Jack Hanlon: Royal To The Loyal

Back in the mid 90’s through the early 2000’s, there was one band on the rockabilly scene that was tearing up juke joints all across the country (and other countries too) and gaining a full head of steam into what seemingly looked like stardom before all of a sudden calling it quits. This band had great energy during their live shows, they were touring all across the U.S. driving to each gig, sometimes they would even play at shows that didn’t make the most sense just to play for their fans, and their music had a pounding beat driven by one of the most amazing (no pun intended) upright bass players in the game that I have seen, Jack Hanlon. Well who is this band that I speak of? It’s none other than The Amazing (Royal) Crowns and it is true what they say………. All good things must come to an end.

I had the privilege of catching up with Jack Hanlon and talking with him about his days with The Amazing Crowns and also about his new musical ventures with some bands that are just as “amazing”.

Enjoy!

Jay, The Opening Set: First off Jack, thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions for all your fans and readers of The Opening Set. I have been a pretty big fan of your music for about 10 years now and had the privilege to see you perform a few times in Los Angeles, CA at the great Bowlorama and also the Troubadour. You and the Crowns truly did put on some great, energetic shows.

Jack Hanlon: Well thank you Jay for taking an interest in me. Those CA shows were always a great time. I have many fond memories from those days. We also made a lot of great friends too.

Jay: So how long have you been playing the upright bass and what made you decide on that instrument to be your instrument of choice?

Jack: I have been playing upright bass since early 1994. I was just starting to get into rockabilly and roots music at that time. I was already friends with The Colonel and I knew he was into the rootsy music as well. He used to be in this band called The Phantom Creepers and I really liked them. I remember talking to him outside of The Last Call Saloon (a club that is no more in Providence) about doing some playing and he told me was working on putting a new band together. He said if I wanted in then the job was mine. I remember him saying that he really wanted upright bass but bass guitar was alright as well. I let him know that I was working on getting a double bass. I think I got the bass a few weeks after that conversation. The first time that he and I got together to practice I had already bought my first bass. It was a blond Czech plywood thing that I got for $600. Up until that point I was a bass guitar player. It was after seeing The Reverend Horton Heat that I decided I wanted to play double bass instead of electric bass.

Jay: So besides bass, are there any other instruments that you play on a regular basis?

Jack: No. Not really. I used to have an electric guitar that I used to fool around on. I’ve also owned a few acoustic guitars as well. And because I am a luthier I can get around a little bit on violin, viola and cello.

Jay: Speaking of luthier work, how long have you been doing that? Is that something that just kinda came natural to you since you were already playing bass?

Jack: I have been a luthier now for over six years. It definitely came natural to me. All those years of fixing my bass on the road really paid off. I realized early on that I would have to make my own adjustments to my bass if I wanted it to play like I wanted it to. The slap style requires some tweaking of the bridge and other components that are not common on a bass when you buy one from a string shop.

Jay: Alright, let’s talk about your music throughout the years. Most people remember you from your years of bass playing with The Amazing Crowns (Amazing Royal Crowns). How was that band formed and what was the vision and goal for that band?

Jack: The Colonel and Jason used to work together at a restaurant in Providence. It was there that they became friends and started talking about forming a rockabilly band. At that time I only knew The Colonel. I wouldn’t meet Jason until after Johnny and I had got together for several practices at his house. Johnny and Jason had a vision of a band that was about writing fun energetic music. At that time the “indie rock” thing was still in high gear and a lot of the music was kind of shoe gazer stuff. I think they wanted to do something that was totally opposite of that.

Jay: The original name for the Crowns was “The Amazing Royal Crowns” but then shortened to just “The Amazing Crowns” because of some legal tiff with “The Royal Crown Revue”. What was up with that?

Jack: It was real simple. They claimed our band was causing confusion with there band. There was a little confusion but I think the confusion happened more with us than with them. From what I understand, not all the guys in The Royal Crown Revue had a problem with it. It was only a few of the guys in that band. To me the whole thing was kind of bogus because there was a band from Canada called The Royal Crowns and they pre-dated both bands. We met these guys several times in Toronto and they were always really great to us.

Jay: Man, that sucks. Nature of the beast I guess. Now, alot of people labeled you and the Crowns as a rockabilly band, but I feel like you guys were much more than just a rockabilly band. Sure, you had some traditional sounding rockabilly tunes but you also had some psychobilly type songs like “Chop Shop”, “Halos and Horns”, and “Wrecking Machine”. Then you also had some good old fashioned hard rock and roll numbers like the “Sin City” cover and an amazing country tune called “Flipping Coins”. How would you describe the music that you guys were making with the Crowns?

Jack: I think rockabilly was always the foundation of what we were doing but we were always conscious of trying to push the form to its’ limits. We really tried to cross over into other genres of music. We would play with punk bands and ska bands. We definitely incorporated a lot of punk into our music, especially in the later days.

Jay: Any personal favorite Crowns song for you?

Jack: I like Perfect Sin and Shiverin In The Corner. Those two are probably my favorite. I really like the chord changes in Perfect Sin and Shiverin is just fun to play.

Jay: Shiverin was definitely a crowd pleaser. I remember those mosh pits clearly. As far as your albums with the Crowns, how did you guys land the deal for your second album “Royal” on Time Bomb Recordings, of Social Distortion fame?

Jack: When we started recording the second album we were still on Velvel, but they folded half way through the project. We needed a label that could help fund the recording as well as provide great distribution. Time Bomb was interested in the band so we signed with them. We also liked being on a label that understood what we were doing. With the likes of Social Distortion and Reverend Horton Heat, we felt like we were in good company.

Jay: Now don’t get me wrong because I loved and still listen to the “Royal” album, but in my opinion that album sounds a bit “over produced”. It didn’t have that raw, energetic sound that your first self titled album had. Is that a fair assessment? Or did you guys purposely strive for that sound and feel?

Jack: It is a fair assessment and yes we purposely strived for that sound but I do have to tell you that some things went horrifically wrong in the mixing of that record. We recorded the album in analog and then dumped everything into digital files and sent them to L.A. to be mixed. In my opinion the technology was just not there yet to do this type of transfer. The result ended up with a recording that sounds rather neutered. If you were to hear the rough analog mixes I think you would feel different about that album. The transfer was done because we could not afford to have the engineer fly to Providence to mix the record. Our manager and producer really wanted to have a name on the record so they went with Neil Perry to mix it. That is why we did the transfer to digital. We were not happy with the sound of that record at all. Even right after the mixing was complete.

Jay: You guys only had one other full length release after your 2 studio albums, and that was the Payback Live CD, which is fetching a pretty penny nowadays on Amazon I might add. Did you guys ever plan on releasing a 3rd full length studio album before calling it quits?

Jack: Yes. We had almost a full record in the can before we broke up. The lyrics and music were still pretty rough but we had a large collection of songs that we were working on at the time we stopped playing.

Jay: Damn. Would’ve been great to get another Crowns album. And on that note, it brings us to the million dollar question……… WHY? Why did the Crowns call it quits? Especially when it seemed like you guys were at your peak and getting more national attention with sets on the Vans Warped Tour and also the annual Hootenanny in California.

Jack: We had been at it for seven years and despite what you may think the band had plateaued a few years earlier. We were also all getting older and further in debt. When the band broke up everyone owed thousands of dollars in back taxes to the I.R.S.

Jay: Do you still keep in touch with Jason, J.D. and Judd? Any chance for any reunion gig? If I’m not mistaken, didn’t you make a guest appearance or two with one of Jason’s new bands, The Deterrents, not long after the Crowns called it quits?

Jack: I talked to Jason today and I play in several different bands with J.D. I was on the phone with J.D. just before I started this interview. I hear from Judd every so often as well. Yes I did play in The Deterrents for a time. That band was a lot of fun. I played double bass and bass guitar with those guys.

Jay: Good to hear that you guys all keep in touch still. Let’s fast forward to the present. You currently play with a band called “The Stumbleweeds”. How long have you been with that band and who are your band mates? Isn’t your wife a part of that band?

Jack: I started playing with The Stumbleweeds probably five years ago. The band is Dennis Kelly on guitar, John Cote on drums, Lisa Hanlon on back up vocals, Lynne Lenker on guitar and lead vocals and me on bass. Yes, Lisa is my wife as well.

Jack (on the far right) with his current band, The Stumbleweeds

Jay: Your music with The Stumbleweeds has a much more traditional country and rockabilly sound, which I actually tend to prefer for the most part. The title track from the second album, “Evil On Your Mind” is just awesome. Do you prefer that style of music? Or do you just like playing and mixing it up with all types of music?

Jack: I really like playing all sorts of music. I love playing the traditional country stuff of The Stumbleweeds but I also like playing the fast rockabilly stuff. I play with this guy Jason James from time to time and that music is more on the harder side. I also play a lot of blues music. I have been playing with my friend Gregg Mackenzie who is a great blues harmonica player for over six years now.

Jay: Any plans for any west coast touring?

Jack: Not right now. Jason and I are both pretty busy with our day jobs but never say never!

Jay: So what are the future plans for yourself and The Stumbleweeds?

Jack: The Stumbleweeds is a great band to play in because it’s a pretty low key kind of thing. We do just enough traveling to make it interesting and I really like having Lisa in the band because it is a musical thing we do together. The band is currently working on some new songs and will probably get busier with shows later in the year. We don’t have any plans to record anytime soon but I know that we should start thinking about it because it has been a while since the last CD.

Jay: You mentioned a few other people and bands you play with. Who are they?

Jack: The current list:

The Stumbleweeds
Johnny Carlevale (J.D. is in this band)
Gregg Mackenzie
Sara Kaufman (an old friend of mine from high school. Lisa is in this group as well!)(J.D. is too)
I also do pick up gigs. If someone calls and I’m available then I’ll do it!

Jay: Well Jack, before I let you go I gotta ask you this question….. Do you ever get the urge when you see some kid at your local Best Buy, Sears, Gamestop, etc…. looking at the Guitar Hero 2 game and say to him/her, “Yup kid, I’m in that game”. Ha ha

Jack: You know, I don’t really play those kind of games so I rarely ever think about it. This girl I work with is into Guitar Hero. She tells me that that song (Mr. Fix It, for those that don’t know) is a tough one on the game.

Jay: Any final words for your fans and the readers of The Opening Set? And where can people go to find all the latest news and upcoming gigs for your bands?

Jack: I would like to thank every body who ever came out to any of the Crowns shows. You people out on the west coast always showed up and we had so many fantastic shows because of you. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. I would also like to recognize those who came out to those shows that were off the beaten path when you were one of twenty people who showed up. A big thanks has to go out to you guys as well! If any one is curious about what I am up to musically please feel free to look me up on myspace. You can always go to the Stumbleweeds page to find me too. If any one wants to check out my work with basses you can see that stuff at uptonbass.com and stringrepair.com. Thanks Jay for conducting this interview. It has been a lot of fun!

Jay: Definitely been my pleasure and I appreciate you taking the time for us.

Well there you have it and once again much thanks go out to Jack.