The underrated bands of our time Part One- The Jam
64One of the unheralded bands ever.
It Is 1977 and I am a Junior In high school . Everybody Is playing a band named Boston and every where I go I hear It a song called " More than a feeling " . I like It too . And Kiss , and Heart , and Ted Nugent . And like everybody else I love this stuff. But back In the 70s I ran with a few guys who were a little more off the wall . They Introduced me to the New York Dolls , and a band out of New York called The Ramones and a gal named Patti Smith . And some weirdo named Iggy Pop . These artist were so different then the Arena rock Gods I loved then and still love today . And they Introduced me to a band called " The Jam " .
The Jam came out towards the tail end of 1976 and they were considered Punk Rock , but actually they fell under the category of The Mods . The Who were actually the first ones to be called Mod , and were definitely the template for what was to be Punk Rock .
The Jam consisted of Guitarist / Singer Songwriter Paul Weller , Bassist Bruce Foxton and Drummer Rick Buckler . They never made the Impact of The Ramones or The Sex Pistols but were just exceptional musicians and performers . They came out about the time I brought home the first DEVO album and my sisters ran to tell my Mom Immediately because they were all convinced I had gone crazy .Obviously that Is not the case right ? ( Dont come to my defense all at once people )
Anyway I got to see The Jam In early 1978 at a club that Is now closed In West Hollywood that has long been shutdown . And I saw them once more at the Santa Monica Civic around late 1979 just before 1980 . For three guys they put on a helluva show ! You did not sit down In your chair at a Jam show , It was far to energetic . But for the first window Into the Jam I want to Introduce you to a song called " In The City " . This was their first record and It was powerful ! I hope you like the song that Introduced me to " The Jam "
The first song that made me fall In love with The Jam
Some more good tunes by " The Jam "
Here are a few more clips for you to give you a lens Into why I am such a fan .
Art School off The In The City album .
All Around the world Top of the Pops 1977
Another great tune ! Strange Town
Down In the tube station at midnight - LIVE
1984 their last year .
The Jam finally got their first big hit In America In 1984 the song was " A town called Malice "
Everybody was convinced these guys were the new thing but The Jam had already been around for 8 years by this time . But as by usual standards the song was exceptional . And unfortunately they disbanded shortly after this . And Paul Weller the primary singer and songwriter for the band formed a new band called " The Style Council " . They had a few minor hits In the 80s too . But they could not match the energy of this threesome . But things always change !
Their one big hit ! 1984
The Jam
That Is my first part,
So basically folks this Is the first part of what I was listening to at that time . I was out of the house and moved like a mile and a half from my Mom , ya know just In case I got hungry or needed some help with laundry or something But this Is part of the early music that I loved and felt was underappreciated . I hope you liked It !
PrintShare it! — Rate it: up down flag this hub
Comments
Glad you liked them k@ri ! I was always a maniac about this band In their short time. I loved alot of main stream stuff . But I always had an attraction to the offbeat. I will be following up on this for sure . And as always thank you for your continued support my beautiful friend !
I WAS A YOUNGSTER THEN, BUT I ALWAYS LIKED THE OLDER STUFF BETTER .GOOD HUB, GOOD BAND
Thank you Lakerboy . Any fan of the Lakers Is OK with me . And I hate to sound like a snob but I agree that older stuff Is way better then the newer music . I am not saying new music Is bad , older stuff just seemed more diverse .
Hey tony0724,
Like your hub. These guys really bring back the memories.
Percy I am glad you enjoyed the hub . Yeah I really had some great times back In those days . I was definitely alot wilder . Now I think about bedtime at 9:30 PM , boy have times changed ! They were quite a trio were they not ?
Yeah they were. BTW I played in a power/punk trio myself, and my band played a lot of partys, and clubs, and concerts, n' stuff. Nothing's better than that! Big Sigh, God I miss those days.
Percy I really think you should write a hub about that ! Let me know If you do or If you have already written one . I am curious to read about It. And I miss those days too ! I had so much more energy . And It was a very exciting Era .
Thanks for giving a shoutout to the jam ! I loved em !
Thank you Jamfan and I am glad you enjoyed the article .I enjoyed putting It together .
Not only underrated but somehow they seem to have existed under the radar as I don't know them, not even their biggest hit! Now DEVO I know! LOL
Nice trip down memory lane, makes me think of my favourite bands, too (when the world was younger!). Anyway, I'd hop on board again for the next ride! :D
PS I'm still alive...work sucks - but of course you know! Haha
Thanks Cris . Like I said they never hit It very big but they were so good live ! And I know you and I share very similar music taste . I loved DEVO too ! I agree work sucks ! Have a great day my friend .
Tony, hate to be a weenie and nitpick a fellow Jam fanatic but just to correct a couple of things:
"Anyway I got to see The Jam In early 1978 at a club that is now closed In West Hollywood that has long been shutdown.
That was April 14th 1978 at The Starwood.
I will never live that one down, I was over at the Shrine Auditorium seeing Be-Bop Deluxe that night! :-O
"And I saw them once more at the Santa Monica Civic around late 1979 just before 1980."
That was actually March 16th 1980 - I was the very first person in the building, I got to the Civic at about 9 in the morning to be first in line!
They played at Royce Hall (UCLA) in 1979 btw. (I was there)
"1984 their last year.
The Jam finally got their first big hit in America in 1984 the song was "A Town Called Malice""
The Jam actually broke up in December of 1982.
Why didn't you go see them at Perkins Palace (3 shows at the end of May) in 1982?
Sorry my details were so fuzzy . I was just going off memory. But I always welcome a fellow Jam fanatic. And I think Bill Nelson of Be Bop Deluxe was an outstanding guitar player .
Hello my friend and fellow groover. You jes know I was rockin to the same bands you were. Can't agree more that The Jam should have been right up on those charts. I just love their aesthetic (that late '70s, early '80s skinny jeans and skinny ties -- soooo cute).
I'd forgotten that Paul Weller went on to found Style Council.
Remember that line in Tears for Fears song "Sowing the Seeds of Love" that goes "Kick out the style bring back the jam..."?
BTW, a little later (1984) I was major groupie/girlfriend to the lead guitarist of a band called Beat Surrender which was patterned majorly on ...guess who? Yep! The Jam
Can't wait to continue reading your hubs.
BTW, did you ever get to see The Ramones? I did!
MM I knew If anybody could appreciate this , It would be you ! Since you and I share the same great music taste !And I used to love that Tears for Fears song. Saw the Ramones 6 times by the way . The last one out In Pasadena .
Respect to Tony for reviving memories of The Jam. I was skinny teenager when they were big and I thought they were great. They came after the Clash though and were never considered to be quite as cool where I was from. Why don't you put a poll on this - best song by the Jam or best band of the era? Best song is one you included "Down in the Tubestation" Still packs a punch.
Thank you for the kind words advoco . I was In my late teens and early 20s as well. I love " Down In the tubestation " as well . I kindly thank you for dropping by . You obviously have good music taste !
Ahh, the jam...thank you for that. Was searchin for some of their stuff a while back to no avail (actually lookin for the song "Butterfly Collector", didn't find it, but did find Garbage mangling a remake of it).
Glad you like The Jam to dyonder ! I had no Idea Garbage had done a remake of It ! I always liked that song too though . Thank you for dropping In and may I say your music taste Is superb .
k@ri says:
3 months ago
Tony, I love them! I can't wait to read more about what you were listening to. I was around then and I always find it interesting :D