Drive-By Truckers

Drive-By Truckers formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1996, though Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley had played together since the 1980s in northern Alabama, where Hood's father, David Hood, was a Muscle Shoals session bassist. The band works with three guitars and splits songwriting between its singers, each writing in a distinct voice.

Southern Rock Opera, built around Lynyrd Skynyrd and what Hood calls 'the duality of the Southern thing', was followed by Decoration Day and The Dirty South, the albums featuring Jason Isbell during his years in the band. They also served as backing band for Bettye LaVette and Booker T. Jones, and later records such as American Band address politics head-on.