The Wallflowers first formed in 1989 when Jakob dropped out of New York's Parsons School of Art and moved to Los Angeles where he and a guitarist named Tobi Miller hooked up with drummer Peter Yanowitz, keyboardist Rami Jaffee, and bassist Barrie Maguire to begin playing in clubs around the LA area. The band was finally signed to Virgin Records and released a self-titled debut album, featuring the single "Ashes to Ashes", in August of 1992. Despite good reviews and a opening slot on a tour with Natalie Merchant, The Wallflowers didn't take off. Airplay for the single was almost nonexistent and the album sold only around 40,000 copies. Even worse, Jakob had garnered a reputation for being stubborn and hard to work with because he refused to give interviews or let the company use his family name for publicity. He was afraid that he would appear to be exploiting his "son of" celebrity. The company regarded such scruples as unworkable in modern-day business. The band eventually begged to be let out of their contract. Although the break with Virgin represented a mutual understanding between the company and the band, most people assumed that they had been dropped due to poor sales.
For months after the Wallflowers left Virgin, it looked as though they would never get another deal. Other labels were leery about signing a band that had been supposedly dropped by another label, not to mention the fact that the band's frontsman was lugging around all that Dylan baggage and a reputation for being difficult. Band members trickled away to other projects and the original gang dwindled down to Rami and Jakob. They set about refilling their roster. They hooked up with bassist Greg Richling, an old high school jam session buddy of Jakob's. The lead guitarist spot was filled by Michael Ward and drum duties were given to Matt Chamberlain, who has done a short tour with Pearl Jam. After debating a name change in light of all the personnel changes, they decided to stick with the Wallflowers.
The new lineup started playing around the LA area. Their demo of "6th Avenue Heartache", a song with an edgier sound than Jakob's earlier offerings, grabbed the attention of several record labels. And there were more songs where that came from. On the strength of these songs, Interscope Records signed the band, which headed to the studio to record its sophmore effort with producer T-Bone Burnett and a slew of guest musicians: Adam Duritz of Counting Crows, Gary Louris of the Jayhawks, Michael Penn, and Sam Phillips. The album Bringing Down the Horse was released in May of 1996. Jakob later explained the meaning behind the title to Rolling Stone: "That's what it felt like for 3 years trying to make this damned thing. It was like trying to pull down a horse." After the recording of the album, Matt Chamberlain parted ways with the band. He was succeeded by Mario Calire who completes the lineup now playing together.
The first single released was "6th Avenue Heartache," the song that helped land the record deal with Interscope. Jakob has related that the tune was inspired by a homeless man who made his home across from where Jake lived in New York while in art school. The man would get up and play songs on his guitar every day, but one day, he disappeared, leaving all his belongings behind; he never reappeared. The memory of this homeless man stuck in Jakob's mind and the song he eventually wrote about him became a multi-format radio smash and also scored two Grammy nominations for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song. The singles "One Headlight," "The Difference," and "Three Marlenas" followed.
A lengthy tour in support of the album helped to push U.S. sales to 3 million by the middle of 1997. When the Wallflowers took the stage during the 1997 MTV Video/Music Awards to perform "One Headlight," they received the Boss's blessing. They jammed with Bruce Springsteen and brought the house down. This song with a powerful melody, insightful lyrics, and lush guitar orchestration, has become the band's signature tune. The song is about going through rough times, being lonely and depressed. It's also about beating the odds, finding fulfillment in the face of a cynical, corrupt world. What a perfect tune for a group that has been through so many rough times yet has been able to come out on top.
Ever since the release of Bringing Down the Horse, the Wallflowers have shown no sign of slowing down. The band taped a episode of MTV's Unplugged and performed to sold-out shows throughout 1997. They're currently back in the studio to record their third album which will be released around the end of the year. And at the 40th annual Grammy Awards, they nabbed 2 Grammys for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for "One Headlight"!!! Personally, I, as a HUGE Wallflowers fan, am looking forward to the release. I've heard good things about the new song "Skinny Lips". Several pages around the net have sound clips and lyrics from this song. Check around to find them. I think the Wallflowers are just beginning to show us what they can do. They can only get better with time. Hopefully, they'll be around for a long, LONG time to come!!