The Delta 72

The Delta 72
OriginWashington, D.C., United States
GenresAlternative rock, punk blues, garage rock
Years active1994 – 2001
LabelTouch and Go
Past membersGregg Foreman
Mark Boyce
Jason Kourkounis
Bruce Reckahn
Kim Thompson
Sarah Stolfa
Ben Azzara

The Delta 72 were an American alternative music band formed in Washington, D.C. in mid 1994, who later relocated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They created a frenetic and honest style channeling post-punk sensibilities with 1960s British Invasion R&B.

Led by Gregg Foreman, The Delta 72 formed out of a desire to make music that incorporated elements of "everything from weird punk stuff to country". Their early, "bluesy punk" sound was also significantly influenced by Booker T. & the M.G.'s.

The original line-up consisted of just Ben Azzara on drums and Foreman on guitar, harp and vocals. In short succession, friends Sarah Stolfa on Farfisa organ and Kim Thompson of Cupid Car Club on bass guitar were added. After the release of their first single, "On the Rocks", a joint production of Dischord and Kill Rock Stars records, they toured the United States and played regionally around the Northeast.

After Ben Azzara left the group for The Capitol City Dusters, they were signed to Touch and Go Records in 1995. The line-up now consisted of Gregg Foreman on guitar, harp and vocals, Jason Kourkounis (formerly of Mule) on drums, Kim Thompson on bass and vocals, and Sarah Stolfa on Farfisa organ.

Their first Touch and Go release was in 1996 with the "Triple Crown" single and the album The R&B of Membership. Later releases include several singles, an EP, and the full-length CDs The Soul of a New Machine and 000. Their final releases showed the influence of early Sly and the Family Stone, MC5, and Al Green.

Thompson left in 1996, and was replaced by Bruce Reckahn. Stolfa left in 1998 to be replaced by Mark Boyce (Boss Hog). They disbanded in July 2001. Gregg Foreman later played with Cat Power. He died April 21, 2026 in Los Angeles.

Discography

Studio albums

Other releases

References

  1. ↑ Bush, John. "The Delta 72". AllMusic. AllMusic. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "What's Cookin' In The Kitchen – ARTROCKER". Artrockermagazine.com. July 20, 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  3. 1 2 Day, Holly (July 13, 2000). "The Delta 72". Ink19. Archived from the original on October 12, 2025. Retrieved March 24, 2026. A couple of us were living in DC and decided we wanted to start a band that we ourselves would really want to see, and at the time, DC was really punk in the Fugazi way – which is cool, I moved there for that – but we loved everything from weird punk stuff to country, and we wanted to do something that was a hybrid of everything we liked and have an electric organ in it as well. (...) We've gone from sounding like bluesy punk to kind of like – it's always had this soul thing going on, but it was a little angular for a while, a little less funky, and a lot more experiments of trying to find our sound. Even our first single, though, has had this kind of Booker T sound, and it's even more prevalent on our new album. Still, though, the point of the band is to do things we like, play music we like to listen to without sounding like one or another specific music. We've written more than half of another record already, and I don't know what the hell is going on with these new songs. They're really funky rock, like early Sly & the Family Stone, and the MC5, with a little Al Green thrown in there somewhere. It doesn't make any sense at all.
  4. ↑ Murray, Robin. "The Delta 72's Gregg Foreman Has Died". Clash Music. Retrieved April 22, 2026.