Will Rigby

Will Rigby came of age as the drummer for vaunted jangle-poppers the dB's, a band he formed with fellow North Carolina natives Gene Holder and Chris Stamey in New York City during the late '70s. (Peter Holsapple ventured north to join his friend Rigby several months later.) He has also backed up a host of notable artists and released some quirky solo efforts. His first album, Sidekick Phenomenon, came out in 1985 on Egon, a label run by Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley. He recorded the lo-fi effort, which featured Hank Williams and Merle Haggard tunes alongside several Rigby originals, in the dB's rehearsal space during the off-hours. After the dB's split, Rigby slipped out of sight for a time due to the demands of fatherhood and marriage (to singer/songwriter Amy Rigby -- the two subsequently divorced). Coming back into music, he played with Murray Attaway (the former Guadalcanal Diary frontman) and Matthew Sweet. Since then, he has also played with Freedy Johnston, Cheri Knight, and his former dB colleagues Stamey and Holsapple. In 1990, he recorded a vinyl single, "Ricky Skaggs Tonight," for the Brooklyn-based Diesel Only label (which is run by the World Famous Bluejays' Jeremy Tepper). During the '90s, he also played with Diesel Only labelmate Laura Cantrell and Kelly Willis. Toward the end of the decade, he landed a recurring job as Steve Earle's drummer. In 2002, Diesel Only released Will Rigby's first solo album in 17 years, Paradoxaholic, which benefited from the numerous songs Rigby had stockpiled over the years. While still recorded in the off-hours (having exchanged session work for studio time), the effort had a more professional polish than his debut. ~ Erik Hage, All Music Guide