Shotgun & Jaybird
Encyclopedia
Shotgun & Jaybird were a Canadian
indie rock
band based in Sackville, New Brunswick
.
, from Ajax, Ontario
. Along with Dom Lloyd, they played a weekly set at The Pit, and recorded Dawson Towne Recordings with Sandy Silver.
Following the tour, they headed back to Sackville, New Brunswick
. There, they recorded and produced Sackville Classics for the Simple Ukulele. They also played the inaugural Stereophonic Music Festival, a fund raiser for CHMA-FM
, the local campus-community station.
During 2004 both Jim and Morello released solo albums.
Later in 2004, Julie Doiron
, known for her solo recording and work with Eric's Trip
, relocated to Sackville just in time to play the second Stereophonic festival. Also that year, Shotgun & Jaybird released their eponymous wallpaper greatest hits culled from Dawson Towne Recordings, Simple Songs, 6,000 True Stories and Rubber Covered Painter.
During this period, the duo began to play as a trio, adding Paul Henderson as a full-time drummer. Early shows with Henderson would often still consist of Morello and Jim trading guitar and drum duties, resulting in a two drum, one guitar band. Later in 2005 the trio began to back Julie Doiron in her solo efforts, and she began to play bass with them.
With the addition of Doiron, the band shifted its makeup so that both Jim and Dick played guitar. This larger, fuller sound was toyed with during the summer and fall of 2005, and in early 2006 they released the There Are Days and There Are Days EP
on the resurrected Sappy Records
imprint. This record featured art and layout by local artists Erik Edson and Very Silly Monkey, and collaboration with local musician W. L. Altman. The record was mastered by Toronto's Noah Mintz
.
The album marked a turning point for the band, leading to their first of several cross-Canada tours, as well as their most polished record to that point. During this time, Chad VanGaalen
was in Sackville as the artist in residence at faucet media arts centre, and he played several shows with Shotgun & Jaybird.
After touring to promote the EP, Henderson, Doiron and Jon Claytor set the very first Sappyfest in Sackville in motion. It was also during this time that they recorded "Trying to Get Somewhere"; released in the late summer, it has charted as high as #2 on the Earshot! charts. Their tour for this record, with Woolly Leaves and Julie Doiron, has been their most successful to date.
Late in 2006, Paul Henderson amicably left the band and was replaced by Jesse Baird, who has performed formerly with Drummer, the Janitors, Leslie Feist
, and Brother of Pidgeon.
It was announced that Shotgun & Jaybird broke up in May 2007, playing their final gig in Moncton, New Brunswick
.
In fall 2007, Julie and Dick played several shows opening for Eric's Trip
, and toured Eastern-Canada with The Superfantastics as Blue Heeler, and are now known as Calm Down It's Monday
. Shotgun Jimmie released another solo album called The Onlys in October 2007.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band based in Sackville, New Brunswick
Sackville, New Brunswick
Sackville is a Canadian town in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.Mount Allison University is located in the town...
.
History
Shotgun & Jaybird formed in mid-2003 when Dick Morello, formerly of The Janitors, travelled to the Yukon and was later joined by his lifelong friend and former Janitor, Shotgun JimmieShotgun Jimmie
Shotgun Jimmie is the stage name of Jim Kilpatrick, a Canadian singer-songwriter. Formerly associated with the band Shotgun & Jaybird, since that band's breakup he has released several albums as a solo artist....
, from Ajax, Ontario
Ajax, Ontario
Ajax is a town in the Durham Region in the Greater Toronto Area.The town is named for the HMS Ajax a Royal Navy cruiser that served in World War II. Ajax is a part of the Greater Toronto Area and the...
. Along with Dom Lloyd, they played a weekly set at The Pit, and recorded Dawson Towne Recordings with Sandy Silver.
Following the tour, they headed back to Sackville, New Brunswick
Sackville, New Brunswick
Sackville is a Canadian town in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.Mount Allison University is located in the town...
. There, they recorded and produced Sackville Classics for the Simple Ukulele. They also played the inaugural Stereophonic Music Festival, a fund raiser for CHMA-FM
CHMA-FM
CHMA-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 106.9 MHz in Sackville, New Brunswick. It is a campus/community station functioning as the campus radio station of Mount Allison University and the community radio station of Sackville, New Brunswick.-History:On April 10, 1975, Attic...
, the local campus-community station.
During 2004 both Jim and Morello released solo albums.
Later in 2004, Julie Doiron
Julie Doiron
Julie Doiron is an award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter of Acadian heritage.-Background:Doiron started playing guitar in Eric's Trip at the age of eighteen, having joined the band at the insistence of her then-boyfriend, Rick White, also of Eric's Trip...
, known for her solo recording and work with Eric's Trip
Eric's Trip
Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s...
, relocated to Sackville just in time to play the second Stereophonic festival. Also that year, Shotgun & Jaybird released their eponymous wallpaper greatest hits culled from Dawson Towne Recordings, Simple Songs, 6,000 True Stories and Rubber Covered Painter.
During this period, the duo began to play as a trio, adding Paul Henderson as a full-time drummer. Early shows with Henderson would often still consist of Morello and Jim trading guitar and drum duties, resulting in a two drum, one guitar band. Later in 2005 the trio began to back Julie Doiron in her solo efforts, and she began to play bass with them.
With the addition of Doiron, the band shifted its makeup so that both Jim and Dick played guitar. This larger, fuller sound was toyed with during the summer and fall of 2005, and in early 2006 they released the There Are Days and There Are Days EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
on the resurrected Sappy Records
Sappy Records
Sappy Records is an independent record label based in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada, started by Julie Doiron in 1990 in order to release her own cassette....
imprint. This record featured art and layout by local artists Erik Edson and Very Silly Monkey, and collaboration with local musician W. L. Altman. The record was mastered by Toronto's Noah Mintz
Noah Mintz
Noah Mintz is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist and mastering engineer. Mintz founded the band hHead with Brendan Canning in the 1990s...
.
The album marked a turning point for the band, leading to their first of several cross-Canada tours, as well as their most polished record to that point. During this time, Chad VanGaalen
Chad VanGaalen
Chad VanGaalen is a Canadian musician and artist from Calgary, Alberta.-Infiniheart:Following a few scattered independent releases, done mostly on homemade CDs with hand-drawn art, VanGaalen released Infiniheart on Canadian independent label Flemish Eye...
was in Sackville as the artist in residence at faucet media arts centre, and he played several shows with Shotgun & Jaybird.
After touring to promote the EP, Henderson, Doiron and Jon Claytor set the very first Sappyfest in Sackville in motion. It was also during this time that they recorded "Trying to Get Somewhere"; released in the late summer, it has charted as high as #2 on the Earshot! charts. Their tour for this record, with Woolly Leaves and Julie Doiron, has been their most successful to date.
Late in 2006, Paul Henderson amicably left the band and was replaced by Jesse Baird, who has performed formerly with Drummer, the Janitors, Leslie Feist
Leslie Feist
Leslie Feist , known professionally as simply Feist, is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, both as a solo artist and as a member of the indie rock group Broken Social Scene....
, and Brother of Pidgeon.
It was announced that Shotgun & Jaybird broke up in May 2007, playing their final gig in Moncton, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
.
In fall 2007, Julie and Dick played several shows opening for Eric's Trip
Eric's Trip
Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s...
, and toured Eastern-Canada with The Superfantastics as Blue Heeler, and are now known as Calm Down It's Monday
Calm Down It's Monday
Calm Down It's Monday were a Canadian indie rock two-piece band featuring Frederick Squire and Julie Doiron.Formed after the break-up of Shotgun & Jaybird, the twosome originally began playing as Blue Heeler, but changed to the name Calm Down It's Monday some time over the winter of 2007-2008.Their...
. Shotgun Jimmie released another solo album called The Onlys in October 2007.
Members
- Fred "Dick Morello" Squire – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocals, drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Jim "Shotgun Jimmie" KilpatrickShotgun JimmieShotgun Jimmie is the stage name of Jim Kilpatrick, a Canadian singer-songwriter. Formerly associated with the band Shotgun & Jaybird, since that band's breakup he has released several albums as a solo artist....
– guitar, vocals, drums - Julie DoironJulie DoironJulie Doiron is an award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter of Acadian heritage.-Background:Doiron started playing guitar in Eric's Trip at the age of eighteen, having joined the band at the insistence of her then-boyfriend, Rick White, also of Eric's Trip...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals - Paul Henderson – drums (2004–2006)
- Jesse Baird – drums (late 2006–2007)
Discography
- Dawson Towne Recordings – 2003
- Sackville Classics For Simple Ukulele – 2004
- Shotgun & Jaybird – 2005
- There Are Days and Then There Are Days – 2006
- "Two Minutes Faster" on Volume II 7" compilation (Out of Touch Records) - 2006
- Trying to Get SomewhereTrying to Get SomewhereTrying to Get Somewhere is the fifth and final release by Canadian indie rock band Shotgun & Jaybird, released in 2006 on Sappy Records.-Track listing:# "3 1 8 6 4 2 9 7 5"# "Two and Two is Four"# "Writing on Our Arms"# "Come Back Slowly"...
– 2006