Dave Matthews Band (
DMB) is an American rock band that was formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was added to the band as a violinist soon after the band was formed. Moore died suddenly in August 2008 due to complications from injuries sustained in an ATV accident. GRAMMY Award-winner Jeff Coffin of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones has since filled Moore's spot as the band's saxophonist. Rashawn Ross and Tim Reynolds have also become full-time touring members of the band. The band's 2009 album
Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King (the first album since Moore's death) debuted at number one on the
Billboard 200, earning the band their fifth consecutive number-one debut-- making them the second band behind Metallica to do so. Their most recent album,
Away from the World, was released in 2012, and also debuted at number one on the Billboard chart. As of 2010, the Dave Matthews Band has sold over 30 million records worldwide.
The band is known for their annual summer-long tours of the United States and Europe, featuring lengthy improvisational renditions of their songs, accompanied by an elaborate video and lighting show. This portion of the tour has become a stamp of DMB and has grown with the band since Fenton Williams began working with them in the early 1990s. After twenty consecutive years of touring the band announced that it would take the summer of 2011 off.
Dave Matthews Band has won one GRAMMY Award, and was awarded the NAACP Chairman's Award. According to Julian Bond, "they sell out the largest arenas on Earth, but frequently give their music away."
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