The Special Purpose was a
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
/
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
fusion band from
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
,
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
. Formed in the summer of 2004, the group - consisting of John Fawcett (drums), Stephen Fogg (
8-string guitar
An eight-string guitar is a guitar with eight strings, or one more than the Russian guitar's seven. Eight-string guitars are less common than six- and seven-string guitars, but they are used by a few classical, jazz, and metal guitarists. The ...
), Christopher Stefanile (guitar) and Tim Symons (keyboards)-- became one of the Pacific Northwest's premier grassroots musical acts. The band's name was a reference to the 1979 cult comedy classic, ''
The Jerk
''The Jerk'' is a 1979 American comedy film directed by Carl Reiner and written by Steve Martin, Carl Gottlieb, and Michael Elias (from a story by Martin and Gottlieb). This was Martin's first starring role in a feature film. The film also f ...
'', starring
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American comedian, actor, writer, producer, and musician. Known for Steve Martin filmography, his work in comedy films, television, and #Discography, recording, he has received List of awards a ...
. The Special Purpose allowed the audio recording and free distribution of their live performances. The group stopped playing shows together in 2011. Three of the band's members continue to perform together as the Jazz trio, Fawcett Symons & Fogg.
[https://music.apple.com/us/artist/fawcett-symons-fogg/961266381]
References
Musical groups from Washington (state)
{{Washington-stub