Spencer P. Jones
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Spencer Patrick Jones (28 October 1956 – 21 August 2018) was a New Zealand guitar player and singer-songwriter from
Te Awamutu Te Awamutu is a town in the Waikato, Waikato region in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the council seat of the Waipā District and serves as a service town for the farming communities which surround it. Te Awamutu is located some south ...
. From 1976 he worked in Australia and was a member of various groups including
The Johnnys The Johnnys are an Australian Pub rock (Australia), pub rock band from Sydney. The band was formed in 1982 and is still active today. The band combines country music, country and punk musical styles. Members are Graham Hood, Billy Pommer Jr and ...
,
Beasts of Bourbon Beasts of Bourbon were an Australian blues rock band formed in August 1983, with James Baker on drums (ex-Hoodoo Gurus, The Scientists), Spencer P. Jones on guitar ( The Johnnys), Tex Perkins on vocals (Dum Dums), Kim Salmon on guitar and Bo ...
, Paul Kelly and The Coloured Girls, Chris Bailey and The General Dog, Maurice Frawley and The Working Class Ringos, and Sacred Cowboys. He also issued ten albums as a solo artist. In May 2012 ''Australian Guitar'' magazine rated Jones as one of Australia's Top 40 best guitarists.


Biography

Spencer Patrick Jones was born 28 October 1956 and grew up on a farm in Te Awamutu, New Zealand. His father was a funeral director, farmer and then news agent. When his family moved to
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
, Jones and his siblings studied piano. On his 14th birthday he was given a guitar and became a self-taught musician. From 1976 he worked in Australia and his early groups were The Emotional Retards, Country Killed, Cuban Heels (1979–81), Beats Working (1981–82) and North 2 Alaskans (1982–83). In 1983 Jones joined
The Johnnys The Johnnys are an Australian Pub rock (Australia), pub rock band from Sydney. The band was formed in 1982 and is still active today. The band combines country music, country and punk musical styles. Members are Graham Hood, Billy Pommer Jr and ...
, a pub rock band, on lead guitar and backing vocals. Jones co-wrote their debut single, "I Think You're Cute", with their bass guitarist and lead vocalist, Roddy Rayda, which was issued in October. When Rayda left early in the next year, Spencer took over lead vocals. In April 1986 ''
The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...
'' described the group as a "combination of country punk, mayhem and cowboy image". In August that year
Mushroom Records Mushroom Records was an Australian flagship record label, founded in 1972 in Melbourne. It published and distributed many successful Australian artists and expanded internationally, until it was merged with Festival Records in 1998. Festival ...
issued their debut album, ''Highlights of a Dangerous Life'', with Ross Wilson producing (
Skyhooks Skyhook was a location technology company based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in location positioning. Founded in 2003, Skyhook initially focused on geolocating Wi-Fi access points by wardriving for commercial purposes. Skyhook trans ...
,
Company Caine Company Caine, also styled as Co. Caine and Company Kane, were an Australian progressive rock band. They were formed in March 1970 by Ray Arnott on drums (ex-Chelsea Set, Browns, Cam-Pact), Cliff Edwards on bass guitar (ex-Cam-Pact), Jeremy N ...
,
Mondo Rock Mondo Rock are an Australian rock band, formed in November 1976 in Melbourne, Victoria. Singer-songwriter Ross Wilson (musician), Ross Wilson founded the band, following the split of his previous band Daddy Cool (band), Daddy Cool. Guitarist Er ...
). The group broke up in 1989 and Jones continued with various other bands. In August 1983 while a member of The Johnnys, Jones formed a side-project,
Beasts of Bourbon Beasts of Bourbon were an Australian blues rock band formed in August 1983, with James Baker on drums (ex-Hoodoo Gurus, The Scientists), Spencer P. Jones on guitar ( The Johnnys), Tex Perkins on vocals (Dum Dums), Kim Salmon on guitar and Bo ...
(1983–85, 1988–93, 1996–97, 2003–08, 2013) with
James Baker James Addison Baker III (born April 28, 1930) is an American attorney, diplomat and statesman. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House chief of staff and 67th United States secretary ...
on drums (ex-
Hoodoo Gurus Hoodoo Gurus are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1981 by Dave Faulkner (songwriter, lead singer and guitarist) and later joined by Richard Grossman (bass), Mark Kingsmill (drums), and Brad Shepherd (guitar, vocals, harmonica). Th ...
),
Tex Perkins Gregory Stephen Perkins (born 28 December 1964), better known by his stage name Tex Perkins, is an Australian singer-songwriter who fronted the Australian rock band The Cruel Sea, but has also performed with the Beasts of Bourbon, Thug, Jam ...
on vocals (Dum Dums),
Kim Salmon Kim Leith Salmon (born 24 January 1957) is an Australian rock musician and songwriter from Perth. He has worked in various groups including The Scientists, Beasts of Bourbon, Kim Salmon and the Surrealists, Kim Salmon and the Business, and Darl ...
on guitar and Boris Sujdovic on bass guitar (both ex-
The Scientists The Scientists are a post-punk band from Perth, Western Australia, led by Kim Salmon, initially known as the Exterminators and then the Invaders. The band had two primary incarnations: the Perth-based punk rock, punk band of the late 1970s and ...
). Except for mainstays, Jones and Perkins, the line-up has changed as the group splintered and reformed several times. Steven Corby of ''The Canberra Times'' described Beasts of Bourbon in August 1990 as "a mutation of rock 'n roll, some blues, jazz, country, and a cornucopia of 20th century music as well as fartin' and thumpin', sexy girls, and ladies of the night". Other groups Jones worked with include Olympic Sideburns (1983), Paul Kelly and The Coloured Girls (1985), Legendary Stardust Cowboys (1986), The Rock Party (1986), The Butcher Shop (1988–93), Minced Meat (1989), Hell to Pay (1990–92), Chris Bailey and The General Dog (1992), Maurice Frawley and The Working Class Ringos (1993–2000), Sacred Cowboys (1994–95), Paul Kelly Band (1996, 1998, 2001–02) and Singers for the Red Black and Gold (1997). In November 1994 Jones released his debut solo album, ''Rumour of Death'', which he co-produced with Dave McCluney for Red Eye Records and
Polydor Records Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...
. Jones had started planning for his album in 1989 or 1990 but other projects intervened including Hell to Pay. Working with Jones on the album were
Warren Ellis Warren Girard Ellis (born 16 February 1968) is an English comic book writer, novelist, and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of several original comics series, including ''Transmetropolitan'' (1997–2002), ''Global Frequency'' ...
on violin (
Dirty Three Dirty Three are an Australian instrumental rock band, consisting of Warren Ellis (musician), Warren Ellis (violin, keyboards), Mick Turner (electric guitar, organ and bass) and Jim White (drummer), Jim White (drums), which formed in 1992. Their ...
,
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
), Brian Henry Hooper on bass guitar (Beasts of Bourbon,
Kim Salmon and the Surrealists Kim Salmon and the Surrealists are an Australian indie rock band formed by Kim Salmon in 1987 when he was living in Perth between the final two tours by The Scientists. When the Scientists stopped, Salmon continued the Surrealists as his main ...
), Peter Jones on drums (ex-Harem Scarem), Graham Lee on
pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a console steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings, enabling more varied and complex music to be played than with other steel guitar designs. Like all steel guitars, it can play ...
(ex-
The Triffids The Triffids were an Australian alternative rock and pop band, formed in Perth in Western Australia in May 1978 with David McComb as singer-songwriter, guitarist, bass guitarist and keyboardist.McFarlane (1999). Encyclopedia entry fo"The Triff ...
), Nick Rischbieth on guitar (Sacred Cowboys), and
Conway Savage Conway Victor Savage (27 July 1960 – 2 September 2018) was an Australian rock musician. He was a member of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, providing piano, organ & backing vocals from 1990 to 2017. Savage released solo albums entitled ''Nothing ...
on piano (
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are a Rock music, rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by lead vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and German guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throug ...
). Australian musicologist,
Ian McFarlane Ian McFarlane (born 1959) is an Australian music journalist, music historian and author, whose best known publication is the ''Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop'' (1999), which was updated for a second edition in 2017. As a journalist ...
, described the album as having "a timeless rock'n'roll feel with country elements". Fellow rock music journalist,
Ed Nimmervoll Edward Charles Nimmervoll Eduard Nimmervoll (21 September 194710 October 2014) was an Australian music journalist, author and historian. He worked on rock and pop magazines ''Go-Set'' (1966–1974) and ''Juke Magazine'' (1975–92) both as ...
, felt it was "a growling, introspective
country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...
album" with Spencer "a little unsure about the sound of his own voice but backing his vocals with strong songwriting, sparce arrangements, and a great performance". In March the following year he issued a single, "The World's Got Everything in It", from the album. The track had been written and first recorded by Minced Meat, a duo of Jones and Perkins, back in 1989; it was later re-recorded by Beasts of Bourbon. In late 1999 Jones formed a band, The Last Gasp, working with Hooper again on bass guitar, joined by Kieran Box on keyboards and Dan Luscombe on guitar (both from
The Blackeyed Susans ''For the American band with a similar name, see Blackeyed Susan.'' The Blackeyed Susans are an Australian rock band, which formed in Perth in 1989. Long serving members are Phil Kakulas on bass guitar, guitar and vocals; and Rob Snarski on v ...
), and Timmy Jack Ray on drums (
Powder Monkeys Powder Monkeys were an Australian punk, indie rock band, formed in 1991. The founding mainstays, Tim Hemensley, on bass guitar and lead vocals and John Nolan on lead guitar were both ex-members of Bored!. Powder Monkeys released three studio ...
). By mid-November the following year Jones issued his second solo album, ''The Last Gasp''. It was produced by
Tony Cohen Anthony Lawrence Cohen (4 June 19572 August 2017) was an Australian music record producer and sound engineer. He worked with Nick Cave's groups the Birthday Party, and then the Bad Seeds from 1979 to 2001. In mid-1986 he followed Cave to Lond ...
, Jones was backed by a nine-piece session band. Nimmervoll declared it was Album of the Week: "he's comfortable with the sound of his voice ... You can feel the smoky bar rooms this music was born in. The atmosphere is thick with music and attitude". I-94 Bar's The Barman noted the sound is "big, brassy and sprawling. Keyboard colourings abound, though there are sightings of Spencer's understated guitar". By November 2001 Jones released his next album, ''The Lost Anxiety Tapes'', on
MGM Distribution MGM Distribution (Metropolitan Groove Merchants) is the largest independent distributor of Australian music and music related merchandise. It was established in April 1998 by Sebastian Chase. MGM Distribution was set up specifically as a d ...
, featuring Cow Penalty with Amie Daniels on guitar, Steve Hadley on bass guitar, Des Heffner on drums and Matt Heydon on keyboards, piano, organ, synthesiser, and percussion. The Barman found the tracks had "simple, but effective, rock tuneage that push the edges in all sorts of little ways and exhibit not an ounce of fat". ''Cosmik Debris Magazine''s John Sekerka described Jones as one who "knows how to confuse, confound, amuse and delight" with his "various catchy melodies with provocative words, culminating in stupefying songs you'll be hard pressed not to hum". For his next album, ''Fait Accompli'' (2003), Jones worked with three different bands, Cow Penalty (with Heydon joined by Helen Cattanach on bass guitar, ex-
Moler Moler, previously called Snuff, are an Australian Indie power pop band which formed in 1993 as a three-piece with founding mainstays Helen Cattanach on bass guitar and lead vocals and Julien Poulson on lead guitar. They had a changing line-up ...
, and Harry Fischer on drums) on three of twelve tracks, Escape Committee (with Cattanach, Phil Gionfriddo on steel guitar, and Andy Moore on drums) on seven tracks, and New York-based group, The Beeks (Steve Boyle on guitar and keyboards,
Billy Ficca William Joseph Ficca (born February 15, 1950, in Delaware) is an American drummer who was a founding member of the rock groups Television (band), Television and The Waitresses. Career Of Italian origins, Ficca was a childhood friend of Tom ...
on drums, and Brian Ritchie on vocals and bass guitar) on two tracks. Nimmervoll described ''Fait Accompli'' being "filled with the growling impatient restless menace real rock and roll is made of" and with Jones fronting three groups "
e's is a Japanese shōnen manga series written and drawn by Satoru Yuiga. It was originally serialized in '' Monthly GFantasy'' from 1997 through 2005, and later published in 16 ''tankōbon'' volumes by Square Enix from March 18, 2003, to Febr ...
in the spotlight, hat on head, cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth, guitar in hand, telling you how life is or how he wants to imagine it. It don't matter. It ain't pretty". The Barman noted that it has a "greasy appropriation of the blues" and his "distinctive drawl and scuzzy lead guitar". Sleazegrinder's reviewer declared that Jones "writes and plays every lick, every lyric from the bottom of his soul, you can always feel it when someone spills their guts, means every bit of it, when they've not only written some tunes, but lived 'em, too. he album isa full experience, not a random assortment of half written leftovers, like most releases we endure nowadays". On 7 August 2006 Jones issued an album, ''Immolation & Amelioration 1995–2005'', which updated previously unfinished material from his back catalogue. It was commissioned by Spanish label,
Bang! Records Bang! Records is a Spanish record label from the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, which was formed in 1998 by Gorka Munster and Juan-Mari Iturrarte. The label has a primary focus on artists from Melbourne, Australia, and Ne ...
, where Spencer had developed a loyal following. ''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
''s Patrick Donovan opined that it showed his "many moods and styles, from snarling, swampy guitar slinger to tender balladeer, and features his many incarnations". The Barman described the various line ups as "a star-studded list of drop-ins, drop-outs and dropkicks to be sure, but the real star is Spencer hisself". For his April 2007 album, ''Fugitive Songs'', Jones worked with the Escape Committee (Cattanach, Gionfriddo, and Moore) again. The album was dedicated to veteran hard rocker,
Ian Rilen Ian William Rilen (12 August 1947 – 30 October 2006) was an Australian musician. He was bass guitarist and songwriter with rock and roll band Rose Tattoo, and led punk rock group X (Australian band), X on guitar and vocals. Rilen was born in ...
(1947–2006), who had been a band mate in Hell to Pay. ''The Age''s Andrew Stafford cited Jones remembering Rilen "I was playing in Hell to Pay and things started getting messy. I remember Ian saying, 'This is enough of this, we've got to stop doing it' – and he screwed up the syringe in his hand, you know, the needle sticking into his hand – 'F--- this shit, we've got to stop doing this!'" The album itself showed " ere's no one making better rock'n'roll records in the country". The Barman finds ''Fugitive Songs'' is "bluesy rock with the smell of cordite not far away. It doesn't bust down any barriers ... as fine an effort as anything else in his backpages". During 2008 Jones performed with a revised line up of the Escape Committee – Cattanach was joined by John Nolan on guitar (ex-
Bored! Bored (stylised as Bored!) were an Australian punk band formed in Geelong in 1987. The original line-up was Grant Gardner on bass guitar, Adrian Hann on keyboards, Justin Munday on drums, John Nolan on guitar (ex-Behind the Magnolia Curtain) and ...
, Hoss,
Powder Monkeys Powder Monkeys were an Australian punk, indie rock band, formed in 1991. The founding mainstays, Tim Hemensley, on bass guitar and lead vocals and John Nolan on lead guitar were both ex-members of Bored!. Powder Monkeys released three studio ...
); Hamish Marr on keyboards and backing vocals; and Cal McAlpine on drums (ex- The Chosen Few). Together they recorded a performance at the Elsternwick Hotel which was issued as Jones' first live album, ''Hang On... Hang On... Live from Melbourne'', later that year. I-Bar's Simon Li noted that it "enhances his reputation ... as a true National Living Treasure ... tfeatures nine classic songs for the world weary and downtrodden, drawn mostly from his Spooky Records catalogue". While fellow reviewer at the website, The Barman felt it is " ucously rude and liver than your great grandfather will ever be, this bang-up bag of some of Spencer's best-loved tunes dangerously hits the spot – like petrol poured on a barbecue. The ragged two-part vocals just add to the ambience". That year Jones also produced and played guitar on the self titled debut album by young Melbourne singer/songwriter Jules Sheldon. ''Sobering Thoughts'', his next solo studio album, was issued on 10 September 2010 on In the Dog House Records. In February 2013 Jones recalled " tis my favourite I think. I really like that record. It was easy to do, the songs came together quickly, I really like everybody's playing on it ... twas made at a real difficult time in my life. I kind of got through that time by making that record. By purging a whole lot of venom. A record has to have a bit of pain and a lot of action". In May 2012 ''Australian Guitar'' magazine rated Jones as one of Australia's Top 40 best guitarists. Jones also worked with the Nothing Butts, which had The Drones's
Gareth Liddiard Gareth Liddiard is an Australian musician, best known as a founding member of both The Drones and Tropical Fuck Storm. Musically active since 1997, he also released a solo album titled '' Strange Tourist'' in 2010. Early life and education Li ...
on guitar and Fiona Kitschin on bass guitar; and former Beasts of Bourbon band mate,
James Baker James Addison Baker III (born April 28, 1930) is an American attorney, diplomat and statesman. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House chief of staff and 67th United States secretary ...
on drums. They issued an album, ''Spencer P. Jones And The Nothing Butts'' on
Shock Records Shock Records was an Australian independent record label, branded with the logo Shock or Shock Australia. Founded in 1988, it traded as Shock Records Pty. Ltd, and its publishing arm as Shock Music Publishing Pty. Ltd. Its most prominent sublab ...
on 9 November 2012. Late that year he had teamed with Salmon (both ex-Beasts of Bourbon) which resulted in another album, ''The Runaways'' (February 2013). Jones was diagnosed with inoperable liver cancer in March 2018, nevertheless he performed in a benefit concert for his terminally ill band mate Hooper in their band Beasts of Bourbon. In June he publicly announced his diagnosis and entered palliative care. He died on 21 August 2018 and was survived by his wife Angie Jones.


Discography


Albums

* ''Rumour of Death'' (November 1994)  – Red Eye/
Polydor Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...
* ''The Last Gasp'' (November 2000) –
Spooky Records Spooky or Spookey may refer to: something that will cause creepiness or uncanniness. Arts and entertainment Music Musicians *Spooky (house music duo) * Spookey (UK band), a 1970s soul band based in Manchester *DJ Spooky, musician and producer * ...
(Spook001) * ''The Lost Anxiety Tapes'' (by Spencer P. Jones featuring Cow Penalty) (November 2001)  – Spooky Records/
MGM Distribution MGM Distribution (Metropolitan Groove Merchants) is the largest independent distributor of Australian music and music related merchandise. It was established in April 1998 by Sebastian Chase. MGM Distribution was set up specifically as a d ...
(Spooky004) * ''Fait Accompli'' (2003) – Spooky Records (Spooky010) * ''Immolation & Amelioration 1995–2005'' (7 August 2006) –
Bang! Records Bang! Records is a Spanish record label from the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, which was formed in 1998 by Gorka Munster and Juan-Mari Iturrarte. The label has a primary focus on artists from Melbourne, Australia, and Ne ...
(BANG! – LP14), Spooky Records (Spooky022) * ''Fugitive Songs'' (April 2007) – Spooky Records (Spooky024) * ''Hang On... Hang On... Live from Melbourne'' (2008) – Beast Records (BR 088) * ''Sobering Thoughts'' (by Spencer P. Jones & The Escape Committee) (10 September 2010)  – In the Dog House/Aztec (INTDHR 003) * ''Spencer P. Jones and the Nothing Butts'' (9 November 2012) –
Shock Records Shock Records was an Australian independent record label, branded with the logo Shock or Shock Australia. Founded in 1988, it traded as Shock Records Pty. Ltd, and its publishing arm as Shock Music Publishing Pty. Ltd. Its most prominent sublab ...
(MAX001) * ''Runaways'' (by Spencer P. Jones and
Kim Salmon Kim Leith Salmon (born 24 January 1957) is an Australian rock musician and songwriter from Perth. He has worked in various groups including The Scientists, Beasts of Bourbon, Kim Salmon and the Surrealists, Kim Salmon and the Business, and Darl ...
)
(February 2013)


Awards and nominations


EG Awards / Music Victoria Awards

The EG Awards (known as ''Music Victoria Awards'' since 2013) are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006. , - ,
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
, Spencer P. Jones , Best Male , , -


References

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External links

* Posters: all are titled "Poster advertising performance by Spencer P. Jones at The Continental Café, Prahran, Victoria", held at
State Library of Victoria State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in th ...
*
July 1996
*
October 1997
*
October 1998
*
April 2001


ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
DIG Internet Radio, 9 September 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Spencer P. 1956 births 2018 deaths New Zealand male guitarists 20th-century New Zealand male singers Place of death missing New Zealand male singer-songwriters New Zealand singer-songwriters People from Te Awamutu Paul Kelly and the Messengers members Beasts of Bourbon members