Nathaniel Rateliff on his soulful hit ‘S.O.B.’, making Jimmy Fallon a fan

TORONTO – They’ve stormed the late-night talk-show circuit with their honky-tonk hit “S.O.B.,” which stirred Jimmy Fallon into a frenzy, topped Billboard’s adult alternative songs chart, and was declared “this year’s ‘Rolling in the Deep'” by Paste magazine.

Yet the lead singer from Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats says the hand-clapping, foot-stomping prison blues anthem almost didn’t make their self-titled debut album that came out in August.

“It was the last song we recorded for our record, because we didn’t want to record it,” Rateliff said in a recent phone interview from their tour bus, which will take them through Quebec City on Nov. 29, Montreal on Nov. 30 and Toronto on Dec. 2.

“But it ended up, (producer) Richard Swift, who we recorded with at the last minute, was like, ‘We should probably do this song. I know you don’t like it but we’ll just make it as cool as we can.'”

Between Rateliff’s powerful yowl and a brassy, banjo-bass beat, “S.O.B.” has had audiences on their feet and made Fallon gush.

“If you believe in soul … if you believe in rock ‘n’ roll … if you believe in performing your guts out… Enjoy the band on our show tonight,” Fallon tweeted before the Denver ensemble appeared on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in August.

After they performed “S.O.B.,” Fallon exclaimed: “Soulful! Soulful! That’s the way to do it, right there! Standing ovation! Well done, well done!”

The group went on to gain praise from the hosts of “Conan” and “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” and gushing tweets from celebrities including Keith Urban, Rob Thomas and OneRepublic.

But for Missouri-bred Rateliff, who sports a thick beard and often wears a fedora, the success hasn’t sunk in.

“I still haven’t had that feeling where I’m like, ‘Well this is really paying off,'” he said. “Maybe I’m a little too naive or just too ignorant to what exactly is happening.

“All I know is that we’re just working our asses off and we have shows that are bigger … and that’s awesome. But it seems like a very natural build to me.”

Perhaps his cautious optimism comes from his experience as a solo artist.

Rateliff released two albums of his own before forming the Night Sweats with longtime collaborator Joseph Pope III.

It was a slog during those solo years, with slow sales and long tours taking a toll on relationships, he said.

“It’s … hard, it’s discouraging,” said Rateliff, 37, using an unprintable expletive.

“You keep doing it for such a long time and it is what it is. It’s not like we were asking for too much or expecting too much, it’s just a lot of strain on your personal time and your personal life.”

Not that being with the Night Sweats, which performs with seven or eight members, has eased the load.

“It’s just been a lot of work, honestly, which I think is good,” said Rateliff, who puts an exhausting amount of energy into his live performances.

“We’re all excited to be doing it, everybody in the band. But we’re not young, either.”

They’re also not raking in the cash — yet. Rateliff said they’re spending all their money touring.

“I wouldn’t say that I feel successful, because I’m still broke. If I owned a house or something like that, then I would feel successful.”

Still, more people than ever are paying attention to Rateliff, he admits.

And there’s a certain undeniable magic behind the Night Sweats, but just what that is, Rateliff isn’t sure.

“I would’ve written a Night Sweats record, like, 10 years ago if I knew it was going to work,” he said with a laugh. “It was just another record that I was going to make.

“All the other records I made, I thought they were going to be pretty successful too.”

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Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats – “S.O.B” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iAYhQsQhSY