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Moments after claiming their ACM trophies, Toby Keith, the Eli Young Band, Lady Antebellum and Thompson Square spent a few minutes with reporters backstage Sunday night (April 1) in Las Vegas. And in the case of the Eli Young Band and Lee Brice, the interview sessions after accepting ACM trophies [...]
The Eli Young Band will embark on their first international tour on Friday (March 16) as they head to Australia to open concerts for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. “That’s as big as it gets,” says drummer Chris Thompson. “We have flirted with going to Canada before but the dates [...]
The Eli Young Band, Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Love and Theft and Scotty McCreery have joined the lineup for the Academy of Country Music’s free concerts on Fremont Street in Las Vegas on March 30 and 31. As previously announced, Eric Church and Luke Bryan will headline the concerts. The [...]
The Eli Young Band‘s dramatic new video, “Even if It Breaks Your Heart,” tells the story of a dreamer determined to make it big in the music world. Last year, the Texas-based band did exactly that, as “Crazy Girl” became the most-played single at country radio in 2011. They’re following [...]
The Eli Young Band‘s current single, “Crazy Girl,” has been certified platinum for 1 million digital downloads. The track comes from their latest album, Life at Best. The band will perform the song on Late Show With David Letterman on Thursday (Nov. 3). They are currently on tour with Dierks [...]
Biography
Eli Young Band was formed in 2000 by Mike Eli, who grew up just outside of Houston, and James Young, from Irving, Texas. Eli was raised on singer-songwriters like Rodney Crowell and Paul Simon, while Young was influenced by blues and rock artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Joe Perry and Jimmy Page.
After playing together as a duo they were joined by drummer Chris Thompson and bassist Jon Jones, who all met while students at the University of North Texas at Denton, about 50 miles north of Dallas. After graduating, the group decided to stay in Denton.
The group started playing small clubs in the area, as well as opening shows for the region’s top artists, such as Jack Ingram, Pat Green and Cross Canadian Ragweed. Late in 2003, producer Frank Liddell attended a show at the Gypsy Tea Room in Dallas where EYB was playing on the bill with Lambert. He was blown away by their live show and signed them to his label, Carnival Recording Company. In 2005, Eli Young Band released Level, their first album for Carnival. Their first album for Universal South Records will be released in 2008.