Poor Old Lu was a pioneering

Christian alternative rock Christian alternative rock is a form of alternative rock music that is lyrically grounded in a Christian worldview. Some critics have suggested that unlike CCM and older Christian rock, Christian alternative rock generally emphasizes musical ...

band based in the American Northwest. The band experimented with a variety of sounds and genres, particularly

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

and

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

. The band consisted of Scott Hunter (vocals), Jesse Sprinkle (drums),

Aaron Sprinkle Aaron Sprinkle (born March 20, 1974) is an American record producer and musician from Seattle, Washington. Career His career in music began in high school with a group called BellBangVilla. BellBangVilla became Poor Old Lu and they relea ...

(guitar), and Nick Barber (bass). Hunter was the lyricist who wrote on philosophical,

metaphorical A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

, and spiritually oriented topics. Common themes in the lyrics include introspective struggles with identity and

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

, struggles with a

superficial Superficial may refer to: *Superficial anatomy, is the study of the external features of the body *Superficiality, the discourses in philosophy regarding social relation * Superficial charm, the tendency to be smooth, engaging, charming, slick and ...

, secular, and modern society, and hope for life abundant. The ''Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music'' calls the band "One of the most accomplished and creative Christian bands of the '90s". The name refers to ''

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' is a portal fantasy novel written by British author C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' (1950–1956 ...

'', in which Lucy ('Lu'), returns from Narnia and tells her brother, Peter. Peter doesn't believe her story, however, and responds patronizingly, "Poor old Lu, hiding and nobody noticed."

History

The band began as "BellBangVilla", recording an album, 'In Love with the Greenery,' in 1990. The band changed its name to Poor Old Lu and recorded a three-song demo tape in 1991. In 1992, they recorded their first full-length album, ''Star-Studded-Super-Step'', reworking some of the songs from 'In Love with the Greenery' for the album. Originally released on cassette, the album was re-released on CD by

Alarma Records Alarma Records was an imprint of Newpax Records and Frontline Records. Alarma! Records and Tapes was formed in 1983 by the band Daniel Amos with musician Tom Howard for the release of their ''Doppelgänger'' album. The name of the label comes ...

in 1995. In 1993, they released ''Mindsize'', produced by Terry Taylor and

Derri Daugherty Derri Daugherty (born Derald Daugherty; October 13, 1958) is an American record producer, songwriter, guitarist and singer, best known as the lead singer and guitarist for band the Choir. Daugherty is also one of the founding members of the R ...

. It turned out to be their breakthrough. The following summer, the band recruited engineer/producer John Goodmanson, and ''Sin'' was recorded and released in 1994. In 1995, they released ''Straight Six'', an EP which featured

Jeremy Enigk Jeremy Enigk (; born July 16, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter, vocalist and guitarist/multi-instrumentalist. He is known as a solo artist, a film score composer, and as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist of the Seattle-ba ...

Sunny Day Real Estate Sunny Day Real Estate is an American emo band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1992. The band currently consists of founding members Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar), Dan Hoerner (guitar) and William Goldsmith (drums), alongside Greg Suran ...

on one track. In 1996 they released ''A Picture of the Eighth Wonder''. In late 1996, the band broke up, playing their farewell concert in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

in November 1996. The concert was recorded and released in 1998 as ''In Their Final Performance''. In 2002, the band reunited and recorded ''The Waiting Room'' for

Tooth and Nail Records Tooth & Nail Records is a record label founded by Brandon Ebel in California in November 1993. The label later moved to Seattle where it is today. History Brandon Ebel and Michael Knott conceived the label as a joint venture, before Knott back ...

. In support of this release, the band reunited for a number of shows in 2002, playing at select venues in Seattle as well as a few select Christian music festivals that included

Cornerstone A cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry Foundation (engineering), foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entir ...

, TomFest and Purple Door.

After Poor Old Lu

After the group's initial break-up, band members moved on to independent projects. In 1997, Nick Barber joined with Aaron Sprinkle in the group Rose Blossom Punch. Nick Barber played in the bands Meekin Pop and Blue Collar Love. By the time Rose Blossom Punch split up, Aaron Sprinkle had started a solo career,. He has released seven albums since 1999. In 2005, Aaron Sprinkle formed the band

Fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Fairs showcase a wide range of go ...

with Joey Sanchez, Nick Barber and Erik Newbill. Jesse Sprinkle moved to New York. He ran the recording studio the Illuminata in Dansville,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

until early 2006, when the studio closed. He opened a new studio, Bluebrick Recordings, in 2007. He has played drums in a number of bands, including Morella's Forest, Demon Hunter and Dead Poetic. He has also recorded a number of solo albums. In 2006, Hunter started a new band, This Diminishing West, which broke up after releasing an EP online. In 2018, Aaron and Jesse released an EP of six songs under the moniker Blank Books.

Post-2002 reunions

Poor Old Lu reunited in 2011 for an acoustic house show. In 2013, the group gathered to record one song, "The Great Unwound". It was written and released in support of "Paradise Uganda", a ministry of Jesse Sprinkle. No statements about future releases were made. In 2014, the group recorded a Christmas song with Vekora; it is entitled "The Brightest Star".

Members

* Scott Hunter – lead vocals, lyrics * Jesse Sprinkle – drums, percussion, vocals *

– guitar, keyboards, vocals * Nick Barber – bass guitar, vocals

Discography

* ''In Love with the Greenery'' s BellBangVilla(1990) cassette only * ''Three Song Demo'' (1991) cassette only * ''Star-Studded-Super-Step'' (1992) cassette only * ''Mindsize'' (1993,

, Review: Jesus Freak Hideout) * ''Split 7-inch with Mortal'' (1993, Intense Records) * ''Sin'' (1994, Alarma Records, Reviews: Jesus Freak Hideout, ''Cross Rhythms'') * ''Sin LP'' w/ bonus track (1994, Alarma Records) * ''Straight Six'' (1995, Alarma Records, Review: ''Cross Rhythms'') * ''Star-Studded-Super-Step'' (1995, independent, Reviews: The Phantom Tollbooth) * ''Sit and Stare VHS'' (1995, Alarma Records) * ''A Picture of the Eighth Wonder'' (1996, Alarma Records, Reviews: Jesus Freak Hideout, ''Cross Rhythms'') * ''In Their Final Performance'' (1998,

KMG Records KMG (Killen Music Group) Records was a Christian record label. The label was established in 1997 by Buddy Killen as a subunit of the Killen Music Group / Buddy Killen Enterprises and sold in late 1998 to Cal Turner III, who is related to the Cal ...

, Reviews: ''HM Magazine'') * ''Chrono 993-1998' (1998, KMG Records, Reviews: The Phantom Tollbooth, ''HM Magazine'') * ''Star-Studded-Super-Step CD re-release'' (1998, KMG Records) * ''Mindsize/Sin'' inus "Peapod", "Sickly", and "Come to Me"( 2000, KMG Records - "Classic Archives") * ''Poor Old Lu & Serene'' (promo 2002,

) * ''The Waiting Room'' (2002, Tooth and Nail Records) * "The Great Unwound" (song, 2013)

Compilation appearances

* ''Browbeat: Unplugged Alternative'' – "Drenched Decent" (1995,

) * ''CHR Sampler 95 - Spring Tunes'' – "Ring True" (promo 1995,

Frontline Records Frontline Records was a Christian rock record label, founded in 1986 by James Kempner in Santa Ana, California. The label focused primarily on modern rock, rap, dance-pop and hip-hop. The label closed in the early 1990s, and then resurfaced in ...

) * ''Persuading You Near'' – "Thoughtless (Concept Version)" (1996, Working Man Records) * ''Noises from the Top of the Alarma Hotel'' – "Receive", "Chance for the Chancers" (promo 1996, Alarma Records) * ''Sparkler Vol. 1'' – "It's Simple to Me" (1997, Spark Recordings) * ''Happy Christmas Vol. 3'' – "What Child Is This?" (2001,

BEC Recordings Tooth & Nail Records is a record label founded by Brandon Ebel in California in November 1993. The label later moved to Seattle where it is today. History Brandon Ebel and Michael Knott conceived the label as a joint venture, before Knott back ...

) * ''Here & Now'' – "Revolve" (2003, BEC Recordings)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Alternative rock groups from Washington (state) Christian rock groups from Washington (state) Musical groups established in 1990 Musical groups disestablished in 1996 Tooth & Nail Records artists