Nathaniel Rateliff

Nathaniel David Rateliff (born October 7, 1978) is an American singer and songwriter based in Denver, whose influences are described as folk, Americana and vintage rhythm & blues. Rateliff has also performed with Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, an R&B side-project he formed in 2013. He has also released two solo albums and one album as Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel.

Rateliff was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on October 7, 1978. He grew up in rural Missouri, learning to play the drums at age seven and joining his family's gospel band. When Rateliff was 13, his father was killed in a car crash. As a result, he taught himself guitar and began writing his own songs. At eighteen, Rateliff moved to Denver for missionary work. After internal struggles with life in the church, he moved back to Missouri where he worked in a plastics factory in Hermann, Missouri. A few months later, he returned to Denver and started work, first as a carpenter, then at a trucking depot for 10 years before becoming a gardener.

2002–2008: Born in the Flood

In 2002, Rateliff formed Born in the Flood, quickly garnering a large following in Denver and headlining local festivals like the Westword Music Showcase. In Feb, 2007, Born in the Flood released their first full-length album "If This Thing Should Spill". Despite increasing success with Born in the Flood, Rateliff turned down an offer from Roadrunner Records, and shifted his focus to a more stripped-down, solo effort, playing somber, singer-songwriter content under his name and "Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel".

2007–2014: Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel

In 2007, while still performing with Born in the Flood, Rateliff began recording and performing more personal, somber content both solo and with BitF bandmate and lifetime collaborator Joseph Pope III (bass/guitar/vibes/organ/harmonica). The project expanded with more live performances, adding Julie Davis (upright bass/vocals), Carrie Beeder (organ/violin), James Han (keys/vibes), and Ben Desoto (drums/flute). Shortly after the breakup of Born in the Flood, Rateliff released Desire and Dissolving Men on Public Service Records. Nathaniel Rateliff then released In Memory of Loss in the USA on Rounder Records in May 2010, and then in the UK on Decca in March 2011. In Memory of Loss was recorded with producer Brian Deck (Iron & Wine). On September 17, 2013, Rateliff releasedFalling Faster Than You Can Run on Mod y Vi Records. On the same day he set out on a tour with The Lumineers and Dr. Dog, in support of the album.

2013–present: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats

Beginning in 2013, while still performing and recording with earlier solo and group projects, Rateliff embarked on a more upbeat, soulful sound with longtime collaborator Joseph Pope III and other collaborators in shows around Denver and Boulder. On June 24, 2015, the self-titled release of Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats via Stax Records was announced with the lead single being "S.O.B.". The Night Sweats feature Joseph Pope III (bass), Mark Shusterman (keyboards) and Patrick Meese (drums). Other band members include Luke Mossman (guitar), Wesley Watkins (trumpet), and Andy Wild (saxophone). According to the Los Angeles Times, this was "an album Rateliff made as a last-ditch effort before throwing in the towel on his music career, only to see it go viral and turn into a runaway hit."

In November 2016, he released the 8-track EP A Little More From... Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats released a new album titled Tearing at the Seams on March 9, 2018. After spending a week recording 18 songs with his band, Rateliff was not content and decided to return to the studio for five days with his band’s rhythm section and three more days with the horns section, producing seven to eight new songs he felt were “appropriate, the right tempo and the right mood”. The band shared the record’s lead single “You Worry Me". Produced by Richard Swift and being offered in 12-track standard and 14-track deluxe editions, the band assembled in Rodeo, New Mexico for the initial writing and recording sessions for the album.

"You Worry Me" is built on an insistent, swaggering pulse, and powered by echo-heavy guitars and throbbing bass and drums, with horns joining midway through as Rateliff sings a message of support and encouragement to someone who appears to be losing faith.

— Randy Lewis, Los Angeles Times

In February 2018, "You Worry Me", the lead single from Tearing at the Seams, their second studio album, hit number one on the Adult Alternative Songs charts. It would later hit the top 10 on the Alternative Songs chart in June 2018. Tearing at the Seams was released on March 9, 2018. The album debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200 for the week of March 24, 2018, and debuted on the Alternative Albums chart at number 5.

In August 2019, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats launched a limited cannabis cartridge line titled “Nightstache Collection” in collaboration with Willie’s Reserve. The first release was the strain AJ’s Cherry AK. The band developed a friendship with Willie Nelson when they met at Farm Aid in 2016.

In November 2019, Nathaniel Rateliff announced a solo tour to support a new solo album via Stax Records.On January 8, 2020, Nathaniel announced And Its Still Alright, his first solo album in nearly seven years which was released February 14 via Stax Records.
After touring all over the US there will be a three weeks tour of West Europe starting the third April week 2020, comprising capital cities like Paris and Berlin and focussing on several Irish and British concert locations.

Rateliff is a supporter of the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign, and performed at a campaign rally in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Rateliff developed a dedicated following within the Denver music community. The New York Times dubbed him a Denver local folk-pop hero. Spin praised his "massive, alluring" voice. Billboard dubbed the unsigned singer-songwriter a "must hear." This wave of acclaim led to a solo tour opening for The Fray, which brought his work to the attention of national and international audiences. Rateliff was featured on the late-night music television series Later... with Jools Holland on BBC in 2011. Rateliff has also shared the stage with artists such as Bon Iver, Mason Jennings, Iron & Wine, Ben Howard, Michael Kiwanuka, The Low Anthem, Mumford & Sons, Laura Marling and Rosanne Cash, among others, including The Lumineers in Denver for the United States presidential election debates, 2012. On August 5, 2015, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats made their late-night television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The band played Ontario's Wayhome festival and Austin City Limits in 2016.

As of 2019, the RIAA has registered both the "S.O.B." single and the "Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats" album with both Gold and Platinum awards.

Albums

Studio albums

Live albums

EPs

Singles