| Jon Fratelli | |
|---|---|
Jon Fratelli performing with Codeine Velvet Club on 12 June 2010 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Paul Lawler |
| Also known as | Jon Fratelli, Jon Lawler |
| Born | 4 March 1979 |
| Origin | Glasgow, Scotland |
| Genres | Alternative rock, Post-punk revival |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, piano, vocals |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Associated acts | The Fratellis, Codeine Velvet Club |
| Notable instruments | |
| Fender Telecaster Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty |
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Jon Fratelli (born John Paul Lawler, 4 March 1979, Glasgow, Scotland) is a Scottish musician and songwriter best known for his work with the band The Fratellis. He has also played in a band called Codeine Velvet Club, but is currently performing as a solo artist.
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Little is known about Lawler's life before he joined the Fratellis. He attended St. Maurice's High School and went to college before dropping out within three hours. Before joining the Fratellis, he played in an Oasis and Blur cover band, and he released a solo album (under the name 'Jon Lawler') entitled Free Urban Clown, an album which is Dylan-esque.[1]
In 2005, Jon responded to an advert placed in a music shop by drummer Gordon McRory, which stated "Opportunity of a lifetime ... seeks band to make our mark on the music industry". On this advert he put his name as "Graeme" to avoid detection of his then current band mates finding out he was seeking a new band. After calling the number, asking for "Graeme" he got told repeatedly that he had the wrong number, he nearly gave up but tried one more time and got a hold of McRory and the band started to form, with Barry Wallace joining the band on bass.
Jon's role in the band is songwriter, lead vocalist and lead guitarist. He was initially accompanied on guitar by Mince Fratelli (Gordon McRory), but Mince switched to drums after the initial drummer did not work out. Writing credits for the first album are for The Fratellis, however, for the second album, they are solely credited to him.
After playing the Coachella festival in California in 2007, during promotion of Fratellis' debut album Costello Music, Jon decided to flee from the US tour and return to Glasgow, stating that he was too tired to continue the rest of the tour. He later saw this as a mistake, but it allowed him to be even more grateful for the success of the band.[2] The band are currently on hiatus while the band members pursue other projects, although Jon has started confessing it seems unlikely the band will ever reform.[3]
During promotion of Here We Stand, Jon stated that he wished to create a solo album to keep himself busy once the band were done touring the album, with the band scheduled to take a break. It later emerged that he planned on teaming up with singer-songwriter Lou Hickey, who he met due to her friendship with Jon's wife, and creating an album. NME reported in an article that the band was set to be called Codeine Breakfast Club, however, on 23 August 2009, it was confirmed that the band had changed its name to Codeine Velvet Club.
While playing in this band Jon reverted to using his proper surname, Jon Lawler. The band's debut album was to be released on November 16, 2009 (however, this was later pushed back to 28 December 2009). Jon shares songwriting duties with Lou for about half the tracks on the album, penning the other half by himself (one track, "Nevada" was co-written by Jon and Will Foster). The duo took a live band (consisting of Ross MacFarlane on drums, Will Foster on keys and guitar, Lewis Gordon on bass and various horn players known as 'The Velvet Horns') for a tour of the UK in 2009 and the US in 2010, playing UK dates in 2010 also. However, Jon decided that he could not commit to the band anymore and called an end to the band, finishing off what live dates they had and announcing his solo career, with Lou returning to her solo career also.
Jon started hinting towards a solo career when he set up a new MySpace page, with the track "Bonnie & Clyde" streaming on it, it was also noted that he began using the name Jon Fratelli again. While discussing the end of Codeine Velvet Club, Jon confirmed his intentions of going solo, taking the backing musicians with him due to them playing well together.[4] Since announcing he is going solo, Jon has given away some tracks in demo form, including "Dead Street Affair", "She's My Shaker" and "Sometimes You Just Can't Win". For live shows in 2011, Jon announced that Mince Fratelli would be joining Jon on the tour, sharing drumming duties with Ross McFarlane.[5]
Jon played some solo shows before heading to Los Angeles in late 2010 to record his debut solo album, Psycho Jukebox with Tony Hoffer, who produced the first Fratellis' album. The title is a reference to the Fratellis' song "Nina", which is featured on the "Whistle for the Choir" single. During February 2011, Jon released a free track via his website called "Rhythm Doesn't Make You a Dancer" which was to be on the album, and also gave away a free EP called The Magic Hour EP. Jon stated that these songs couldn't fit on the album but he "still had a lot of time for them".[6] The first single from the album was "Santo Domingo" which was released on 28 February 2011. The second single, "Baby We're Refugees!", was released on 12 June 2011.
In February 2011, Jon stated that:[7]
| “ | I think it will make sense to anybody that liked The Fratellis, but it seems to be musically quite different, to me at least. All I know is what I wanted it to be and what I think it’s turned out to be, which is trying to squeeze as many different colours into the smallest space, musically, and to have as much going on as possible. I’m pretty certain that’s how it’s turned out. | ” |
After embarking on a Scottish tour in March/April 2011, Jon added two new tracks to Psycho Jukebox, which pushed its release date back to late July 2011. In a live podcast, Jon stated that he is no longer able to add anymore tracks to the album due to the label's schedule, but states that they were worth adding to the album.
Jon's band includes musicians from his previous bands. This is the current live setup:
For The Fratellis' debut album, Costello Music, Jon mainly used a Fender Telecaster, with the exception of a few songs in which he used a Gibson Les Paul and a Gibson ES-335. With their second album Here We Stand, he used a Fender Telecaster, Fender Stratocaster, Gibson Firebird, Rickenbacker 12 string, Gibson Les Paul, and an ES-335 for his electrics. For the acoustic performances, he used a Gibson SJ-200, a Gibson Hummingbird, and a Gibson J-45. During promotional performances of the album, Jon was mainly using a Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty with Bareknuckle Mississippi Queen pickups (humbucker sized P-90's)[8]
While playing in Codeine Velvet Club, live performances tended to use a red Fender Stratocaster and a rosewood Fender Telecaster.
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