spearheaded the underground's return to American music traditions ranging from blues to rockabilly to country, predating the roots rock movement that bloomed in the years to follow. Born March 6, 1953, in Los Angeles,
.
Their debut LP, 1980's
American Music, created a major buzz among insiders for its gritty, rootsy sound, and their self-titled 1981 follow-up even cracked the Top 40. However,
Dave Alvin left
the Blasters in 1985, at which time the group went on hiatus as
Phil returned to grad school to pursue his master's degree in mathematics and artificial intelligence. (He later earned his Ph.D. from UCLA.)
Alvin resurfaced in 1986 with his solo debut,
Un "Sung" Stories, which featured cameos by everyone from
Sun Ra & His Arkestra to
the Dirty Dozen Brass Band; he reconvened
the Blasters a short time later, and the group continued with a revolving lineup into the following decade. A second solo effort,
County Fair 2000, appeared in 1994, and featured members of the
Alvin side project the Faultline Syncopators, a traditional jazz combo.
–
Jason Ankeny, Rovi