Album Notes

A brief history of The Good Luck Joes:

2000 - Four kids start a band to compete in the eighth grade talent show. They learn “Twist and Shout,” and practice it for a month. They come in second place. Disheartened but not defeated, they continue to practice and play at their town’s Forth of July celebration. They name the band SCIM from the first letters of their last names: Scheltema, Citron, Idema, and Martin.

2001 - The band continues to log practice hours in Joe’s basement and even begins performing some original material. They perform one of their new songs, “All I’m Left to Say” at the high school Cabaret and ears perk up. “Did they really write that song,” one might have heard. “Wow, these kids are really good. I can see them going places…” This year when they peform on the Fourth it’s as The Good Luck Joes.

2002 - Andrew Martin borrows a guitar from local 16-year-old guitar legend, Andrew Krei. After a short courtship, Andrew agrees to join the band. The Good Luck Joes now have a lead guitarist who will take their songs to the next level.

2003 - Peterson Goodwyn joins the band as an auxillary percussionist and as a fill in drummer on certain dates. The chemistry is explosive. In the summer Peterson joins the band as the full-time drummer and they enter the ‘Basement Studio’ to record their first full-length album.

2004 - The Good Luck Joes’ self-titled album, recorded the summer before, catches the ears a few important people, including Milwaukee musician Joe Puerta who offers to let them record in his studio. That summer, the Joes record their ‘48 Hours EP’ with Joe and play their first Summerfest. 48 Hours proves to be a favorite and once again ears perk up. There is talk of mainstream potential and whispers of greatness: “These guys might just have what it takes…”

2005 - LA Producer Chad Fischer hears the buzz and flies out to Milwaukee to record The Good Luck Joes’ sophomore album. The guys do their first real touring, traveling to LA and New York City to play shows. Recording is wrapped up in the winter and the band sends out their (in)famous Happy Holidays 2005 card to friends and acquantances.

2006 - The Joes release “What Do You Think of That Noise?” on Third Ward Records and sign a distribution and promotion deal with Machine Inc. of Lake Geneva. The first single, “Middle of Me” is heralded as a “massive hit song in the making” (Bruce Warren, WXPN Executive Producer - World Cafe) and the album is added on over 300 radio stations nationwide. Numerous shows, movies, and commercials feature music from the album, including ‘Six Degrees’, ‘Real World’, and ‘Road Rules’. A tour follows in the summer, and the Joes gain valuable road experience playing a month of dates in support of the 80’s synth-pop outfit ABC. Big shows include Chicago and Cleveland Houses of Blues, The Canal Room in NYC, and, of course, Summerfest. This year the Joes open for Barefoot and The Click 5, playing one of the biggest and loudest shows of their career. In November the band enters the studio to record the self-produced EP, “Why Everything Goes Wrong.”

2007 - The Good Luck Joes release “Why Everything Goes Wrong” in July, record two acoustic songs, and rock all summer long. Where will the story go from here? Who knows, maybe you will be in it…