About Joan.
One of the few folks who can actually claim to be a native Los Angeleno, Joan Jones was born and raised in the heart of Hollywood.
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Bio
Back in the early 1980's, Los Angeles California, was rocking with bands & fans flooding legendary clubs like The Whiskey-a-Go-Go, Gazzarri's, the Starwood, the China Club & Madame Wongs. The punk scene was thriving on the strength of Black Flag, X, the Germs, & more while the Paisley Underground also started gaining traction with the Bangles, the Dream Syndicate, Redd Kross, & others. Even glam metal was finding its way thanks to rockers like Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, & Guns N Roses.
Just down the road from all the action on the Sunset Strip was Hollywood High. That's where Joan Jones could be found. A Hollywood native serving as the school's trumpet-playing mascot, Jones was soaking it all up and more. In her music collection were classic albums from the Doors, Stevie Wonder, and Spike Jones alongside releases by Lucinda Williams, X, & U2 to inform the genre-bending style that would become Joan's singular trademark. Once she was out of high school & attending UCLA, Joan decided to follow her dreams of being a singer/songwriter. One of her first professional jobs was singing with Dave Wakeling (English Beat) on the title track of the late filmmaker, John Hughes movie, "She's Having A Baby". The song was one of the first movie tracks to actually debut as a video on MTV with a performance and interviews of Dave Wakeling and Joan. This experience inspired Joan to create her own band, a folk band called Far Cry. The band started paying their dues on the L.A. club circuit and after a few years, signed with Sony Music's Epic Records. Far Cry changed their name to SUN 60 and released three records: first was 'SUN 60' (1992), next was 'Only' (1993), and 'Headjoy' (1995). The group toured with Crowded House, Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Material Issue, Paul Weller just to name a few. SUN 60's songwriting led to many song placements in popular TV shows, "Bay Watch" and many more, to feature films like Mike Meyer's black comedy "So I Married An Axe Murderer", just to name a few. |
By 1996, after a solid nine-year run, SUN 60 called it a day and Jones took some hard-earned downtime before starting in on a solo project. Eventually, she found a musical comrade in producer, Nick Didia, and a new record deal with Hollywood Records. Joan's 1998 solo debut album, "Starlite Criminal", combined her knack for unique arrangements, catchy melodies, and contemplative lyrics to great effect. To support the effort, Jones took part in tours with Seal, Fastball, Ziggy Marley, and the Lilith Fairs. Joan's songwriting was yet again a huge outlet for her artistry. Her song, "Everyday Down" was on the season finale for the hit TV show "Felicity".
In the summer of 2000, Joan composed music for the animated Internet show, "The Prom Queens", while also working on more songs of her own. Independent releases– "Velvet Underdog" (2000) & "Atlanta Sessions" (2001) kept her fans satisfied in the early 2000s. Then, in 2007, came "Brown Blonde", which continued the musical thread--and artistic collaboration with Nick Didia and songwriter/producer Tony Reyes--started nearly a decade earlier with the album "Starlite Criminal". That year, Joan also partnered with former SUN 60 guitarist, Bret Jensen on "Heartbeat", a song featured in the movie 'P.S. I Love You', starring Gerard Butler & Hilary Swank. In 2009, Joan followed that up with more touring as the opener & trumpet player for long-time friends, Big Head Todd & the Monsters on their U.S. Winter tour. |
Joan Jones has been celebrated as one of Southern California's original rock'n roll singer/songwriters. Native to the Sunset Strip, her songs have seeped into the SoCal rock music culture, in league with the guitar and vocals reminiscent of when albums were worn out from repeat play.
Luckily the songstress was captured on three albums by both Sony Epic Records and Disney's Hollywood Records. Recently, in October 2017 Joan was excited to be singing backgrounds for a rare and sold out performance by Hope Sandoval at the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood, alongside fellow artist Libby Lavella. Joan continues to write songs and perform live. |
"The second you see Joan Jones, you immediately think 'star' & that's before she begins to sing. Then you hear a voice of such astonishing range & emotion, & you are taken away to wherever she wants to take you. If you are lucky enough to see Joan perform, you'll be rocking out one minute & sitting in silent wonderment the next. She's as real & as honest as it gets." |
"Joan Jones first hit me in the '90s & it felt like a bold, pushy kiss. The SUN 60 song, "C'mon & Kiss Me" was so sweetly contagiously, melodic, strong, & strummy, the lyrics full of confidence that I knew I had to hear more. The first Joan Jones solo album confirmed everything I loved about SUN 60- perfect pop songs with a partly sunny disposition." |