Jody Porter | |
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Background information | |
Born | May 25, 1969 |
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Years active | 1990–present |
Labels | Yep Roc, Virgin, Atlantic |
Jody Porter (born May 25, 1969) is an American musician. [1] He was the lead guitarist of Grammy Award-nominated power pop band Fountains of Wayne. The band released four major label albums, including Welcome Interstate Managers on Virgin Records in 2003, an RIAA-certified Gold LP. The album spawned the hugely popular U.S. Top 40 hit and number 1 music video "Stacy's Mom".
Known for his impressive virtuoso abilities and British guitar pop playing style, Jody first garnered attention fronting and writing the songs for London-based band The Belltower in the early 1990s. Although the band created a buzz for itself in the UK, including Melody Maker and NME singles of the week, their singles didn't chart and their major label debut Popdropper sold marginally. The band came back to the U.S. and eventually broke up in 1996.
Porter was then asked by his friend Adam Schlesinger, who had already been brought into The Belltower briefly, to join his newly formed band Fountains of Wayne before their self-titled Atlantic debut. Porter continued with Fountains of Wayne through their 1999 release, Utopia Parkway . However, after the band was dropped from Atlantic Records in 2001, Fountains of Wayne went on hiatus. In 2003, the band reformed and entered the studio to do a spate of demos which would eventually become Welcome Interstate Managers on Virgin Records. The band received two Grammy nominations in 2004 and released Out of State Plates , a collection of b sides and rarities the following year. They reassembled in 2007 for their next studio album Traffic and Weather which was said to have been recorded largely by Schlesinger and Porter.
Jody Porter also once fronted the short-lived New York-based alternative band The Astrojet. In 2002, The Astrojet recorded a 6 track EP of Porter-penned songs entitled, The Mile Low Club. In early 2004, he disbanded the group to reassemble Fountains of Wayne and continue as a solo artist.
Porter has played on albums with Albert Hammond Jr., Ivy, Jesse Malin, The Monkees, Brookville, David Mead and Juliana Hatfield.
Porter has been credited on albums playing bass, keyboards and drums in addition to vocals and guitar.
In 2008, Porter finished work on his debut solo album, Close to the Sun. The 12-song album bridges the gap between the sonic atmospheric stylings of the Belltower and the guitar-driven power pop of Fountains of Wayne; it was coproduced by Michael Tudor and Gordon Raphael (Strokes, Regina Spektor). The album was first released in Japan by FAEC/Rough Trade on July 2, 2008, and was later picked up by Engine Room Recordings and slated for worldwide release on May 11, 2010.
Porter's second solo album, Month of Mondays, was successfully funded via Kickstarter on July 24, 2013.
In 2022, Porter released his third studio album Waterways.
Jody has used an arsenal of vintage guitars over the years, most notably a three pick-up Les Paul Custom, several early '60s Fender Jazzmasters, Fender Telecaster various vintage Gretsch models, and more recently a '57 Les Paul Junior that belonged to his father and a new signature guitar. His signature guitar is a SchoolHoused BeachBlaster which consists of a surf green finish and 3-Seymour Duncan Whole Lotta humbuckers. He has generally favored Vox amps.
Fountains of Wayne was an American rock band that formed in New York City in 1995. The band included founding members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter, and Brian Young. They released six albums from 1996 to 2011 before effectively disbanding in 2013. They are best known for the Grammy-nominated song "Stacy's Mom".
James Yoshinobu Iha is an American rock musician. He is best known as a guitarist and co-founder of the alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. He was a member until the band's initial breakup in 2000 and rejoined in 2018.
Robben Lee Ford is an American blues, jazz, and rock guitarist. He was a member of the L.A. Express and Yellowjackets and has collaborated with Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison, Larry Carlton, Rick Springfield, Little Feat, and Kiss. He was named one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century" by Musician magazine.
"Stacy's Mom" is a song by American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It is the third track on their third studio album, Welcome Interstate Managers, and was released to radio as the album's first single on May 19, 2003, through S-Curve Records and Virgin Records. "Stacy's Mom" was written by bassist Adam Schlesinger and vocalist Chris Collingwood, both of whom produced the song alongside Mike Denneen. Its subject matter was inspired by a friend of Schlesinger's when he was young who was attracted to Schlesinger's grandmother. It is a power pop song with which the group hoped to emulate the sound of American rock band the Cars.
Welcome Interstate Managers is the third studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released by S-Curve Records on June 10, 2003. The album contains the power pop single "Stacy's Mom," which reached number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's highest-charting hit in the United States.
Richard Dale Kotzen Jr. is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. As a solo artist, Kotzen has back catalogue of more than 20 album releases. He was a member of glam metal band Poison from 1991 to 1993, Mr. Big from 1999 to 2002, and since 2012, has been the frontman of the band The Winery Dogs. Kotzen was signed to California-based Shrapnel Records from 1988 to 1991, and again from 1995 to 1997.
Utopia Parkway is the second studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released by Atlantic Records in April 1999.
Fountains of Wayne is the debut studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on TAG Recordings, Scratchie Records, and Atlantic Records in 1996.
Adam Lyons Schlesinger was an American musician, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He was a founding member of the bands Fountains of Wayne, Ivy, and Tinted Windows, and was a key songwriting contributor and producer for Brooklyn-based synth-pop duo Fever High. He also wrote songs for television and film, for which he won three Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, and the ASCAP Pop Music Award, and was nominated for Academy, Tony, and Golden Globe Awards. He died unexpectedly due to complications of COVID-19 at the age of 52.
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.
Out-of-State Plates is a double compilation album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on Virgin Records on June 28, 2005.
"Just the Girl" is a song by American rock band the Click Five. It was released on June 13, 2005, as the first single from their debut studio album, Greetings from Imrie House (2005). The band formed in Boston and were managed by talent scout Wayne Sharp, who assisted in signing the band to Lava Records. "Just the Girl" was composed by songwriter Adam Schlesinger, best-known for his work with Fountains of Wayne, as well as his career in film and television.
Chris Collingwood is an American singer, songwriter, and artist. He is best known as the former lead vocalist and founding member of the power pop band Fountains of Wayne.
Andy Chase is an American musician, record producer, and label owner. He formed the band Ivy with Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne and Dominique Durand, now his wife. Chase owns Unfiltered Records and co-owned Stratosphere Sound studio with Schlesinger and James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins.
Traffic and Weather is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on Virgin Records in April 2007.
Danny Weinkauf is a Grammy-winning New York–based musician and composer. He has been the longtime bassist for They Might Be Giants (TMBG). He has recorded and toured with the band since the late 1990s. Weinkauf had previously performed in a band called Lincoln along with TMBG's guitarist Dan Miller and drummer Gonzalo Martinez De La Cotera. He has written four songs for TMBG, all for their children's albums. Weinkauf wrote and sang "Where Do They Make Balloons?" on the children's album No!, "Number Two" from Here Come The 123s, "I Am a Paleontologist" from Here Comes Science, and "Elephants" from Why? He also played bass alongside bandmate John Flansburgh for his solo project Mono Puff, in addition to providing additional bass on John Linnell's State Songs album. In 2014 Weinkauf began releasing albums for children and families as "Danny Weinkauf". That year he released "No School Today" followed by "Red Pants Band" (2016), "Totally Osome!" (2017), "Inside I Shine" (2018), "Dinosaurs and Metaphors" (2020), "Words" (2021), "lullabies" (2022) and "Light Up Your Love" (2023). The later 7 albums were all released on his own label Red Pants Music except "Words". He performs live as 'Danny Weinkauf and his Red Pants Band' with Tina Kenny Jones on bass, keyboards, and vocals, Steven Plesnarski on drums and vocals, and Russ Jones on guitar, bass, vocals, and ukulele. His eight albums have received numerous awards and frequent rotation on kids radio such as Sirius XM's Kids Place Live.
The Belltower was an American alternative rock band from New York City often associated with the shoegazing scene, with members who later joined Luna and Fountains of Wayne.
The discography of Fountains of Wayne contains five studio albums, one compilation album, 16 singles, one DVD, six music videos and seven other appearances.
Sky Full of Holes is the fifth and final studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on July 20, 2011, in Japan, on August 1, 2011, in Europe, and on August 2, 2011, in North America. It debuted at number 37 on the US Billboard 200, giving Fountains of Wayne their first Top 40 album on that chart, and debuted at number 16 on the UK independent chart.
Good Times! is the twelfth studio album by American pop rock band the Monkees. Produced primarily by Adam Schlesinger, the album was recorded to commemorate the band's 50th anniversary. It is the first Monkees studio album since Justus (1996), marking the longest gap between releases to date, and the first since the death of Davy Jones. The album features surviving Monkees Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork, as well as a posthumous contribution from Jones.