With his tousled blond-dyed hair, Jeffrey Lee Pierce was in many ways the archetypal American cult musician, at the crossroads of many musical styles (the goth scene, the swamp blues now revived by G-Love & Special Sauce) which later came to prominence. The album features interpretations of Pierce's work by old friends and collaborators, such as Debbie Harry, Nick Cave, Lydia Lunch, Mick Harvey and Kid Congo Powers.[56]. Encuentra las mejores canciones y álbumes de Jeffrey Lee Pierce, como Love and Desperation, Pasties and a G-String y más. He was very well read on the subject. So it’s good, all of these reissues and re-interest and circular amount of time—ten years of him dying and twenty years of being a band. Born in Texas in 1958, Jeffrey Lee Pierce later moved to the West Coast. [12] Jones recalls that "Jeffery's voice had an element of horror" and the "nature of their [The Gun Club's] music it was way more brutal and full on than any metal band I have ever heard. He was also my roommate and at one time he was my best friend. The singer lived for a time in London and gigged fitfully around Europe, doing strange versions of jazz standards (John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme", Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit") and releasing disappointing albums of past and recent concerts on many labels (Two Sides of the Beast on Dojo for instance). Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. Pierce attended Granada Hills High School, where he participated in the drama program, acting in plays and writing several of his own brief experimental theater pieces. He sounded completely out of his mind, though not like he was drunk. He started playing me this music and I taped it on one of those little microcassettes and the song, he was like, "Keith, you're gonna have to write about Deborah Harry," because he was president of the Blondie fan club. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. And for as self-destructive as he was, he was a million times more creative. He had been writing—a lot of crazy passages, like where Isaac Hayes is calling him on a radio tower, and we were just hysterically laughing over the phone. Jeffrey Lee Pierce, singer, guitarist, composer: born Texas 27 June 1958; married Romi Mori; died Los Angeles 31 March 1996. It's taken in England, on the south coast, next to The English Channel. [45] At live performances, Morris has introduced the song with a description of Pierce and the relationship that he shared with the late musician, stating that Pierce was one of his best friends and that the song, "Jeffrey Lee Pierce", is a "eulogy". And I would say, “I saw you. This person was in very, very poor health and expired. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment. Los Angeles was one of the few American cities to follow the British and New York punk scene and the young Jeffrey soon became obsessed with Blondie to such an extent that he became president of their fan club (a couple of years earlier, a teenage Morrissey developed a similar unhealthy fascination with the New York Dolls, another proof that fandom sometimes pays creative dividends). [21] Another album from that period is Ramblin' Jeffrey Lee and Cypress Grove with Willie Love; the recording mainly consists of cover versions of blues artists such as Howlin' Wolf, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Skip James. Jeffrey Lee Pierce (June 27, 1958 – March 31, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and author. It was a shocking ending. You can find our Community Guidelines in full here. Pierce felt disappointed by the swift decline of punk rock into what he saw as strict formality and also began to feel his beloved reggae was ultimately an import, seeking a style combining the authenticity and simplicity of reggae but more rooted in his own culture's history, he discovered the Delta blues and developed an extensive knowledge of the genre which influenced and inspired him. In a reflection on Pierce's death, singer Mark Lanegan stated in an August 2004 interview for Loose Lips Sink Ships: "In early 1996, he went to Japan, and right before he left, he and I were at his Mom's in LA [Los Angeles, US] writing songs. The way he sung [sic] up high like that and slightly off key was enough to tear your heart out.[33]. In 1979, following in the footsteps of the Germs, the Dead Kennedys and the Dickies, Pierce formed his own punk band, Creeping Ritual. He still made ends meet by working hard in a record store and contributing to music fanzines but, by 1981, he was at the helm of Gun Club, an impressive fourpiece (also featuring Kid Congo Powers on guitar, Rob Ritter on bass and Terry Graham on drums) who seemed to create their own brand of swampy, ramshackle, psychotic, blues- influenced music. In some cases the artists have had to finish the songs, so there can be no nonsense about this not being as good as the original version as these are the original versions! "[31], I was talking to Jeffrey again. But, just as Gun Club seemed about to capitalise on this early critical acclaim, the Cramps pinched the guitarist Kid Kongo (ne Brian Tristan) to replace the departing Brian Gregory. By then, his influence could be felt on the work of rootsier American outfits like Green on Red and on the new direction taken by Nick Cave and his Bad Seeds (which featured for a time the Gun Club refugee Kid Congo). December 1984 the Gun Club played two UK gigs in London but by January 1985 had broken up, cancelling an upcoming Australian Tour. Minnesota Historical Society Death Certificate Index Pierce, Jeffrey Lee Certificate Number: 1975-MN-017354 Death: July 28, 1975 County of Death: Itasca County Mother's Maiden Name: SCHAEFFER Date of Birth: Jul 2 1959 Place of Birth: MINNESOTA He was very unusual and a very unique guy." This is a eulogy, um, for my very good friend, Jeffrey Lee Pierce. I play a lot of his music because I miss him and I want people to never forget The Gun Club. He was one of the founding members of the band The Gun Club, and also released material as a solo artist. It was the end of my collaborator; the person who taught me how to play guitar; the person who for years I had done stuff with and can only communicate in a certain way with—a brother. Guitarist, bass player and photographer Romi Mori was Pierce's longest romantic partner and a member of the second incarnation of his band the Gun Club, making a significant musical contribution to the band's sound. And had a great unique voice. It was going to be on the record. [32]. [29] at the University of Utah Hospital.[30]. After six months in Japan, Pierce and Mori returned to London in August 1986, with Pierce feeling inspired and keen to start a new chapter of The Gun Club. He was one of the founding members of the band The Gun Club, and also released material as a solo artist. He also released several solo albums and was a founding member of The Red Lights before forming The Gun Club. 16 tracks (). But my idea was actually that it should look like Texas. [65] The documentary received mostly positive critical reception, but was criticized for not including any of Pierce's music or interview footage with him. Following the release of The Journey Is Long, Cave gave an interview to Gun Club biographer Gene Temesy, who planned to use the interview in a future book on the history of the Gun Club. Jeffrey was full of digressions. In 2010, OFF!, a punk "supergroup" fronted by Keith Morris former member of Black Flag and the Circle Jerks released a song dedicated to and named after Pierce. Now I don't know how many of you were at the Bowery Ballroom [New York City] last night? in 2010, Morris explained in an interview, after he was asked about the Gun Club T-shirt that he was wearing at the time: ... because Jeffrey Lee Pierce is not only one of my heroes, he's totally inspirational to me. [7] The album contains a version of Robert Johnson's "Preachin' Blues" and the love song "Promise Me". Titles like "Walking With the Beast", "Bad America" and "Wildweed" now seem sad portents of what was to come. But I got to tell the story of this, uh, meeting, here in New York City, over at the Irving Plaza; my friend, Jeffrey Lee Pierce, and another one of our good buddies, Kid Congo Powers ... they came to a show that I was at, and I just got off performing, and they showed up, we're partying and we're all chattin' and havin' a good time. Rock music has had its beautiful losers (Jim Morrison, Ian Curtis, Kurt Cobain) but the American singer and songwriter Jeffrey Lee Pierce was more in the mould of the late Johnny Thunders (of New York Dolls and Heartbreakers fame) and Malcolm Owen (of Britain's Ruts), one of those musicians who never quite fulfil their potential yet follow their destiny to its inescapable conclusion. Pierce was one of the founding members of the 1980s punk band The Gun Club, and also released material as a solo artist. And then he went to Japan. [citation needed] Listen free to Jeffrey Lee Pierce – Six String Sermon (Promise Me, Treat Your Train Right and more). Kid Congo Powers was by now living in Berlin as guitarist with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds but accepted Pierce's offer, managing to combine working in both bands. So we took those original guitar parts played by Jeffrey Lee and Kid Congo Powers (The Gun Club guitarist) and built a new song. Pierce started learning guitar at age 10. Pierce's evocative lyrics and remarkable vocals evident throughout, it encompassed tribal beat 'voodoo' rock - "Walking with the Beast" - slide-guitars - "Eternally is Here" - and haunting compositions like "My Dreams", "Bad America" and a cover of "My Man's Gone Now". In his younger days Jeff loved to rock climb (mainly at Garden of the Gods). He always gives credit to the band and Mr. Pierce and also states how much he admired Jeffrey Lee Pierce's song writing. The sessions were recorded with acoustic guitars in Cypress Grove's bedroom, using a "boombox" device. The label clarified that the third album has become the "penultimate" full-length release of the Project, but did not name the final album, or its release date. He was very genuine. The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Premium. One of the last things we were gonna do was put together a band. Harry contributed backing vocals on the album Miami under the pseudonym D.H. Lawrence, and was a longtime mentor and supporter of Pierce. I lost a very close friend, a guy named Jeffrey Lee Pierce. Both were making plans for this project, with Powers looking to recruit musicians in New York [28] but this was curtailed when on March 25, 1996, Pierce was found unconscious at his father's home in Salt Lake City, Utah. T-shirt colors are available in the best-selling black, the classic white, and many others. But in Jeffrey’s world, sometimes it was very inspiring and illuminating and other times it was painful and depressing. The cassette tape version of the album also featured an extra track, "Secret Fires", missing from the vinyl L.P. but later available on the C.D. Undeterred Pierce returned to Europe to play more shows, culminating in the 'Quartet's final gig on 27th December in London. And you know, I loved him very much. [3], Pierce's early musical interests were towards glam and progressive rock, particularly bands such as Sparks, Genesis, and Roxy Music. It was still kind of shocking to me. See full bio » Nick has a great love and admiration for Jeffrey and it shines through. Among the symptoms were a strong identification with violence and death and a clear notion of American … That’s a song that Jeffrey wrote as just an acoustic guitar number, he just played. Jeffrey digressed a lot. This song is dedicated to OFF! – Jeffrey Lee Pierce – Live at 2011 Pitchfork Music Festival", "OFF! Where possible we have used Jeffrey's contributions, so he actually appears posthumously on this album. Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. Some people were not shocked at all, and really thinking about it later, I shouldn’t have been shocked. He was one of the founding members of the 1980s punk band The Gun Club. Elvis From Hell is … Then he went back to the States. [13] Dave Alvin also played lead guitar on two tracks. And happy, you know. The hospital turned him away saying, there's nothing we can do for him, his liver's shut down, he's dying. Throughout his career Pierce was supportive of fellow musicians, encouraging new friend Brian Tristan, aka Kid Congo Powers, to play guitar and develop his own unique sound and style, recruiting him to form the band Creeping Ritual. (part 1)", "OFF! According to Jones, the note was "written out in beautiful handwriting and 'with love, Debbie' at the bottom" and was Pierce's "most prized possession". The Gun Club's last ever gig, with bassist Elizabeth Montague replacing Bradbury (Busy touring with Pennywise) was at The Palace in Hollywood on December 18 1995. [8], Jeffrey Lee Pierce and The Gun Club Documentaries, "Jeffrey Lee Pierce, Rock Musician, 37 – New York Times", "Obituary: Jeffrey Lee Pierce – People – News", "Preaching The Blues: Remembering The Gun Club's Jeffrey Lee Pierce", "Returning to the supposedly troublesome 'Miami, "Rockbrat Remembers: When Spencer Jones played with The Gun Club", "NEW YORK NIGHT TRAIN - issue 1: Kid Congo Powers Oral History Pt. It's a pity this peripheral figure found the bottle and the needle instead instead of a wider audience. Moisture-wicking active t-shirts are here, too. From shop AdamTpopart. It’s really bad.” He would say, “I’m getting my shit together. We have 1 albums and 13 song lyrics in our database. by Jeffrey Lee Pierce on Root Damage. American Singer, Songwriter and Musician. Pierce contacted Powers in early 1996 to work together on a new of The Gun Club. The Gun Club frontman Jeffrey Lee Pierce is the subject of a forthcoming documentary called Elvis From Hell, as Deadlinereports. And I think he was a great songwriter. And then we retired back to my place. Helping earthquake victims. [10], September 1983, as The Gun Club prepared for their first (and only) Australian tour, two band members quit at Los Angeles airport before departure, due to financial concerns over payment and ongoing exasperation with Pierce's mercurial behavior. Come back, Lux Interior. His infatuation with reggae overlapped with the emergence of punk rock and Pierce became a fixture on the Hollywood scene as a contributor to Slash fanzine, writing not only on the obvious contemporary punk phase but also about 1930s blues, 1950s rockabilly and a reggae section under the name 'Ranking Jeffrey Lea', securing an interview with Bob Marley. 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