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Jet | |
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| Origin | London, England |
| Genres | Pop rock, glam rock |
| Years active | 1974–1976 |
| Labels | CBS Records |
| Past members | Andy Ellison Martin Gordon Chris Townson David O'List Peter Oxendale Ian MacLeod |
Jet were an English glam rock band from London, England, formed in 1974. They released one album in 1975 before splitting up, with the bulk of the band going on to become the punk/new wave band Radio Stars.
The band formed in 1974 with a line-up of Andy Ellison (vocals, ex-John's Children, solo artist), Martin Gordon (bass, ex-Sparks), Chris Townson (drums, formerly in John's Children), David O'List (lead guitar, ex-member of The Nice and an early member of Roxy Music) and Peter Oxendale (keyboards for a short-lived live version of Sparks). [1] They released one eponymous album from CBS in May 1975, produced by Roy Thomas Baker. [1] Preceding the release of the album was a brief UK tour supporting Ian Hunter & Mick Ronson. The band's debut single, "My River". [1] [2] was released to coincide with the tour, and was followed by a second single, "Nothing To Do With Us", which received enthusiastic review but failed to make an impact upon the charts. Dropped by CBS in 1975 due to poor sales, they split up in 1976 during sessions for a second album.
O'List and Oxendale were replaced by guitarist Ian MacLeod. [3] Subsequent sessions at Island Studios resulted in four recordings which were rejected by Island Records [1] [2] but welcomed by Chiswick Records. The band changed their name to Radio Stars, [3] and found themselves redefined by the press as a punk/new wave band. [2]
The band briefly reformed in 2000 for a European tour, playing dates in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, which resulted in the live album, Music for the Herd of Herring. Ellison, Gordon, Townson and Macleod were augmented for the tour by Trevor White (a former member of Sparks) and Boz Boorer (Morrissey's musical director).
Posthumous Jet releases include More Light than Shade, a collection of live cuts and demos for the band's unrecorded second album, and Some Flotsam, two live sets from their debut UK tour with Hunter-Ronson in 1975. The first officially sanctioned release of the eponymous Jet album was released in October 2010, on the UK label, RPM Records (UK), as part of a double album release (Jet/Even More Light than Shade), including previously unreleased material. Sony Music finally released the Jet album to digital service providers in 2020.
After a long period as a sideman/producer, Martin Gordon embarked on a solo career in 2001, releasing six albums in the so-called 'Mammal Trilogy', with Chris Townson playing drums, on Radiant Future Records. Gordon continues to record, his most recent solo release being in 2022 with 'Another Words - the Phone Call' which featured Donald Trump on vocals.
Roxy Music are an English rock band formed in 1970 by lead vocalist and principal songwriter Bryan Ferry and bassist Graham Simpson. By the time the band recorded their first album in 1972, Ferry and Simpson were joined by saxophonist and oboist Andy Mackay, guitarist Phil Manzanera, drummer Paul Thompson and synthesizer player Brian Eno. Other members over the years include keyboardist and violinist Eddie Jobson and bassist John Gustafson. The band split in 1976, reformed in 1978 and split again in 1983. In 2001, Ferry, Mackay, Manzanera and Thompson reunited for a concert tour and have toured together intermittently ever since, most recently in 2022 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their first album. Ferry has also frequently enlisted band members as backing musicians during his solo career.
Peter William Phipps is a rock drummer, singer and songwriter known for his work with Gary Glitter, the Glitter Band, and later Eurythmics, XTC and Denim. He is currently a member of both the Glitter Band and Mud.
Mott the Hoople were a British rock band formed in Hereford, Herefordshire in 1969. Originally named the Doc Thomas Group, the band changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums at the beginning of the 1970s but failed to find any success. On the verge of breaking up, the band were encouraged by David Bowie to stay together. Bowie wrote their glam-style signature song "All the Young Dudes" for them, which became their first hit in 1972. Bowie subsequently produced their album of the same name, which added to their success.
The Nice were an English progressive rock band active in the late 1960s. They blended rock, jazz and classical music.
Michael Ronson was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session musician who recorded five studio albums with Bowie followed by four with Ian Hunter, and also worked as a sideman in touring bands with Van Morrison and Bob Dylan. A classically trained musician, Ronson was known for his melodic approach to guitar playing.
Welcome to My Nightmare is the debut solo studio album by American rock musician Alice Cooper, released on February 28, 1975 by Atlantic Records. A concept album, its songs played in sequence form a journey through the nightmares of a child named Steven. The album inspired the Alice Cooper: The Nightmare TV special, a worldwide concert tour in 1975, and his Welcome to My Nightmare concert film in 1976. The tour was one of the most over-the-top excursions of that era. Most of Lou Reed's band joined Cooper for this record. Welcome to My Nightmare is his only album under the Atlantic Records label in North America; internationally, it was released on the ABC subsidiary Anchor Records.
Kimono My House is the third studio album by American rock band Sparks, released on May 1, 1974, by Island Records. The album is considered to be their commercial breakthrough, and was met with widespread acclaim.
Chris Townson was an English musician, illustrator and social worker. He was a founding member of the 1960s rock group John's Children, and a member of several other bands, including Jook, Jet and Radio Stars. He replaced The Who's Keith Moon on drums on a 1967 UK tour after Moon had injured himself, and he jammed with Jimi Hendrix at the Speakeasy rock club in London. Later in his life Townson quit the music business and became an illustrator and a highly respected social worker.
The Dogs D'Amour are an English bluesey hard rock band formed in London in 1983. Over the years the band has had various line-ups, the only constant being vocalist Tyla. Their music has been described as a mixture of the Rolling Stones, the Faces and glam punk.
John's Children were a 1960s rock band from Leatherhead, England that briefly featured future T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan. John's Children were known for their outrageous live performances and were booted off a tour with the Who in Germany in 1967 when they upstaged the headliners. Their 1967 single "Desdemona", a Bolan composition, was banned by the BBC because of the controversial lyric, "Lift up your skirt and fly." Their US record label delayed the release of their debut album, Orgasm, for four years from its recording date due to objections from Daughters of the American Revolution.
"All the Young Dudes" is a song written by English singer-songwriter David Bowie, originally recorded and released as a single by the English rock band Mott the Hoople in 1972 by Columbia Records. Bowie produced the song, which he had given to the band after they rejected his "Suffragette City". Bowie would subsequently record the song himself. Regarded as an anthem of glam rock, the song has received acclaim and was a commercial success. In 2021, Rolling Stone ranked "All the Young Dudes" number 166 in its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It is also one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
Trevor Bolder was an English rock musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his long association with Uriah Heep and his tenure with the Spiders from Mars, the backing band for David Bowie, although he also played alongside a variety of musicians from the early 1970s.
"Queen Bitch" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was originally released on his 1971 album Hunky Dory before appearing as the B-side of the single "Rebel Rebel" in the United Kingdom in early 1974. Co-produced by Bowie and Ken Scott, the lineup consisted of the musicians who would later become known as the Spiders from Mars: Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder and Mick Woodmansey.
Martin Gordon is an English musician who plays bass guitar, double bass, and piano. After a long period as band member and session musician, he embarked on a solo career in 2004. His most recent album release was in 2024.
Andrew Ellison is an English musician and vocalist, best known as the frontman in John's Children, Jet and Radio Stars.
Radio Stars were an English punk rock band formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Top 40 single.
David O'List is an English rock guitarist, vocalist and trumpeter. He has played with The Attack, The Nice, Roxy Music, and Jet. He also briefly deputised in Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd.
The Glitter Band are a glam rock band from England, who initially worked as Gary Glitter's backing band under that name from 1973, when they then began releasing records of their own. They were unofficially known as the Glittermen on the first four hit singles by Gary Glitter from 1972 to 1973.
Radiant Future Records is a British independent record label and home to one-time Sparks bassist Martin Gordon, Jet, Radio Stars, John's Children, the Blue Meanies and related artists. The label began operations in 2002 with the release of a live recording from Gordon's alumni Jet, Johns Children and Radio Stars, and releases one or two albums per year with a focus upon 'clever twisted pop which rocks', to quote Rolling Stone magazine.
Peter Oxendale is an English forensic musicologist and an expert witness on copyright infringement in music. He was involved as an expert in the notable Blurred Lines lawsuit. He was a keyboardist in the glam rock bands Sparks and Jet and musical director for Chris de Burgh. Oxendale also played keyboards on Ian Hunter's Overnight Angels album in 1977. He also played keyboards for the new wave bands Dead or Alive and Frankie Goes to Hollywood. In 1983, he served as touring keyboardist for John Foxx. In 1983/4, he appeared numerous times on Top of the Pops as part of Bonnie Tyler's band on her long running number one hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart".
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