Lynn Blakey and Caitlin Cary met in 1997, when Glory Fountain shared a bill with
Whiskeytown. Blakey met Tonya Lamm when she attended a
Hazeldine show in
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and soon all three were friends. They first began singing together in 1999; their first performance was an impromptu singalong at an
Alejandro Escovedo show in a Raleigh bar. Their name was bestowed upon them by the owner of the bar after the performance. They occasionally performed live, and recorded some of their material more for historical interest than with the intent of releasing it. Producer
Chris Stamey heard the tapes and asked the group to release a full album; the result was
Sweetwater, their 2004 debut for
Yep Roc. The group toured the U.S. and Europe in 2005. Blakey died in February 2026. ==Members==