Album Notes

Fragile Jack's debut EP Thirsty Work captures the energy and excitement of a young band finding their sound. After building an enthusiastic following in the Northwest, Fragile Jack's full-throttle early performances caught the eye of producer Jonathan Plum who, along with renowned producer Rick Parashar (Pearl Jam, Blind Melon) helped shape the songs that would make Thirsty Work. Searing twangy rock like "Hunyacher" shoulders up next to the '70's country-rock sound of "Smile and Nod" and the bittersweet, mandolin-tinged "Co-pathetic." The song "Fontanel," with its slide-guitar ambiance and powerful chorus, stoked a significant amount of buzz with the major labels, and got the band mentioned in the recording industry trade magazine "HITS" (April 8, 1996) alongside such acts as The Cardigans and Third Eye Blind as a band that "the weasels (major label A&R folk) are buzzin' about." All in all, Thirsty Work shows a broad range of emotion and song-craft, hinting at American rock influences like the Replacements, Son Volt, and Creedence Clearwater Revival-but, as one reviewer put it, "the songs are so well-written and the band's performance is so fantastic that any strict comparison seems unfair."

Fragile Jack have released two records on their own - Thirsty Work and the full-length National Bag (1998) - both of which received glowing critical reviews nationally and internationally.

They have entertained and declined proposals from major labels and other industry outposts who offered the dream of potential fame and fortune in exchange for the very real publishing rights and outright ownership of their songs - certainly nothing new in the music biz - but through it all, the four members have stayed true to themselves and to their music.