Music of New Jersey

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Music of the United States
Local music
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One of the most renowned musicians from New Jersey is probably Bruce Springsteen, who became a 1980s icon with complex lyrical stories about teens growing up in Freehold and other economically depressed areas of New Jersey. In addition, Jersey native Frank Sinatra became one of the most popular singers of the 20th century. Francis Hopkinson of Bordentown, is perhaps the first American composer. William Dunlap wrote the first American opera, The Archers. Other famous Jersey musicians include Lauryn Hill, Whitney Houston, Jon Bon Jovi, and Kool and the Gang.

1 Jazz
2 Hardcore punk
3 Hip hop
4 Prominent musicians from or with connections to New Jersey
5 Music venues and events in New Jersey
6 Prominent Producers from or with connections to New Jersey
7 References

[edit] Jazz

In the early 20th century, Newark was an important center for jazz innovation. James P. Johnson and other pioneers helped invent stride. Other famous New Jersey jazzmen include bandleader Count Basie and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, who lived in Englewood from 1965 until his death in 1993.

[edit] Hardcore punk

Main article: New Jersey hardcore

New Jersey had many early punk bands, circa 1977-'80, including The Misfits, Shrapnel, and The Pleasure Hounds, and developed several regional, overlapping hardcore punk scenes by 1981-'82.

Proximity to New York and Philadelphia has long tended to draw punk and hardcore bands away from New Jersey, with historic examples including the Bergen County bands The Misfits and Cause For Alarm Who were an offshoot of The Radicals, later turned into U.S. Chaos, defecting in one direction, and South Jersey bands such as Sadistic Exploits defecting in the other. Adrenalin OD was probably the most important early hardcore punk band to identify primarily with New Jersey, however there were and continue to be multitudes of others, many of whom are nationally popular.

[edit] Hip hop

The Sugarhill Gang - All members were born in Englewood, but grew up in New York City - Wrote the single Rapper's Delight which many credit as the first Hip Hop single. Also the term Rap/Rapper is taken from this song.
Newark, New Jersey and the surrounding area has been home to many influential rap and hip hop artists, including Queen Latifah, The Fugees, Naughty By Nature, Redman, Joe Budden, The Outlawz, Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent and Faith Evans

New Jersey has long been an important area for both rock and rap music.

[edit] Prominent musicians from or with connections to New Jersey

Bruce Springsteen, who has sung of New Jersey life on most of his albums, hails from Freehold, and is the most popular rock musician to ever come out of the state. Some of his songs that represent New Jersey life are "Born To Run", "Spirit In The Night", "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)", "Thunder Road", "Atlantic City", and "Jungleland." Only in New Jersey is Springsteen's song "Thunder Road" considered the greatest rock and roll song of all time.
Jon Bon Jovi, who hails from Sayreville, reached fame in the 1980s with hard rock outfit Bon Jovi. The band has also written many songs about life in New Jersey including "Livin' On A Prayer" and even named one of his albums after the state (see New Jersey).
Frank Sinatra, the only child of working-class Italian-American immigrants, was born December 12, 1915 in a tenement at 415 Monroe St. in Hoboken. He sang with a neighborhood vocal group, the Hoboken Four, and appeared in neighborhood theater amateur shows before he became an entertainment legend as an Academy Award winning actor, and one of, if not the, greatest male vocalists of all time. Some of his greatest hits include "Strangers In The Night", "My Way", "Luck Be A Lady", and "New York, New York."
Dionne Warwick was born in East Orange and has had a long career, including nearly 60 charted hits, from "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" (winning the first of her five Grammys), "Alfie", "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", and "That's What Friends Are For." She is a cousin of Whitney Houston.
Whitney Houston was born in the city of Newark, but grew up in neighboring East Orange. She had a successful solo career in the 1980s and 1990s, and is best known for her cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" which set new records for sales and weeks at number one. Houston has sold well over 180 million records internationally. Her mother is Cissy Houston, winner of two Grammy's in her own right.
Jazz singer Sarah Vaughan was born in Newark, where she sang in church as a child. Newark was also the birthplace of recording star Connie Francis, Paul Simon, and rappers Queen Latifah and Ice-T.
Legendary jazz pianist and bandleader Count Basie, was born in Red Bank in 1904. In the 1960s, he collaborated on several albums with fellow New Jersey native Frank Sinatra. There is a theater in Red Bank named in his honor.
Multilingual actor, athlete, writer, and bass-baritone concert singer Paul Robeson was born in Princeton in 1898.
Celia Cruz was a three-time Grammy Award and four-time Latin Grammy winning Cuban-American salsa singer who spent most of her career living in New Jersey, and working in the United States and several Latin American countries
The Broadway musical Jersey Boys is based on the lives of the members of the Four Seasons, three of whose members were born in New Jersey (Tommy DeVito, Frankie Valli, and Nick Massi)
Debbie Harry from Blondie was raised in Hawthorne She attended Manchester High School in Hawthorne, New Jersey.
Former Fugee Lauryn Hill, is a South Orange resident and is hip-hop's best-selling solo female artist. Her 1998 debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, sold 10 million copies internationally.
Marilyn McCoo, who had hits with the Fifth Dimension and her husband Billy Davis, Jr. hails from Jersey City.
Blues Traveler was formed at Princeton High School in 1987. John Popper, along with high school buddies drummer Brendan Hill, guitarist Chan Kinchla and the late bassist Bobby Sheehan are all natives of New Jersey.
Spin Doctors began as Trucking Company in 1989 with Chris Barron (lead singer) and Eric Schenkman and were high school friends of the aforementioned Blues Traveler frontman John Popper at Princeton High School.
Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show was formed in Union City in 1968
Four of the five members of the popular new rock group My Chemical Romance hail from New Jersey. Gerard Way, Mikey Way and Frank Iero are from Belleville, and Ray Toro is from Kearny. Some of their more popular songs include "Helena" and "The Ghost of You". The band frequently speak about their home state, and guitarist Frank Iero can be seen on occasion wearing a guitar strap with the letter NJ encircled in a heart.
Musical artists Fountains of Wayne [1], a group of New Jerseyans who took the name of a semi-famous lawn and garden store [2] on Route 46 in Wayne.
Zakk Wylde, who is currently the guitarist with Ozzy Osbourne and fronts his own metal band, Black Label Society, was born in Bayonne, and was raised in Jackson Township. Wylde is famous for his signature "Bulls-eye" Gibson Les Paul guitar and is considered to be among the best new guitarists in rock.
The alternative rock band Dramarama was formed in Wayne in 1982.
The first American Oi! Punk band U.S. Chaos is from Paterson, New Jersey formed around 1981.
Alex Kinen and Gary Rightmeyer formed The Radicals, an endeavor which lasted until about 1981. Afterwards, Alex Kinen moved on to form Cause For Alarm, which would later become New York hardcore supergroup Agnostic Front. Meanwhile, Gary formed the band U.S.CHAOS that is managed by talent manager and producer Marty Munsch
Punk Alternative band Mattress Armada hails from Boonton and Montville.
The new wave group Anything Box was formed in 1986 by Claude S. along with two friends, Dania Morales and Paul Rijnders. The New Jersey trio signed with Epic and released their debut album, Peace, in 1990, notching a hit with the upbeat "Living in Oblivion."
The rock band Monster Magnet hails from Red Bank. The band is best known for their late 90's alt-rock hit "Space Lord."
Hip-hop's longest running radio show, was founded by two Jerseyans, Special K (Kevin Bonners) and Teddy Ted (Ted Whiting) of Hackensack (known as the Awesome 2), began on New York's WHBI in 1982 and now appears on WPAT-AM.
Other rap artists, including Irvington's Queen Latifah, the first female rapper to succeed in music, film, and TV, and the Grammy-winning Naughty By Nature of East Orange, who cut 1992's smash hit "O.P.P." Redman, an influential underground figure and Newark native, has recently found commercial success through collaborations with Eminem and the Wu-Tang Clan's Method Man.
Singer/actor Constantine Maroulis, a popular finalist on the television show, American Idol, Season 4 (2005), spent a good portion of his formative years in Wyckoff, where he graduated from Ramapo High School. Maroulis is developing a television sitcom for ABC based on his family life in New Jersey and the surrounding metropolitan New York City area.
Ashley Tisdale was born in West Deal, New Jersey. Her songs, such as What I've Been Looking For, Stick To The Status Quo, Bop To the Top, and We're All In This Together were featured in the Disney movie High School Musical.
Uncle Floyd was raised in Paterson.
The band Snowball 37 [3], a group of brothers who were inspired by a Kevin Smith reference, is based out of Jersey City.
Punk music is also an important alternative style in New Jersey, perhaps starting with the band that essentially invented horror punk, The Misfits, who hail from Lodi. Blanks 77 In the 90s, The Bouncing Souls, The Fiendz, Sticks and Stones, and Catch 22 were also prominent figures in New Jersey punk.
The Cryptkeeper Five are from Hamilton, New Jersey as well as The Checkers.
The DeLeo brothers of Stone Temple Pilots are both from Point Pleasant. The brothers, Dean and Robert, are the guitarist and bassist for the band.
Pete Yorn is a singer/songwriter from Montville. He has two albums out: musicforthemorningafter (2001) and Day I Forgot (2003).
Indie Rock band Suit of Lights are from Totowa, NJ. Their song "Goodbye Silk City" was written in tribute to Paterson, NJ.
Indie rock band Green Arrows are from Freehold, NJ.
Four out of the five members of the 1980s metal group Skid Row are originally from the Jersey Shore area. The band rose to fame in 1989 with hits such as "18 & Life", and "I Remember You."
Progressive metal outfit Symphony X formed in North Jersey in 1994.
American Idol season 4 contestant Anwar Robinson, considered to be one of AI's most talented male singers, was born in Newark and grew up in East Orange and Montclair. He currently teaches music at Edison Middle School in West Orange
Indie rock band Yo La Tengo makes its home in Hoboken.
Glenn Danzig is an accomplished singer and musician, and the creative force behind The Misfits, Samhain, and Danzig. He is one of the most influential individuals in dark rock music.
The Grammy-winning Naughty By Nature of East Orange cut 1992's smash hit "O.P.P."
Redman, an influential underground figure and Newark native, has recently found commercial success through collaborations with Eminem and the Wu-Tang Clan's Method Man.
Catch 22 originated in East Brunswick as well as the band Streetlight Manifesto, which was created by former Catch 22 members.
Ted Leo of Ted Leo and the Pharmacists grew up in Bloomfield, New Jersey and went on to write The Goldfinch and The Red Oak Tree; a song about his love for the state.
Heavy Metal band Overlorde is from Dover, New Jersey.
The Heavy Metal band Divinity Destroyed is from Toms River, New Jersey
Thrash metal band Overkill is from northern New Jersey, although a few of their founding members were from Queens.
Hailing from New Brunswick, New Jersey, Franke Previte was lead singer for 80s band Frankie and the Knockouts. Previte won an Academy Award for Best Achievement in Music and Best Song for "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in 1987.
Hardcore bands The Dillinger Escape Plan, Folly,Emergency Defibrillator , and The Number 12 Looks Like You, all hail from New Jersey, as well as screamo band Thursday.
Fountains of Wayne, an American indie rock band, take their name from a lawn-ornament store in Wayne, New Jersey, called "Fountains of Wayne", not far from Montclair, New Jersey.
The Jonas Brothers, a pop/punk trio consisting of Kevin, Joseph, and Nicholas Jonas
My Chemical Romance, a five piece emo rock group that hail from Belleville and Kearny except for drummer Bob Bryar, who is from Chicago.
Hip-hop artist Sister Souljah lived in Englewood, and attended Rutgers University.
Jack Antonoff of SteelTrain was raised in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

Akon (Aliaune Thiam) was born in Senegal but moved and was raised in Jersey City. He was also arrested & detained for robbery in New Jersey.
Blanks 77 A prominent punk band of the 1990s still on the forefront of the genre. They are popular worldwide and have influenced 2 generations (if not more) of rockers.
Someday Never, is also from NJ, having started out in Marlboro, NJ.

[edit] Music venues and events in New Jersey

Asbury Park, is home of The Stone Pony, where Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes frequented early in their careers, and which is still considered by many to be a "Mecca" for up-and-coming Jersey Shore sound musicians.
The Velvet Underground gave their first performance as a band at Summit High School in Summit, New Jersey. Songs included "There She Goes Again" and "Heroin."
Legendary rock band Queen (touring with Bad Company frontman Paul Rodgers) chose a New Jersey venue - the Continental Airlines Arena - to perform their first USA concert in 23 years on October 16, 2005. The crowd surprised them with a strong reaction and plentiful participation, even in what were thought to be the lesser-known songs.
Princeton Record Exchange, the Northeast's largest independent record store, was founded in 1980 and is located in Princeton, New Jersey. They have been featured in the New York Times and in Billboard magazine, and have been praised by LCD Soundsystem in Wired magazine. On a note of trivia, they have employed Micky of Ween before the band's rise to fame.
Green Day's biggest concert in the USA was at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Bloomfield Ave Cafe & Stage in Montclair has brought up and coming bands to NJ since 2002. Past bands have included: The Casualties, The Slackers, My Chemical Romance, Fallout Boy, Avail, Hidden In Plane View, Places Mistaken For Stars, The Academy Is, The Banner, 108, Ensign, Further Seems Foverever, and countless others.
The Dirt Club, world famous rock club, Bloomfield New Jersey mid 1970s to late 1980s
The Pipeline Club, world famous Punk and Industrial club. Newark, New Jersey 1985 to 1998 played host to 2 generations of punk specific music. Bands like Nine Inch Nails, GBH, The Exploited, Fahrenheight 451, Ministry, The Wretched Ones, Blanks 77, U.S.CHAOS, DOA, as well as thousands of bands had played, to its patrons in 13 years of operation. Its Idiology and name became synonymous for NJ and eastern US Punk, as did CBGB's in NYC. It had the worlds loudest sound system for its relatively small square footage and capacity. The engineers used the vibrating aluminum siding outside the club to verify proper operation of the overpowered mono sound system of at least 20,000 watts.
City Gardens Calhoun St. Trenton, New Jersey Famous Punk venue 1978-1998.
The 449 Room 449 S Broad St. Trenton, New Jesey Intimate underground venue that opened in 2006. Located in the same building as the renown Greenlight Vegetarian Cafe, it has played host to surprising number of major-label, national touring bands of all genres.
The Brighton Bar, New Jersey shore punk venue
The Capitol Theatre in Passaic hosted a number of famous acts in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including The Clash, Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen, and Bruce Springsteen. Marty Munsch was first employed at Passaic The Capitol Theatre, as an engineer's assistant in 1984 and later was the head stage manager and engineer at The Pipeline in Newark [4]
Studio One, Rock Club, Newark, New Jersey. Acts including Skid Row, L.A. Guns, Dirty Looks, The Fiends, Heft, Kix, Warrant and many others. It re-opened as Tequila Joe's and was used in The Sopranno's as Adriana's rock club the Crazy Horse.