JELLYFISH
Fan Club
From The Rare To The Unreleased…And Back Again.
Not Lame Recordings
NLA 007
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God’s Gift To Oxygen: A Brief History Of Jellyfish
In a way, this boxed set is a premature gesture. I’m not sure that people are really ready to hear Jellyfish yet. Let me qualify that: if you’ve just forked over the cash for these four discs, it’s a safe bet that you’re already among the converted; and congratulations on your excellent taste. But on some metaphysical level, a boxed set isn’t just a bunch of songs. A boxed set is a kind of argument, a paragraph whose topic sentence is “here’s why you should care about this band whose ephemera has just been lovingly placed before you.” And as with all arguments, timing is crucial.
It’s easy to stand up now and sing the praises of The Velvet Underground or Skip Spence and have people nod their heads sagely and say “but of course! These are brilliant artists, grotesquely misunderstood in their own lifetimes.” It’s easy to look at Big Star now as songwriters without peer, stylists who found a way to articulate something new out of the compost heap of the music they’d grown up with. But most listeners back in the 70s – if they heard Big Star at all – dismissed them as some kind of Beatles/Byrds/Beach Boys formalists: long on craft, maybe, but short on artistry. Nowadays, when we talk about Chilton, Bell & co., it’s easy to see that, sure, they had influences, but they were informed by them, not defined by them. I’d put Jellyfish in the same category as Big Star – not simply a bunch of Queen/Wings/Raspberries/Supertramp/10cc/Badfinger/Klaatu-derived pastiche-makers, but as significant and original artists in their own right. I think history will come to view them very kindly, indeed.
Admittedly, I’m less than objective here. I’ve known Roger Joseph Manning Jr. since the fall of 1986. He was in USC’s music program; I was just starting in USC’s film school. We met because I had just scored the first import copy of XTC’s Skylarking album to hit L.A., and I brought it over to the apartment of one of my classmates so we could hear it for the first time. (XTC fanaticism was a very serious thing back in those days; when a new album came out, you’d sit around and listen to it with the same kind of obsessive attention to detail that an earlier generation of college students had given to Sgt. Pepper.) When I got there, I was introduced to his roommates, one of whom was Roger. The thing I remember most clearly about him that night is that as the first few bars of “The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul” drifted out of the speakers, he sat bolt upright and said “It’s Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66!” I immediately thought to myself “okay, this guy is cool.” Shortly thereafter we bonded over a mutual love of The Partridge Family and The Jesus And Mary Chain. We’ve been friends ever since. He asked me to write the following bit of history, so I’m packing a pen with vinegar and insight, and high-steppin’ like a brigade down memory lane…
Andy Sturmer and Roger Manning grew up in Pleasanton, a Bay area-adjacent suburb distinguished chiefly by the presence of a federal country-club prison in its environs. They were high school friends united by jazz snobbery, before becoming entranced by the earthier pleasures of punk rock. After graduation, Roger headed down to Los Angeles to study music at USC, while Andy drifted in and out of bands in San Francisco, eventually teaming with an older musician named Chris Ketner in a mainstream pop-rock band (albeit with a few jazzy flourishes and some hints of New Wave) called Beatnik Beatch. In addition to his coursework down south, Roger, too, was dabbling in a series of groups (the first was a bunch of nameless Smiths geeks who went nowhere; the second was a Replacements-esque punk band called The Space Between; the third was a too-late-for-the-Paisley-
Underground band called The Corsairs).
Andy and Roger remained in close contact during this period, and Roger was eventually drafted into Beatnik Beatch as keyboardist – still at USC, he endured an endless series of drives back and forth from L.A. to San Francisco – just in time for the band to get signed by Atlantic Records. Their sole major-label release was a tarted-up reissue of an earlier indie disc with Roger’s keyboards grafted onto four songs. As a live act, Beatnik Beatch had some flair (Andy at the front of the stage, drumming on a stand-up kit while co-lead vocalizing, was a distinctive sight to say the least), but its musical vision hadn’t proven fruitful. Roger had tried and failed to write for Beatnik Beatch, but his influence began to make itself felt as he and Andy began to concentrate on penning new songs together. The group imploded, leaving Andy and Roger in charge of their musical destiny and determined to do something more artistically satisfying.
They were still signed to Atlantic, who remained at least notionally interested in hearing anything they might come up with, although the label’s alliance seemed to lie more with Ketner. With nothing to lose, Andy and Roger began writing and demoing furiously. Carter, Atlantic’s mono-monickered A&R Svengali, heard a few songs and was intrigued enough to want to hear more. Roger and Andy prepared a four-song tape and took it to L.A. to play for him. Carter quickly rejected “Deliver” (he hated waltzes) and “Foxhunt” (an overly-calculated stab at commercial pop; its conspicuous absence from this boxed set should tell you something), but he was blown away by “The Man I Used To Be” and “Bedspring Kiss,” even going so far as to pay them the A&R man’s supreme compliment of actually listening to them all the way through.
With Carter’s encouragement – but not yet his financial backing – Roger and Andy went back to work feeling as if they were on the verge of major success. They were also feeling like they needed a guitarist. Fortunately, they were about to acquire one.
Roger had met Jason Falkner several years earlier, during his Space Between days, while engaged in one of his frequent bouts of combing the musicians’ classified section of L.A.’s Recycler looking for kindred spirits. He vowed not to call anyone unless they listed XTC as an influence. Jason’s ad did. Roger drove out to Jason’s home in Agoura to meet him, and found an 18 year-old guitarist with – as he would later describe him – “talent oozing from every pore.” But Roger couldn’t quite relate to Jason’s songs, which were influenced as much by the angular post-punk of Wire and The Swell Maps as they were by Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding, and nothing came of their meeting. Jason spent the next few years playing in a succession of L.A. bands, including industrial gloomsters Kommunity FK and Paisley popsters The Three O’Clock, before Roger got in touch with him again (just as Jason’s tenure in the latter group was ending). Roger coaxed him up to San Francisco, where Jason crashed on his sister’s couch and joined the ongoing Sturmer/Manning demo derby.
By the time a dozen songs had been fully demoed, Carter had become convinced of the nascent group’s worth and was ready to let them make an album. He introduced them to Albhy Galuten, a seasoned producer best known for overseeing the Bee Gees’ recordings during their Saturday Night Fever period. Albhy loved the demos, and immediately understood what Andy and Roger were trying to achieve; his know-how and affinity for their music played a vital role in shaping the two albums that followed. Albhy, in turn, was responsible for enlisting the services of engineer Jack Joseph Puig, whose since gone on to become one of the most successful producers in the music business.
Recording began in earnest in September of 1989. Half a dozen songs were in various stages of completion when the group received the disturbing news that Carter, their patron at Atlantic, had just lost his job. No one else at the label seemed to have the faintest interest in – or understanding of – what they were up to. “We were dying to get off of Atlantic at that time,” Andy recalls. “They didn’t get what we were about and as BELLYBUTTON began to take shape, we were confident that we’d find a better home. I remember our manager deliberately sending the label mixes that were six generations down. The tapes they heard were mostly hiss! All with the intent of making them think that this project was totally unprofessional and completely unlistenable.” Their relationship with Atlantic had begun to reach a comical level of disinterest (at one point, Andy and Roger were summoned to Los Angeles for a meeting that was cancelled because it was Debbie Gibson’s birthday; the exec they were supposed to meet with had been placed in charge of fetching her a cake). They soon found themselves dropped, much to their delight.
Carter, Albhy and attorney Alan Mintz began shopping tapes of the work-in-progress to various parties. In short order, a full-scale bidding war erupted as a slew of record companies and music publishers frantically attempted to sign what had suddenly begun to seem like the Next Big Thing. After several months of being wined and dined by every A&R person with an expense account, the group found a home at Charisma, a new Virgin subsidiary label helmed by industry vet Phil Quartararo, who became one of the band’s biggest fans.
The BELLYBUTTON album was finished in March of 1990, but its completion brought with it a new set of problems. With promotional duties looming, Jellyfish were going to have to transform themselves from what had previously been a studio-only project into a functional live band. To do that, they urgently needed to find a bass player (Jason and Redd Kross’s Steve McDonald had played most of the parts on the album). After a fruitless search, Roger suggested his younger brother Chris – who was just about to graduate from college – for the job. Although Chris’s musical credentials were decidedly shaky compared to those of Andy, Roger and Jason, an audition session was quickly arranged. The venue: an unused janitorial closet. It was the first time the group had played any of the songs together in one room all at once. Hearing their music live in 3-D, even in very rough form, left them giddy with excitement. It was decided that, with some coaching, Chris would be able to handle the bass duties, and he was officially inducted into the band. Jason quickly set about teaching him the bass parts, while carpooling to the rehearsal studio each morning enabled Roger and Jason to instruct Chris in the art of three-part harmony by singing endless choruses of Kansas’ “Carry On Wayward Son.”
The group also needed a name. After considering – and rejecting – scores of possible choices (and with the album completed), they needed to come up with something quickly. A junior A&R associate of Carter’s, who was in the habit of dropping by the studio and playing ping-pong while recording was going on, had taken to bombarding Roger and Andy with awful prospective band names like “Major Nelson.” One of his suggestions had been the somewhat more palatable “Jellyfish.” Out of time and desperate, Andy and Roger decided that a) neither of them actively despised the name, and b) they could live with it. Of such decisions is musical history made.
Chris had joined the band just in time for the BELLYBUTTON cover shoot, a Sid & Marty Krofft-ian fantasia involving strawberry goop, a nude woman covered in swirly patterns of Aim toothpaste and the group members decked out in a dazzling array of psychedelic thrift store finery. The visual flamboyance was no afterthought; Andy and Roger were insistent on presenting the band in the most colorful terms possible. (It was on this level that Chris’s recruitment made the most sense: a fearless extrovert, Chris was guaranteed to lend visual dynamics to a still-fledgling live band whose two principals were always going to be trapped behind a drum kit and a bank of keyboards.)
BELLYBUTTON was released in late summer ‘90 and quickly won a following among influential music biz hipsters. Especially vital was the fanatical support of MTV programming executive Rick Krim, who loved the band and managed to get three of their videos into the channel’s high-exposure Buzz Bin rotation over the next several months. Shortly after the album hit stores, Jellyfish made their unofficial live debut – under the assumed name “Smürf” (with two umlauts over the “u”) – at a sports bar in Santa Rosa, CA. Their official unveiling was at San Francisco’s DNA Lounge the following night. With leadoff single “The King Is Half-Undressed” on the radio and on the tube, the group set out on a long run of touring – first as an opening act for World Party, then on their own. The shows mixed BELLYBUTTON material with newly-penned rockers composed with live performances in mind (“Hello,” “Mr. Late”), cover versions that ranged from the sublime (McCartney, The Archies) to the ridiculous (the McDonald’s “Two All-Beef Patties” Big Mac jingle); visual pyrotechnics (those outfits! that bubble machine!); and precision harmonies. In a very short period of time, Jellyfish established themselves as a top-flight concert attraction. The band even held its own when asked to support The Black Crowes on a major tour in the spring of ‘91, winning over the Crowes’ hard-rocking audience with surprising ease.
BELLYBUTTON sold steadily, remaining on the Billboard® charts for over six months, but the group’s high media profile and tireless work ethic never quite translated into the kind of massive success the band were hoping for. “Baby’s Coming Back” – which came complete with a stunning part-animated video – came closest to breaking Jellyfish to a mass audience, but never rose above #62 on the Hot 100. Still, as BELLYBUTTON activity wound down following a successful series of European dates in the summer of ‘91, Jellyfish could look back on a year most bands with a debut album would have happily killed for.
A by-product of the album’s success had been that Jellyfish now found themselves quite hip in music biz circles. Suddenly, Andy and Roger were being fussed over by a succession of Big Names. They wrote songs for Ringo Starr and actually got to record with him. There was a brief, surreal attempt at a songwriting collaboration with one of their biggest heroes, Brian Wilson. They backed up William Shatner as he performed the Best Song nominees on the MTV Movie Awards. Rod Stewart threatened to record “I Wanna Stay Home.” Everyone from Tears For Fears’ Curt Smith to actress Kim Basinger wanted to work with them. It was a heady time to say the least. Unfortunately, as they began gearing up to record their second album, the band was also in the process of falling apart.
It’s not hard to understand why Jason Falkner must have felt frustrated. Not just a superior musician, he was also a skilled songwriter who wanted to play a greater role in the group’s creative process. Yet over the proceeding year, it had become increasingly obvious that Jellyfish was never going to be a vehicle for his material; he chose to follow his own muse and leave the band. Chris Manning was a different case entirely. He’d made Herculean efforts to bring his musicianship up to Jellyfish standards, and had succeeded admirably. But as Roger and Andy began to complete the demos for what would become SPILT MILK, it became clear that Chris’ musical ideas no longer fit the Jellyfish sound. He retired from the group with full honors, going on to a successful career as a recording engineer and songwriter.
Roger and Andy soldiered on. Despite the losses of Jason and Chris, they were in an enviable position: they had an audience and a record company that was willing to back their vision. Whatever came next had to be bigger, bolder and more fully-imagined than what had come before. Re-entering the studio with Albhy Galuten and Jack Puig, they embarked upon what was to become one of the most ambitious recording projects since the heyday of Steely Dan fifteen years earlier. They were determined to make their magnum opus, even if it killed them.
The SPILT MILK sessions dragged on for months, a painstaking and expensive quagmire of intricate arrangements, redone parts and endless mix tweaking that began to take its toll on Andy and Roger’s working relationship. I remember the phone ringing late one night in the summer of ‘92. It was Roger, whom I haven’t heard from for months. He needed to get away from the studio for awhile, and did I want to go grab some food? I met him at Canter’s Delicatessen on Fairfax. He looked like he hadn’t seen a bed, a shower or a washing machine in perhaps a decade. We made small talk and he picked listlessly at a plate of spaghetti. Then he excused himself to go back to the studio because everyone was still there working. It was 3AM.
Somehow, the album got done. A new bassist, Tim Smith, had joined the group in time to contribute to SPILT MILK (although the legendary T-Bone Wolk plays on many of the tracks), and stunt guitarists Lyle Workman and Jon Brion (ironically, just about to form The Grays with none other than Jason Falkner) had provided studio support. But the search for a new, permanent axeman was a constant low-level aggravation. A mountain of awful demo tapes submitted by wannabe Jellyfish members provided inadvertent comic relief over the next several months, before deliverance arrived in the form of Eric Dover. (How desperate were they to find a replacement for Jason? At one point, Roger even asked me if I knew how to play guitar.) Jellyfish Mark II prepared to hit the road.
Released in February of 1993, SPILT MILK quickly emerged as that most frustrating of music business phenomena: the uncanny masterpiece that the record company can’t figure out how to promote. Some of this was due to lack of imagination on Charisma’s part, but some was also due to the climate in which the album was released. BELLYBUTTON had come out in the pre-Nirvana days when modern rock radio had a much broader range of acceptable sounds. But in the post-Nevermind era, ornate studio masterworks like “The Ghost At Number One” were clearly going to have a hard time competing against yowling hordes of angry guys with chain wallets, trying to sound like Black-Sabbath-meets-The-Pixies. Though the band’s core fans greeted the album with awe and amazement, the general public never really got to hear it.
The band fought on, touring throughout the year with ferocious live performances that concealed the tensions brewing underneath. A final string of dates at year’s end, as the opening act for Tears For Fears, would prove to be Jellyfish’s last shows. Andy and Roger reconvened at the start of 1994 and attempted to write material for a third album, but their ability to work together seemingly evaporated, and they found themselves pulling in different musical directions. A final studio recording emerged from this period, a stark (only Roger and Andy are playing on it) cover of Harry Nilsson’s “Think About Your Troubles.” The irony inherent in the recording is almost unbearable – a song about decomposition and death being performed by a pair of musicians whose relationship was in the throes of both. Whether intentional or not, it made for one helluva swansong. Jellyfish officially came to an end on April 4, 1994. Andy and Roger haven’t spoken to one another since.
That’s pretty much where the story ends. Both Roger and Andy have gone on to do other things, of course. Roger’s been the more visible of the two in recent years, via his work with Imperial Drag and the Moog Cookbook, his long-term recording and touring collaboration with Beck, and his keyboard work on literally dozens of albums (everything from Blink 182 to Muppets From Space). Most recently, he’s re-teamed with Jason Falkner as part of a new project called Softcore (the album they’ve recorded is still unreleased at this writing), and has – at long last – begun work on a solo album. Andy’s taken a quieter path – getting married, starting a family and enjoying time behind the board. He has produced artists in Europe (The Merrymakers) and Japan (pop sensations Puffy AmiYumi) in addition to penning songs; most recently, he co-wrote one of the tracks on Ozzy Osbourne’s 2001 release Down To Earth. He came close to releasing an album on Virgin after the split, but opted for a different creative path. He is currently revisiting some of those songs (as well as a number of new ones) for an imminent solo record to be released over the Internet.
Elsewhere on the “Where Are They Now?” front: Jason Falkner has spent the last several years establishing himself as an acclaimed solo artist. His most recent releases are Everyone Says It’s On and Bedtime With The Beatles, a collection of Beatles lullabies for children. Chris Manning formed the San Fran outfit Honey, and is now a successful engineer and producer at The Plant in Sausalito (where he has been on staff since departing Jellyfish; reach him at salamandersound.com). Tim Smith fronted the pop-tastic Umajets and has spent recent years playing bass in Sheryl Crow’s band. In addition to his work with Roger Manning in Imperial Drag, Eric Dover’s resume also includes a stint with Slash’s Snakepit; his current band is the L.A.-based Burly Clyde.
Ultimately, the story of Jellyfish is the story of a relationship that ended in divorce but still managed to produce a pair of great-looking kids. Questions persist: What would they have done next? How do you follow that album, anyway? Perhaps it’s just as well they didn’t even try. For now – and let’s face it, forever – we’ve got two albums and this box of demos, one-off covers, forgotten songs and interview bits. (I’m sad that a couple of things couldn’t be found in sufficient audio quality to warrant their inclusion here – the electric arrangement of “I Can Hear The Grass Grow” they frequently encored with on the SPILT MILK dates; the delirious “Have You Never Been Mellow” that they performed at Six Flags Magic Mountain; a hilarious “Come Sail Away” from the Club Lingerie in ‘90…But there’s no use crying over, uh, you-know-what.) And that’ll have to do, really. Listening to the four discs at hand reminds me of a lot of things, but mostly of how hard Jellyfish worked, how they always tried to get the details right, how completely unwilling they were to settle for anything less than the best they knew they were capable of.
So what’s here is a valentine to a group that never quite reached the recognition and rewards they so richly deserved. But though they didn’t conquer the earth and didn’t sell 50 million records, they do get the consolation prize that history affords those artists whose artistry just wasn’t made for their times – the Velvet Undergrounds and the Loves and the Left Bankes and the Nick Drakes and the Big Stars and the Go-Betweenses: they get remembered and talked about and fussed over by people who care. They get to be “an influence.” They get name-dropped by subsequent generations of musicians. They get canonized. And someday a lot of people will figure out just what they missed. But until that brighter day arrives, there’s this box. Caution: filling is hot.
Andy Zax
Los Angeles, November 2001
andyzax@hotmail.com
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Disc One
The Bellybutton Demos, 1988 -‘89
Note: all ‘88/‘89 demos were recorded as Beatnik Beatch
1). The Man I Used To Be (demo) 4:23
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
originally released on UK New Mistake single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “This song really is the true birth of Jellyfish. This was the moment when we saw the light of our own vision and never looked back. This vocal was my first attempt. At the end of it, I had tears in my eyes. Then I didn’t know why; now I do… A milestone in Jellyfishdom.”
2). Bedspring Kiss (demo) 4:46
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
originally released on UK New Mistake single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “The twin of the earlier milestone ‘Man…’ The ‘two’ of our ‘one-two punch.’ The original idea started because a hairdresser friend asked me to write a song about her. She was neither a junkie nor a murderer, but there’s still time… Hang on to your dreams, kids!”
3). Deliver (demo) 3:07
(Sturmer)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “A protest song. Dan Quayle seemed awfully dangerous to me at the time. (Written long before my later immersion and commitment to the loving tenets of Fascism.)”
Roger: “When it came time to submit material for the first Jellyfish record, we were all very nervous. If the record company was not excited by the demos and a new sound for this post-Beatnik Beatch band, all hope for saving our contract could be lost. Andy and I drove all the way from S.F. to the L.A.-based record company offices armed with three songs: ‘The Man I Used To Be,’ ‘Bedspring Kiss’ and ‘Deliver.’ Much to our amazement, our A&R man not only liked the first two songs – which were a huge departure from the previous band’s material – but was satisfied that we were heading in the ‘right’ direction. Andy and I were practically high-fiving each other with our eyes when the A&R man reached track three, ‘Deliver.’ About 20 seconds into the song, he pushed ‘stop’ and said, ‘I never liked waltzes!’ Oh well…two out of three not only ain’t bad – it secured our record deal.”
4). Now She Knows She’s Wrong (demo) 2:15
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Fall 1988 at John Altmann’s studio in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “This is probably my favorite Roger bridge. The way it falls apart at the end is pure Manning magic.”
5). Queen Of The U.S.A. (demo) 5:14
(Sturmer-Ketner)
recorded Fall 1988 at Bob David’s RD Recording in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Roger: “We had the pleasure of working with a guitarist named Gary (that’s all I remember). He was almost twice our age and ten times the musician. One of the most original and creative guitarists I’ve ever come in contact with. That’s him on ‘Always Be My Girl.’ His playing speaks for itself. He has no idea how much he inspired me. Shortly after his stay with us – and not due to us – he dropped out of music altogether, to continue pursuing his other great passions: gardening & carpentry.”
Andy: “More of a Ketner song with some Andy lyric help. Doesn’t really belong on a Jelly box as this is a Beatnik Beatch song all the way.”
6). Always Be My Girl (demo) 3:36
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Fall 1988 at Dancing Dog Recording in Emeryville, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “An early Andy/Roger song, who at the time were heavily under the influence of the English band The Woodentops. Always liked the line ‘Caught between the fences/Of your hips and my own senses…’”
Roger: “One of my fondest and funniest tour memories occurred while this song was being rediscovered by the band. We’d always felt very proud of this older Beatnik Beatch tune, but for one reason or another it was never made a priority track for the BELLYBUTTON album. We desperately needed material to fill an hour-plus set on our first U.S. tour, so Jason and Chris began to learn the song shortly after we set out cross-country in our band motor home. Time was of the essence, so Chris spent every waking minute learning this lightning-fast and incredibly difficult walking bass part. There was only one problem; the motor home we had rented had blown rear shocks. So every time we’d drive over the tinniest pebble, it felt as though the back of this vehicle would shoot two to three feet up in the air. (This meant no napping/eating/reading or any other kind of relaxing in general.) But Chris was determined to learn his part by the next night’s show. As we all attempted to sleep up front, Chris went to the back of the motor home with his bass guitar and a Walkman cassette player. Four hours later he emerged from his quarters having mastered the part. But he had been so immersed in the task at hand that he didn’t realize that he had become severely nauseous and had inadvertently inflicted bruises on his legs, chest and face. Needless to say, it takes a special type of person to be a member of Jellyfish. Way to go, Chris!”
7). I Wanna Stay Home (demo) 4:11
(Sturmer)
recorded Summer 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “An oldie. I remember first playing this for Roger when he’d come home from USC for a visit up north. Jason’s acoustic additions and flourishes really helped this become a song and not just an idea.”
8). Let This Dream Never End (demo) 4:00
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “This is an embarrassing one. Actually, this is before ‘The Man I Used To Be/Bedspring Kiss’ juggernaut released us from our perceived creative enslavement by the label. An attempt to sound like someone ‘they’d’ like. Unfortunately, this one always made us wince a bit.”
9). Season Of The Witch (demo) 4:22
(Leitch)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “This is Roger and I groveling at the feet of our A&R guy, who thought it’d be cool for Beatnik Beatch to cover the Donovan tune because of the line ‘Beatnik’s out to make it rich.’ Thankfully we were never called the Muskrats, or the song you’d be hearing here would be ‘Muskrat Love.’ Go figure…”
10). That Girl’s A Man (demo) 3:42
(Sturmer)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “Another pre-‘Man’/‘Bedspring’ number that still had us trying to write what we thought the label would want. I remember hating this song but loving the guitar solo. Exactly the same impression I have today.”
11). Calling Sarah (demo) 4:49
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Spring 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “I recall being very taken by the Waterboys song ‘A Girl Called Johnny.’ This was my attempt at larceny.”
12). All I Want Is Everything (demo) 3:13
(Sturmer)
recorded Summer 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “Was it Picasso who said ‘Good artists borrow, great artists steal?’ Whatever the case…we needed more fast numbers, so I grafted an Aztec Camera song to Cheap Trick, and this was he result.”
13). Bye Bye Bye (demo) 3:49
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Fall 1988 at Bob David’s RD Recording in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “A great Roger polka that I wrote some words to. Musically, I always saw this as a marriage between Paddy McAloon, Roger Hodgson and Lawrence Welk.”
14). She Still Loves Him (demo) 4:27
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Summer 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “The classic lyrical formula for pop songs – the bridging of domestic violence and The Newlywed Game.”
15). Baby’s Coming Back (demo) 2:54
(Sturmer)
recorded Fall 1988 at Dancing Dog Recording in Emeryville, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “Written in 10 minutes and 36 seconds. Does it show?”
16). The King Is Half-Undressed (demo) 3:40
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Summer 1989 at Andy’s house in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Jellyfish
Andy: “One of the first ones to include Jason’s great contributions. Hey Rog – great chorus, brother…”
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Disc Two
The Bellybutton Tour
(a.k.a. “The Innie Through The Outtie Tour”),
1989 -‘90
1). MTV Top Of The Hour :20
(unknown)
recorded Fall 1990 at MTV Studios in New York, NY
previously unreleased
Chris: “The most insane rendition of the MTV theme I’ve ever heard.”
2). (Much Music, Canada – 1991) :30
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Much Music
3). The King Is Half-Undressed 3:49
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
originally released on UK The Scary-Go-Round E.P. and featured on UK & Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissues (also issued in U.S. on promotional-only Jellyfish Comes Alive EP)
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “‘The King Is Half-Undressed’ is the song that made me want to join Jellyfish…and we pulled off the a cappella breakdown every night perfectly.”
4). Sugar And Spice 2:15
(Allan-Dante)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
previously unreleased
Roger: “One day at rehearsal, much to my amazement, Andy suggested we cover the Archies song ‘Sugar And Spice.’ Although I loved the bubblegum sounds of Ron Dante and co., at first I thought that this song might just be too damn silly for us. For one thing, the chorus had the word ‘groovy’ in it, and I was the last person who wanted to give a not-yet-converted fan another excuse to write us off as a ‘60s revival band. Fortunately, I was proven wrong! As soon as we toughened up the arrangement with some fuzzy guitars, manic rock drumming and Jellyfish harmony vocals, the song became anything but silly. I’d like to think we helped introduce some pop fans to Don Kirshner’s amazing animated creation who otherwise would not normally have been interested.”
5). (91X, San Diego – June 11, 1991) :19
previously unreleased
(P)2002 91X, XTRA FM San Diego
6). Two All Beef Patties :15
(unknown)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
previously unreleased
Chris: “I hate McDonald’s® but I love this jingle – straight out of our childhood… Who wrote it anyway?”
7). Mr. Late 3:39
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
previously unreleased
Roger: “‘Mr. Late,’ or whatever you want to call it. There were never any lyrics written for this song. Every time we performed it live, we made up nonsense on the spot and hoped for the best. The only phrase that seemed to repeat from night to night was – to my embarrassment – ‘Mister Late.’ (I hated these words but could offer nothing better.) We enjoyed playing this fast-paced and energetic song live so much that we always put it in the set, even though we hadn’t found the time to write lyrics to it yet. But this tune was very special to me, since it had impossibly emerged over several months of songwriting sessions and was made up of very different musical scene changes (especially the bridge) that shouldn’t have, but somehow worked together. One of the greatest compliments we ever received – in my opinion, of course – was when our producer, Albhy Galuten, heard us play this song for the first time at a show (at Big Bear Ski Resort, of all places). ‘Hey, what was that tune, ‘Mr. Late?’ That’s the most Jellyfish-sounding song I’ve ever heard Jellyfish play! Where you been hiding that one?’”
Chris: “One of the few ‘band collaborations.’”
8). No Matter What 2:44
(Ham)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
originally released on UK Baby’s Coming Back single and Australian New Mistake single, featured on UK & Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissues (also issued in U.S. on promotional-only Jellyfish Comes Alive EP)
(P)1990, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “A fun and obvious Badfinger cover for Jellyfish. My favorite part was watching Roger play a Gibson 335 with smiley faces all over it.”
9). All I Want Is Everything 4:25
(Sturmer)
recorded October 25, 1990 at The Roxy in Hollywood, CA
originally released on UK Baby’s Coming Back single
(P)1990, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “Our tribute to Cheap Trick…who later became fans of Jellyfish! This one was fun to bash out live.”
10). (Much Music, Canada – 1991) 1:07
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Much Music
11). Hold Your Head Up / Hello 5:25
(Argent-White / Sturmer-Manning)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
previously unreleased
Chris: “Another band collaboration. ‘Hello’ was the perfect song to open a set with; a sonic sampler of what the night had in store.”
12). Calling Sarah 4:06
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
originally released on UK The Scary-Go-Round E.P.
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “I still love this song today. Another reason I joined the band… Actually, I just saw Sarah the other day, and she is doing fine.”
13). She Still Loves Him 4:09
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
originally released on UK The Scary-Go-Round E.P.
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
14). Will You Marry Me 6:41
(Sturmer)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
previously unreleased
Chris: “All I remember about playing this song was that hundreds of women would be shouting ‘yes’ to Andy when he sang ‘Will you marry me/Be my wife.’”
15). Baby Come Back / Baby’s Coming Back 4:26
(Beckett-Crowley / Sturmer)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
“Baby’s Coming Back” originally released on UK The Scary-Go-Round E.P.
16). Now She Knows She’s Wrong 2:51
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
originally released on UK I Wanna Stay Home single and featured on UK & Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissues (also issued in U.S. on promotional-only Jellyfish Comes Alive EP)
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “This was my favorite bass part to play – a creative masterpiece in my book. Thanks, Steve.”
17). Let ‘Em In / That Is Why 5:12
(McCartney-McCartney / Sturmer-Manning)
recorded February 21, 1991 at Bogart’s in Long Beach, CA
originally released on UK The Scary-Go-Round E.P. and featured on UK & Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissues (also issued in U.S. on promotional-only Jellyfish Comes Alive EP)
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “This is my favorite live track of all – an honest performance, a clean mix. I think we all respect Paul McCartney beyond words. You can hear that in the way we play this song. The transition into ‘That Is Why’ flows smoothly…”
18). Jet 3:18
(McCartney-McCartney)
recorded June 24, 1991 at the Hard Rock Café in San Francisco, CA
originally released on UK I Wanna Stay Home single and featured on UK & Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissues (also issued in U.S. on promotional-only Jellyfish Comes Alive EP)
(P)1991, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Chris: “What does ‘Jet’ really mean?”
19). (Much Music, Canada – 1991) :38
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Much Music
20). The King Is Half-Undressed 3:39
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded July 13, 1991 (Summer XS) at Wembley Stadium in London, England
previously unreleased
21). Baby’s Coming Back 2:57
(Sturmer)
recorded July 13, 1991 (Summer XS) at Wembley Stadium in London, England
previously unreleased
22). I Wanna Stay Home 4:05
(Sturmer)
recorded July 13, 1991 (Summer XS) at Wembley Stadium in London, England
previously unreleased
23). She Still Loves Him 3:51
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded July 13, 1991 (Summer XS) at Wembley Stadium in London, England
previously unreleased
Chris: “Fuck, Jason is one badass guitar player.”
24). All I Want Is Everything 4:22
(Sturmer)
recorded July 13, 1991 (Summer XS) at Wembley Stadium in London, England
previously unreleased
Chris: “One of the moments I define my life by. Wembley is HUGE, the crowd was wild – I think it was the fastest we ever played our set… All I really remember was feeling the 60,000+ crowd screaming for more as we walked off stage.”
______________________________________________________________________________________
Feeling Fanny:
Observations From The Boy In The Front Row
Who the hell needs a four-CD box set of rarities by a group that was only together for four years and put out just two records? Jellyfish fans do. This is a band that made you want to join their fan club (something you hadn’t done in years) and eagerly await stickers, buttons, photos member bios disguised as Mad Libs, and bits of cleverly written news about what was new with your boys. They made you want to buy music you already owned because it came with 3-D glasses, a pop-up, a baby’s diaper, or a clear, soft gelatin sleeve filled with glitter. They made you want to listen to their music repeatedly…with headphones even. Having had such a short lifespan, they left thousands wanting more music and fun.
I sure bought in. I was introduced to BELLYBUTTON when it was just a few months old, courtesy of a cassette without artwork. They were a rock historian’s wet dream and a music purist’s nightmare, creating something that sounded instantly classic. Almost every song had a singalong chorus (and in most cases, an even catchier bridge). The music was more than enough to knock me out, but when I saw them play live, I was greeted onstage by Christmas lights, a bubble machine, a Lite Brite, a white picket fence motif and four young guys caught in a mid-Seventies-style thrift store explosion. They lined up at the front of the stage with the drummer standing and singing lead (faint), opened with Argent’s “Hold Your Head Up,” were funny as hell, rocked hard, and sang really purdy. This was something I could get behind.
Being in southern California made it easy to get regular doses of the band. Most of their biggest fans never got to see them live, but I was lucky enough to see them more times than I’m willing to admit (okay, 13), and never had to drive more than a few hours to do it. They were simply one of the greatest live rock bands of all time, so what’s another roadtrip gonna hurt? Hearing them starting their set meant that I was going to be the happiest guy alive for the next 70 or so minutes. The live tracks on this set show you just how incredible their onstage sound was, especially for a four-piece. I can still vividly remember how it felt when that first harmony hit me in the chest. Unreal.
For me, hearing these songs instantly takes me back to all those memories; using five ID cards to get fifteen of us into a students-only show at UCLA; Andy excitedly telling us how he’d seen a clip of Kurt Loder mentioning the band in an interview with Paul McCartney; lying lifeless on the floor after KROQ incorrectly reported the band had broken up; sneaking into after-show parties and in-store appearances; pulling the friend who first taped me BELLYBUTTON out of a New Year’s Eve party to play him an advanced copy of SPILT MILK that I’d begged off a local deejay. Then there was the time I played “King,” singing onstage with the band one Halloween wearing a Burger King crown, a robe, a pair of boxers and a big smile. (“You really need to come out of your shell,” Andy quipped.)
It’s incredible how much they did in the few years they were together. They sold hundreds of thousands of records, were MTV darlings for a few seconds, toured the world, and got to rub shoulders with Ringo, Brian Wilson and Shatner. The way they inspired fandom, it’s hard to believe that they never got the enormous success they so richly deserved. Just a few months after I moved to the Bay Area to help run their fan club, an article in the entertainment section of the San Francisco Chronicle made their breakup official. Oops. It ended so quietly that most fans didn’t find out they split up until years later. Luckily, the band members continue to make great music and have given us plenty to keep our eyes on.
Still, like many great bands before them, it was the chemistry of Jellyfish as a group that’s kept people talking about them 10 years later, making a box set like this necessary. For years, fans have been trading recordings on the Internet of the few shows that were taped, and a handful of demos that have ended up on singles or bootlegs. When I first got online in 1996, I decided to put some of my stories about the band on a website. In the years that followed, thousands of people visited the page. I think I’ve probably received an e-mail from every single person now holding this box set. Tons of Jellyheads worldwide still flood mailing lists and message boards with memories, the latest news, virus warnings and other important topics (“I had a dream that I went to a huge toy store owned by Andy…”). I am relieved to find that I look downright sane compared to some fans.
But trust me, I’m not that cool. Like you, I’m keeping my copy in special drool-proof packaging. For the completists, it’s nice to have so many rare tracks in one place. Yes, we do need demo, live, and acoustic versions of the same songs. (I actually gave away almost all of my singles – hmmm, maybe I am crazy.) Between finally having the holy trinity of guitar-based power pop – “Hello,” “Mr. Late” and “Will You Marry Me” – on CD and getting a fistful of never-before-heard original compositions in the deal, this is a collection that will make Jellyfish fans smile so much that their faces will hurt.
Ow.
Ow.
Ow.
Adam Gimbel
August 2001
http:/www.millennianet.com/dumyhead/Fanindex.html
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Disc Three
The Spilt Milk Demos, 1991 -‘92
1). (World Café – June 25, 1993) :40
previously unreleased
(P)2002 World Café, WXPN
2). Spilt Milk intro (demo) :44
(Manning)
recorded by Roger, Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
3). Hush (demo) 1:19
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded by Roger, Winter 1991-Spring 1992 in the basement of Chris Coyle’s office at Industrial Management in San Francisco, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “I’d written this lullaby on the piano, with the thought that it might be a pretty little understated B-side. I remember being on a plane to somewhere when Roger handed me a tape of this arrangement. Needless to say, it made quite an impression.”
4). Joining A Fan Club (demo) 3:46
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “That great guitar tone and solo were played by a guy named David Tweed. He’s the mad genius behind a great Ohio band called The Lollipop Factory.”
5). Sabrina, Paste And Plato (demo) 2:11
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
originally released on UK New Mistake single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “Looking through some old cassettes in search of potential material for album #2, I came across Roger singing this verse. That tape sounds more akin to Tiny Tim than this more finished version, but special nonetheless.”
6). New Mistake (demo) 4:05
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “We wanted to write something with a heavy 6/8 feel. I always loved this outtro.”
7). Glutton Of Sympathy (demo) 4:02
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “This kooky intro didn’t make the album, but I like it nonetheless. Lyle Workman (on guitar) is great here.”
8). The Ghost At Number One (demo) 3:26
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “Very much like the album version. A little ditty about society and its worship of dead rock stars.”
9). All Is Forgiven (demo) 4:09
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
originally released on UK New Mistake single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “I was having trouble coming up with a lyric after the guitar solo. I needed more words describing a liar. I looked in my thesaurus and (in order) it said, ‘hypocrite, four-flusher, snake in the grass…”
10). Russian Hill (demo) 4:43
(Sturmer)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
originally released on UK New Mistake single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “I remember Albhy saying to me, ‘I don’t get that song ‘Russian Hill.’ Every time I listen to it, my mind wanders…’ I said, ‘Right!… Exactly as we intended!’ This song was always meant to be the aural equivalent of a valium swimming in scotch. Nick Drake meets Frank Sinatra.”
Roger: “Bruce Kaphan – then-pedal steel player for one of S.F.’s best-ever musical exports, American Music Club – offered to help us out on ‘Russian Hill.’ (ed. note: Another local player had assisted with the demo, but Bruce’s contributions can be heard on the SPILT MILK version.) Although Bruce is an amazing player, he was having trouble translating our desires for this track. With every take he would get a little closer, but never fully deliver what Andy and myself – in all our perfectionism – had in mind. Needless to say, everybody left rather frustrated that afternoon, assuming we hadn’t really achieved the part. Later, upon one of our many playbacks, we accidentally had all three ‘scratch’ pedal steel tracks in ‘playback’ mode. Suddenly ‘Russian Hill’ sprang to life and Andy & I realized we’d unintentionally solved the problem. Not only did all three mediocre takes add up to one incredible collage, but together they created an otherworldly, Nashville-meets-San-Francisco atmosphere for the tune. Victory! Thanks, Bruce!”
11). He’s My Best Friend (demo) 3:43
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “Yet another love letter to Harry Nilsson.”
12). Family Tree (demo) 4:01
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
originally released on UK The Ghost At Number One single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Roger: “Touring with The Black Crowes for two months can have a strong effect on a band. Not only did they turn us on to the band Free, but they showed us that good-time, down-by-the-river, handlebar-mustache freedom rock was alive and well. ‘Family Tree’ was a natural outgrowth of this unforgettable road adventure of ‘91. I was exceptionally proud of this mixture of classic ‘70s AM rock colliding with Jellyfish-style chords and harmony vocals. Jack Joseph Puig – upon hearing the tune – demanded that it go on SPILT MILK. He had even determined that it should follow ‘He’s My Best Friend’ on the album. At the end of the day it was voted out democratically on the grounds that it didn’t fit with the rest of the record.”
Andy: “We were attempting Free, but unfortunately it came out Foreigner.”
13). Spilt Milk outtro (demo) 1:14
(Manning)
recorded by Roger, Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
14). Ignorance Is Bliss (demo) 3:55
(Sturmer-Wirt)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Dancing Dog Recording in Emeryville, CA
originally released on U.S. Nintendo WHITE KNUCKLE SCORIN’ compilation, UK Ghost At Number One & New Mistake singles and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “A mini opera. A lot of fun to write. Recorded at Dancing Dog, Dave Bryson’s studio.”
15). Worthless Heart (demo for Ringo Starr’s TIME TAKES TIME album) 3:07
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
(original version appears on the BEATNIK BEATCH album)
originally released on UK Ghost At Number One & New Mistake singles and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “An oldie I wrote for Beatnik Beatch, with the addition of a Roger bridge.”
16). Watchin’ The Rain (demo for Ringo Starr’s TIME TAKES TIME album) 4:12
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
(original version appears on the BEATNIK BEATCH album)
originally released on UK Ghost At Number One single and Japanese New Mistake EP
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Andy: “Another oldie. This version was closer to my original concept than the BB version.”
17). I Need Love (demo for Ringo Starr’s TIME TAKES TIME album) 3:10
(Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “I haven’t heard this in years. It reminds me of what a great character singer Roger is. The Rich Little of Rock. ‘Right between the slacks,’ indeed!”
18). I Don’t Believe You (demo for Ringo Starr’s TIME TAKES TIME album) 3:21
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “One of those written-in-five-minute deals. I remember singing (moon, june, spoon) rhymes to one another; in a rush to get these finished and back to Jelly business. Of all the songs we wrote for the Ringo project, this was the one we liked least. Of course, it was the one they chose. Go figure.”
19). Long Time Ago (demo for Ringo Starr’s TIME TAKES TIME album) 3:48
(Sturmer)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “Sort of a Roy Orbison/Beatle thingie with Ringo Manning on vocals.”
Roger: “Don Was approached us in the fall of ‘91 to write a song for the new Ringo Starr album he was producing. Duh! We immediately stopped working on the SPILT MILK demos and began work on not one but five songs for Ringo. We were determined to get a song on this record! I even applied my Rich Little vocal skills to ‘I Need Love’ and ‘Long Time Ago,’ imitating Ringo’s famous vocal stylings in a further attempt to sell our ideas. Fate was on our side and he chose ‘I Don’t Believe You’ for his Time Takes Time album. When all was said and done, not only did we get to sing background vocals with Ringo and Doug Fieger from The Knack, but we also appeared & sang in Ringo’s video for the album’s first single, ‘Weight Of The World.’ Truly one of the most cherished moments of our brief career.”
20). Runnin’ For Our Lives (demo for Robin Zander’s eponymous album) 3:40
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Winter 1991-Spring 1992 at Andy’s house in Cotati, CA
previously unreleased
Andy: “Hmm…this is a bit embarrassing. Well, Robin was making this slickly-produced solo record, so we decided to slather it on. The lyric is horrific. Sort of a conceptual marriage of EST and the Olympics. Ugh…”
21). Fan Club message 6:03
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded Spring 1992 at Schnee Studios in North Hollywood, CA
previously released only to members of the Jellyfish Army
________________________________________________________________
Disc Four
The Spilt Milk Tour, 1993
1). Glutton Of Sympathy 4:58
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded March 17, 1993 at a rehearsal in Holland
previously unreleased
Tim: “Memories of San Francisco – living in a friend’s condo off of Army Street. 10- to 12-hour rehearsals, followed by burritos from the Mission. I liken this period to swallowing an oak tree whole – my brain was saturated like a short stack o’ pancakes swimming in maple syrup, trying to remember all the stuff we were doing.”
2). Baby’s Coming Back 3:01
(Sturmer)
recorded March 10, 1993 at Bulletsound Studio in Nederhorst Den Berg, Holland for Vara/Nos
originally released on U.S. & Australian New Mistake singles, and featured on Japanese BELLYBUTTON reissue
(P)1993, 2002 Virgin Records America, Inc.
Tim: “I remember my first ‘European blues’ occurred here. The Road was beginning to take a toll, and sadly no coffeehouse could soothe. Odd to be playing such a happy song at the time.”
3). That Is Why 3:30
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded June 25, 1993 for World Café radio show in Philadelphia, PA
previously unreleased
4). The Ghost At Number One 3:30
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded June 25, 1993 for World Café radio show in Philadelphia, PA
previously unreleased
5). Joining A Fan Club 2:51
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded June 25, 1993 for World Café radio show in Philadelphia, PA
previously unreleased
Tim: “My diary reports a great time had here. Very knowledgeable interviewers, not afraid of a little four-part harmony in the afternoon.”
6). (World Café – June 25, 1993) 1:10
previously unreleased
(P)2002 World Café, WXPN
7). I Can Hear The Grass Grow 3:27
(Wood)
recorded September 21, 1993 for Triple J FM, Australia
previously unreleased
Roger: “I’m still surprised to this day when so-called pop enthusiasts tell me they aren’t familiar with Roy Wood and The Move. We learned and arranged this song backstage the night of our Birmingham, England show on the ‘93 SPILT MILK tour. Since this community was the home of The Move, it was no surprise to see the crowd respond so favorably. What an honor. Not only did The Move evolve into E.L.O., but on many occasions Cheap Trick has cited the band as their single-most important influence. Go out immediately and buy everything they ever put out. You won’t be disappointed.”
8). New Mistake 4:03
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded September 9, 1993 for FM Yokohama, Japan
previously unreleased
Tim: “I don’t recollect…”
9). Eleanor Rigby 1:36
(Lennon-McCartney)
recorded September 1993 for Fuji TV’s Gottsu EhEh Kanji (Japan)
featuring Tamio & Abe of Unicorn
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Toshiba-EMI
Tim: “We were asked to work up a Beatles song for this TV show. While Roger and Andy were doing press, Eric and I sat in the lobby of our record company working out and calling upon every chord substitution we could remember to do this song. Ah, I coulda been a jazzer… In the studio, while the Japanese director was ordering everyone about, I believe the only thing he said to me was that I looked like Peter Sellers in What’s New Pussycat?”
Roger: “If you’re in a so-called ‘pop’ band, the last thing you want to do is give the critics any excuse to label you as ‘derivative’ or ‘retro.’ So doing a Beatles cover is the last idea on your band’s agenda. But EMI Japan’s TV promotion staff was very insistent upon us doing a Beatles song with one of Japan’s most successful acts, Unicorn. We eventually gave in. And in typical Jellyfish ‘overachiever’ fashion, we decided to do a very elaborate arrangement of ‘Eleanor Rigby’…as far removed from the world of The Beatles as possible. The recording speaks for itself. And to this, day it’s the only Beatles cover I’ve ever recorded. I’m also incredibly proud of everybody’s contribution to the arrangement. After all, we only had about 20 minutes to work it out. (Live television is very fast.)”
10). S.O.S. 1:14
(Tokura-Aku)
recorded September 1993 for Fuji TV’s Gottsu EhEh Kanji (Japan)
featuring Tamio & Abe of Unicorn
previously unreleased
(P)2002 Toshiba-EMI
11). S.O.S. 1:14
(Tokura-Aku)
recorded September 14, 1993 at Club Quatro, Japan
previously unreleased
Roger: “Upon our first visit to Japan, we thought it might be a good idea to attempt a Pink Lady cover for our live set. We had fond memories of the ‘Pink Lady & Jeff’ TV show from our childhood, and now, in some backwards way, had a chance to return the favor to our Japanese fans. We were about to find out just how important Pink Lady was to Japanese pop culture. Our tour guide taught Andy and me the Japanese lyrics phonetically. I had just a few words to sing. But Andy was responsible for so many different words, he wrote the lyrics all over his snare drum head so he would have a safety net of sorts. During our second Japanese concert, we introduced this song. Instantly the crowd began screaming and singing every word. ‘S.O.S.’ made an already successful concert nearly turn into a riot. In addition, this song was so lyrically acrobatic that we never made it through without laughing hysterically. Thank you, Pink Lady!”
Tim: “Our shameless attempt to please the locals. I remember Andy’s words written on his snare drum, and trying to sneak a peak quite often.”
12). All Is Forgiven 4:12
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “One of my favorite experiences being in Jellyfish was to be able to fire all our musical abilities at once, every night. This song was one of those that, as a set opener, never failed to tap into all of the elements that we worked so hard on in rehearsals. I can still wake up in the middle of the night and sing my pitch on ‘Liar!’”
13). Sabrina, Paste And Plato 2:25
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “I loved the harsh difference of ending ‘All Is Forgiven’ and going into this song next. Eric was juggling the guitar parts with background vocals and keyboards. While we were playing with all kinds of acts with massive, technical, expensive lighting rigs, we relished our own set design of aluminum stars, Christmas lights and the Jellyfish Lite Brite that was featured in this song.”
14). Joining A Fan Club 4:36
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “Another song that required concentration every night to pull off. We would rehearse our vocals on this song pretty much every day, which – by themselves – sounded more like joining a glee club…”
15). The Ghost At Number One 3:50
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “We played this song a lot because it was a single. While the arrangement stayed pretty consistent every night, it was fun to play around with these wonderful chord changes. As songwriters, Andy and Roger were always impressive to me. I especially loved the chromatic bridge in this song.”
16). The Man I Used To Be 4:48
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “Ever had the feeling that you knew more about a person through their work than through knowing them? Somehow this song spoke more to me about Andy than any other – not so much as a literal image in the story of the song but as an emotional insight to his take on things. Musically, it was the most fun for me as we approached the ever-dangerous ‘Jazz Orbit.’”
17). Glutton Of Sympathy 4:04
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “Am I in Yes or the Eagles? I asked myself this every time we played this song, as it required me to accompany Andy’s vocals on acoustic guitar while my bass dangled below it, sing the ‘oohs,’ then – in about a one-second break – hand the acoustic to a stagehand blindly step on a confounding array of off/on switches, then play bass and hit a vocal note. I wish I had more moments like that.”
18). New Mistake 4:44
(Sturmer-Manning)
recorded November 5, 1993 at Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA
previously unreleased
Tim: “Funny that a large portion of this song is a three-piece band, with Roger playing odd bits here and there throughout. When I heard the demos, they all sounded so full, yet still breathed with space. Another great bass line (that I didn’t write, by the way). Playing bass in this band was like playing lead guitar. I learned so much from playing with these folks, and while we’ve all sort of dropped out of touch, this was one of the most exciting musical times of my life – not easily forgotten.”
19). Think About Your Troubles 2:34
(Nilsson)
recorded February 1994 in North Hollywood, CA (final Jellyfish studio recording)
originally released on FOR THE LOVE OF HARRY: EVERYBODY SINGS NILSSON
Roger: “Rediscovering the wonders of Harry Nilsson’s massive discography was one of the most important bonding experiences for me and Andy as we launched the Jellyfish project. So to have Harry show up to our 1993 Palace show in Los Angeles was unbelievably cool. We were so nervous that we barely said two words to him. He, however, was very complimentary. With the aid of his companion for the evening, Mister Frank Stallone (yes, Sly’s brother) – who broke the conversational ice, so to speak – we all agreed that we should hook up and do some writing soon. Six weeks later he passed away. It was a real honor to cover this great song for the tribute album. We didn’t really change it up too much, but I’ve always thought this to be one of Andy’s best recorded vocal performances.”
Andy: “I was gutted by Harry’s death and couldn’t imagine NOT being a part of a tribute to him. Roger and I were closer than ever to our inevitable divorce (perhaps that accounts for the tear in my voice). This was the Jelly’s last jam.”
All tracks (P)2002 Virgin Records America, Inc. unless otherwise noted
Disc One Tracks 1-16 Courtesy of Jellyfish
Disc Two Tracks 2, 10 & 19 Courtesy of Much Music
Disc Two Track 5 Courtesy of 91X, XTRA FM San Diego
Disc Three Track 1 & Disc Four Track 6 Courtesy of World Café, WXPN
__________________________________________________________
JELLYFISH
Andy Sturmer -
vocals, drums, guitar, keyboards (1989-1994)
Roger Joseph Manning Jr. -
background vocals, keyboards, guitar (1989-1994)
Jason Falkner -
background vocals, guitar, bass (1989-1991)
Chris Manning - background vocals, bass (1990-1991)
Tim Smith - background vocals, bass (1992-1994)
Eric Dover - background vocals, guitar (1992-1994)
______________________________________________________________________________________
Executive Producer - Bruce Brodeen
Produced & Compiled by Kevin Flaherty
Art Direction & Design - Brian Pylant / Brian Pilot Creative
Liner Notes - Andy Zax and Adam Gimbel
Original Recordings Produced by Andy Sturmer & Roger Joseph Manning Jr. except Disc Two tracks 3, 8 & 9 by Jack Joseph Puig & Jellyfish
Disc Two tracks 11-17 by Albhy Galuten & Jack Joseph Puig
and Disc Two tracks 4, 6, 7 & 18 and Disc Four tracks 12-18 by Shalom Aberle
All Recordings Produced For This Release by Shalom Aberle
Digital Remastering by Glenn Schick at Glenn Schick Mastering
Mixing on Disc Two tracks 4, 7 & 11-15 by Shalom Aberle and Scott Patton at Exocet Studios, Atlanta, GA
Live Broadcast Mix on Disc Two track 18 and Disc Four tracks 3, 4, 5 & 7 and Live P.A. System Mix on Disc Four tracks 12-18 by Shalom Aberle
Edited by Donn Aaron Mixon
Digital Transfer by Charlie Paakkari at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, CA
Licensing by Robyn Ginsburg and Frank Lopez
______________________________________________________________________________________
Photography:
Jay Blakesberg (pg. 21 TOP-CENTER, BOTTOM-LEFT)
Clayton Call (pgs. 2, 3, 4, 8, 10, 14 BOTTOM-RIGHT)
Jerry Garns (centerfold), Peter D. Miller (pgs. 5 TOP, 11, 15)
Rocky Schenk (pg. 21 UPPER-CENTER), Vince Vigil (pg. 21 TOP-RIGHT)
Sarah Wirt (pgs. 5 BOTTOM, 6-7, 14 ALL EXCEPT BOTTOM-RIGHT,
17, 21 MIDDLE-LEFT, MIDDLE-RIGHT & LOWER CENTER)
______________________________________________________________________________________
Note: some tracks came from second or third generation sources (guess which).
While every effort was made to secure original tapes, some were simply unavailable. Also due to recording interruptions in the original sources, manual editing was done on Disc Three track 4 and Disc Four track 1.
Special thanks goes out to all of the Jellyfish Army past & present, whose undying love for the band (and some of whose collections) quite literally made this set possible. Your generosity (and patience) is appreciated. If you didn’t get everything back, don’t worry – it’s around here somewhere.
Andy thanks: Brigitte and Chloe for infinite inspiration
Roger thanks: Charlotte Elberfeld
Tim thanks: Melissa, Rhanata and Kieran
Thank you!: Roger Joseph Manning, Andy Sturmer, Jason Falkner, Chris Manning, Tim Smith, Eric Dover, Jack Joseph Puig, Albhy Galuten, Shalom Aberle, (who lovingly suggested we call this set “Milking The Fish”), Jay Gilbert (who is promised amnesty from the RIAA for all of his white-label CD sources), John Carter, Chris Coyle, Russell Zieker, Daniela Johannes, Andy Zax, Adam Gimbel, Vann Frazier, Irene LoConto, Rynda Laurel, Sarah Wirt, Brian Pylant,
Jeff Steidler, Jerry Garns, Art Balena, Angela Fuller, Clayton Call, Jay Blakesberg, Rocky Schenk, Vincent Vigil, Ali Castellini, Brian Corona, Dawn Hood, Bob Catania, Ken Sharp, Liz Andrews, Laurel Dann, Carolyn Anderson, Nicholas Cole and
Marlene Palumbo at Not Lame, Scott Bauman, Paula Salvatore, Ian Wolfe, Frank Lopez, Robyn Ginsburg, Jodi Glisman-Best, David English, Colleen Berg and Barbara Flaherty
All tracks digitally remastered. This compilation (P) 2002 EMI Music Special Markets
©2002 Not Lame Recordings, P.O. Box 2266, Fort Collins, CO 80822. www.notlame.com
Manufactured by EMI Music Special Markets, 1750 Vine Street, Hollywood, California 90028
All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.
Printed in the U.S.A.
A Not Lame Archive Release
Not Lame Recording Company
EMI Music Special Markets
NLA-007 72435-39671-2-3
