassist Brad Houser, drummer Brandon Aly, and guitarist Eric Presswood had performed together as New Bohemians since the early 1980s, well before Brickell sat in with them one night in early 1985. The connection proved strong enough that she became a permanent member soon afterward. The band began playing shows throughout the Dallas suburbs, bringing in guitarist Kenny Withrow to replace Presswood and adding percussionist John Bush.
New Bohemians quickly established themselves on the local college-rock circuit, self-releasing the 1986 cassette album It’s Like This… and attracting major-label interest. They signed with Geffen, changed their official name to Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, and traveled to Rockfield Studios in Wales to cut their debut. During those sessions the label dismissed Aly, after which Chris Whitten handled most of the drumming. The finished Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars appeared in 1988, reaching number four on the Billboard Top 200 on the strength of the Top Ten single “What I Am.”
With Matt Chamberlain now installed as drummer, New Bohemians recorded Ghost of a Dog, released in October 1990. Lacking another hit comparable to “What I Am,” the album quickly lost momentum and the band dissolved shortly afterward.
Brickell married Paul Simon on May 30, 1992—the two had met when New Bohemians performed on Saturday Night Live in November 1988—and the couple later had three children. She moved into solo work with the 1994 release of Picture Perfect Morning. The album debuted at number 68 on the Billboard Top 200, produced the modest adult-contemporary hit “Good Times,” yet drew limited notice amid the height of alternative rock. Brickell remained largely inactive through the rest of the 1990s before returning in 2003 with Volcano, produced by Charlie Sexton and peaking at number 188 on the Billboard 200.
The original New Bohemians lineup, again featuring drummer Brandon Aly, reconvened to make 2006’s Stranger Things under producer Bryce Goggin. Keyboardist Carter Albrecht, another figure from the Dallas alt-rock community, appeared on the record; he was shot and killed by his girlfriend’s neighbor on September 3, 2007.
In 2008 Brickell formed the Heavy Circles, an indie-pop outfit with Harper Simon—Paul’s son from his first marriage—and the group issued an eponymous album on Dynamite Child that year. Her next venture was the Gaddabouts, which also included guitarist Andy Fairweather Low and bassist Pino Palladino; the band released an eponymous album in 2011 and Look Out Now! in 2012 before disbanding. Brickell then partnered with Steve Martin for the 2013 Americana album Love Has Come for You on Rounder Records. The project led the pair to create the musical Bright Star, which received workshop stagings in 2013 and its world premiere at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre on September 28, 2014. By then Brickell and Martin had completed a tour supporting Love Has Come for You alongside Martin’s bluegrass ensemble the Steep Canyon Rangers; that run was captured on the 2014 live album LIVE: Steve Martin and Steep Canyon Rangers featuring Edie Brickell. Brickell and Martin followed their debut studio collaboration with So Familiar in 2015.
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians regrouped in 2017 for benefit concerts supporting the Oak Cliff school La Rondalla. Those performances prompted the band to write and record Rocket, issued in October 2018. Three years later they delivered their fifth studio album, Hunter and the Dog Star.
