Grandaddy are an American indie pop band formed in Modesto, California in 1… Read Full Bio ↴Grandaddy are an American indie pop band formed in Modesto, California in 1992 by singer/guitarist/keyboardist Jason Lytle, bassist Kevin Garcia, and drummer Aaron Burtch; although a noisy, lo-fi approach characterized early recordings like 1994's Complex Party Come Along Theories, with the 1995 additions of guitarist Jim Fairchild and keyboardist Tim Dryden the group's sound expanded exponentially over the course of subsequent efforts including the unreleased Don't Sock the Tryer and the 1996 EP A Pretty Mess by This One Band. Originally issued on indie label Will Records, 1997's acclaimed full-length Under the Western Freeway proved Grandaddy's creative breakthrough, and the following year the album was reissued on major-label V2, with "Summer Here Kids" earning Single of the Week honors in the pages of the NME. The Broken Down Comforter Collection, a compilation of singles tracks, preceded the 1999 Signal to Snow Ratio EP, which heralded a movement toward the vintage electronic textures further in evidence on 2000's superb The Sophtware Slump. In 2002, the group released another odds-n-sods collection, Concrete Dunes, which paved the way for a busy 2003: that spring, Grandaddy released the Floating Debris EP and their fourth full-length, Sumday, and spent the rest of the year touring, making appearances at festivals such as Glastonbury. In 2005, they resurfaced with the Excerpts from the Diary of Todd Zilla EP and a full-length album (Just Like the Fambly Cat) followed in 2006. It was to be their last, though Jason Lytle continues to tour, playing Grandaddy songs as well as his own solo works.

Additional Info:

Under the name Arm of Roger, Grandaddy recorded a joke album entitled The Ham and its Lily in 2002.

A.M. 180, which was released as a single, is featured prominently in the British film 28 Days Later.

On the 27th January 2006, Jason Lytle confirmed that the band would split following the release of their final album, Just Like The Fambly Cat.

Jason Lytle has since toured the US as a solo artist, playing Grandaddy songs from the last album and others. He is said to plan a solo career of new material.

On March 2, 2012, Grandaddy announced their reunion with news of a headline slot at the End of the Road Festival in Dorset, England on 2 September. Further dates are expected.

I Don't Want To Record Anymore
Grandaddy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

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Tamn the tones
And test the tones
That pre-amp does

Impass the lomes
Continuing the input please
Dial in the gates release
Reverse phase and reverb plates
Will give the instrument some space
Earphone monitor fatigue
Green compression from Jonique
I sound as though I know my stuff
And sure I guess I know enough
But I'm just a dork
And can't really record
I'm sorry I won't say no more

Except for
I don't want to record anymore

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Grandaddy's song "I Don't Want To Record Anymore" describe the technical process of recording music. The opening lines, "Tamn the tones / And test the tones" refer to tweaking the tone settings on the recording equipment to get the desired sound. The line "That pre-amp does / Impass the lomes" refers to the pre-amplifier, which amplifies the signal from the microphone to a level that can be recorded, and the "lomes" may refer to the singers.

The following lines describe further steps in the recording process, such as adjusting the input, releasing the gates (which control the level of sound, so that only the desired sounds are recorded), reversing the phase (which can create interesting stereo effects), and adding reverb to give the recording some depth. The line "Will give the instrument some space" refers to the way that reverb can create the sense that the instrument is being played in a larger room.

The final lines of the song reveal the deeper meaning behind the technical process of recording: the singer of the song is a self-proclaimed "dork" who has some knowledge of recording, but ultimately feels inadequate and doesn't want to record anymore. The song captures the tension between the technical aspects of music production and the vulnerability and self-doubt that artists must confront in order to create.

Line by Line Meaning

Tamn the tones
Fine-tune the sounds

And test the tones
Check the sounds for quality

That pre-amp does
Amplifier used before recording

Impass the lomes
Provides electric signals

Continuing the input please
Keep the music flowing

Dial in the gates release
Control the volume of incoming signals

Reverse phase and reverb plates
Audio effects to create ambiance and depth

Will give the instrument some space
Creates room in the audio track

Earphone monitor fatigue
Tiredness from wearing earphones for too long

Green compression from Jonique
Tech used to control audio levels

I sound as though I know my stuff
I may appear knowledgeable in audio engineering