Half Way Home (band)

Last updated
Half Way Home
Half Way Home band picture.jpg
Background information
Origin Los Angeles, California, United States
Genres Rock, blues, jam band
Years active1986–1994 (Indefinite Hiatus)
Labels Geffen
Members Jennifer Barry - vocals
Dean Zuckerman - guitars
Eddie Fagin - bass
Kevin Costigan - drums
Website

Half Way Home was a popular band from Los Angeles, California, that had a dedicated following based on years of constant gigging and touring across the United States. Half Way Home made their mark in the Los Angeles club scene, eventually drawing the attention of Geffen Records after becoming a regular presence at the Troubadour and other popular clubs in the city.

Contents

History

Half Way Home was formed in 1986 by guitarist Dean Zuckerman, bassist Eddie Fagin, drummer Kevin Costigan, and singer Jennifer Barry with the band name officially used for the first time at a gig on November 6, 1987. [1] The band members were all from Los Angeles, CA. and played locally at backyard parties and similar casual events to build a dedicated fan base. By the end of 1988, Half Way Home was established and started playing gigs alongside Grateful Dead style cover bands that were popular at the time in Los Angeles (e.g. The Pur'p'l Tur't'lz). In Los Angeles, these bands often played festival type events together at outdoor venues during the Summertime, drawing large crowds of music fans for the concerts (e.g. The Extravaganza (music festival), May 22, 1993). Half Way Home were eventually headlining regular gigs at nightclubs such as The Country Club, the Palomino Club, and The Troubador. The band toured across the country picking up new fans along the way, building a mailing list of thousands of dedicated fans. [2] Half Way Home eventually grew a large enough fan base, from "metalheads to deadheads," to attract significant attention in the music industry. [3] The band was signed to Geffen records in 1991. [4]

In the early 1990s the band released two albums. First, they released an 8-song self-produced and self-titled album "Half Way Home," as gift for their large following of loyal fans. [4] This 1992 first release was very limited and was only sold at shows and through the mail. [4] In fact, Half Way Home was one of the earliest bands to attempt to build their fan base through direct marketing and band loyalty, using mailing lists, 800 numbers, and alternative avenues to promote their new album. [2] The second album, released through Geffen Records in 1993, and also titled "Half Way Home," was reviewed positively by critics, [3] [5] but was heavily produced with little effective input from the band. The album sold poorly and was not promoted heavily by Geffen because of the newly found grunge scene that came alive around the same time, and also because of the "grassroots" marketing approach Geffen chose to take. [2] The band broke up in 1994 though some members of the band were auditioning for a new singer as early as 1993. [6] The band has never reunited and the band name was officially cancelled in 1998. [1]

Dean Zuckerman and Kevin Costigan formed a band called "Slush" in 1996, and they released one album titled "North Hollywood" in 1997. [6] Jennifer Barry has contributed background vocals to several releases by Ugly Kid Joe, and was featured on the 2001 album Freedom, a tribute to Rage Against the Machine, singing lead on the popular song Year of the Boomerang. Eddie Fagin contributed to the soundtrack for The Cable Guy starring Jim Carey.

In 1999, the band, minus bassist Eddie Fagin, reunited for a short time playing around the Los Angeles club scene as the Jenny Barry Band, with the last performance under that name in 2002. [7] Today, Half Way Home currently enjoys a presence on the popular social media sites YouTube and Facebook, mostly supported by fans, with no plans of reuniting in the near future. [7]

Discography

Studio albums

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stone Temple Pilots</span> American rock band

Stone Temple Pilots is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California in 1989. Originally consisting of Scott Weiland, brothers Dean (guitar) and Robert DeLeo, and Eric Kretz (drums), the band's lineup remained unchanged from its formation until the firing of Weiland in February 2013. Vocalist Chester Bennington joined the band in May 2013 but left amicably in November 2015. In 2016, the band launched an online audition for a new lead vocalist; they announced Jeff Gutt as the new lead singer on November 14, 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Plimsouls</span> American rock band

The Plimsouls were an American rock band known for their hit single "A Million Miles Away" which was featured in the movie Valley Girl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Van Halen</span> American rock band (1973–2020)

Van Halen was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene, Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and for the virtuosity of its guitarist, Eddie Van Halen. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firehose (band)</span> American alternative rock band

Firehose was an American alternative rock band consisting of Mike Watt, Ed Crawford, and George Hurley (drums). They were initially active from 1986 to 1994, and briefly reunited in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">America (band)</span> American-British rock band formed in 1970

America is a British-American rock band formed in London in 1970 by Dewey Bunnell, Dan Peek, and Gerry Beckley. The trio met as sons of US Air Force personnel stationed in London, where they began performing live. Achieving significant popularity in the 1970s, the trio was famous for its close vocal harmonies and light acoustic folk rock sound. The band released a string of hit albums and singles, many of which found airplay on pop/soft rock stations.

<i>Maladroit</i> 2002 studio album by Weezer

Maladroit is the fourth studio album by American rock band Weezer, released on May 14, 2002, by Geffen Records. Produced by the band, it was their first album to feature bassist Scott Shriner, following the departure of former bassist Mikey Welsh in 2001. Musically, the album features heavy metal riffs uncommon to Weezer's previous releases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cold (band)</span> American rock band

Cold is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed in 1986 by lead singer and rhythm guitarist Scooter Ward, drummer Sam McCandless, bassist Jeremy Marshall and lead guitarist Matt Loughran. The band has gone through numerous lineup changes during its existence, with Ward being the band’s only constant member.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">That Dog</span> American rock band

That Dog is a Los Angeles-based rock band that formed in 1992 and dissolved in 1997, reuniting in 2011. The band originally consisted of Anna Waronker on lead vocals and guitar, Rachel Haden on bass guitar and vocals, her sister Petra Haden on violin and vocals, and Tony Maxwell on drums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue Murder (band)</span> English rock band

Blue Murder were an English rock band led by guitarist-vocalist John Sykes. The group was formed in 1987 following Sykes's dismissal from Whitesnake. The initial line-up was rounded out by bassist Tony Franklin and drummer Carmine Appice. In its nascent stage, vocalist Ray Gillen and drummer Cozy Powell were attached to the project. In 1989, Blue Murder released their self-titled debut album, which cracked the Billboard 200 chart and spawned a minor hit with "Jelly Roll". By the early 1990s, however, Blue Murder's music had fallen out of fashion with the popularity of grunge. Franklin and Appice left the band, while Sykes put together a new line-up and released Nothin' But Trouble in 1993. After a live album the following year, Blue Murder were dropped by their record label and broke-up. Since then there have been numerous attempts to reunite the band to no avail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Survivor (band)</span> American rock band

Survivor is an American rock band formed in Chicago in 1978 by Jim Peterik and Frankie Sullivan. The band achieved its best success in the 1980s, producing many charting singles, especially in the United States. The band is best-known for their double-platinum-certified 1982 hit "Eye of the Tiger", the theme song for the 1982 motion picture Rocky III; that single spent six weeks at number one in the US. The band continued to chart in the mid-1980s with singles like "Burning Heart", "The Search Is Over", "High on You", "Is This Love", and "I Can't Hold Back".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IMx</span> American R&B group

Immature is an American R&B boy band, managed by record producer Chris Stokes. Its members include Marques "Batman" Houston, Jerome "Romeo" Jones, and Kelton "LDB" Kessee, all natives of Los Angeles, where the group was formed. The group released four albums under the Immature moniker: On Our Worst Behavior, Playtyme Is Over (1994), We Got It (1995) and The Journey (1997).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Young (drummer)</span> American drummer

Brian Young is an American drummer and music producer. He is best known as the drummer of the New York-based, Grammy-nominated power pop band Fountains of Wayne and Seattle-based alternative rock band The Posies. From 2012 to 2021 Young was the drummer for the Scottish alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Badlands (band)</span> American heavy metal band

Badlands was an American heavy metal band founded by former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee, former Black Sabbath members Ray Gillen (vocals) and Eric Singer (drums), as well as former Surgical Steel bass player Greg Chaisson. After the first Badlands album, Eric Singer was replaced by Jeff Martin. The group lasted from 1988 to 1993 and released three albums. Badlands (1989) and Voodoo Highway (1991) were released before Gillen left and was replaced by singer John West from New York. Gillen's death in 1993 effectively ended any hopes of reuniting the project. The album Dusk was released in 1998 with the recently deceased Gillen on vocals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Metro (song)</span> 1981 single by Berlin

"The Metro", also published as "Metro", is a 1981 song written by John Crawford for his band, Berlin.

The Three O'Clock is an American alternative rock group associated with the Los Angeles 1980s Paisley Underground scene. Lead singer and bassist Michael Quercio is credited with coining the term "Paisley Underground" to describe a subset of the 1980s L.A. music scene which included bands such as Dream Syndicate, Rain Parade, Green on Red, the Long Ryders and the Bangles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rain Parade</span> American band

The Rain Parade is a band that was originally active in the Paisley Underground scene in Los Angeles in the 1980s, and that reunited and resumed touring in 2012.

The Pink Spiders are an American rock band, formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 2003. The band consists of Matt Friction, JoCo (bass), Joey B-Side (drums), and Young James (guitar).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Red Devils (blues band)</span>

The Red Devils were a Los Angeles-based blues rock band who were active from 1988 to 1994. With their no-frills approach and singer Lester Butler's convincing Chicago-style blues harp, they were a popular fixture on the Los Angeles club scene and toured the U.S. and Europe.

A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distributing releases from Polydor Ltd. from the UK.

<i>Reach Up and Touch the Sky</i> 1981 live album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes

Reach Up and Touch the Sky, sometimes called Reach Out and Touch the Sky, is a 1981 double live album by Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes. Released on Mercury Records in 1981 to satisfy the contract of the band, which had recently broken up, it was a moderate commercial success, charting in the United States and reviving the band's flagging sales. It was also critically well received. In 2003, the Rough Guide to Rock indicated that the album was the band's "defining moment".

References

  1. 1 2 US Trademark #74127664, cancelled June 29, 1998
  2. 1 2 3 Burzillo, Carrie. "New Release Plans Take Road Less Traveled" Billboard Magazine, March 13, 1993, p.132
  3. 1 2 Mann, Bart. "Local Music Focus" Peavey Electronics Presents, July 10, 1992, p.43
  4. 1 2 3 Half Way Home Newsletter, Summer 1992, Vol.1, No.1
  5. ↑ Verna, Paul. "Album Reviews" Billboard Magazine, February 15, 1993
  6. 1 2 Booth, Philip. "Alt Rock Chills With Slush Set on Discovery" Billboard Magazine, February 15, 1997, p.15
  7. 1 2 Zuckerman, Dean. Interview Remarks, March 2012
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.