"From Boston, Massachusetts; we are Morphine, at your service" - Mark Sandman
Morphine was an American rock band from Boston with a unique sound, often described as "low rock", that didn't include a guitar. The band's lineup included Mark Sandman on two-string slide bass and vocals, Dana Colley on baritone saxophone, and drummers Billy Conway and Jerome Deupree. Conway replaced Deupree after the band recorded their second album, but Deupree returned years later and both drummers played on the band's fifth and final album. Morphine disbanded in 1999 immediately following the tragic death of Sandman, who suffered a fatal heart attack onstage in Palestrina, Italy. He was 46 years old.
Colley, Conway, and Deupree have since joined with other Cambridge musicians to form Orchestra Morphine. They briefly toured in 2000 and occasionally reunite to benefit the Mark Sandman Music Education Fund.
