The Jody Grind (band)

Last updated
The Jody Grind
Origin Cabbagetown, Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Genres Alternative
Years active1988-1992
Labels DB Records
Past membersKelly Hogan, Bill Taft, David Ellis, Walter Brewer, Robert Hayes, Rob Clayton

The Jody Grind was an American band from the Cabbagetown neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. [1]

Contents

Karen Schoemer's review of their debut album for The New York Times put their sound in historical context: "This young band from Atlanta is so at home with the musical languages of past eras, one can imagine it sharing cocktail chitchat with Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra and the Gershwins." [2] Billboard's Chris Morris described them as a "sweet, swinging." [3]

The Jody Grind opened for R.E.M., [4] Bob Margolin, [5] Robyn Hitchcock and Poi Dog Pondering. [6]

History

In 1988, vocalist Kelly Hogan met Bill Taft at one of his open mic nights at the White Dot in Atlanta. A mutual appreciation of old-time jazz and swing kicked off the friendship, and Taft soon invited Hogan to perform with him. They were soon joined by David Ellis (bass) and Walter Brewer (drums) and performed as An Evening With the Garbagemen. [1] [7] Ellis left soon after, and the band continued as a three-piece. He was eventually replaced by Robert Hayes. [1]

By 1989, they were called the Jody Grind. [8] In 1990, the band released their debut album, One Man's Trash (Is Another Man's Treasure). It was produced by John Keane and released by DB Records. Said Schoemer of that debut album: "Their eclecticism never sounds forced; the performances are loose and enthusiastic, and each song is linked by the smoky, sashaying vocals of Kelly Hogan Murray. Her singing, like the album, feels effortless and lovely." [2] By 1990 they were playing packed crowds in Atlanta, many times sharing the bill with Atlanta performance artist and poet Deacon Lunchbox. [1]

In 1992, the Jody Grind released their second album, Lefty's Deceiver. It was also produced by John Keane and released by DB Records. [9] Soon after the album was recorded, Rob Clayton joined the band as their new drummer. [10]

On April 19, 1992, less than a week after the release of Lefty’s Deceiver, a camper driven by a drunk driver crossed the I-65 median near Greenville, Alabama, and struck a borrowed van carrying Clayton, Hayes and Deacon Lunchbox, who were heading back to Atlanta from shows in Florida. Clayton, Hayes and Deacon Lunchbox died at the scene. [11] [12] [13] [14] Hogan and Taft had decided to spend the night in Pensacola and did not learn of the crash until arriving home. [10]

After the crash, Hogan and Taft disbanded the Jody Grind and formed a duo called Kick Me. [10] Allen Page joined Kick Me, but the band broke up following his heroin overdose in 1994. [15]

Hogan later moved to Chicago to continue a solo career, and has since played with a variety of bands, including Rock*A*Teens, Wee Hairy Beasties and Neko Case. [16] Taft still lives in Atlanta and has been involved with several projects since, including Another Evening with the Garbageman, Smoke, Hubcap City and W8ing4UFOs. [17]

Discography

Albums

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athens, Georgia</span> Consolidated city–county in Georgia, United States

Athens is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about 70 miles (110 km) northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an R1 research institution, is in Athens and contributed to its initial growth. In 1991, after a vote the preceding year, the original City of Athens abandoned its charter to form a unified government with Clarke County, referred to jointly as Athens–Clarke County where it is the county seat.

<i>Daily Intelligencer</i> (Atlanta) First daily newspaper in Atlanta, Georgia, USA (1849–1871)

The Intelligencer was a weekly, and later daily newspaper first published in Atlanta on June 1, 1849 as The Weekly Intelligencer. The founders were Benjamin Bomar, Zachariah A. Rice, Jonathan Norcross and Ira O. McDaniel. During the American Civil War, the newspaper had great trouble acquiring paper from its supplier, the paper mill at Sope Creek.

Deacon Lunchbox was the stage name of Atlanta performance artist and poet Timothy Tyson Ruttenber. Ruttenber, a construction worker by day, was popular in the Atlanta area for his flamboyant spoken-word performances. He often punctuated each line of his poems by banging an old torpedo casing or metal bucket with a hammer. His onstage props included a chainsaw, and often a bra was part of his costume.

The Americus Times-Recorder is a daily newspaper published in Americus, Georgia. It is operated by South Georgia Media Group, a division of Community Newspaper Holdings Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Taft</span> Musical artist

Bill Taft is an American rock musician living in Atlanta, Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Hay (musician)</span> American songwriter

Bob Hay born Robert Donald Hay, Jr. on January 28, 1950, is an American songwriter and the multi-instrumentalist and vocalist for Athens, Georgia projects the Squalls, Bob Hay & the Jolly Beggars, Noogeez, A. Che Why and Supercluster.

The Westfield School is a private Christian school in Perry, Georgia, United States. It is located off U.S. Highway 41 South. It educates students in grades PK-12, in three schools.

The LaGrange Daily News has been serving LaGrange and the residents of Troup County, Georgia and surrounding areas since 1843 when it was launched as a weekly newspaper called the LaGrange Herald. The name was changed later to the Chattahoochee and in the 1860s, The LaGrange Reporter. After a merger of the LaGrange Reporter, LaGrange Graphic and LaGrange Shuttle in 1928, the combined publications became the LaGrange Daily News.

Glenn B. Lautzenhiser was a college football player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1921–22 Mercer Baptists men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 1921–22 Mercer Baptists men's basketball team represented Mercer University in the 1921–22 NCAA men's basketball season. The team claimed an SIAA championship, and was runner-up to North Carolina in the 1922 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament. Mercer pulled the upset of the tournament when they beat defending champion Kentucky 35 to 22.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macon, Dublin and Savannah Railroad</span>

The Macon, Dublin and Savannah Railroad was chartered in 1885 as the Macon and Dublin Railroad. It was built to connect its namesake towns, Macon and Dublin. Eventually, it became a 96-mile short line operating between Macon and Vidalia.

Lectured Crawford was a teacher, A.M.E. Church minister, and state legislator in Georgia. He was one of the last African American legislators in Georgia prior to the prohibition on Black people holding office in the state.

H. F. McKay was an American politician. He and Lectured Crawford were elected to serve in the Georgia Legislature. He lived in Johnston Station, Georgia in Liberty County, Georgia. He was nominated to be the Republican candidate at their 1900 convention in Hinesville, Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baby Roane</span>

Robert Watson "Babe" "Baby" Roane was a college basketball player for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, known as Tech's first basketball star. Later in life he was superintendent of Davenport Hosiery Mills in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

<i>Athens Republique</i> African American newspaper from Athens, Georgia, USA

The Athens Republique was an African American newspaper in Athens, Georgia. It was published from 1919 to 1927. The paper's editor, Julian Lucasse Brown, was a World War I lieutenant who founded the paper upon his return from serving in France. The paper reported on racial progress and setbacks, and denounced lynchings and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan. The newspaper's motto was "Devoted to the Religious, the Educational and the Industrial Development of the Colored Race" and it was closely associated with the Jeruel Baptist Association. After the demise of The Athens Republique, there was no African American newspaper in Athens until the founding of the Athens Voice in 1975.

John E. Sheffield Jr. was a state legislator in Georgia. He was a segregationist. He proposed a bill to establish a Georgia Sovereignty Commission to counter desegregation efforts, but the bill failed to get enough votes despite a majority supporting it. He represented Brooks County, Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crawford, Frazer & Co.</span> American slave trading business (1863–1864)

Crawford, Frazer & Co. was a slave-trading business located in Atlanta, Georgia, in the 1860s. The principals of Crawford, Frazer & Co. were Robert Crawford, Addison D. Frazer, and Thomas Lafayette Frazer. In company with a man named Robert Clarke, Crawford, Frazer & Co. may have been among "the largest of the city's slave brokers." The business opened in January 1863, and was dissolved in April 1864. All parties continued separately as negro traders, at another location in Atlanta (Crawford), and in Montgomery, Alabama (Frazers), until forced to cease operations due to the defeat of the Confederacy, concluding the American Civil War. Crawford, Frazer & Co. is remembered today because the company's negro mart appears in a notable photo of pre-burning Civil War Atlanta.

Robert P. Phillips III is an American politician. He previously served as a member of the Georgia House of Representatives from the 125th District from 1979 until 1985. In 1978, Phillips defeated incumbent State Representative, Tom Taggart, in the Democratic primary by 11 votes. In 1984, he lost his bid for reelection to Jack Kingston. In 2002, he was a candidate for a state court judgeship.

Thomas Robert Taggart is an American politician. He served two terms in the Georgia House of Representatives. He won his first election to the State House in 1974. He lost his bid for renomination in 1978 by 11 votes to Bobby Phillips.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. J. M. Kelley</span> American physician and politician (1855–1912)

Thomas Jefferson Marion Kelley Sr. was an American physician and politician who represented Glascock County in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1900 to 1906.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current, March 07, 1990, Image 33 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1990-03-07. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  2. 1 2 "Home Entertainment/Recordings: Recent Releases". The New York Times . 1990-06-24. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  3. ↑ "Billboard". 1994-11-19.
  4. ↑ "1990/91 Concert Chronology". Remtimeline.com. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  5. ↑ "Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current, September 27, 1989, Image 14 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1989-09-27. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  6. ↑ "Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current, July 11, 1990, Image 16 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1990-07-11. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  7. ↑ "Bio | Kelly Hogan". Archived from the original on 2019-08-17. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  8. ↑ "Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current, August 09, 1989, Image 7 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1989-08-09. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  9. ↑ "The Red and Black (Athens, Ga.) 1893-current, April 20, 1992, Image 3 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  10. 1 2 3 Freeman, Scott (2010-06-24). "The triumph and tragedy of the Cabbagetown sound". Creativeloafing.com. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  11. ↑ "Hogan Here | This is my favorite picture of my first real band". Hoganhere.tumblr.com. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  12. ↑ "Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current, April 22, 1992, Image 4 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1992-04-22. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  13. ↑ "Deacon Lunchbox, 41, A Performance Artist". The New York Times . 1992-04-22. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  14. ↑ "The Red and Black (Athens, Ga.) 1893-current, April 21, 1992, Image 1 « Georgia Historic Newspapers". Gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. 1992-04-21. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  15. ↑ "When the Fire Broke Out". Oxfordamerican.org. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  16. ↑ Heather Phares. "Kelly Hogan | Biography & History". AllMusic . Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  17. ↑ "Biography". W8ing4ufos.com. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
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.