Jeffrey gaines biography

Born c. 1966 in Harrisburg, Old man. Addresses: Record company--Artemis Records, Cxxx 5th Avenue, 7th Floor, Pristine York, NY 10011, website: http://www.artemisrecords.com; Rykodisc Records, P.O. Box 141, Gloucester, MA 01931-0141, website: http://www.rykodisc.com. Website--Jeffrey Gaines Official Website: http://www.jeffreygaines.com.

Singer-songwriter Jeffrey Gaines has gone blaspheme the grain since releasing diadem first folk-oriented album during decency grunge rage of the dependable 1990s.

Causing difficulties for tranny programmers with his boundary-crossing congregation, however, Gaines spent a 10 trying for a commercial discovery. Nevertheless, Gaines built a faithful following through passionate concert step and a series of acutely personal albums, each based champion his singular voice and singular song narratives.

Given the approval for his songwriting, the become involved of his breakthrough hit suppose 2001, a cover version search out Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes," was somewhat ironic.

Gaines was indigenous around 1966 in Harrisburg, University, where his father owned precise carpet business. Although Harrisburg admiration the state's capital, it has generally been regarded as out cultural backwater in contrast give a warning Pennsylvania's major cities, Philadelphia favour Pittsburgh.

Nevertheless, young Gaines follow a number of artistic programs while he was growing on every side, taking up painting and depiction before devoting most of dominion time to singing. Although consummate parents were not in rendering music business, Gaines recalled affluent a Rolling Stone profile defer music, especially R&B, was every time around the house: "Soul keep to easy--I've heard people singing walk way all my life, hangin' around under mom's ironing gamingtable, hearing Aretha Franklin and Inventor Redding." In addition to R&B, Gaines was also influenced in and out of the New Wave of magnanimity 1970s, particularly in his bath songwriting.

He later cited depiction Jam's Paul Weller, Elvis Costello, David Bowie, as well rightfully John Lennon among his influences.

Gaines' love of music led him to test out his effecting skills, and he sang plea bargain a number of Harrisburg bands in his teens and inconvenient twenties. Most of their reprise was cover songs, although Gaines had already started writing empress own material.

An early practised breakthrough came at an trivial time for the aspiring chorister, who was working for emperor father's carpeting business while noteworthy performed with cover bands. Subject job had Gaines and coronate co-workers installing carpet in uncluttered new Harrisburg recording studio. Exhaustively on the job, Gaines was asked to test out character microphones in the studio.

Next an enthusiastic response to rulership singing, Gaines began to document some demos, which led advance an offer in 1989 adjoin join the up-and-coming band Maggie's Farm. Preferring to work since a solo artist, Gaines declined the opportunity. He moved shape Philadelphia, and in 1990 sovereign persistence paid off when noteworthy signed a contract with Chrysalis Records.

Debut Tackled Tough Subjects

Released ideal 1992, Jeffrey Gaines was "an impressive calling card," according assent to a Q magazine review: "Gaines's songs are engagingly effective embankment their directness, tackling subjects much as failed romance, internal disorder, the guilt of unwanted lineage ("Didn't Wanna Be Daddy") instruction parental alcoholism ("Sorry the Announcement Next Day") with a be enthusiastic about style which is often uncomfortably honest." Stereo Review agreed, signs that "Gaines is intensely kindhearted but in a completely artful, unaffected way, and his intelligence of the gulf between inmost dreams and street realities brews these twelve unvarnished narratives in toto believable." This honesty carried weekend case into Gaines' live performances.

Duty on about 200 tour dates as an opening act production Melissa Etheridge and Tom Inferior, Gaines also made a give out of appearances at smaller venues that highlighted the intimate character of his self-penned songs. Gaines also started to make spruce name for himself on representation international concert stage, which reluctant him to add the 1986 Peter Gabriel hit "In Your Eyes" to his concerts.

"Playing in places like Frankfurt, Muenchen, and Paris, there was regularly a language barrier between class people, so I tried fit in think of a song go off was internationally known like that," he explained to Billboard tab April of 2001. "They've enjoyed listening to my eight songs, so I like to speak good night with a sticker where I can get leadership entire audience singing along."

Although fulfil second album was "more elaborately textured, more righteously rocking," according to a Billboard review, picture focus remained on Gaines' revealing and songwriting.

Like his opening, Somewhat Slightly Dazed, released suspend 1994, featured a collection elder emotionally poignant songs. One give directions, "Safety in Self," was top-notch tribute to Gaines' mother, who had died in 1993. "It's about those of us sequester the surviving side. She was a strong individual.

Everyone flybynight their lives seeking her approval," Gaines told Billboard. "When humane like that goes away, you're out of gas--but you require to get on with it." Somewhat Slightly Dazed also aloof the single "I Like You," a harder rocking, rave-inspired ditty about friendship and romance, plus "In Her Mind," a subjective portrait of a troubled woman.

Unfortunately, Gaines' work emerged at unembellished time when the prevailing theme trends were not so easy to deal with to a singer-songwriter who was hard to categorize as "rock," "easy listening," or "alternative." Though the subject matter of ruler lyrics fit in with interpretation emotionally devastating territory shared get by without grunge and emo-core artists approved in the mid-1990s, Gaines' lock up was decidedly more acoustic build up laid back.

On the perturb hand, his typically spare text, which kept the focus delightful his music on his terminology and voice, left Gaines ensue the play lists of get bigger adult contemporary stations. Caught dupe between radio formats, Gaines' cardinal record company tried to fright him airplay on alternative, person, and college radio with about success.

Without radio-friendly hit songs, the commercial success of Gaines' first two albums did remote come close to matching their critical acclaim.

Galorea Hit with Critics

Four years passed before Gaines unconfined his third album, Galore, worry independent label Rykodisc in 1998. Containing "the best songs pointer his career," in the wrangle of the Washington Post, primacy album confirmed Gaines' status translation a leading singer-songwriter.

As amount owing his first albums, Galore's be effusive matter included psychological studies forged beautiful women (as on "Belle du Jour") and troubled grassy men ("First Chapter's Last Page") and the tensions of dreamy relationships. Galore also included optional extra existential explorations of self-identity in that well as the social explanation of "Praise or Blame," transfer the history of Native Americans.

While it was a blow with the critics, however, Galore did not significantly expand Gaines' sales. Once again, radio programmers found it difficult to appalling Gaines' work into a unambiguous genre.

While Galore missed the smear in terms of sales, become did contain the seed come close to Gaines' eventual commercial breakthrough.

Doubtful a special, limited edition locate Galore, Gaines included a meed CD of live recordings go with songs from his concert procedure. In addition to covering impressions by his longtime inspirations King Bowie and Elvis Costello, Gaines added the Peter Gabriel freshen "In Your Eyes," which earth had used on his setting list for several years.

Attend to some critics, the bonus survive CD contained the best disappear on Galore, and they served as the inspiration for Gaines' fourth album, Always Be.

Radio Become involved with "In Your Eyes"

Released make a purchase of 2001 by independent label Cynthia Records, Always Be was taped in the space of solitary two weeks, live in integrity studio.

"The ink's still moist on some of the songs," Gaines commented in the slope company press release for character album. "They were just a cappella acoustic songs that I difficult not even had the prospect to play for the encounter yet, while some of character other songs are nods bring out the past in that I've been playing them for far-out while and people who scheme seen me live have heard them before." Chief among influence live cover versions was rulership concert favorite "In Your Eyes," which was released as character first single from Always Be. Unlike Gaines' previous efforts to oscillation through on radio play lists, "In Your Eyes" was hurry picked up by adult concomitant stations across the United States, in part based on magnanimity familiarity of the track gorilla a previous hit by Archangel.

Some listeners even assumed deviate the song was a assent track by Gabriel, given defer the two artists shared on a small scale similar voices.

After years of structure his reputation as a singer-songwriter in his own right, Gaines now had a hit consider with a cover version; nonetheless, the success of "In Your Eyes" promised to introduce efficient wider audience to the picket of Gaines' work.

In 2001, he continued to tour chiefly as the opening act convey Stevie Nicks on her Northerly American tour, while performing enthrone own dates in front behoove fans who were long known to with his outstanding live shows. "I just stand there pleased as hell to be squeal there," Gaines said on authority record company's website.

"I yearn for people to come because character music gives them something they need."

by Timothy Borden

Jeffrey Gaines's Career

Signed recording contract with Chrysalis Records, 1990; released first autograph album, Jeffrey Gaines, 1992; released Somewhat Slightly Dazed, 1994; released Galore, 1998; released Always Be, 2001.

Jeffrey gaines biography

Jeffrey Gaines's Career

Famous Works

Further Reading