Marcus "The Carcass" Natale replaced founding bass player Mike Lewis (a one time member of both the Lyres and Yo La Tengo), prior to recording the A-Bones second E.P.

The New York Times described the band solely in terms of its label, calling the group "dedicated rock revivalists", and noting "The A-Bones include Miriam Linna and Billy Miller, proprietors of Norton Records, which worships rockabilly, 1960s garage and anything having to do with that most cartoonish rock archetype: the juvenile delinquent in a leather jacket.

[5][6][7] Aside from recording five albums, two EPs, and about a dozen 45s on various labels, the A-Bones also were a backup band for acts such as Hasil Adkins, Ronnie Dawson, Cordell Jackson, Andre Williams, Ray Sharpe, The Flamin' Groovies' Roy Loney and Cyril Jordan, and many others.

Although the band broke up in 1994,[8] the A-Bones reunited in 2004 and performed gigs in North America, Europe, and Japan with the core line-up of Linna, Miller, Bennett, and Natale.

Occasionally the group was augmented live by Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan, who contributed keyboards and guitar to 2009's Not Now!, 2014's Ears Wide Shut, and other recent recordings.