Alabama Shakes were an American roots rock quartet that achieved commercial and critical success with a genre-defying sound and electrifying live performances. The group’s principal members were lead singer and guitarist Brittany Howard, bass player Zac Cockrell, drummer Steve Johnson, and guitarist Heath Fogg). Frontwoman Howard began writing songs as a young teen and taught herself how to play guitar. She was soon joined by Cockrell, a high-school classmate, and the pair experimented with a variety of styles that ranged from American roots to the music of David Bowie. Johnson, a drummer who worked at a music store in the duo’s hometown of Athens, Alabama, brought a punk beat to Howard and Cockrell’s evolving sound. The trio began circulating a rough demo tape, and it caught the attention of Fogg, another Athens-based musician, who was already established in his own band, Tuco’s Pistol. Fogg asked Howard, Cockrell, and Johnson to open for his band, and the trio agreed, on the condition that Fogg perform with them. He consented, and the success of that performance eventually led to Fogg’s joining the band full-time. In 2009 the group christened themselves the Shakes, and in May of that year they began a relentless touring schedule. While playing as much of their own material as time would allow, they punctuated their live shows with crowd-pleasing cover songs. Independent music tastemaker Justin Gage posted their song “You Ain’t Alone” on his Aquarium Drunkard music blog, and the band’s profile skyrocketed virtually overnight. They soon found themselves opening for fellow Alabama natives the Drive-By Truckers and performing in Nashville at the Third Man Records store belonging to Jack White. Renaming themselves Alabama Shakes, the group released a self-titled EP in September 2011 and continued to draw critical praise for their live shows, which were anchored by Howard’s arresting stage presence. From: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Alabama-Shakes
