Sweden's Thousand Dollar Playboys were formed in 1996 by singer and guitarist Lars Bygdén (the most recent lineup also features Jens Höglin on drums, Gotte Ringqvist on acoustic guitar, and Magnus Sedin on bass) as an alt-country outfit. After he spotted the band playing in a Stockholm club, Peter Svensson of the Cardigans financed the recording of a Thousand Dollar Playboys album in the fall of 1997 at Tambourine Studios, but Svensson and the band were unable to find a distribution deal for the project, finally signing a contract with the independent label Massproduktion in 1999. A second album was recorded, this time with Linus Larsson producing, and, including three tracks from the Tambourine sessions, was released as the self-titled The $1000 Playboys in 1999. The group's next album, Stay!, produced by Micke Herrstrom and recorded live at Atlantis Studios in Stockholm, appeared in 2002. ~ Steve Leggett