True that, and hard to believe they never made it big time... Maybe not "ahead of their time". They would have been right there with all the prog bands of the 20 years earlier for sure...
I met Andy on the Spilt Milk Tour on 4th of July 1993. I was 18. Got his autograph on a piece of trash I found on the ground. All the guys were there - Roger, Eric, and more. Man, that show was monumental! Can you imagine?! Hearing all the songs from their 2 albums? I was in the front row of some small outdoor alleyway street stage. One of the best nights of my life. They had bubbles and sparklers in their hands for the encore. Some drunk guy threw a beer bottle at Andy's head and he ducked right in time and it missed him. He pointed his stick and said, "This next song is for you for making a complete fool out of yourself!", and they went into "He's My Best Friend". The Children of Jellyfish sure gave us musicians some of the best gems in music after that - The Grays, Imperial Drag, Jason, Roger, Moog Cookbook, Lickerish, etc etc etc.
Great story! I would’ve killed to see that show! I’m grateful, too, for what you called “Children of Jellyfish”! Still, I can’t help missing the “Steampunk mixed with Yes” promise of the original Jellyfish… and I recall groaning aloud when I heard Spilt Milk was done.
I saw that show at a music venue in Dallas! I got to meet the band afterward and both Andy and especially Roger were really good to the fans. Eric even invited me onto the bus, but I declined, good girl that I was. Ha! I still have an old ticket to an outdoor show at Six Flags Over Texas prior to that which got rained out. Such great memories and even greater music.
I discovered Jellyfish last year. Spilt Milk changed my life and how I approach and conceptualize music. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. These guys were both so behind and ahead of their time. It's sad that such true artistic vision and mastery did not reach the commercial success it deserved. But holy shit; the music is eternal. I was born two years after they broke up and they're one of my favorite bands. They're an inspiration for wide-eyed artists everywhere. A few months ago, I was at a used record/video store and found a copy of Spilt Milk that was signed by the entire band, including Andy Sturmer. I geeked the fuck out. I still do.
I had one of the early digital radios in 94, and I heard Ghost at Number One while sitting outside on the porch. It captivated me, and i ran inside and stood in front of the stereo (after jotting down the info), blown away by Roger's lyrics. A few hours later I heard another song that caught me immediately, same story, only incredibly from the same band and album (New Mistake). I've kept up with Manning's work, but none of his lyricism has been as brilliant. Spilt Milk was eventually supplanted as my favorite album ever by The Black Parade, but I don't think TBP would exist without it (heck, a rock opera about a star dying just as he hits fame, told in many different styles hearkening to specifics of other musicians, with the parade being the ultimate expression of his death and legacy; you tell me!) and I often listen to them back to back. (I was 28 when Spilt Milk came out, ftr.)
31 year old reporting in to say I also discovered them a few months ago. Already loved post-punk, new wave, power pop of the late 70s and early 80s, think XTC, Todd Rundgren, Talking Heads. Then I hear this, and it's like if Supertramp and Todd and Brian Wilson collaborated. Such a wild contrast compared to the rest of the early 90s. At least their legacy lives on in some circles, and especially with many musicians.
Spilt Milk is hands down one of the greatest albums of the 90's.... power pop perfection! Good job finding that quote from Brian May. I'm a huge Jellyfish fan but had never come across that before.
@@richardk6196 Terrible comparison. John Lennon completely acquiesced the direction and vision of the Beatles to McCartney in the later years. Look at who wrote most of their songs toward the end. And he loved and thrived on attention. Sorry, but ... not even close. lol
@@j.9970 Not the greatest, but one of the greatest! Bellybutton is damn good also! I think Revolver (the 14 song UK version) is the greatest album ever made - and they wrote Paperback Writer and Rain during the Revolver sessions - so 16 originals.
Jason Falkner leaving Jellyfish was the best thing he did. First forming The Grays with Jon Brion, Buddy Judge and Dan McCarroll making the single amazing album "Ro Sham Bo". After that, Jason's (first 2) solo albums "Author Unknown" and "Can You Still Feel" is some of the best music of the 90's. His songwriting is a 5 star, Michelin chef level affair. He's in my top 5 favorite artists.
@@Law-Enduring-Citizen That's awesome. I don't know if I'd want him as my neighbor. Or to know him personally at all. The only reason is, it would be hard to like his stuff. I don't know why that is. But I have friends that make amazing music but, it's hard to have them in my top favorite bands. If you know what I mean.
Incredible how low Spilt Milk charted yet now is considered to be one of the most influential rock albums of the last 30 years...among a lot of musicians at least. Probably one of my personal favorite albums of all time as well. Roger's solo material is excellent as well.
Spilt Milk was such a badass album! Joining a Fan Club sounded like a Queen song, Sebrina was Beatlesque and New Mistake was Supertrampish. It definitely had a retro vibe that's so infectious and sounds just as good today as it did in 1993.
Joining a fan club is pure bliss to listen to. You can hear The Beatles, Cheap Trick and Queen influences all throughout their music. If I won the lottery I would offer them $1M to reunite for one concert along with The Sundays.
I met Jellyfish three times. Though I have met many celebrities, big and small, they were the nicest, most welcoming, most appreciative of all. Jason especially. We got to party with them as early 20's college kids with the Crowes. No drugs, no groupies, no bullshit...we just drank whiskey and talked about music. ALL of my close friends love their two albums. When they toured for Spilt Milk, Eric Dover told me that he looked at us during the concert so he could remember the lyrics...we'd memorized it, ad nauseum, within days of its release. In my top five bands of all time, and my #1 in most generous & kind.
Check out The Lickerish Quartet. It's made up of the "Spilt Milk" lineup (Roger, Tim, Eric) except Andy. They all write the songs. Lots of Jellyfish, alternative and pop. "There is a Magic Number" could be a Top 40 hit if Top 40 still existed. One EP is out now. EP #2 is coming, with the first single to be released 11/20/20.
30 years later, I still remember the first time I heard 'Bellybutton'. I was riding in a friend's car, he put it on, and I was absolutely floored by it. I couldn't believe that this was a debut album by a band I hadn't heard of, IT WAS A MASTERPIECE that to this day I love as much as I did then!! I saw them live a few times a couple of months later, they were as Incredible live as they were on the studio and I feel fortunate to have seen them. I only wish they could have made more albums, they should've been massive stars.
It really is too bad they had such differences and couldn't get past them. I saw them in Pensacola in '91 when they opened up for The Black Crowes. They honestly blew the Black Crowes out of the water! I immediately went out and bought their album, and still listen to it today! One of the most amazing things to me was Andy being the drummer and lead singer; I had never seen that before! He was so talented!
2004 I came back from deployment in Iraq to Germany. For some reason I was into buying vinyl. Good friend told me to buy Bellybutton when he saw it. Fan ever since
I'm extremely blessed to be able to say I saw Jellyfish live back in the day. Roger Joseph Manning Jr still releases solid solo albums as well the Lickerish Quartet are amazing.
hey everyone! want to thank my subs for recommending this one. I heard of jellyfish over the years, but hadn't really sat down and listened to their records recently. Go check them out if you haven't heard of them before. Great band! As always throw your suggestions below!
As said by others, check out The Lickerish Quartet, which are Roger Joseph Manning Jr, Eric Dover and Tim Smith. Worth the listen. Imperial Drag, the band Dover & Manning formed after Jellyfish is also well worth it. Even though they had a successful single, their record company did nothing for them.
you should really listen to TOY MATINEE is you enjoy Jellyfish. In fact, making a video about Kevin Gilbert would probably appeal to a ton of your viewers/subscribers.
Wait I’m confused…you have NOT listened to their music but call them a great band??? I’m just confused. 🤷🏻♂️ I am a fan of jellyfish and have always wondered what happened to them. Thanks for the video but I didn’t watch it. Great video!
My college band opened for these guys on their Bellybutton tour and we hung out with them after the show. We listened to that album all the time and loved it (I still have it on my playlists). It’s a shame that their sound got swept away with the tidal wave of grunge in the early 90’s
This band was always overlooked, and or underrated. The first two albums (Bellybutton, & Spilt Milk) are exquisite masterpieces of rock, pop, psychedelia ever to be released , it's extremely well written material with fantastic musicianship , and wonderful production (especially on Spilt Milk), heavy, groovy, and sooo good. Anyone whose never heard of these records, or this band, you don't know what great music you are missing out on , pure pleasure for your ear-holes. Bob. G
Andy Sturmer also co-wrote a few tracks and did some production for a Swedish pop act called The Merrymakers in 1999. The album is called Bubblegun and it's a must hear for any Jellyfish fan. Check it out!
I vaguely remember these guys. I probably saw them on MTV back in the day. So many quality bands in the late 80s/early 90s got swept under the rug in the wake the Seattle Scene.
Not true! The neopsychedelia , indie pop, dance music, alt rock and grunge were popular same time. Many bands failed due the internal weakness etc not grunge.
@@marguskiis7711 popular in small groups of people but never got the attention that the grunge sound got. Hard to compete with a millions of fans compared to a few hundred or thousand for a band. Labels like teen beat only got certain types of fans attracted to that sound.
@@miked3168 Only some some grunge bands broke into million sellers. Grunge wasn't SO big to destroy other alt rock scenes. Jellyfish ws very known band but they just didn't last. Egoclash ruined them.
@@marguskiis7711 Yeah, it did. As far as the media was concerned grunge wiped out pretty much every rock scene from power pop to thrash metal. Here in the UK circa 1991 all you ever saw, heard or read about was Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Dinosaur Jnr., heck ever the Butthole Surfers got lumped in. Frankly it was a depressing time.
@Alexander Parsival Maximilian Actually death metal while remaining very underground did still get some recognition in the media here in the UK with Scum-era Napalm Death of all people turning up on BBC children's music program "What's That Noise" (allegedly because presenter Craig Charles was a massive fan) in the early 90's. That wouldn't happen these days. But as far as the radio, most TV and printed media were concerned it was just grunge, grunge, grunge.
Very cool to hear this story. I had high school homeroom with Jason for a semester. He checked out my guitar one day when I brought it with me to class...it was then I realized I had to practice much much more.
I.listened to Bellybutton a lot when it came out. Great album! Now I'm going to have to dig into Spilt Milk. Today was the first time I found out it existed.
I’ve been to hundreds of concerts in my life and Jellyfish at The Cotton Club in Atlanta in the early 90’s is still the best concert I’ve ever seen. They sounded so damn good. These 4 young guys with cheap streamers behind them playing so brilliantly that it left me breathless. It was hot as hell in that club, everyone shed their shirts, even the girls, so it was just a bunch of sweaty kids all packed in together singing and dancing and loving life. What a great time to be alive!
No doubt...his first album especially...I got that CD stuck in my car CD player but I had no problem listening to that for months until I got the CD player fixed!
1989 I worked at a music store and I picked up the tape just because of the cover and I absolutely loved it listen to it non-stop just excellent music and then spilt milk came out and I loved it.....very Progressive and out there there is a couple songs on there that are really truly epic the word play and the Symphony of sounds was really special thank you for this I love jellyfish and always will
One of the best bands of the 90s that too many people unfortunately never got to hear. It's nice to have that "secret band" in your collection that nobody knew about but it sucks that the band didn't get the commercial success that they deserved. Luckily, enough of the really top artists and producers knew how great they were and that enabled them to have successful careers after Jellyfish.
When you said "a band that was done too soon" I thought: "Ok, what bands were done at just the right time?" Not done too soon (So many) or went on too long (sooooooo many), but ended fairy tale "just right". I'm in serious danger of expanding my bald spot scratching my head on this!! So far my closest is, despite the acrimonious ish break up at the time, Uncle Tupelo. Went out on a high note, and both "leads" formed successful, great "bands" (who all know who's driving the metaphorical bus). This could be music's most exclusive club!!
I became sad when I heard the part in the video saying that Jason Faulkner never became successful. His album, afraid himself to be, is one of favorite albums. Miracle medicine is one of the greatest songs ever written. And it’s strange to hear from someone else that Jason wasn’t ever a big star because in my own mind and in my own musical bubble he is a rockstar
This is really sad. I wish there were another album or two. Spilt Milk is one of the greatest pop records of all time. But in 1993 no label wanted a whimsical concept album .
I remember seeing the video for "ghost at number one" when it came out and being instantly blown away. The next day I bought the CD. At the time it came out I was into a lot of different music. Punk, seventies prog rock and even the beetles, so it was perfect for me. I lent it out to anybody that would listen and played it for people all the time. I still own that CD and every now and then dust it off and give it a play. It still holds up.
This is so surreal for me! Jason F. was a close friend when Jellyfish got their deal. Albhy Galuten literally walked up to my flat w/out shoes & somebody literally said," Cool, Jesus Is our producer." Great album & great 2nd album
Minus Andy, they put out a new EP under the name The Lickerish Quartet this past May. It's clearly not a Jellyfish release but boy is it worth listening to. I bought it on pre-order. The band says they have a more music to release in the future. Since there is no record company involved, they can do what they want and make all the money they generate. There are youTube vids out there if interested.
Oh wow, my sister and I were HUGE Jellyfish fans and listened to Bellybutton non stop on our first trip from England to Florida in '91. We adored Spilt Milk and when they came to England in '93 they were the first band I ever saw at 13. It was amazing ( saw Redd Kross at same venue not long after, also amazing) We sent fan mail to them on a scroll with Jellyfish themed art and I still have the postcard Andy hand wrote back in response plus a very worn but loved t shirt from the gig...and my sister and I can still rock the harmonies on I Wanna Stay Home!
Was lucky to be on board the fan train from the get go. Saw them 4 times in the Bay Area- 3 Bellybutton shows (Cactus Club, The Edge), and one Spilt Milk show (FX downtown San Jose); met Jason at the Catalyst show in Santa Cruz- super nice guy. To this day I remember reading the notice in BAM magazine in '94 when it was announced they were no longer. I was crushed. Other than Andy, I followed the guy's careers pretty closely ever since. Long live their music.
I'm not big into pop music, outside a few 60's/70's bands. I was working at a radio station in Amarillo at the time & a couple of copies of "Split Milk" came in from their record company. Picked it up out of curiosity...and was COMPLETELY blown away. They preformed live in town later...and they were a KILLER live band. It's a damn shame this band never caught on or...more importantly...recorded more music. 30 years later I still play this album from beginning to end several times a year.
I remember the first time I heard a Jellyfish song. A girl I was dating at the time (1990), who had moved to Alabama from California, said I needed to listen to this band. She played me the song, "I Wanna Stay Home" from Bellybutton. I was an instant fan. I saw them in concert in Nashville in 1993 and it was one of the best concerts I have ever attended. The songwriting is some of the best you will hear.
rix SHEARER ism I knew Andy and he knew me. Andy and I had the same private drum teacher. We also went to the same High School (Amador Valley High) and grew-up the same town Pleasanton, CA (not San Francisco). I was several years older than Andy. Last I spoke to him was after one of his last Beatnik Beach gigs (tight and clean performance!) in SF. It felt great when he noticed me and said "Hey, Rick !" and had a brief conversation. The last time I saw Andy was at an awesome Jellyfish concert at The Warfield Theater in SF. It might have been their last show supporting Spilt Milk? Andy better not see me again , unless he wants to end something....hahaha I seem to show-up unknowingly at his last gigs! I remember our drum teacher telling me to be more disciplined with my homework "like Andy" if I want to make it anywhere. He was right. I didn't make it beyond playing in SF Bay area as a drummer/vocalist, whereas Andy moved-on to tour internationally in a band I became a fan of, Jellyfish!
The Grays, don't get me started. Ro Sham Bo sounds like the best White Album tracks through the lens of Big Star, produced by Godley / Creme era 10cc. Critics didn't pay attention, they were more concerned with Fountains of Wayne. I follow Jason Falkner to this day, everything he touches turns to gold imho.
This band was so exciting when they came along.Loved their sound and wished they could have gone alittle further.Would have been interesting to see how they would have progressed.
Me too. I was 16 (1990). I had a full head of hair, boundless energy and was full of awe and optimism. Now I'm a jaded, broken down middle aged man whose losing his hair and vision and who's spirits have been crushed by the weight of the world.😣
Spilt Milk is a classic album. I was in a record store (that I ended up working in) at 15 when I heard it for the first time and it changed the music game for me.
I saw them live twice in Seattle. I was blown away, and I’m a musician too. Unbelievable they didn’t hit it big, but like the video said, Grunge hit big and not many wanted power pop.
Nothing sad about it -- one of the most joyful bands of all time that left us incredible music that will be enjoyed by lovers of great music for generations to come.
Sad in that there should have been more great music to come from them for more than just the way too brief time they were together. I'm so glad that I got to catch them live!!
Discovered them 4 and a half months ago, really good stuff and yes I was born in the 80's so by the time they were in stride I would've been 12 or so and I was just getting into playing and such myself although I am second generation so I feel it pretty strong. I am glad to see you covering it
Jellyfish were one of the most talented bands of the 90’s. Their two albums - Bellybutton and Spilt Milk - are psychedelic power pop classics. Both albums are very melodic and accessible. That Jellyfish never caught on commercially is proof there’s no rhyme or reason to the pop music world and who makes it and who doesn’t.
Great video, thank you so much for creating this! One of my favorite 90s bands. Fans might be interested to know that there was a 4 CD box set released from "Not Lame Records" that had some of those studio recordings for the 3rd album on there. It was titled "Fan Club (From the Rare to the Unreleased... And Back Again)" I have it and it's amazing. You can most likely find the same songs on Itunes, or wherever else to listen to. It was released 7 or 8 years after their break up. 10 years after the 4 CD box set was released there was a CD put out where several artists covered their tunes called "Sensory Lullabies: The Ultimate Tribute to Jellyfish." #jellyfish #spiltmilk #bellybutton #RockNRollTrueStories @RockNRollTrueStories
Saw them at a show in SOMA in SF. I was 18 yrs old. Travelled to Amsterdam a year later and they were all over MTV Europe. "That is whyyyyyy". I remember they performed, "Baby comeback ". Good days
Years ago, I went to see Tears For Fears in concert and Jellyfish opened. There were a lot of people that left the show after Jellyfish ended their set. I never understood that, but I got to move to the front row afterwards. That being said, “Ghost At Number One” was a great song…
I was up front against the stage for the Jellyfish/Tears for Fears show in New York. This is not the ideal location to hear a show when the drummer is front and center on the stage. My face was two feet away from the base drum...
Just added Joining a Fan Club and New Mistake to my spotify a couple days ago…😭They sounded amazing. His voice is perfect like it came from a musical. It’s not fair we can’t hear it on other projects!
I aint sad, Andy still pumps out the best power pop going, you just have to listen to Scooby Doo soundtracks from 2008 to present. Amazing he hasnt given an interview or had a photo taken in over 20 years, or played live for that matter, hands down the most talented allrounder I've ever come across in music, standing drummer, vocalist, lyricist, producer, arranger.
How haven't I seen this before?! They are one of my all time favorites. I knew them in my teens dueing the 2000s through Puffy AmiYumi. After becoming obsessed with the Teen Titans theme song I went and got all of Puffy's discography and then I discovered that their best songs were created by a guy name Andy from a band called Jellyfish. So, I searched for their music and I instantly fell in Love. For some reason they are almost entirety unknown here in Chile even when lots of similar bands from that era were aired on the Radio and MTV and can still be heard on nostalgia stations, but Jellyfish remains unkown for most. Once I dated this older dude that shared my love for this band and neither of us could believe it since it was the first time for both of us than we met another fan IRL xD
One of my all-time favourite bands. Both Bellybutton and Spilt Milk are absolute musical masterpieces.
Yes they are
True that, and hard to believe they never made it big time... Maybe not "ahead of their time". They would have been right there with all the prog bands of the 20 years earlier for sure...
I met Andy on the Spilt Milk Tour on 4th of July 1993. I was 18. Got his autograph on a piece of trash I found on the ground. All the guys were there - Roger, Eric, and more. Man, that show was monumental! Can you imagine?! Hearing all the songs from their 2 albums? I was in the front row of some small outdoor alleyway street stage. One of the best nights of my life. They had bubbles and sparklers in their hands for the encore. Some drunk guy threw a beer bottle at Andy's head and he ducked right in time and it missed him. He pointed his stick and said, "This next song is for you for making a complete fool out of yourself!", and they went into "He's My Best Friend". The Children of Jellyfish sure gave us musicians some of the best gems in music after that - The Grays, Imperial Drag, Jason, Roger, Moog Cookbook, Lickerish, etc etc etc.
Great story! I would’ve killed to see that show! I’m grateful, too, for what you called “Children of Jellyfish”!
Still, I can’t help missing the “Steampunk mixed with Yes” promise of the original Jellyfish… and I recall groaning aloud when I heard Spilt Milk was done.
I saw that show at a music venue in Dallas! I got to meet the band afterward and both Andy and especially Roger were really good to the fans. Eric even invited me onto the bus, but I declined, good girl that I was. Ha! I still have an old ticket to an outdoor show at Six Flags Over Texas prior to that which got rained out. Such great memories and even greater music.
@@AlerieHightower ....atta Girl 👍
I discovered Jellyfish last year. Spilt Milk changed my life and how I approach and conceptualize music. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. These guys were both so behind and ahead of their time. It's sad that such true artistic vision and mastery did not reach the commercial success it deserved. But holy shit; the music is eternal. I was born two years after they broke up and they're one of my favorite bands. They're an inspiration for wide-eyed artists everywhere. A few months ago, I was at a used record/video store and found a copy of Spilt Milk that was signed by the entire band, including Andy Sturmer. I geeked the fuck out. I still do.
I hope you bought it!!
We could be friends.
@@bobyost42 oh no..im sure he put it back in the bin
I had one of the early digital radios in 94, and I heard Ghost at Number One while sitting outside on the porch. It captivated me, and i ran inside and stood in front of the stereo (after jotting down the info), blown away by Roger's lyrics. A few hours later I heard another song that caught me immediately, same story, only incredibly from the same band and album (New Mistake). I've kept up with Manning's work, but none of his lyricism has been as brilliant. Spilt Milk was eventually supplanted as my favorite album ever by The Black Parade, but I don't think TBP would exist without it (heck, a rock opera about a star dying just as he hits fame, told in many different styles hearkening to specifics of other musicians, with the parade being the ultimate expression of his death and legacy; you tell me!) and I often listen to them back to back. (I was 28 when Spilt Milk came out, ftr.)
31 year old reporting in to say I also discovered them a few months ago. Already loved post-punk, new wave, power pop of the late 70s and early 80s, think XTC, Todd Rundgren, Talking Heads. Then I hear this, and it's like if Supertramp and Todd and Brian Wilson collaborated. Such a wild contrast compared to the rest of the early 90s. At least their legacy lives on in some circles, and especially with many musicians.
Spilt Milk is hands down one of the greatest albums of the 90's.... power pop perfection! Good job finding that quote from Brian May. I'm a huge Jellyfish fan but had never come across that before.
Spilt milk so... Groovy. Beatles, yes, partridge family... Masterpiece. Saw them on this tour, lite brite on stage! So sorry this fell apart
Masterpiece!
Andy sounds like a real challenging person to be in a band with.
"This band is MY vision, but I DON'T want all the attention as the frontman!"
That's what doctors call the Robert Fripp's syndrom.
You said it brother he sure was difficult
Sounds like Andy was his own John and Yoko built into one.
@@richardk6196 Terrible comparison. John Lennon completely acquiesced the direction and vision of the Beatles to McCartney in the later years. Look at who wrote most of their songs toward the end. And he loved and thrived on attention. Sorry, but ... not even close. lol
Jellyfish is so crazy underrated
Spilt Milk is on my top ten favorites of all time. Its a brilliant album.
amen brother.
@@josephbenda6763 greatest album ever made
@@j.9970 Not the greatest, but one of the greatest! Bellybutton is damn good also! I think Revolver (the 14 song UK version) is the greatest album ever made - and they wrote Paperback Writer and Rain during the Revolver sessions - so 16 originals.
Truly influential!
Jason Falkner leaving Jellyfish was the best thing he did. First forming The Grays with Jon Brion, Buddy Judge and Dan McCarroll making the single amazing album "Ro Sham Bo". After that, Jason's (first 2) solo albums "Author Unknown" and "Can You Still Feel" is some of the best music of the 90's. His songwriting is a 5 star, Michelin chef level affair. He's in my top 5 favorite artists.
Jason was my neighbor for 5 years.
@@Law-Enduring-Citizen That's awesome. I don't know if I'd want him as my neighbor. Or to know him personally at all. The only reason is, it would be hard to like his stuff. I don't know why that is. But I have friends that make amazing music but, it's hard to have them in my top favorite bands. If you know what I mean.
Don't forget the EP Bliss Descending that is nothing short of great and I'm OK, You're OK which is very good too.
Incredible how low Spilt Milk charted yet now is considered to be one of the most influential rock albums of the last 30 years...among a lot of musicians at least. Probably one of my personal favorite albums of all time as well. Roger's solo material is excellent as well.
Spilt Milk was such a badass album! Joining a Fan Club sounded like a Queen song, Sebrina was Beatlesque and New Mistake was Supertrampish. It definitely had a retro vibe that's so infectious and sounds just as good today as it did in 1993.
PuffyAmiYumi in Japan did a great cover of it....
Their vocal and arrangement work was absolutely amazing.
Joining a fan club is pure bliss to listen to. You can hear The Beatles, Cheap Trick and Queen influences all throughout their music. If I won the lottery I would offer them $1M to reunite for one concert along with The Sundays.
I met Jellyfish three times. Though I have met many celebrities, big and small, they were the nicest, most welcoming, most appreciative of all. Jason especially. We got to party with them as early 20's college kids with the Crowes. No drugs, no groupies, no bullshit...we just drank whiskey and talked about music.
ALL of my close friends love their two albums. When they toured for Spilt Milk, Eric Dover told me that he looked at us during the concert so he could remember the lyrics...we'd memorized it, ad nauseum, within days of its release.
In my top five bands of all time, and my #1 in most generous & kind.
Jellyfish was such a great find for me. I’m so upset they didn’t make more albums.. Great melodies..
Any band that uses wind chimes is awesome in my books.
Check out The Lickerish Quartet. It's made up of the "Spilt Milk" lineup (Roger, Tim, Eric) except Andy. They all write the songs. Lots of Jellyfish, alternative and pop. "There is a Magic Number" could be a Top 40 hit if Top 40 still existed. One EP is out now. EP #2 is coming, with the first single to be released 11/20/20.
Joanna, Thanks for the heads up! I miss Jellyfish.
The Lickerish Quartet are awesome. Those first 4 songs are all gold.
@@fredfox3851 I do, too. :(
@@DrTomoculus z
"There is a Magic Number" gives me all the feels. Love it.
@@joannahuett3626 It's a gorgeous song. In both versions of it.
30 years later, I still remember the first time I heard 'Bellybutton'. I was riding in a friend's car, he put it on, and I was absolutely floored by it. I couldn't believe that this was a debut album by a band I hadn't heard of, IT WAS A MASTERPIECE that to this day I love as much as I did then!! I saw them live a few times a couple of months later, they were as Incredible live as they were on the studio and I feel fortunate to have seen them. I only wish they could have made more albums, they should've been massive stars.
It really is too bad they had such differences and couldn't get past them. I saw them in Pensacola in '91 when they opened up for The Black Crowes. They honestly blew the Black Crowes out of the water! I immediately went out and bought their album, and still listen to it today! One of the most amazing things to me was Andy being the drummer and lead singer; I had never seen that before! He was so talented!
2004 I came back from deployment in Iraq to Germany.
For some reason I was into buying vinyl. Good friend told me to buy Bellybutton when he saw it. Fan ever since
Spilt Milk goes on the greatest album that nobody ever heard list.
Great band. Spilt Milk is criminally overlooked. One of the best records ever made.
I'm extremely blessed to be able to say I saw Jellyfish live back in the day. Roger Joseph Manning Jr still releases solid solo albums as well the Lickerish Quartet are amazing.
One of the greatest bands of all time! They changed my life and a lot of musicians around me at the time. I appreciate the quick story!
hey everyone! want to thank my subs for recommending this one. I heard of jellyfish over the years, but hadn't really sat down and listened to their records recently. Go check them out if you haven't heard of them before. Great band! As always throw your suggestions below!
As said by others, check out The Lickerish Quartet, which are Roger Joseph Manning Jr, Eric Dover and Tim Smith. Worth the listen. Imperial Drag, the band Dover & Manning formed after Jellyfish is also well worth it. Even though they had a successful single, their record company did nothing for them.
King Diamond, Mercyful Fate, Metal Church, Circle Jerks
you should really listen to TOY MATINEE is you enjoy Jellyfish. In fact, making a video about Kevin Gilbert would probably appeal to a ton of your viewers/subscribers.
@@AllMediaReviewsPodcast And make sure to give Sheryl Crow a kick in the shins when you do it.
Wait I’m confused…you have NOT listened to their music but call them a great band??? I’m just confused. 🤷🏻♂️ I am a fan of jellyfish and have always wondered what happened to them. Thanks for the video but I didn’t watch it. Great video!
My college band opened for these guys on their Bellybutton tour and we hung out with them after the show. We listened to that album all the time and loved it (I still have it on my playlists). It’s a shame that their sound got swept away with the tidal wave of grunge in the early 90’s
This band was always overlooked, and or underrated. The first two albums (Bellybutton, & Spilt Milk) are exquisite masterpieces of rock, pop, psychedelia ever to be released , it's extremely well written material with fantastic musicianship , and wonderful production (especially on Spilt Milk), heavy, groovy, and sooo good. Anyone whose never heard of these records, or this band, you don't know what great music you are missing out on , pure pleasure for your ear-holes. Bob. G
Andy Sturmer also co-wrote a few tracks and did some production for a Swedish pop act called The Merrymakers in 1999. The album is called Bubblegun and it's a must hear for any Jellyfish fan. Check it out!
will check it out thx man
Another great underrated 90s band you should do a video on, The Posies.
I vaguely remember these guys. I probably saw them on MTV back in the day. So many quality bands in the late 80s/early 90s got swept under the rug in the wake the Seattle Scene.
Not true! The neopsychedelia , indie pop, dance music, alt rock and grunge were popular same time. Many bands failed due the internal weakness etc not grunge.
@@marguskiis7711 popular in small groups of people but never got the attention that the grunge sound got. Hard to compete with a millions of fans compared to a few hundred or thousand for a band. Labels like teen beat only got certain types of fans attracted to that sound.
@@miked3168 Only some some grunge bands broke into million sellers. Grunge wasn't SO big to destroy other alt rock scenes. Jellyfish ws very known band but they just didn't last. Egoclash ruined them.
@@marguskiis7711 Yeah, it did. As far as the media was concerned grunge wiped out pretty much every rock scene from power pop to thrash metal. Here in the UK circa 1991 all you ever saw, heard or read about was Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Dinosaur Jnr., heck ever the Butthole Surfers got lumped in. Frankly it was a depressing time.
@Alexander Parsival Maximilian Actually death metal while remaining very underground did still get some recognition in the media here in the UK with Scum-era Napalm Death of all people turning up on BBC children's music program "What's That Noise" (allegedly because presenter Craig Charles was a massive fan) in the early 90's. That wouldn't happen these days.
But as far as the radio, most TV and printed media were concerned it was just grunge, grunge, grunge.
Such a great band. The songwriting and production of both albums are insane. The world just wasn't ready for them.
What a shame. They were an amazingly talented group. I still love them to this day.
Very cool to hear this story. I had high school homeroom with Jason for a semester. He checked out my guitar one day when I brought it with me to class...it was then I realized I had to practice much much more.
I.listened to Bellybutton a lot when it came out. Great album! Now I'm going to have to dig into Spilt Milk. Today was the first time I found out it existed.
I absolutely adore Spilt Milk. I think you'll really like it.
Justin Five it is so dense, my most played album ever, and i still find little hooks buried deep in the mix even to this day.
Spilt Milk is IMO the better album.
Spilt Milk is IMO the better album.
I’ve been to hundreds of concerts in my life and Jellyfish at The Cotton Club in Atlanta in the early 90’s is still the best concert I’ve ever seen. They sounded so damn good. These 4 young guys with cheap streamers behind them playing so brilliantly that it left me breathless. It was hot as hell in that club, everyone shed their shirts, even the girls, so it was just a bunch of sweaty kids all packed in together singing and dancing and loving life. What a great time to be alive!
As someone who'se been a devoted fan for over a decade now, thank you for this. PLEASE check out the 2 Jellyfish records if you havent yet.
I did they were absolutely terrible
When i see these guys i can't stop thinking about H&R Puffinstuff...
Great series.
Yeah it was ! And "Lidsville" !
Can't do a little if you can't do enough
Totally!
This video is a pure gem. SO many cool infos, collabs, niche and obscurs songs i wasn't aware of. As a jellyfish fan, this is a treasure. Thx man
Jellyfish were one of those bands that none of your friends had heard of!
You need new friends...with better taste in music
@@deaterk a lot of people are dumb or lazy when it comes to new music or stuff that isn't on tht radio
BUT you find lifelong friends with people who love this band.
I love Jellyfish! I love grunge and Hair Metal too. I love having a variety of music and not everything sounding the same.
It seems hard for some other people to believe that yes, some of us actually listened to more than one sub-genre of rock music back in the day.
This right here... too many think you cant like both. I love both. Love metal, rap, blue grass, punk, thrash, the list goes on lol
Thank you!!!!!!! Very important band! Absolutely beautiful music that cannot be forgotten.
Jason Falkner's first two solo LPs are masterpieces as well.
No doubt...his first album especially...I got that CD stuck in my car CD player but I had no problem listening to that for months until I got the CD player fixed!
His Last two records are also superb ("I'm OK you're OK" and "All quiet on the noise floor").
Jason’s albums are amazing.
Miracle Medicine is one of the greatest songs ever recorded and released.
Just discovered them through Rick Beato 30 best albums video. So glad I watched it. Jellyfish is an amazing and exciting band to listen to
1989 I worked at a music store and I picked up the tape just because of the cover and I absolutely loved it listen to it non-stop just excellent music and then spilt milk came out and I loved it.....very Progressive and out there there is a couple songs on there that are really truly epic the word play and the Symphony of sounds was really special thank you for this I love jellyfish and always will
Saw Eric Dover when he was playing for Alice Cooper. He got fired because he was sleeping with Alice's daughter.
Calico or Sonora ?
Faulkner’s band “The Greys” is amazing, Sturmer now does all the music for the “Scooby-Doo” Franchise FYI
'The GrAys'... sadly they only put out one album: Ro Sham Bo (1994)
@@corleth84 autocorrect dude! And your correct. Ro Sham Bo was and is a really good album!
I've loved them since the moment I heard "That is Why" . Two classic albums.
One of the best bands of the 90s that too many people unfortunately never got to hear. It's nice to have that "secret band" in your collection that nobody knew about but it sucks that the band didn't get the commercial success that they deserved. Luckily, enough of the really top artists and producers knew how great they were and that enabled them to have successful careers after Jellyfish.
When you said "a band that was done too soon" I thought: "Ok, what bands were done at just the right time?" Not done too soon (So many) or went on too long (sooooooo many), but ended fairy tale "just right". I'm in serious danger of expanding my bald spot scratching my head on this!! So far my closest is, despite the acrimonious ish break up at the time, Uncle Tupelo. Went out on a high note, and both "leads" formed successful, great "bands" (who all know who's driving the metaphorical bus). This could be music's most exclusive club!!
Maybe Jane's Addiction & The Smiths achieved that fairytale ending.
My dad and I love these guys, he introduced me to them and i honestly cant believe they didn't get big! They're just too good!
I became sad when I heard the part in the video saying that Jason Faulkner never became successful. His album, afraid himself to be, is one of favorite albums. Miracle medicine is one of the greatest songs ever written. And it’s strange to hear from someone else that Jason wasn’t ever a big star because in my own mind and in my own musical bubble he is a rockstar
This is really sad. I wish there were another album or two. Spilt Milk is one of the greatest pop records of all time. But in 1993 no label wanted a whimsical concept album .
Bellybutton will always be a top 20 album for me. My brother introduced them to me - wonderful discovery!
The song they wrote for Ringo that he used was "I Don't Believe You" not "I Don't Believe In You". That "in" makes a huge difference in a few ways.
I remember seeing the video for "ghost at number one" when it came out and being instantly blown away. The next day I bought the CD. At the time it came out I was into a lot of different music. Punk, seventies prog rock and even the beetles, so it was perfect for me. I lent it out to anybody that would listen and played it for people all the time. I still own that CD and every now and then dust it off and give it a play. It still holds up.
Can you imagine Spilt Milk as a show on broadway? Seriously a great way to resurrect this music.
would definitely work as a musical
I first heard Jellyfish when they opened for The Black Crowes in 1991. I instantly loved them and still listen to both albums on a regular basis!
Jason Falkner's solo stuff is great. "Author Unknown" is still one of my favorite records
This is so surreal for me! Jason F. was a close friend when Jellyfish got their deal. Albhy Galuten literally walked up to my flat w/out shoes & somebody literally said," Cool, Jesus Is our producer."
Great album & great 2nd album
Minus Andy, they put out a new EP under the name The Lickerish Quartet this past May. It's clearly not a Jellyfish release but boy is it worth listening to. I bought it on pre-order. The band says they have a more music to release in the future. Since there is no record company involved, they can do what they want and make all the money they generate. There are youTube vids out there if interested.
Wow! How did I not know about this? I'm gonna check it out thanks.
@@bobfrapples1208 You can still order it from their merch site.
Really been enjoying your work as of late. Top notch, high quality uploads my friend!
Oh wow, my sister and I were HUGE Jellyfish fans and listened to Bellybutton non stop on our first trip from England to Florida in '91.
We adored Spilt Milk and when they came to England in '93 they were the first band I ever saw at 13. It was amazing ( saw Redd Kross at same venue not long after, also amazing)
We sent fan mail to them on a scroll with Jellyfish themed art and I still have the postcard Andy hand wrote back in response plus a very worn but loved t shirt from the gig...and my sister and I can still rock the harmonies on I Wanna Stay Home!
Was lucky to be on board the fan train from the get go. Saw them 4 times in the Bay Area- 3 Bellybutton shows (Cactus Club, The Edge), and one Spilt Milk show (FX downtown San Jose); met Jason at the Catalyst show in Santa Cruz- super nice guy. To this day I remember reading the notice in BAM magazine in '94 when it was announced they were no longer. I was crushed. Other than Andy, I followed the guy's careers pretty closely ever since. Long live their music.
I'm not big into pop music, outside a few 60's/70's bands. I was working at a radio station in Amarillo at the time & a couple of copies of "Split Milk" came in from their record company. Picked it up out of curiosity...and was COMPLETELY blown away. They preformed live in town later...and they were a KILLER live band. It's a damn shame this band never caught on or...more importantly...recorded more music. 30 years later I still play this album from beginning to end several times a year.
I remember the first time I heard a Jellyfish song. A girl I was dating at the time (1990), who had moved to Alabama from California, said I needed to listen to this band. She played me the song, "I Wanna Stay Home" from Bellybutton. I was an instant fan. I saw them in concert in Nashville in 1993 and it was one of the best concerts I have ever attended. The songwriting is some of the best you will hear.
Great song.
I got Split Milk when it came out in ‘93, ‘94? That album….. I still listen to it and it still inspires me.
Got to see them twice!! Once at Wembley Stadium. Can you believe they were even better live!!! Just incredible..
rix SHEARER ism
I knew Andy and he knew me. Andy and I had the same private drum teacher. We also went to the same High School (Amador Valley High) and grew-up the same town Pleasanton, CA (not San Francisco). I was several years older than Andy. Last I spoke to him was after one of his last Beatnik Beach gigs (tight and clean performance!) in SF. It felt great when he noticed me and said "Hey, Rick !" and had a brief conversation. The last time I saw Andy was at an awesome Jellyfish concert at The Warfield Theater in SF. It might have been their last show supporting Spilt Milk? Andy better not see me again , unless he wants to end something....hahaha I seem to show-up unknowingly at his last gigs! I remember our drum teacher telling me to be more disciplined with my homework "like Andy" if I want to make it anywhere. He was right. I didn't make it beyond playing in SF Bay area as a drummer/vocalist, whereas Andy moved-on to tour internationally in a band I became a fan of, Jellyfish!
funny post but Jellyfish toured for another 4 months after the Warfield gig. It's not your fault! lol
Don't forget The Grays: Falkner and Brion.
That album was sooo good. Saw them live. Unfortunately that was a one and done album. Too bad.
@@jefflacefield1774 Fuck that's cool. Very happy for you :)
The Grays, don't get me started. Ro Sham Bo sounds like the best White Album tracks through the lens of Big Star, produced by Godley / Creme era 10cc. Critics didn't pay attention, they were more concerned with Fountains of Wayne. I follow Jason Falkner to this day, everything he touches turns to gold imho.
UMAJETS
Ro Sham Bo is criminally underrated...
I love those two Jellyfish albums so much. As good as *anybody*.
Thanks for this.
A great band. One of the best of my generation. Great guys to hang with as well, back in the day.
I love Jellyfish Bellybutton and Spilt Milk are two of my all time favourite albums.
Paul Briers: I agree. "Bellybutton" is a masterpiece I listened to continually in 1991. All songs were great.
This band was so exciting when they came along.Loved their sound and wished they could have gone alittle further.Would have been interesting to see how they would have progressed.
Pretty cool!! These cats are still in heavy rotation on my playlists. I bought Bellybutton when I was barely 16. Where does the time go?
Me too. I was 16 (1990). I had a full head of hair, boundless energy and was full of awe and optimism. Now I'm a jaded, broken down middle aged man whose losing his hair and vision and who's spirits have been crushed by the weight of the world.😣
One of my favorite bands.
Spilt Milk is a classic album. I was in a record store (that I ended up working in) at 15 when I heard it for the first time and it changed the music game for me.
I saw them live twice in Seattle. I was blown away, and I’m a musician too. Unbelievable they didn’t hit it big, but like the video said, Grunge hit big and not many wanted power pop.
A band out of time. Wish there had been just one more album. Bellybutton my fav cause it’s sadder. ❤
They are still the best. So original and skilled musicians
Nothing sad about it -- one of the most joyful bands of all time that left us incredible music that will be enjoyed by lovers of great music for generations to come.
Sad in that there should have been more great music to come from them for more than just the way too brief time they were together. I'm so glad that I got to catch them live!!
Discovered them 4 and a half months ago, really good stuff and yes I was born in the 80's so by the time they were in stride I would've been 12 or so and I was just getting into playing and such myself although I am second generation so I feel it pretty strong. I am glad to see you covering it
my dad was an og fan, went to most of their shows. ive never met any fans of them. theyre amazing
Absolutely ADORED this band and miss them DEARLY. Love Redd Kross, too. Interesting how they were an influence. SORELY missed.. 😭😍😭😍😭
Thank you for doing this video!!! My favorite band of all time
Was lucky to see the Spilt Milk tour in the 90s in Sydney. Awesome gig and the album is epic. Pop rock perfection from the first song to the last.
I hope Andy will decide to work with the other guys again one day. He's such a talented song writer. Even his songs on kid shows are great.
So glad I saw these guys on the Spilt Milk tour at Toads Place in New Haven.
2 fabulously solid albums. Great live too.
Great band! Still listen to them today.
Jellyfish were one of the most talented bands of the 90’s. Their two albums - Bellybutton and Spilt Milk - are psychedelic power pop classics. Both albums are very melodic and accessible. That Jellyfish never caught on commercially is proof there’s no rhyme or reason to the pop music world and who makes it and who doesn’t.
i love spilt milk just recently discovered it.
@@rnrtruestories favorite tracks?
Great video, thank you so much for creating this! One of my favorite 90s bands. Fans might be interested to know that there was a 4 CD box set released from "Not Lame Records" that had some of those studio recordings for the 3rd album on there. It was titled "Fan Club (From the Rare to the Unreleased... And Back Again)" I have it and it's amazing. You can most likely find the same songs on Itunes, or wherever else to listen to. It was released 7 or 8 years after their break up. 10 years after the 4 CD box set was released there was a CD put out where several artists covered their tunes called "Sensory Lullabies: The Ultimate Tribute to Jellyfish." #jellyfish #spiltmilk #bellybutton #RockNRollTrueStories
@RockNRollTrueStories
Nice to see that you used the word sad instead of tragic. You’re making progress lol.
Saw them at a show in SOMA in SF. I was 18 yrs old. Travelled to Amsterdam a year later and they were all over MTV Europe. "That is whyyyyyy". I remember they performed, "Baby comeback ". Good days
Years ago, I went to see Tears For Fears in concert and Jellyfish opened. There were a lot of people that left the show after Jellyfish ended their set.
I never understood that, but I got to move to the front row afterwards.
That being said, “Ghost At Number One” was a great song…
I was up front against the stage for the Jellyfish/Tears for Fears show in New York. This is not the ideal location to hear a show when the drummer is front and center on the stage. My face was two feet away from the base drum...
Great documentary!! Good job! Jellyfish is my top no 1 band.
Just added Joining a Fan Club and New Mistake to my spotify a couple days ago…😭They sounded amazing. His voice is perfect like it came from a musical. It’s not fair we can’t hear it on other projects!
I aint sad, Andy still pumps out the best power pop going, you just have to listen to Scooby Doo soundtracks from 2008 to present. Amazing he hasnt given an interview or had a photo taken in over 20 years, or played live for that matter, hands down the most talented allrounder I've ever come across in music, standing drummer, vocalist, lyricist, producer, arranger.
Great band. 2 of the best albums of the 90’s.
How haven't I seen this before?! They are one of my all time favorites. I knew them in my teens dueing the 2000s through Puffy AmiYumi. After becoming obsessed with the Teen Titans theme song I went and got all of Puffy's discography and then I discovered that their best songs were created by a guy name Andy from a band called Jellyfish. So, I searched for their music and I instantly fell in Love.
For some reason they are almost entirety unknown here in Chile even when lots of similar bands from that era were aired on the Radio and MTV and can still be heard on nostalgia stations, but Jellyfish remains unkown for most. Once I dated this older dude that shared my love for this band and neither of us could believe it since it was the first time for both of us than we met another fan IRL xD
Two perfect records.
Love this band.Great Video.
I begged for this one!!!
Love this band. Saw them live at London Astoria and they were excellent 👌
I stumbled on a maxi CD of Ghost at Number One years and years ago. I had never heard of them before. It's great. Time to check out the full albums.
Spilt Milk is an absolute masterpiece. One of my favorite albums of all time.