Jellyfish (band)
Encyclopedia
Jellyfish were a power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...

 band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 from San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

. It formed after Beatnik Beatch
Beatnik Beatch
Beatnik Beatch were a short-lived pop rock band and can be considered the predecessor of the band Jellyfish.They consisted of Chris Witt Kettner , Andy Sturmer , and George Cole...

 broke up in 1989. The core members were drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...

/singer/songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 Andy Sturmer
Andy Sturmer
Marvin Andrew Sturmer is an American musical artist, writer and producer. He was one of the founding members of the band Beatnik Beatch, which led to the formation of Jellyfish.- Jellyfish :...

 and keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...

/multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...

/singer/songwriter Roger Joseph Manning, Jr.  Although their career was short, the band has become highly influential in the power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...

 genre.

Beginnings

Jason Falkner
Jason Falkner
Jason Falkner is an American pop and rock musician. Active since the late 1980s, he has performed with several bands. In addition to releasing several albums as a solo artist, he is a prolific session musician and producer who has contributed to dozens of other recordings by other bands and...

 had been a member of the acclaimed Paisley Underground
Paisley Underground
Paisley Underground is an early genre of alternative rock, based primarily in Los Angeles, California, which was at its most popular in the mid-1980s.- History :...

 band The Three O'Clock
The Three O'Clock
The Three O'Clock were a United States alternative rock group associated with the Los Angeles 1980s Paisley Underground scene. Lead singer and bassist Michael Quercio is credited with coining the term "Paisley Underground" to describe a subset of the 1980s L.A...

, writing and performing on the band's major-label debut, Vermillion. Following the break-up of The Three O'Clock, Falkner placed a newspaper classified ad looking for a new project based in Los Angeles. This caught the attention of keyboard player Roger Manning, who was attending University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...

 at the time and was looking for musical collaborators. Manning's interest was sparked by the fact that Falkner was the only musician in the entire classified section to mention the band XTC
XTC
XTC were a New Wave band from Swindon, England, active between 1976 and 2005. The band enjoyed some chart success, including the UK and Canadian hits "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Senses Working Overtime" , but are perhaps even better known for their long-standing critical success.- Early years:...

. Although both Manning and Falkner found the meeting interesting, it amounted to little and they did not choose to work together at that time.

In 1988, Manning moved back to the Bay Area to join a San Francisco-area band called Beatnik Beatch
Beatnik Beatch
Beatnik Beatch were a short-lived pop rock band and can be considered the predecessor of the band Jellyfish.They consisted of Chris Witt Kettner , Andy Sturmer , and George Cole...

, replacing their previous keyboard player Se Padilla. Another member of the band was singing drummer Andy Sturmer. Manning and Sturmer became a songwriting team and began writing material for the band's upcoming second album. The songs were then rejected by Beatnik Beatch's leader (bassist and singer Chris Ketner) who preferred the band to concentrate on his own material. Consequently Sturmer and Manning quit Beatnik Beatch together to pursue their own project.

Later, when Sturmer and Manning were forming Jellyfish, the search for a guitarist to record the final tracks led Manning to contact Falkner once again. Falkner joined for the recording of their debut album.

Bellybutton album

The band's debut album, Bellybutton
Bellybutton (album)
Bellybutton is the debut album by Jellyfish, released on August 7, 1990.The album spawned the singles "The King Is Half-Undressed" , "That Is Why" , "Baby's Coming Back"Bellybutton is the debut album by Jellyfish, released on August 7, 1990.The album spawned the singles "The King Is Half-Undressed"...

, was released in 1990. It demonstrated the wide range of influences which the new band drew on, drawing heavily from the Paisley Underground, Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

, The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...

, The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

, XTC
XTC
XTC were a New Wave band from Swindon, England, active between 1976 and 2005. The band enjoyed some chart success, including the UK and Canadian hits "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Senses Working Overtime" , but are perhaps even better known for their long-standing critical success.- Early years:...

, Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...

, Wings
Wings (band)
Wings were a British-American rock group formed in 1971 by Paul McCartney, Denny Laine and Linda McCartney that remained active until 1981....

, and Badfinger
Badfinger
Badfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...

. The album contained the band's most successful single, "Baby's Coming Back", which peaked at No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....

. The album also included the singles "That Is Why", "I Wanna Stay Home", "Now She Knows She's Wrong" and "The King Is Half-Undressed" (the video for which was nominated for Best Art Direction at the 1991 MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 Video Music Awards).

After the recording
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...

 of Bellybutton, Manning's brother Chris was asked to join the band as bassist for the imminent live dates.

Spilt Milk

Frustrated with simply being the guitar player, Jason Falkner left the band after the Bellybutton tour. Chris Manning also left, disliking the touring lifestyle.

Sturmer and Roger Manning recruited Tim Smith as the new bassist while preparing new material. Studio musicians (including Jon Brion
Jon Brion
Jon Brion is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer.-Early life:...

) were brought in to help record their second album, Spilt Milk in 1993. The album was a far more elaborate affair than Bellybutton, incorporating a significant amount of overdubbing and complex song arrangements. A tour followed which included Eric Dover
Eric Dover
Eric Dover is an American musician, guitarist and singer, most notably with Jellyfish, Slash's Snakepit, Imperial Drag and Alice Cooper.-Biography:...

 on guitar and backing vocal duties.

Break up

Increasing creative differences between Sturmer and Manning resulted in Jellyfish's break-up in 1994.

Sturmer stayed quiet for a number of years, but has since written catchy pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

 songs for Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese group Puffy Amiyumi
Puffy AmiYumi
or Puffy AmiYumi is a Japanese rock duo that is currently signed with Sony Music Japan. The group continues to go by the moniker of PUFFY in Japan, but in order to avoid legal naming conflicts with Sean Combs, it has adopted the name Puffy AmiYumi outside of Japan...

 and soloist YUKI
Yuki
Yuki, Yuuki, Yuhki or Yūki are romanizations of various Japanese given names or words...

 (formerly front woman and vocalist of the Japanese rock band Judy and Mary
Judy and Mary
Judy and Mary was a Japanese multi-genre band formed in 1991 in Hakodate, Hokkaido by bassist and vocalist , with drummer and guitarist completing the lineup in 1992. Guitarist replaced Taiji the following year...

). He has also composed, produced, and recorded with many different groups including The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...

, Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...

, L.E.O.
L.E.O.
L.E.O. is an Electric Light Orchestra-style music project of a number of musicians. Spawned by an on-stage cover of ELO's "Telephone Line" by lead singer-songwriter Bleu and Mike Viola, it quickly produced an entire album of original songs similar in style to 1970s AM radio pop music.The project...

, The Merrymakers
The Merrymakers
The Merrymakers are a Swedish based musical duo composed of Anders Hellgren and David Myhr, former members are The Merrymakers are a Swedish based musical duo composed of Anders Hellgren and David Myhr, former members are The Merrymakers are a Swedish based musical duo composed of Anders Hellgren...

, and others.

Roger Manning subsequently worked with Jellyfish live band member Eric Dover
Eric Dover
Eric Dover is an American musician, guitarist and singer, most notably with Jellyfish, Slash's Snakepit, Imperial Drag and Alice Cooper.-Biography:...

 in a project called Imperial Drag
Imperial Drag
Imperial Drag was an American rock band, active from 1994 to 1997. The group, formed after the breakup of Jellyfish, released one album and scored one rock hit single in the U.S. before disbanding.-History:...

 and worked with Brian Kehew
Brian Kehew
Brian Kehew is a Los Angeles-based musician and music producer. He is a member the The Moog Cookbook and co-author of the Recording The Beatles book, an in-depth look at the Beatles' studio approach...

 in The Moog Cookbook
The Moog Cookbook
The Moog Cookbook is the name of an electronica band made up of Brian Kehew and Roger Joseph Manning Jr. as a parody/tribute to the novelty "Moog records" of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The duo performs exclusively on analog synthesizers, especially Moog synthesizers...

. In 2005 Manning released his first solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...

 CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

 in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, titled Solid State Warrior
Solid State Warrior
Solid State Warrior is the debut album by Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., a CD available only in Japan which was released on March 2, 2006.The album had previously been available online through the Weedshare music distribution service, being released on March 28, 2005.-CD: PCCY-01764:All songs written...

. This album was re-packaged with an altered tracklisting in the U.S. in 2007 as The Land Of Pure Imagination
Land of Pure Imagination, The
The Land of Pure Imagination is the U.S. debut album of former Jellyfish founder Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., released in 2006.The album is based largely on his Japan only debut album Solid State Warrior, released earlier that year...

. Manning also played keyboards for Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...

 on several records and remixed some songs for French duo Air.

Chris Manning is now an accomplished producer and engineer.

After leaving Jellyfish, Jason Falkner joined with other pop musicians Jon Brion
Jon Brion
Jon Brion is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer.-Early life:...

, Buddy Judge and Dan McCarroll (the latter three best known for their work with Aimee Mann
Aimee Mann
Aimee Mann is an American rock singer-songwriter, guitarist and bassist.-Early life:Aimee Mann grew up in Bon Air, Virginia, graduated from Open High School in 1978 and attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, but dropped out to sing with her first punk rock band, the Young Snakes...

) in a band called The Grays
The Grays (band)
The Grays were a short-lived rock band comprising singer/songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Jon Brion, Jason Falkner, Buddy Judge, and Dan McCarroll...

.

Roger Manning and Falkner have reunited (along with ex Redd Kross
Redd Kross
Redd Kross, a rock band from Hawthorne, California had their roots in 1978 in a band called The Tourists begun by Jeff and Steve McDonald while the brothers were still in middle school...

 member Brian Reitzell
Brian Reitzell
Brian Reitzell is a musician, composer, producer and music supervisor best known for his contributions to several film soundtracks. He was formerly the drummer for the punk band Redd Kross. He has also collaborated with the French electronica duo Air, having performed drums on their 2001 album 10...

) in a new-wave inspired band called TV Eyes
TV Eyes
TV Eyes is an electronic pop group consisting of Jason Falkner, Roger Joseph Manning Jr. & Brian Reitzell.They released their self-titled debut album in 2006, but it has been released only in Japan.....

. Reitzell and Manning also joined forces to compose two tracks for the Lost in Translation
Lost in Translation (film)
Lost in Translation is a 2003 American film written and directed by Sofia Coppola; her second feature film after The Virgin Suicides and it stars Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson...

soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...

. Manning and Reitzell had earlier collaborated on the Logan's Sanctuary
Logan's Sanctuary
Logan's Sanctuary is an electronica album by Roger Joseph Manning Jr. and Brian Reitzell, conceived as the soundtrack for an imagined sequel to the film Logan's Run....

album in 2000, which featured contributions from Falkner.

Both Manning and Falkner are credited on Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...

's 2009 album, "The Latest
The Latest
The Latest is the sixteenth studio album by the American power pop band Cheap Trick. The album was produced by Cheap Trick, Julian Raymond and Howard Willing and was released on June 23, 2009. The album was issued on standard CD as well as limited pressings of vinyl and 8-Track tapes. The album was...

," with Manning playing select tour dates. Manning was also featured on Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...

's appearance at SXSW, which was taped and shown on HDNet tv. Their appearance on "Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits
Austin City Limits is an American public television music program recorded live in Austin, Texas by Public Broadcasting Service Public television member station KLRU, and broadcast on many PBS stations around the United States...

" was shown on PBS, and Manning played on it as well.

1989-1992

  • Andy Sturmer
    Andy Sturmer
    Marvin Andrew Sturmer is an American musical artist, writer and producer. He was one of the founding members of the band Beatnik Beatch, which led to the formation of Jellyfish.- Jellyfish :...

     - vocals, drums, keyboards, guitar
  • Roger Manning - keyboards, vocals
  • Jason Falkner
    Jason Falkner
    Jason Falkner is an American pop and rock musician. Active since the late 1980s, he has performed with several bands. In addition to releasing several albums as a solo artist, he is a prolific session musician and producer who has contributed to dozens of other recordings by other bands and...

     - guitars, bass, vocals
  • Chris Manning — bass, vocals (live only)
  • Niko Wenner — guitars, vocals, keyboard (live only)

1992-1994

  • Andy Sturmer
    Andy Sturmer
    Marvin Andrew Sturmer is an American musical artist, writer and producer. He was one of the founding members of the band Beatnik Beatch, which led to the formation of Jellyfish.- Jellyfish :...

     - vocals, drums, keyboards, guitar
  • Roger Manning - keyboards, vocals
  • Tim Smith — bass, vocals
  • Eric Dover
    Eric Dover
    Eric Dover is an American musician, guitarist and singer, most notably with Jellyfish, Slash's Snakepit, Imperial Drag and Alice Cooper.-Biography:...

     - guitar, vocals (live only)

Bellybutton

  • Chuck Findley
    Chuck Findley
    Chuck Findley is an American session musician. Most widely-known as a trumpet player, he also plays other brass instruments such as flugelhorn and trombone...

     - trumpet
  • Tommy Morgan — harmonica
  • Steven Shane McDonald
    Steven Shane McDonald
    Steven Shane McDonald is the bass player in the Los Angeles alternative rock/power pop band Redd Kross. He is also a member of the hardcore punk band OFF!, which formed in late 2009. Other projects included The SMG and Green and Yellow TV - both were Los Angeles-based groups from the 2000s...

     - bass
  • John Patitucci
    John Patitucci
    John Patitucci is an American Grammy-winning jazz double bass and jazz fusion electric bass player.-Biography:Patitucci is of Italian descent and was born in Brooklyn, New York, where he began playing the electric bass at age ten, composing and performing at age 12, as well as the acoustic bass at...

     - upright bass
  • Lenny Castro
    Lenny Castro
    Lenny Castro is an American freelancing percussionist in the studio recording industry in the Los Angeles area.-Early life:Castro is a percussionist of Puerto Rican descent and was born and raised in New York City. His father, Hector Castro, played the keyboard in a Latin style and gave his son...

    , Luis Conte — percussion
  • Frank Marocco
    Frank Marocco
    Frank Marocco is an American piano-accordionist, arranger and composer. He is recognized as one of the most recorded accordionists in the world.- Background :Frank Marocco grew up in Waukegan, Illinois, near Chicago...

     - accordion
  • Sid Page
    Sid Page
    Sid Page is an American based violin player who has been playing since the late 1960s. He became a member of Dan Hicks & The Hotlicks replacing violinist David LaFlamme...

     — string accompaniment

Spilt Milk

  • Lyle Workman
    Lyle Workman
    Lyle Workman is an American guitarist, composer, session musician and music producer. His music has been widely distributed since his debut on the eponymous Bourgeois Tagg album in 1986, and is currently best known for his work as composer and bandleader for the Superbad soundtrack.Workman is also...

     - guitars
  • Tom "T-Bone" Wolk - additional bass
  • Jon Brion
    Jon Brion
    Jon Brion is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer.-Early life:...

     - guitars

Albums

  • Bellybutton
    Bellybutton (album)
    Bellybutton is the debut album by Jellyfish, released on August 7, 1990.The album spawned the singles "The King Is Half-Undressed" , "That Is Why" , "Baby's Coming Back"Bellybutton is the debut album by Jellyfish, released on August 7, 1990.The album spawned the singles "The King Is Half-Undressed"...

    (1990)
  • Jellyfish Comes Alive
    Jellyfish Comes Alive
    Jellyfish Comes Alive was a promotional EP released in 1991 by Jellyfish. It collected live performances of songs from Bellybutton and covers of songs by Badfinger and Wings.-Track listing:#"No Matter What" – 2:54#"The King Is Half-Undressed" – 3:55...

     EP
    (U.S. Promotional-Only) (1991)
  • Spilt Milk (1993) (UK
    UK Albums Chart
    The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...

     #21)
  • The Greatest (Japanese-Only Best-Of) (1998)
  • Fan Club (4 CD compilation of rarities) (2002)
  • Best! (2006)


Singles

  • "The King Is Half-Undressed" (1990) (Billboard Modern Rock chart #19; UK
    UK Singles Chart
    The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

    #39)
  • "That Is Why" (1991) (Billboard Modern Rock chart #11)
  • "Baby's Coming Back" (1991) (Billboard Hot 100 chart #62; UK #51)
  • "The Scary-Go-Round EP featuring Now She Knows He's Wrong" (1991) (UK #49)
  • "I Wanna Stay Home" (1991) (UK #59)
  • "Ignorance is Bliss" (US Only) (1991)
  • "The Ghost At Number One" (1993) (Billboard Modern Rock chart #9; UK #43)
  • "New Mistake" (1993) (UK #55)
  • New Mistake EP (Japanese Only) (1993)
  • "Joining A Fanclub" (U.S. Promotional-Only) (1993)
  • "Bye, Bye, Bye" (Dutch-Only) (1993)


Video

  • "Gone Jellyfishin'" (VHS) (1991) - Contains videos for "The King Is Half-Undressed", "That Is Why", "Baby's Coming Back", "plus a pleasant surprise" aka a video bonus (a narrated trip to McDonald's while on tour).

External links

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