Fruitvale

In 2004, Leroy Bach (then of the band Wilco) was introduced to Sonny Smith's first album and quickly joined Sonny's band. In 2004, after a series of underground releases, Sonny was commissioned by Watchword Literary magazine to create his album One Act Plays, which features Neko Case, Edith Frost, Jolie Holland and more. Smith toured the country with Neko Case in the summer of 2006, with Case and Kelly Hogan singing backup in Smith's band. As the SF Weekly puts it, "There's a moment in every Sonny Smith performance when a strange hush falls over the crowd - when everyone's faces are lax from laughing. He swings at them with a depth of meaning ... that hits so hard it can only be a truth."