The Jayhawks/Photo: The Jayhawks
Have there ever been sweeter harmonies undergirded by lovelier acoustic guitars than what The Jayhawks have produced? Maybe Crosby, Stills, Nash (and Young), but nothing springs to mind in recent times (perhaps duo The Milk Carton Kids, but their songs are nowhere near as jubilant). Hailing from Minnesota, and not Kansas (as this KU basketball fan might guess), The Jayhawks formed in Minneapolis as a trio in 1984, relaunched as a quartet in 1985, and released their first self-titled album on a local independent label in 1986. Later signed to local indie Twin/Tone (also an early home to Soul Asylum and The Replacements), The Jayhawks didn’t rise to popular prominence until they signed with American Recordings in 1991, first with “Hollywood Town Hall,” propelled by the sublime single “Waiting For The Sun” and then with “Tomorrow the Green Grass” in 1995, buoyed by the song “Blue.”
Although their instrumentation (acoustic guitar, piano, strings) has always begged for alt-country comparisons (Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt), their “blue-eyed pop” approach has always seemed to me as more comparable to power-pop popularizers of the 1970s and their descendants (Big Star, Wilco). The ironic song “Big Star” should be seen as both a nod to the band and their underwhelming commercial performance (outside of AOR radio circles) compared to major label expectations.
The band went through numerous lineup changes in its earliest years, with the one through-line being Gary Louris (guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals); the most impactful change has been the coming and going of founding member Mark Olson. But the present remainder of the quartet, including Tim O’Reagan (drums, backing vocals, lead vocals) has been a member since 1995, Karen Grotberg (keyboards, backing vocals) on and off since 1992, and Marc Perlman (bass, backing vocals, lead vocals) a founding member, have more than paid their dues. Indeed, for their most recent album, 2020’s “XOXO” (their eleventh), Louris “decided to widen the circle and let go of a little bit of control,” as he says on the band’s website. “Touring those records the last few years, I never felt like I was getting to hear enough of Karen or Tim singing lead vocals,” Louris said. “I know they write great songs, as does Marc, who’s co-written plenty of Jayhawks songs over the years,” so he decided to make this album one of four more or less equal contributions.
Beginning in the spring of 2019, Louris began making monthly trips from North Carolina back to Minnesota, where he and the band would gather for weeklong rehearsal and writing sessions in their St. Paul practice space. All four members would bring song ideas to the table in various states of completion.
“Some songs we molded together from scratch, but others had been fully written by one or the other of us,” said Perlman, who, along with his bandmates, traded instruments depending on the needs of each track. “We didn’t worry too much about who penned what, because after all these years of playing together, everything we do just naturally comes out sounding like a Jayhawks song.”
“At the end of the day, this album is just an extension of who we’ve always been,” said Grotberg. “We’re the same band, but it feels like we’ve stepped into a new era.”
After playing holiday shows in their hometown at the end of 2023, The Jayhawks launch their spring 2024 tour in Evanston, playing three sold-out shows at Space, 1245 Chicago Avenue, Evanston. On Saturday, February 25, the early show starts 4pm with doors opening at 3pm, and the late show starts 8pm with doors opening at 7pm. The concert on Sunday, February 26 also starts 8pm.
