Although it has been 6 years since the release of their landmark, critically lauded album “Around the Year with Joe, Marc’s Brother,” the legacy of Joe, Marc’s Brother continues to grow, thanks in part to the members’ notable extracurricular work with Guster, Josh Rouse, and several other artists.
The JMB saga (of which a much more elaborate history has been presented on their website) began in the early 90’s when Joe and Marc Pisapia left their native New Jersey for greener pastures in Nashville (Music City), TN. Not long after settling into their new home, the brothers from NJ burst onto the Nashville music scene as a bright and shining star. With their memorable melodies, lush harmonies, and categorization-defying sound, JMB garnered legions of die-hard fans and a sizable (often suffocating) buzz in the music biz. The release of their debut album not-so-ironically titled “The Debut of Joe, Marc’s Brother,” earned the band airplay in the Southeast, a Nashville Music Award, critical praise and even more fans.
After years of performing as a 4 piece, the band was retooled with the departure of rhythm guitarist and golden throated singer David Mead for a solo career, subsequent departure of original bassist Pete Langella for family life, and the addition of newly transplanted New Yorker and Marc’s college band mate on bass, James “Hags” Haggerty. The band began phase 2 of JMB as a 3 piece in the converted basement of the house they shared in an idyllic neighborhood of Nashville.
JMB emerged from the basement with a slew of new songs, an entirely new sound, and a bag fool of tricks. The band lost little momentum as their dedicated fans ecstatically embraced the new JMB. The band continued to be “the” band to see in Music City. Several different studio sessions produced the (extremely limited) seasonal ep’s which comprised demo versions of many of the songs that would appear on “Around the Year”
1999 saw the band enter Alex the Great studio with musical duo Brad Jones and Robin Eaton (Jill Sobule, Josh Rouse, Marshall Crenshaw) in the production seats. Limited by time and funding, the sessions were recorded militia style in breaks from touring and downtime at the studio. Recorded and mixed in less than 2 weeks, “Around the Year with…” strikes the balance of energetic immediacy and polished perfection.
Although the release of “Around…” on their own Ambassador label garnered much praise from critics and peers, a worthwhile record deal eluded the band. In a time of uncertainty in the music business when new models of business were emerging thanks to the advent of the web and most record execs were making no-brainer marketing decisions glutting the channels with cookie-cutter modern rock, countless boy bands, and unforgivable commercial punk, JMB was a risk and categorically challenging.
Despite the lack of support from a record deal, the band managed to tour behind the album opening for friends’ bands like Guster and Superdrag as well as several D.I.Y adventures most notably their “Stream of Consciousness” tour that saw the band heading out West without a plan other than to play to whomever and wherever. (Details of the tour can be found on the band’s website)
After years of hard work, the band decided in 2002 to take a hiatus. Joe recorded the beautiful and critically acclaimed solo album “Daydreams” before being commandeered by Guster as their new 4th member, a relationship that would find him on the road for the greater part of the last 3 years as well as solidifying a pivotal influence on the bands’ sound. He is currently putting the finishing touches on their soon to be released album “Ganging Up On the Sun.” Marc and Hags were immediately enlisted by Josh Rouse as his new rhythm section and began a recording and touring relationship that would yield 2 of Josh’s best received albums to date “1972” and “Nashville” and see them globe trotting on several international tours.
Although the individual members have been immersed in outside projects, they have been returning with greater frequency to their JMB home base when time allows, giving hope that their work is not finished and that there may indeed be more to come.
The JMB legacy reveals the idealistic vision of a band of multi-talented musicians, unadulterated by the often compromising forces of the music business, making the music they wanted to hear. Their catalog is forever crystallized in its unabashed innocence and adventurousness.
