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Gigolo Aunts | |
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 Gigolo Aunts in Japan | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Sniper |
| Origin | Potsdam, New York, United States |
| Genres | Indie rock, alternative rock, power pop |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Labels | Coyote, Impossible, Summerville, Munster, Fire, Alias, RCA, Wicked Disc, E Pluribus Unum, Bittersweet, Q Division, Love to Art |
Gigolo Aunts are an American power pop band, who formed in 1981.
The band was formed by middle school students Steve Hurley, Dave Gibbs, Phil Hurley, and Paul Brouwer in 1981 in Potsdam, New York, United States, originally known as Sniper. [1] In 1986, their name changed to Gigolo Aunts (after the Syd Barrett song, "Gigolo Aunt", from his 1970 album Barrett ) and became a staple on the Northern New York music scene, gaining a reputation for frenetic live sets that featured the close harmonies of the Hurley brothers and Gibbs. [1] In the summer of 1987 the band relocated to Boston, Massachusetts, and within a year were signed to Hoboken's Coyote Records (then home of the Feelies and Yo La Tengo). Their first album entitled Everybody Happy was produced by former Bongo bassist (and late version Velvet Underground member), Rob Norris, and released in 1988. After touring up and down the east coast, the band returned to Boston and began working on their follow up album with producer Paul Kolderie. Early in the sessions, Coyote Records folded, and only a handful of songs were finished. After a year of slugging in out in the Boston clubs and recording new songs with Kolderie, the band completed Tales from the Vinegar Side , which was released only in Spain on Impossible Records in 1990. The album produced a modest Boston area radio hit in "Down on Me".
In fall 1991, the band released the "Bloom"/"Cope" 7 inch single on their own Summerville records. The single garnered rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic and heavy Boston area airplay, which led to a record deal with Fire Records in the UK. [1] An EP, Full-On Bloom , was released in July 1993 and an album, Flippin' Out , made with producers Mike Deneen and Adam Lasus, was released in the UK in October 1993. [1] The band supported Suede and the Cranberries on their first major U.S. tour and a tour of Japan. The band toured extensively in Europe in support of Flippin' Out , opening for the Wonderstuff.
After signing to RCA Records in the US early in 1994, the band released the slightly altered American version of Flippin' Out and spent the year supporting the record in Europe and America. Their biggest commercial success was the single, "Where I Find My Heaven", which featured in the soundtrack to the film Dumb and Dumber , and as the opening music to the British sitcom Game On . [1] The single release of "Where I Find My Heaven" broke into the Top 30 in the UK Singles Chart early in 1995. [2] The band also composed the song, "Little Wild One", for the movie, That Thing You Do!
In the winter of 1995, drummer Paul Brouwer left and was replaced by Fred Eltringham, then of the Boston band, Jack Drag. In the fall of 1995, the band entered the studio with producer Fred Maher to record the follow-up to Flippin' Out , tentatively titled Ultraphonic. The subsequent recordings were never released and soon after Phil Hurley left the band and was replaced by 6L6 guitarist, Jon Skibic.
In 1996, after getting released from their RCA deal, the band began the long process of ending their relationship with Fire Records. In the meantime, they released an EP, Learn to Play Guitar , on the indie Wicked Disc label, which allowed them to tour extensively in support of the Wallflowers and Counting Crows.
On July 2, 1997, Counting Crows kicked off a co-headlining tour with The Wallflowers that continued through September. This tour included opening acts by Bettie Serveert, Engine 88, Gigolo Aunts and That Dog, with each opening band touring for a three-week stretch. [3] While touring with Counting Crows, The Wallflowers were also playing their own headlining dates when the Counting Crows tour was on break (Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz experienced swollen vocal cords and had to back out of several shows in July). [4]
After settling their contract status in 1998, the band signed a new deal with E Pluribus Unum Records, a subsidiary of Universal Records owned and led by Counting Crows' singer, Adam Duritz. [1] The band entered the studio once again with producer Mike Denneen and produced the haunting Minor Chords and Major Themes , which featured the minor hit, "Everyone Can Fly". [1] Minor Chords And Major Themes was a hit in Spain and led to the band's long-standing popularity in that country and appearance at the Benicassim Festival in 1999.
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Phil Hurley is an American singer, songwriter, and musician best known for being a founding member of Gigolo Aunts, Stonehoney, and South Austin Moonlighters. He toured extensively as the lead guitarist for Tracy Bonham, Jimmy LaFave, and Fountains of Wayne, among others. Hurley co-wrote the theme songs for Lucky Louie and The Greg Behrendt Show, as well as having many of his songs used in films and TV shows. Hurley released a solo acoustic album, Nowhere Left to Run, in 2019.
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Dave Gibbs is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his work in the Boston-based power-pop band, Gigolo Aunts. Born and raised in Potsdam, New York, Gibbs co-founded the Gigolo Aunts with brothers Steve and Phil Hurley, and drummer Paul Brower in 1986. Relocating to Boston, the group gained a following after a string of self-released tapes and singles, finally catching the attention of English label, Fire Records, which released their 1993 album, Flippin' Out. The band was signed in the US to RCA Records, who re-released the album in 1994. Gibbs also contributed backing vocals to albums by Providence, Rhode Island pop-rockers Velvet Crush, with whom he toured as lead guitarist on and off through the early 1990s.
Full-On Bloom is an EP released in July 1993 by Gigolo Aunts. The EP includes a cover of "Serious Drugs", a 1992 single by BMX Bandits later included on their 1993 album, Life Goes On. The album cover features Chloë Sevigny. The photo appears to be from the same session as the photo on the cover of the "Mrs. Washington" single.
Flippin' Out is an album by Gigolo Aunts released in October 1993 on Fire Records in the UK and April 1994 on RCA/BMG in the US. It includes the track "Where I Find My Heaven", featured on the soundtrack to 1994 comedy film, Dumb and Dumber, which helped to break the band into the charts. The song "Lemon Peeler" was featured in the 1995 movie Born to be wild. The US and UK versions feature different track listings. The title track, "Flippin' Out", was originally recorded by the Wizards, a NY/NJ supergroup circa 1988/1989, part of a six song EP that was never released. In a story attributed to Phil Marino, known for his work photographing the band, the Gigolo Aunts became acquainted with the song through Rob Norris, the producer of their debut album, Everybody Happy. Norris, a former member of the Bongos and at the time a current member of the Wizards, reportedly sent a tape of the six song EP to the Gigolo Aunts, who recorded "Flippin' Out" as the title track for the album. The album cover features Chloë Sevigny.
Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology is a 3-disc release by Boston indie rock band Big Dipper, released March 18, 2008 by Merge Records. The set contains the band's debut EP, Boo-Boo, and their first two full-length albums, Heavens and Craps. Supercluster also contains various bonus tracks and 15 songs which were recorded after their final album, Slam.
Where I Find My Heaven is a compilation album by Gigolo Aunts released in the UK, first on Nectar Masters (1997), and then on Fire Records (1998). The album collects a number of singles and b-sides from 1993 through 1995. The album includes a cover of "Winsor Dam", a 1991 recording by Big Dipper that did not receive its formal release until the 2008 compilation album Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology.
Where I Find My Heaven + Flippin' Out is a compilation album by Gigolo Aunts released in the UK in 2003 on Fire Records. The album combines an expanded version of Where I Find My Heaven and the UK version of Flippin' Out into a single release on two compact discs. This compilation adds two additional tracks to Where I Find My Heaven, "Supernova Crush" and "Little Carl".
"Mrs. Washington" is a song written and performed by Gigolo Aunts and the title song from their 1993 and 1994 singles. The song also appears on the album, Flippin' Out. The August 1993 7" single includes a cover of "Serious Drugs", a 1992 single by BMX Bandits later included on their 1993 album, "Life Goes On". That 1993 single was the first in a series of five releases by various bands on Fire Records under the Spawning Monsters moniker. The April 1994 7" single and CD single include a cover of "Ask", a 1986 single by the Smiths that later appeared on their 1987 albums, "Louder Than Bombs" (US) and "The World Won't Listen" (UK). The 12" single includes a cover of "Can You Get to That" by Funkadelic, a song from their 1971 album, "Maggot Brain". Both the 12" single and the CD single include a cover of "Winsor Dam", a 1991 recording by Big Dipper that did not receive its formal release until the 2008 compilation album, Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology. Note that while both the 12" single and CD single attribute the writing credits for "Winsor Dam" to Goffrier/Oliphant/Michener/Wallik, other sources identify the writer of the song as Big Dipper guitarist, Gary Waleik. The 1994 single entered the UK singles charts on April 23, 1994, spending only one week there. The cover art of the 1994 7" single, 12" single, and CD single features Chloë Sevigny. The photo appears to be from the same session as the photo on the cover of the Full-On Bloom EP.
"Where I Find My Heaven" is a song written and performed by Gigolo Aunts. It was released as a 1993 single by Fire Records in support of the 1993 album Flippin' Out. It was later re-released as an April 1995 single to highlight its inclusion on the soundtrack to the movie, Dumb and Dumber, and its use as the opening music to the British sitcom, Game On. The April 1995 single entered the UK charts on 13 May 1995 at Number 29 and remained on the charts for 3 weeks.
Everybody Happy is the debut studio album by the rock band Gigolo Aunts. It was released in 1988 on Coyote Records.
Minor Chords and Major Themes is a 1999 album by Gigolo Aunts. It includes the songs, "Everyone Can Fly", subsequently featured on the Everyone Can Fly EP, "Everything Is Wrong", co-written by Jane Wiedlin, and "The Big Lie", co-written by Dave Bassett. Minor Chords and Major Themes features the return of producer, Mike Denneen, who also produced the 1993 album, Flippin' Out. The track, "You'd Better Get Yourself Together, Baby" also appears on the Wicked Good Sampler 05 compilation, a 1998 promotional release associated with Newbury Comics released by Universal Music. The Japanese release of Minor Chords and Major Themes adds the track, "Kinda Girl", which also appears on the Learn to Play Guitar EP.
"Everyone Can Fly" is a song written and performed by Gigolo Aunts and the title song from their 1999 EP, Everyone Can Fly. The song, "Everyone Can Fly" also appears on the 1999 Gigolo Aunts album, Minor Chords and Major Themes. The song is also the featured track on a 1999 promo single.
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