Jason Falkner -- C/D?

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For my money, that first album is pure gold -- and unlike what power-poppers all say about their favorite bands, w/ proper promotion, it could've broken big in a post-Weezer environment in the mid-90s...

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Wednesday, 16 July 2003 19:30 (twenty years ago) link

I saw him play bass for Kurt Heasley of Lilys in LA and SF, he is a very talented musician. Also, a close friend of mine had a huge crush on him in high school (heather graham was her classmate as well!)

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 16 July 2003 19:47 (twenty years ago) link

That sounds like some high school.

Funny that you say that, b/c I think Elektra was flirting w/ the idea of promoting him in teen mags when that first record came out.

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Wednesday, 16 July 2003 20:12 (twenty years ago) link

Jason Falkner is positively a witch in the studio. He can play the shit out of any instrument.

Both of his proper albums are great, as are both of his odds-n-sods albums.

He's played/toured with Air for the past few years and has been shopping songs in LA for a deal for at least that long. His problem is that he generally has trouble being in a band...on his records he takes the Prince route a lot.

He's also been gigging in LA with some old buds in a new band called TV Eye. I hear they are hot.

― don weiner, Thursday, 17 July 2003 01:47 (twenty years ago) link

Very talented instrumentalist, writes some wonderful melodies, but I find his lyrics sometimes a bit suspect. Yes, I'm one of those folks who cares about such things.

Although, admittedly only have the first solo record and the Grays record. (And Eric Matthews' first solo joint, which Falkner is all over...)

― wl (wl), Thursday, 17 July 2003 07:22 (twenty years ago) link

Classic, though without the recognition he deserves in the wider world. ...presents Author Unknown is the better of the 2 solo albums, esp. love She Goes To Bed.

He's released 2 great solo albums and as mentioned 2 odds 'n' sods collections of 4 track demos and covers. The first Jellyfish album he's on is great plus he was in the later version of the Three O'Clock and was in The Grays with Jon Brion for their one album. He's played on records with Travis (Nigel Godrich produced the last Falkner solo album), Eric Matthews, Susannah Hoffs, Air, he produced and plays on the new Lily's record, he sings on the Logan's Sanctuary album (soundtrack to the imaginary sequel to Logan's Run) and so many others. Plus he's apparently a super nice guy.

TV Eyes are his new band with Roger Manning (ex Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, Beck's keyboard player and on about as many records as Falkner) and Brian Reitzell (Redd Kross, Air etc). I've heard some stuff from it and it's synth/guitar based pop with an early 80's Gary Numan, New Order feel but still with a modern production. I think it's coincidence that they are doing this now as these styles come back in vogue. Falkner has never hidden his admiration for early 80's British new wave/synth.

Apparently their live show is pretty special with lots of synced up video projection and stuff though they've only played a handful of gigs.

― mms (mms), Thursday, 17 July 2003 11:47 (twenty years ago) link

FWIW, "She Goes To Bed" was written about Heather Graham, whom Falkner dated for a fair spell before she got famous. She usually shows up at his gigs.

Also, since we are geeking out here, he's done a lot of studio goonery in the form of overdubbing...even some hair metal bands who allegedly didn't know their parts got overdubbed.

Oh, and he was a primary writer for the songs on Josie & the Pussycats.

― don weiner, Thursday, 17 July 2003 18:36 (twenty years ago) link

JBR to thread.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 17 July 2003 18:45 (twenty years ago) link

okay i was wrong, i spoke with the person mentioned above and she maintains that he had a big crush on HER in high school but he was too shy for her tastes.

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 17 July 2003 18:50 (twenty years ago) link

Re. TV Eyes, his new wavey band, their album's apparently not been picked up yet, but you can get a fantastic live version of his their tune, "She's a Study" here: http://www.jasonfalkner.net/news/updates.html

Bounciness galore.

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Thursday, 17 July 2003 20:06 (twenty years ago) link

Ok, I'm wrong -- they took the song down. But trust me: it was great!

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Thursday, 17 July 2003 20:24 (twenty years ago) link

Yeah, it is great. I've got a couple of the live tracks and they sound really good as well as four of the studio tracks and they're mostly good too. With me being such a big Jellyfish fan it's great to see Falkner and Manning working together again. Now if only they could settle their differences with Andy Sturmer, drag him away from writing songs for Japanese pop artists, country singers and Disney cartoons and then we'd have a band on our hands.

― mms (mms), Thursday, 17 July 2003 21:10 (twenty years ago) link

I've been so happy over the last couple months since getting Author Unknown. oh, i love it so much! She Goes To Bed and Miracle Medicine are so impeccably written, so tightly arranged; the guy knows what's going on.

I picked up Can You Still Feel just a day ago, but haven't paid attention to it yet.

― derrick (derrick), Thursday, 17 July 2003 22:18 (twenty years ago) link

Can You Still Feel? is almost as good, but the consensus seems to be that it takes longer to get into. Nigel Godrich is actually almost non-existent behind the board. But "Revelation" and "Holiday" are both JF classics all the way.

Feelings here about that Grays album?

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 18 July 2003 01:16 (twenty years ago) link

i like the grays album. found it several years ago for 88 cents on st mark's place, and the pricetag helps alleviate any negative feelings i might otherwise have about the record (it's what some would call "bland," not that that really bothers me but it's not a selling point either, and sometimes the lyrics don't seem to get where they wanna be, which makes them more bad-Costello than good-Costello in the cleverness department). search "very best years," the most falkneriffic track on there.

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 18 July 2003 03:52 (twenty years ago) link

re falkner: i do love his music but i think i hate what i understand him to represent, ie "the golden-boy genius idol of the l.a. bratpack subbacultcha's frustratingly uncool yuppie older sister."

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 18 July 2003 04:01 (twenty years ago) link

Did you see him at Pianos, JBR? I am sad that I missed that show.

I think I know what you mean about hating what he represents. That's one of the reasons that Beck makes me cringe.

― Paul Eater (eater), Friday, 18 July 2003 04:06 (twenty years ago) link

no, i missed it too. :-(

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 18 July 2003 04:08 (twenty years ago) link

I think I know what you mean about hating what he represents.

see also: rufus wainwright

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 18 July 2003 04:12 (twenty years ago) link

and to some extent john mayer

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 18 July 2003 04:18 (twenty years ago) link

Falkner's not nearly a part of that whole bratpack thing, even in the oblique terms you put it JBR. He's never been nearly as successful as those other guys, certainly in terms of the fawning press and silver spoon 'tude that people like Beck have enjoyed for a decade. If anything, Falkner's career is pretty much snakebit compared to his talent. Wainwright? That guy's talent is positively marginal compared to Falkner, and it's not like Falkner's dad was ever a music biz luminary. It makes me cry to think of John Mayer even in the same thought as Falkner, so let's just banish that right now. I'd say there was a point where his career could have taken off like Beck's (or Jon Brion's) did, but it didn't. And now he's stuck being in a situation where it's too late to change it, although you have to give him credit for still trying.

― don weiner, Friday, 18 July 2003 11:45 (twenty years ago) link

But given that his brief '96-99 tenure on Elektra was pretty much the beginning and end of the ill-conceived Teen Idol phase of his career, it seems that Falkner's settled fairly comfortably into pop middle age, working with a million different people (Travis, Brendon Benson, Air, Josie Pussycats, etc.), doing his own thing (working on another solo record) and sort-of joining a group (TV Eyes). Not too shabby.

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 18 July 2003 14:58 (twenty years ago) link

His tenure at Elektra was hosed by a myriad of problems, most notably the massive turnover in Elektra management. He never really had much of a chance with them due to things that were way outside his control. And while it's true he's settled into pop middle age (also working with Beck a bunch) it hasn't been his preference. A talented musician like him is never happy playing in the background, playing other people's parts, and generally having to be a follower rather than the leader. He's been able to earn a good living but not at what he really wants to do.

― don weiner, Friday, 18 July 2003 17:07 (twenty years ago) link

Right, well, I've read that JF started referring to the label as Neglektra after a spell. And I'm not really saying he enjoys being a backbencher as much as--based on what I've read--thatworking on his own records as well as contributing to all those other artists' work has been fairly rewarding. Though I'm sure not having a deal is frustrating. Make sense?

And Don, do you know JF?

― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 18 July 2003 18:12 (twenty years ago) link

the strange thing about the Lilys thing is that Kurt spent all this time recording (6 months?) and working the songs out with Jason Falkner in LA and the record was originally recorded in Philadelphia with Michael Musmanno.

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 18 July 2003 18:31 (twenty years ago) link

[originally = eventually]

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 18 July 2003 18:55 (twenty years ago) link

I'm betting that Precollection would have been IMMENSELY better had Kurt stayed in L.A. and recorded it with Jason. Sigh.

― Nick Mirov (nick), Sunday, 20 July 2003 01:35 (twenty years ago) link

No, I don't know Jason Falkner. But I've interviewed him a coupla times; about 18 months ago we talked for nearly 90 minutes and he kind of unloaded on me with regards to his career. And I also know a couple of label weasels who have met with him in the past year who have filled me in from time to time on what he's been up to. He's been shopping stuff for a long time, but from what he told me, he's not going to do anything unless it's entirely on his own terms re: his solo career.

― don weiner, Sunday, 20 July 2003 23:49 (twenty years ago) link

eight months pass...

from email rumor mill: Sir Paul McCartney is currently recording in LA in a new power-trio lineup involving himself on bass, Matt Chamberlain on drums and Jason Falkner on guitar.

another email: Jason recently confirmed this but stated that Chamberlain is not part of the lineup.

― Paul Eater (eater), Tuesday, 13 April 2004 20:15 (twenty years ago) link

This smells like Jon Brion.

― anthony kyle monday (akmonday), Tuesday, 13 April 2004 20:18 (twenty years ago) link

ughhhh

― Pablo Cruise (chaki), Tuesday, 13 April 2004 20:25 (twenty years ago) link

I read somewhere else it's actually nigel godrich and david khane

― anthony kyle monday (akmonday), Tuesday, 13 April 2004 20:36 (twenty years ago) link

seven years pass...

I think this was only released as a promo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67Lb0XblOJo

― already president FYI (Dr Morbius), Saturday, 25 June 2011 13:51 (twelve years ago) link

two years pass...

For those of you who are fans of Jason Falkner, and who are unable to see him perform at his (I believe sold-out) one-off UK show on Oct. 24, 2013, here's a video to maybe help provide you with some consolation (for not being able to see his Oct. 24 show):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rer1I2c-CpA

― am.curious.sometimes, Wednesday, 23 October 2013 20:33 (ten years ago) link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZzMoq1YT8I

― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 23 October 2013 20:35 (ten years ago) link

It's to his credit that I've also seen him cover this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C6rIcFiAZ0

― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 23 October 2013 20:35 (ten years ago) link

five years pass...

I came here to praise _i’m ok youre ok_ which is way underrated imo, and i was enjoying the tears for fears vibe of anondah at 2:55:
https://youtu.be/9sWMi_x0v1Y

“cause you only have to SAY THE WORD...” is pure orzabal, in the best way.

so anyway then this thead gave me that magazine cover and DAMN, nice.

― Hunt3r, Saturday, 16 February 2019 04:38 (five years ago) link

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