RAILROAD JERK

Railroad Jerk

Marcellus Hall (vocals, guitar): born in Great Bluff, MN "somewhere between '63 and '66, I'm not sure," is said to have traveled at least 42 of the 50 states. It was in Trenton, NJ, where he met bassist Tony Lee (born in Craven County, Cherry Point, NC). Soon afterwards, the two met drummer Jez Aspinall (Essex, England), who was then living in Brooklyn, and Phillip (from Belgium) who played guitar. Railroad Jerk were formed in the spring of 1989 and began playing in and around Manhattan. By the end of the summer, Phillip's haircut had proven to be too European and the group became a trio. In December, guitarist Chris Mueller (birthplace unknown) joined the group.

When asked about their unique blend of traditional Irish folk, mainstream r&b, classical jazz, reggae, delta blues, '60s psychedelia, European techno-pop, Appalachian hillbilly, California surf and post-punk industrial wall-of-noise grunge dirge, Jez said "I don't usually listen to music really... could you pass the ketchup?"

Railroad Jerk, their debut LP, was released in September 1990 and is currently out of print. Reissues should be out sometime in May 1996.

Raise the Plow

Railroad Jerk's second album. If this doesn't get Marcellus Hall and the Jerks in Sassy, Bear Magazine and the Wall Street Journal I'll sue somebody. And if these songs aren't firmly imprinted on your front lobe after the first listen I'll sue myself!

We Understand

In 1990 Railroad Jerk replace drummer Jez Aspinall with Steve Cerio after Aspinall joined the circus. In the spring of '91 (during the great flood of that year) Railroad Jerk toured the U.S. extensively in a rented van that brought them to the far reaches of India, as well as Indiana. After the release of a 7" "The Ballad of Jim White" / "Younger Than You" on Matador that literally set the house on fire one night at NYC's Limelight disco, guitarist Chris Mueller was sacked for an even better guitarist, Alec Stephen (the former now manages a Burger King on Long Island). In the interim, Railroad Jerk recorded its second LP, Raise the Plow. In February of 1993, drummer Steve Cerio was replaced by Dave Varenka. Railroad Jerk was video-taped recently (from the waist up) for a PCP / Atavistic video compilation and will be taping a new one, of course, for MTV.

"We Understand" was released in October 1993.

One Track Mind

Railroad Jerk was born and raised in a small town in the middle of nowhere on the lower east side of Manhattan in 1989. The concept was clear from the beginning: "industrial folk or something..." The band's name, Railroad Jerk, was taken from two distinctly different pages of Webster's Abridged Dictionary (3rd Edition) and has been described as a perfect description of the band's sound. As Bob Smith of the San Francisco Examiner put it, "It is a perfect description of the band's sound."

The original line-up included mainstays Marcellus Hall and Tony Lee along with Jez Aspinall and Philip, who was later replaced by Chris Mueller. Their set at the time was comprised of songs that eventually made up their first Matador release (Railroad Jerk LP, 1990) as well as cover versions of songs by Aretha Franklin, Donovan, and The Plastic Ono Band. Eventually, Aspinall was replaced by Steve Cerio and the band continued to play shows in and around New York City.

Journalists have recognized various influences in the band's style (i.e. The Birthday Party, Jimmie Rodgers, The Fall, Robert Johnson, etc.) but to prove it would be impossible. Singer Marcellus Hall has said that "to make good music, you have to have a lot of money or, at least, some good ideas."

After a few singles here and there and a US tour, Railroad Jerk went on to record Raise The Plow (1992), a particularly "difficult" record for fans and critics alike. "We were going through a lot of weird shit," says Tony Lee of the period. Nonetheless Raise The Plow garnered praise and critical acclaim nationwide from relatives of the band.

When Mueller was replaced by Alec Stephen and Cerio was overthrown by Dave Varenka the band set sail on a new course. For the first time in years Hall spoke to Lee. Where in previous months stolen girlfriends, drug busts, and haircuts caused certain tensions among band members, now it seemed as though a shade had been lifted and a brilliant ray of sunshine had lit the room or something like that. "They're finally getting their shit together," said a respected journalist condescendingly.

Indeed this was the beginning of new horizons. Another tour followed and then still another, and then another, following their much crazed and critically acclaimed "We Understand" EP (1993), which included the smash hit "Halfway Across." At the same time, Railroad Jerk (as they are affectionately called at home) began perfecting their "stripped-down, semi-acoustic, half-unplugged" set doing benefits and shows on radio and in stores. This little-known side of the band has gained considerable attention from local intelligentsia and non-intelligentsia alike.

The ball is rolling now! And Railroad Jerk has spent the last year (1994) not only basking in the limelight of their past successes, but also touring and writing non-stop material for the current release, One Track Mind. The band clearly does not care a whit what other people think of them ("We don't care a whit what other people think of us," says Alec Stephen, the "quiet one") which no doubt attests to their almost complete lack of pretension and the open-armed welcome they have received from the "grunge" crowd we hear so much about these days. -- Eloise Butler

Bang the Drum EP

Here is our "Bang The Drum" 7"/EP. Guitarist Alec Stephen designed the package (that's his living room on the cover). The first song, "Bang The Drum," is from our One Track Mind LP. When you think about it really, it's a re-working of a previous song of ours called "Younger Than You" (1991, Matador 7"). But also, it was inspired by "The Message" (Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five), "Too Much Monkey Business" (Chuck Berry) and "Pump It Up" (Elvis Costello), but NOT by "It's The End Of The World As We Know It" (REM). The second song is a true story and it's called "Highway 80."

The last four songs, which appear on the CD version, are of the so-called "lo-fi" category. Here, we have a Beatles cover, a stripped down version of "Home=Hang" and a version of "All Downhill," which appeared on a PCP Entertainment double 7" in 1993, and, finally, a re-make of "In My Face (Pretty Flower) which first appeared in 1990 on our first Matador LP, which you probably can't find now. -- Railroad Jerk

Railroad Jerk: The Third Rail

On this, their fourth full length album, Railroad Jerk continue their exploration of what has now become know as "gangster folk." The band's now familiar history is the stuff of legend, well known by many but worth repeating for the uninitiated.

1989 - Founders Marcellus Hall & Tony Lee are discovered playing their "peculiar brand of rock" for spare change on the Bowery (NYC) by Matador founder Chris Lombardi.
1990 - "Railroad Jerk", first LP released to great underground critical acclaim (see dicography).
1991 - Various members come and go. Current guitarist Alec Stephen leaves NY Sanitation Dept and joins band. "Raise the Plow" LP is released. Marcellus Hall narrowly misses World Trade Center bomb while going to work...
1992 - Current drummer Dave Varenka, out of work and heartbroken, joins band.
1993 - Band plays live at Niagara Falls visitor center as promotional stunt. Canadian police apprehend the band but they are released some four hours later.
1994 - One big blur.
1995 - "One Track Mind" is released. Rehab for all four band members. Named "best NYC band" (Mike Rubin, Village Voice). MTV embraces band playing "Rollerkoaster" video once on 120 minutes. Band tours Europe and Japan.
1996 - Tony Lee purchases first Porsche and band records "The Third Rail" (co-sponsored by Punk Rock inc.)