Jack Irons
| Jack Irons | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jack Steven Irons |
| Born | July 18, 1962 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Funk rock, alternative rock, rock |
| Occupations | Musician |
| Instruments | Drums |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Labels | MCA, EMI, Capitol, Epic, Morgan Creek, RCA, Hollywood, Pollen Records, Breaching Whale, Sire |
| Associated acts | Spinnerette, Chain Reaction, What Is This?, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Latino Rockabilly War, Redd Kross, Eleven, Raging Slab, Pearl Jam, Courtney Love, Spinnerette, and The Les Claypool Frog Brigade |
| Website | www.jackirons.com |
Jack Steven Irons (born July 18, 1962 in Los Angeles, California) is an American musician who is best known as the former drummer of the American rock bands Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eleven, and Pearl Jam. He has also worked with Joe Strummer and The Latino Rockabilly War, Redd Kross, Raging Slab, and The Les Claypool Frog Brigade. In 2004, Irons released his first solo album, Attention Dimension. Irons is preparing to release his second solo album, No Heads Are Better Than One on August 24, 2010.
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Biography
Early life
Jack Irons was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He is from a Jewish background.[1] Irons grew up using his family's cutlery as drumsticks, playing along to whatever was on the radio. He talked his parents into buying him a drum set, and took a drum class.[1] Irons attended Bancroft Jr. High School in Hollywood, where he met future bandmates Michael "Flea" Balzary and Hillel Slovak. He then went on to attend Fairfax High School in Los Angeles alongside Balzary and Slovak, as well as future bandmates Anthony Kiedis and Alain Johannes. Irons played drums in the school band and orchestra. He and Slovak were both fans of Kiss, and they formed a tribute act.[1] Irons was influenced by Jack DeJohnette, Stewart Copeland, and Keith Moon.[2]
What Is This? and Red Hot Chili Peppers
Irons was a founding member of, and the original drummer for, the Red Hot Chili Peppers. As teenagers, Irons, Johannes, Slovak, and schoolmate Todd Strassman formed the band Chain Reaction in 1976. After its first gig, the band was soon renamed to Anthym. Slovak became dissatisfied with Strassman's bass playing and eventually taught Michael Balzary (Flea) to play bass. Flea quickly surpassed Strassman in bass skills and took over bass duties in Anthym. After graduating from high school, the band changed its name to What Is This? (which was a question often asked by people who heard the band play). Flea left the band around this time because he was offered a job playing bass in the prominent Los Angeles punk band Fear. What Is This? continued on and performed many shows along the California coast.
Soon thereafter, Flea formed a "one-off" band with Kiedis, Slovak and Irons in 1983. The band, which was dubbed "Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem" for its first gig, was a hit with the club audience. The band's name changed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the band quickly gained popularity around Los Angeles. Over the course of the next six months, the Red Hot Chili Peppers played many shows in Los Angeles clubs and became something of an underground hit. The band scored a record deal with EMI after just that short period of time and was set to record its first album. Unfortunately, What Is This? had also signed a record deal two weeks earlier. Since Slovak and Irons considered the Red Hot Chili Peppers to merely be a side project and not a serious commitment, they left the band to concentrate on What Is This?. With What Is This?, Irons recorded two EPs (Squeezed (1984), 3 Out of 5 Live (1985)) and one full length album (What Is This? (1985)). The band broke up following the recording of the self-titled What Is This? album as Slovak became frustrated with the band and rejoined the Red Hot Chili Peppers. In the meantime, Irons played on several tracks on an album by the duo Walk the Moon, made up of Johannes and Natasha Shneider. After hearing that drummer Cliff Martinez had resigned, Irons, who was out of work and finally separated from other commitments, returned to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Irons can be heard playing drums on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' third album, The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (1987), as well as on the band's cover of "Fire" (originally written by Jimi Hendrix and first released on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' The Abbey Road E.P. (1988)). When childhood friend and bandmate Hillel Slovak died of a heroin overdose on June 25, 1988, Irons left the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Irons stated that he did not want to be part of a group where his friends were dying.[3] In 2006, Irons said Slovak's death had been such a huge shock that he had been suffering from depression ever since.[4]
Eleven
After Irons left the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he went to a hospital to receive treatment.[5] After a brief stint with Joe Strummer's backing band, Irons teamed up with Johannes and Shneider in 1990 to form Eleven. With Eleven, Irons recorded the albums Awake in a Dream (1991) and Eleven (1993). Midway through the recording of Eleven's third album, Thunk (1995), Irons departed to drum with Pearl Jam, and Matt Cameron of Soundgarden played drums on the album's remaining four tracks. Irons returned to the band once again in 2002 prior to the recording of the band's fifth album, Howling Book (2003). Irons' Eleven bandmate Natasha Shneider passed away on July 2, 2008 following a battle with cancer.[6] Prior to Shneider's death, the band was working on a sixth album due for release in the fall of 2008.
Pearl Jam
Irons was asked by bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard to join Mookie Blaylock, the band that would become Pearl Jam, in 1990, when the band was first forming and still looking for a singer and a drummer.[7] Although he didn't join the band at that time because he was committed to his own band, Eleven, he did pass on a cassette of the band's work to a singer and local musician in San Diego, California at the time named Eddie Vedder. Irons had formed a friendship with Vedder after meeting him through the Southern California music scene and would play basketball with him.[8] Vedder subsequently joined the band. Irons also called the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1991 and asked the band to allow Vedder's new group to open for the band on its forthcoming Blood Sugar Sex Magik tour.[9] Irons became the official drummer for Pearl Jam in late 1994 following the firing of drummer Dave Abbruzzese. His first recording with the band was "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me" for Vitalogy (1994). Gossard said, "Jack entered the band right at the end of making Vitalogy. Jack's a breath of fresh air, a family man. Everybody had a strong sense of friendship with him immediately. He was just there to play drums and help out."[10] Irons made his debut with the band at Neil Young's 1994 Bridge School Benefit, but he was not officially announced as the band's new drummer until its 1995 Self-Pollution satellite radio broadcast, a four-and-a-half hour long pirate broadcast out of Seattle, Washington which was available to any radio stations that wanted to carry it.[11] Irons joined the group and played Pearl Jam's live shows supporting the Vitalogy album.
Irons performed with other members of Pearl Jam on Neil Young's 1995 album, Mirror Ball, and subsequently toured Europe as part of Young's backing band. With Irons, the band recorded its fourth studio album, No Code, released in 1996, for which Irons also toured. The band subsequently released Yield in 1998. "Do the Evolution" (from Yield) received a Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance.[12] As a member of Pearl Jam, Irons brought a unique drumming style to the band, particularly in the way he played his fills and with his use of a trash can lid as a cymbal.[13] Irons co-wrote the music for the No Code songs "Who You Are", "In My Tree", "Red Mosquito", and "I'm Open". He also wrote and sang on the Pearl Jam songs "Happy When I'm Crying" (from the 1997 fan club Christmas single), "●" (from Yield), and "Whale Song" (from the 1999 Music for Our Mother Ocean Vol. 3 compilation). He played with Pearl Jam through March 20, 1998. In 1998, prior to Pearl Jam's U.S. Yield Tour, Irons left the band due to dissatisfaction with touring.[14] Pearl Jam's sound engineer Brett Eliason stated, "We went and did Hawaii and Australia with Jack. When we came back, Jack wasn't in a position to carry on. He made that decision more or less by himself. He can be a really great drummer but he had difficulty on tour putting out the energy for the length of shows they were doing. I don't know if he thought they'd put things on hold for him."[10] Vedder said, "I think that him deciding that he wasn't going to be in the band really hurt."[10] Coincidentally, Matt Cameron, from Soundgarden, replaced him again as he did four years prior on Eleven's Thunk.
Other musical projects
Attention Dimension
On September 7, 2004, Irons released a solo album called Attention Dimension. Irons started creating his first pieces of drum music in 1994, but it wasn't until fall 1999, about a year after he left Pearl Jam, that he seriously began recording himself for a possible solo album. The album features appearances by former bandmates such as Alain Johannes, Flea, Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament, and Les Claypool. Vedder contributed vocals to a cover of Pink Floyd's "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". Johnny Loftus of Allmusic said, "Attention Dimension is the drummer's chance to be in the bright white klieg light."[15]
Collaborations
Aside from the aforementioned bands, Irons recorded and toured as a member of Joe Strummer's backing band The Latino Rockabilly War for the album Earthquake Weather (1989), and also toured with Redd Kross in support of the band's album Third Eye (1990). He appears in Redd Kross' promotional video for the song "Annie's Gone". In 1992, Raging Slab (a band notorious for having over 25 different drummers over the course of the band's 18 year career), complete with Irons on drums, began recording the follow-up to its 1989 RCA Records self-titled debut, with producer Michael Beinhorn at the helm. The entire album was recorded, mixed, and mastered; however when RCA Records executives heard the album, it was rejected. The album, titled Freeburden, remains unreleased. In 2000, Irons played as part of the initial line-up of Colonel Les Claypool's Fearless Flying Frog Brigade. Irons is featured on the track "Milky Ave" on the album Ultra Payloaded (2007) by Perry Farrell's band Satellite Party.[16] Joining him on the album is former bandmate Flea. Irons recorded for Spinnerette, which features Eleven bandmate Alain Johannes, contributing to the band's 2009 album, Spinnerette. Most recently, he added studio drums to several tracks of Hole's latest release, Nobody's Daughter. Aside from popular music, Irons has worked as a drumming advisor and teacher for numerous U.S. television projects.
Equipment
Irons currently endorses Pearl drums, Zildjian cymbals, and Pro-Mark drumsticks.[17]
Personal life
At the age of 25, Irons was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.[2] Irons is married and has two children.[2]
Discography
What Is This? discography
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Squeezed | MCA |
| 1985 | What Is This? | MCA |
| 3 Out of 5 Live | MCA |
Red Hot Chili Peppers discography
| Year | Title | Label | Track(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Uplift Mofo Party Plan | EMI/Capitol | All |
| 1988 | The Abbey Road E.P. | EMI/Capitol | "Fire" and "Backwoods" |
| 1989 | Mother's Milk | EMI/Capitol | "Fire" |
| 1992 | What Hits!? | EMI | "Fight Like a Brave", "Behind the Sun", "Me and My Friends", "Backwoods", and "Fire" |
| 1994 | Out in L.A. | EMI | "Behind the Sun" (Ben Grosse remix), "Get Up and Jump" (demo version), "Out in L.A." (demo version), "Green Heaven" (demo version), "Police Helicopter" (demo version), "Nevermind" (demo version), "Sex Rap" (demo version), "You Always Sing the Same", "Stranded", "Flea Fly", and "What It Is" |
| 1997 | The Best of Red Hot Chili Peppers | EMI/Capitol | "Behind the Sun", "Me and My Friends", "Fire", and "Fight Like a Brave" |
| 1998 | Under the Covers: Essential Red Hot Chili Peppers | EMI/Capitol | "Fire" and "Subterranean Homesick Blues" |
Eleven discography
| Year | Title | Label | Track(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Awake in a Dream | Morgan Creek | All |
| 1993 | Eleven | Hollywood/Third Rail | All |
| 1995 | Thunk | Hollywood | All except "Why", "Seasick of You", "Big Sleep", and "No Ground" |
| 2003 | Howling Book | Pollen | All |
| 2005 | Killer Queen: A Tribute to Queen | Hollywood | "Stone Cold Crazy" (with Josh Homme) |
Pearl Jam discography
| Year | Title | Label | Track(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Vitalogy | Epic | "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me" |
| 1995 | Merkin Ball | Epic | All |
| 1996 | Home Alive: The Art of Self Defense | Epic | "Leaving Here" |
| M.O.M., Vol. 1: Music for Our Mother Ocean | Interscope | "Gremmie Out of Control" | |
| No Code | Epic | All | |
| Hype!: The Motion Picture Soundtrack | Sub Pop | "Not for You" (live from Self-Pollution Radio) | |
| 1997 | The Bridge School Concerts, Vol. 1 | Reprise | "Nothingman" (live) |
| 1998 | Yield | Epic | All |
| Chicago Cab: Soundtrack | Loosegroove | "Who You Are" | |
| 1999 | M.O.M., Vol. 3: Music for Our Mother Ocean | Hollywood | "Whale Song" |
| 2003 | Lost Dogs | Epic | "All Night", "Don't Gimme No Lip", "Black, Red, Yellow", "Leaving Here", "Gremmie Out of Control", "Whale Song", and "Dead Man" |
| 2004 | rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003) | Epic | "I Got Id", "Hail, Hail", "Do the Evolution", "Who You Are", "Off He Goes", "Given to Fly", and "Wishlist" |
| 2007 | Arctic Tale: Music from and Inspired By the Motion Picture | BulletProof | "Whale Song" |
Solo discography
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Attention Dimension | Breaching Whale |
| 2010 | No Heads Are Better Than One | The Orchard / Ten Club
Spinnerette discography
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Ghetto Love EP | Anthem |
| 2009 | Spinnerette | Anthem |
Contributions and collaborations
| Year | Group | Title | Label | Track(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Walk the Moon | Walk the Moon | MCA | Some |
| 1988 | Joe Strummer | Permanent Record: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | Epic/CBS | "Trash City", "Baby the Trans", "Nefertiti Rock", "Nothin' 'bout Nothin'", and "Theme from Permanent Record" |
| 1989 | Keith Levene | Keith Levene's Violent Opposition | Rykodisc | Some |
| Joe Strummer | Earthquake Weather | Epic | "Gangsterville", "Slant Six", "Shouting Street", "Sikorsky Parts", "Jewellers and Bums", and "Ride Your Donkey" | |
| 1990 | The Buck Pets | Mercurotones | Island | All |
| 1991 | Michelle Shocked | Arkansas Traveler | Mercury | Some |
| 1993 | Sun-60 | Only | Epic | "Mary X-Mess" and "Tell Me Like You Know" |
| The Buck Pets | To the Quick | Restless | All | |
| 1994 | Ethan Hawke | Reality Bites: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | RCA | "I'm Nuthin'" |
| 1995 | Neil Young | Mirror Ball | Reprise | All |
| 2007 | Satellite Party | Ultra Payloaded | Columbia | "Milky Ave" |
| 2010 | Hole | Nobody's Daughter | Mercury | Some |
See also
- List of people affected by bipolar disorder
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Apter, Jeff (2004). Fornication: The Red Hot Chili Peppers Story. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84449-381-4.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Peiken, Matt. "Jack Irons: This Inner Life". Modern Drummer. June 1998.
- ↑ Kiedis, Anthony; Sloman, Larry (2004-10-06). Scar Tissue. Hyperion. ISBN 1-4013-0101-0.
- ↑ "Chili Peppers’ Jack Irons Pays Tribute to Slovak". Contactmusic.com. May 14, 2006.
- ↑ Marks, Craig. "The Road Less Traveled". Spin. February 1997.
- ↑ Cohen, Johnathan (2008-07-02). "Eleven's Natasha Shneider Dies Of Cancer". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003824001. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
- ↑ Crowe, Cameron (1993-10-28). "Five Against the World". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/10560431/five_against_the_world. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
- ↑ Wall, Mick. "Alive". Nirvana and the Story of Grunge. Q p. 95
- ↑ Kiedis, Anthony; Sloman, Larry (2004-10-06). Scar Tissue. Hyperion. ISBN 1401301010.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Weisbard, Eric, et al. "Ten Past Ten". Spin. August 2001.
- ↑ Gaar, Gillian G. "Radio Free Vedder". Rolling Stone. February 23, 1995.
- ↑ "41st annual Grammy nominees and winners". CNN.com. http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/specials/1999/grammys/bigpicture.html. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
- ↑ Single Video Theory. Pearl Jam. Video. Epic, 1998.
- ↑ Fischer, Blair R (1998-04-17). "Off He Goes". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/pearljam/articles/story/5928493/off_he_goes. Retrieved 2007-06-28.
- ↑ Loftus, Johnny. "Attention Dimension". Allmusic.
- ↑ Bilton, Chris. "Satellite Party: Is Jane’s New Addiction Worth Feeding?". Ukula. 2007.
- ↑ "Jack Irons: Photos". jackirons.com.
External links
- Official website
- Irons Jack Irons at Allmusic
- Jack Irons at Last.fm
- Jack Irons at the Internet Movie Database
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Category:Pearl Jam
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