The band's name derives from a bird Vinnie had while growing up, which was treated better than the rest of the family. It's also a reference to the phrase "everything is jake," which is an old phrase meaning everything is cool.
Less Than Jake released their debut album, Pezcore, in 1995, following a series of independent seven-inch single releases. The band's subsequent two studio albums, Losing Streak (1996) and Hello Rockview (1998), were released on major label, Capitol Records, leading to increased exposure. The band's fifth studio album Anthem (2003) was their most commercially successful to date, featuring the singles, "She's Gonna Break Soon" and "The Science of Selling Yourself Short".
In 2008 the band founded its own label, Sleep It Off Records, and released its seventh full-length album, GNV FLA. The band has recently stated its preference for EP releases, and independently issued Greetings from Less Than Jake (2011) and its counterpart, Seasons Greetings from Less Than Jake (2012). In late 2012, the band combined the two to create the compilation album, Greetings and Salutations (2012) Their eighth studio album, See the Light, was released on November 12, 2013.
Miscellaneous Info:
Vinnie was previously the owner of the independent record label Fueled by Ramen, as well as a toy company called Wünderland War (formerly Monkey Vs. Robot). This label has signed bands such as Fall Out Boy, Punchline, The AKAs, Gym Class Heroes, Panic! At The Disco and Days Away. Roger, meanwhile, is in a second band, called Rehasher, for whom he composes lyrics and plays guitar. JR played sax on the last track of Off Key Melodies. JR works with a promoting company called the CT Mafia, as well as composing solo music. He contributed one track to the Drive-Thru compilation tribute to Bob Dylan, using the band name The Stay At Home Joneses (Roger sang backup for this track).
Roger and Vinnie have an unexplained fetish for Pez candy and they reportedly have sizeable dispenser collections. This love for Pez goes so far as to name one of their albums, Pezcore (parodying of the way in which many bands are described as [something]-core, starting with hardcore) and Pez dispenser motifs are a common feature of their merchandise.
Roger's employment history includes a smoke shop in the band's hometown Gainesville, Florida known as Knuckleheads which has since been transformed into a similar establishment named Smoke. Band member haunts have included Eddie C's, the Hardback (which was transformed into the Lyric), and Insomnia (which used to be the Covered Dish, and is now the new location of Common Grounds).
The members of Less Than Jake also served as backup musicians for Asian Man Records owner Mike Park in the B.Lee Band (once called "the Bruce Lee Band", changed for legal reasons).
The track "Look What Happened" appeared on two of their albums, "Borders & Boundaries" (2000) and "Anthem." (2003) The "Anthem" version is completely re-recorded, and has eschewed the brass at the beginning of the song that was featured in the previous recording. The re-recording features guest vocals from Teen Idols/Bullets To Broadway's Heather.
They have also re-recorded many other songs, including "Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sellouts," "Jen Doesn't Like Me Anymore" and "Shotgun".
They recorded the main theme song "We're all Dudes" for the 1997 film "Goodburger" based on the sketch from the Nikelodeon TV show "All That." The song features Kel Mitchell (main character, Ed, in the movie). The song is based off of the jingle "Ed" would always sing while waiting for the next situation to come up in the Goodburger sketches. At the end of the song Mitchell says "Ah, Ed and Less than Jake, oh, uh... no?"
In 2004, Less Than Jake appeared on the Projekt Revolution Tour, joining such artists as The Used, Snoop Dogg, Korn, and the headlining band: Linkin Park.
Lineups:
Chris DeMakes - vocals and guitar (1992–present)
Roger Lima - vocals and bass (1993–present)
Buddy ''Goldfinger'' Schaub - tenor trombone and backing vocals (1993–present)
Peter ''JR'' Wasilewski - tenor saxophone and backing vocals (2000–present)
Matt Yonker - Drums (2018–present)
Past members:
Jessica Mills - alto saxophone (1993–1998)
Derron Nuhfer - tenor and baritone saxophone (1995–2000)
Pete Anna - tenor and alto trombone (1998–2001)
Vinnie Fiorello - drums (1992–2018)
Website: http://www.lessthanjake.com/
The Ghosts of Me and You
Less Than Jake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And looking at the ghosts of you and me
And thinking back on all those memories
Of how we used to be
I've been hearing, I hear those voices
Over the noises of the breaking glass
And all those plans we had to get us through
And I hope to hope that you won't forget
And I'm hoping, hope you know that
I can clearly see the ghosts of you and me
And I'm just a moved on memory
And you're still alive
And I'm still getting by
On these dead end streets
The ghosts of you and me
I'm still talking, I talk of what we?ll do
To the ghosts of me and you
And I'm still looking back into past
When we were all we had
And I hope to hope that you won't forget
And I'm hoping, hope you know that
I can clearly see, the ghosts of you and me
And I'm just a moved on memory
And you're still alive
And I'm still getting by
On these dead end streets
The ghosts of you and me
The ghosts of you and me
The ghosts of you and me
Hope you won't forget
Hope you know that I?ll always regret
Those things I've said
Hope you know that I can clearly see
The ghosts of you and me
'Cause I'm just a moved on memory
And you're still alive
And I'm still getting by
On these dead end streets
The ghosts of you and me
The ghosts of you and me
The ghosts of you and me
The ghosts of you and me
The lyrics to Less Than Jake's song The Ghosts of Me and You speak of nostalgia and regret. The singer reflects upon the memories of a past relationship with a partner who has moved on. Despite trying to let go of the past, the ghosts of their relationship continue to haunt the singer, who is still stuck living in the same place, walking down the same streets where they used to walk with their former partner.
The tone of the song is melancholic, and the lyrics are reflective, filled with a sense of longing for a time that has passed. The use of the phrase "moved on memory" suggests that the singer is aware of their need to move forward, but despite their best efforts, the ghosts of their past keep holding them back. The lyric "Hope you know that I'll always regret those things I've said" expresses the intensity of the singer's emotions and their regret, which is still present even after so much time has passed.
Overall, the song is a beautiful reflection on the pain of letting go and the power of memories that refuse to fade away completely.
Line by Line Meaning
I've been down wandering past Second Street
I have been roaming aimlessly on Second Street
And looking at the ghosts of you and me
Reflecting on our past together
And thinking back on all those memories
Recalling all the moments we shared
Of how we used to be
Remembering how things were before
I've been hearing, I hear those voices
Voices from the past continue to linger in my mind
Over the noises of the breaking glass
Even with distracting noises, these voices persist
And all those plans we had to get us through
Reminiscing about our failed attempts at planning our future
They're never coming true
None of those plans worked out as we intended
And I hope to hope that you won't forget
I hope that you won't forget our past together
And I'm hoping, hope you know that
I want you to know that I still care
I can clearly see the ghosts of you and me
I can still see remnants of us together
And I'm just a moved on memory
I've moved on, but still remember our time together
And you're still alive
You are still around, actively moving forward
And I'm still getting by
I am still coping with our past breeches
On these dead end streets
I feel trapped in my current situation
The ghosts of you and me
The memories of our past selves continue to haunt me
I'm still talking, I talk of what we’ll do
In conversation with these memories, I still consider our potential future together
To the ghosts of me and you
Our past selves remain the only audience to this talk
And I'm still looking back into past
I cannot help but look back to our shared experiences
When we were all we had
When our companionship was all that mattered
Hope you won't forget
I still hope you won't forget what we shared
Hope you know that I’ll always regret
I still feel a sense of guilt and regret for what happened between us
Those things I've said
Regretful for things I've done and the words I've spoken
The ghosts of you and me
Our past lives are still present in my thoughts
'Cause I'm just a moved on memory
I've moved forward but cannot forget our past
And you're still alive
You have moved on and are still living a life without me
And I'm still getting by
I am still functioning with the memories of us
On these dead end streets
I feel lost and uncertain about my future
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: IAN GLOVER, MARK LANEGAN, RICHARD BLAISE MACHIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind