Stars & Stripes

Oi music was something that Jack Kelly, Jordan Wood and Mark McKay all liked, so they started experimenting and it resulted in an Oi band called Stars And Stripes. Jack Kelly on vocals, Mark McKay on drums and Jordan Wood played both guitar and bass.



Stars And Stripes released a 7" single ["Drop The Bomb"] on Vulture Rock Records in 1989 and a full-length album, "Shaved For Battle", on Jack Kelly's Oi label, Patriot Records [also in 1989].



Vulture Rock Records reissued "Drop The Bomb" in 1994 with new artwork and Taang! Records reissued both "Drop The Bomb" and "Shaved For Battle" on CD and LP in 1998.



With the original lineup, Stars And Stripes only played out once, on November 11 1989, at a club called Bunratty's in Allston, Massachusetts. The show featured all the Patriot Records bands; Stars And Stripes, Forced Reality and The Bruisers.



A few weeks before the show Jack Kelly asked Jeff Morris and Scotty Davies [the guitar player and the bass player of The Bruisers] player to join Stars And Stripes for the show. Since the band on record consisted of just Jack Kelly, Jordan Wood and Mark McKay they needed a second guitar player and bass player to play live.



They all went to the Slapshot practice spot 2 or 3 times to rehearse [in Steve Risteen's father's bar, or something like that]. They played in the basement of the bar surrounded by all the empty beer cases.



Then nothing really happened with Stars And Stripes until bass player Chris Lauria rejoined Slapshot in 2002 and Stars And Stripes started playing live again [then with Chris Lauria on bass]. A new record, entitled "One Man Army" was also released on I Scream Records.