Biography
During the 2010s Whiskey Myers sustained Southern musical traditions by accelerating the approaches of Lynyrd Skynyrd and Hank Williams, Jr., which secured them a devoted following on the fringes of Texas’ Red Dirt country world. Their recordings alternate between rugged and atmospheric explorations of Southern existence, pairing aggressive rock numbers with reflective ballads while placing pedal steel lines alongside distorted guitar textures. The group established this approach on the 2011 album Firewater and achieved mainstream recognition through the 2019 release Whiskey Myers. Their 2022 effort Tornillo broadened the palette by incorporating horn sections on multiple songs.
Originating in the East Texas community of Palestine, Whiskey Myers coalesced after vocalists and guitarists Cody Cannon and John Jeffers joined forces with guitarist Cody Tate. Initially performing as Lucky Southern, the three moved to Tyler, Texas, to pursue college studies; there they recruited bassist Gary Brown and drummer Jeff Hogg before adopting the name Whiskey Myers.
Around 2007 the band began working the Red Dirt venues of East Texas, steadily building support through headline dates and support slots for acts such as the Eli Young Band. After signing with Smith Entertainment they issued their first album, Road of Life, in 2008. For the 2011 follow-up Firewater they created their own imprint, Wiggy Thump.
Firewater marked their initial commercial step forward, reaching number four on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart and number 26 on the Country Albums chart. The set also topped the Texas music charts and earned the group the Emerging Artist of the Year award at the 2012 LoneStarMusic honors.
Early Morning Shakes, helmed by producer Dave Cobb, appeared in early 2014 and advanced their reach by peaking at number ten on Billboard’s Country Albums chart. Two years later the band again collaborated with Cobb on Mud, which introduced percussionist Tony Kent and included contributions from fiddler and keyboardist Jon Knudson; the album debuted at number four on the Country Albums chart. After Mud’s release bassist Gary Brown departed and was succeeded by Jamey Gleaves; the lineup expanded to six members when Tony Kent also took on keyboard duties.
Whiskey Myers appeared in four episodes of the Paramount Network series Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner, which elevated their visibility and prompted Mud to re-chart. They self-produced their 2019 studio album, which surprised observers upon its October arrival by entering the Billboard Top 200 at number six while leading both the country and indie charts. The project introduced them to fresh listeners and resulted in expanded touring, including a performance witnessed by 100,000 fans at London’s Download Festival. In 2022 Whiskey Myers issued the four-song digital EP The Wolf as an introduction to their sixth album, the twelve-track Tornillo, once more recorded with the band producing at Texas’s Sonic Ranch studios.
Originating in the East Texas community of Palestine, Whiskey Myers coalesced after vocalists and guitarists Cody Cannon and John Jeffers joined forces with guitarist Cody Tate. Initially performing as Lucky Southern, the three moved to Tyler, Texas, to pursue college studies; there they recruited bassist Gary Brown and drummer Jeff Hogg before adopting the name Whiskey Myers.
Around 2007 the band began working the Red Dirt venues of East Texas, steadily building support through headline dates and support slots for acts such as the Eli Young Band. After signing with Smith Entertainment they issued their first album, Road of Life, in 2008. For the 2011 follow-up Firewater they created their own imprint, Wiggy Thump.
Firewater marked their initial commercial step forward, reaching number four on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart and number 26 on the Country Albums chart. The set also topped the Texas music charts and earned the group the Emerging Artist of the Year award at the 2012 LoneStarMusic honors.
Early Morning Shakes, helmed by producer Dave Cobb, appeared in early 2014 and advanced their reach by peaking at number ten on Billboard’s Country Albums chart. Two years later the band again collaborated with Cobb on Mud, which introduced percussionist Tony Kent and included contributions from fiddler and keyboardist Jon Knudson; the album debuted at number four on the Country Albums chart. After Mud’s release bassist Gary Brown departed and was succeeded by Jamey Gleaves; the lineup expanded to six members when Tony Kent also took on keyboard duties.
Whiskey Myers appeared in four episodes of the Paramount Network series Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner, which elevated their visibility and prompted Mud to re-chart. They self-produced their 2019 studio album, which surprised observers upon its October arrival by entering the Billboard Top 200 at number six while leading both the country and indie charts. The project introduced them to fresh listeners and resulted in expanded touring, including a performance witnessed by 100,000 fans at London’s Download Festival. In 2022 Whiskey Myers issued the four-song digital EP The Wolf as an introduction to their sixth album, the twelve-track Tornillo, once more recorded with the band producing at Texas’s Sonic Ranch studios.
Albums
Whomp Whack Thunder
2025
Tornillo
2022
Whiskey Myers
2019
Mud
2016
Early Morning Shakes
2014
Firewater
2011
Singles
