In 1985, long before late-night talk show host David Letterman – the oracle credited with giving the band their first big national break – ever heard “Hold My Hand”, four guys from USC ventured from their dorm room to jam out at a local bar called Pappy’s.

What started as a will-play-for-beer gig birthed South Carolina’s musical force, called Hootie and the Blowfish. The unexpected success that followed the concert at Pappy’s marked the turning point for the rookie band and the beginning of a period in rock and roll history affectionately known as the Hootie era.

On Thursday, July 9 at 9 p.m., fifteen years after the band’s multi-platinum debut album Cracked Rear View hit record store shelves, ETV airs the brand new Carolina Stories documentary entitled The Next Big Hootie.

Encore presentations air:

Back in the early ’90s, the “Seattle Sound” gained mainstream notoriety as Nirvana created the new “grunge” genre, and blazed a trail for groups like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Alice in Chains.

Not many years later, a certain up-and-coming South Carolina band enjoyed similar good fortune, storming onto the music scene with their own refreshingly distinct sound.

“Hootie killed grunge”, asserts Otis Taylor, music writer at The State. But why didn’t Hootie’s then-unrivaled success have the same pied piper effect on South Carolina bands that Nirvana did with bands in the Seattle area?

ETV’s hour-long road trip with homegrown Palmetto State rockers takes a nostalgic glance back at the accomplishments of Hootie and the Blowfish and the missed opportunities and unrealized dreams of their contemporaries. Other bands spotlighted in the program include:

1. Jay Clifford,
2. Cravin Melon,
3. Edwin McCain,
4. Danielle Howle,
5. The Root Doctors,
6. Treadmill Trackstar, and
7. Jump Little Children.

The show features old and new footage from some of South Carolina’s best music venues like Columbia’s Rockafellas and The Windjammer on the Isle of Palms. The flashback also includes candid conversations with members of Hootie – and industry insiders – about the highs and lows of life in the music biz.

Then, when all is said and done, the documentary boldly peeks behind the velvet curtain in hopes of discovering who might be poised to be the next big Hootie.

Who do you think should make the list?

One piece of related news from the Upstate’s GreenvilleOnline newspaper:

Because Sanford lost his ballyhooed fight to keep the state from tapping the stimulus cash during the next two years, ETV will pick up $540,000 to cover satellite costs.

ETV President David Crouch chuckles when asked about the change of fortunes.

He doesn’t know exactly what the profit was from Sanford’s appearances, but said, “We probably do make little bit of money off of it.”

So congratulations and here’s to hoping there’s many more years of great educational programming from SCETV!