The Jars were a new wave band from

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

, active from 1978 to 1982. According to

Subterranean Records Subterranean Records is an independent record label based in San Francisco, California. Founded by Steve Tupper and a then partner, Michael Fox in 1979, it focused on that city's underground punk and industrial music scene. Subterranean and fell ...

founder Steven Tupper, the Jars were one of the first bands to successfully combine 1960s garage and 1970s punk. They recorded two singles and were known for opening for many top punk and new wave bands that appeared in San Francisco during this period.

Background

Marc Time (b. Marc Gunther), Mik McDow (b. Mikkel McDow) and Armin Hammer (b. Gary Hobish) formed The Jars in 1978 with JD Buhl and Gary Nervo (b. Gary Mollica) (ex

Pagans Pagans may refer to: * Paganism, a group of pre-Christian religions practiced in the Roman Empire * Modern Paganism, a group of contemporary religious practices * Order of the Vine, a druidic faction in the ''Thief'' video game series * Pagan's ...

Road Manager). The Jars helped spearhead the Berkeley punk/new wave scene by playing at the International Café, Aitos Club, Keystone Berkeley, Berkeley High School and various pizza parlors and frat parties. By 1979 the Jars were playing all over the Bay Area at the

Mabuhay Gardens The Mabuhay Gardens, also known as The Fab Mab or The Mab, was a former San Francisco nightclub, located at 443 Broadway Street, in North Beach on the Broadway strip area best known for its striptease clubs. It closed in 1987. History The Mabu ...

, the

Deaf Club The Deaf Club was a notable music venue located on Valencia Street in San Francisco which remained open for an 18-month period. Its main attraction was Punk rock, punk music. The name comes from the fact the building it was in originally began as ...

, the Temple and the

Old Waldorf Old Waldorf was a music venue located in San Francisco, California. The famous club was located at 444 Battery St, and was originally opened by Jeffrey Pollack in 1976 before selling it to Bill Graham who closed it in 1983. During its time Old Wal ...

opening for

Roky Erickson Roger Kynard "Roky" Erickson (July 15, 1947 – May 31, 2019) was an American musician and singer-songwriter. He was a founding member and the leader of the 13th Floor Elevators and a pioneer of the psychedelic rock genre. Biography Erickso ...

The Angry Samoans The Angry Samoans is an American punk rock band from the first wave of American punk, formed in August 1978 in Los Angeles, California, by early 1970s rock writer "Metal" Mike Saunders, his sibling lead guitarist Bonze BlaykBad Trip Records ...

Horslips Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band that compose, arrange and perform songs frequently inspired by traditional Irish airs, jigs and Reel (dance), reels. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of tradit ...

The Dickies The Dickies are an American punk rock band formed in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, in 1977. One of the longest tenured punk rock bands, they have been in continuous existence for over 40 years. They have consistently balanced catchy mel ...

, The Flaming Groovies, Psycotic Pineapple, the

Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk rock, punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, sa ...

The Suspects ''The Suspects'' (French: ''Les suspects'') is a 1974 French-Italian crime drama film directed by Michel Wyn and starring Mimsy Farmer, Paul Meurisse and Michel Bouquet.Rège p.1021 Cast * Mimsy Farmer as Candice Strasberg * Paul Meurisse as Lau ...

The Mutants ''The Mutants'' is the fourth serial of the ninth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 8 April to 13 May 1972. The serial is set on and high above the ...

, and

MX-80 MX-80, also known as MX-80 Sound, is an eclectic American art-rock band founded in 1974 in Bloomington, Indiana, United States, by guitarist Bruce Anderson. Considered “one of the most out of step but prescient bands of its time", MX-80's sig ...

to name but a few. JD Buhl left the band in 1979. Despite its ubiquity in San Francisco's early punk scene, the band's recording history was brief. A 7" EP was recorded in 1979 for

, “Start Rite Now”, a cover of

The Sonics The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, Tacoma, Washington (state), Washington that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on Punk rock, punk and Garage rock, garage music worl ...

' “Psycho”, and “Electric 3rd Rail." In 1980, a second 7" 45, “Time of the Assassins/Jar Wars,” was recorded and released on a label run by Universal Records, a

Telegraph Avenue Telegraph Avenue is a street that begins, at its southernmost point, in the midst of the historic downtown district of Oakland, California, and ends, at its northernmost point, at the southern edge of the University of California, Berkeley campu ...

record store. It featured a pic sleeve designed by Grammy-winning artist Hugh Brown showing

Jack Ruby Jack Leon Ruby (born Jacob Leon Rubenstein; April 25, 1911January 3, 1967) was an American nightclub owner and alleged associate of the Chicago Outfit who murdered Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald was accused of th ...

shooting

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...

outside Berkeley's Elmwood Theater. Both songs received airplay on local college stations like

KALX KALX (90.7 FM) is an FM radio station that broadcasts from the University of California, Berkeley in Berkeley, California, United States. KALX, a community and student-run radio station licensed to the university, broadcasts in stereo with 500 ...

and performed strongly on the Mabuhay Gardens Rotten Record Chart. Mike Montalto (ex Special Guests, later with

Red Meat In gastronomy, red meat is commonly red when raw and a dark color after it is cooked, in contrast to white meat, which is pale in color before and after cooking. In culinary terms, only flesh from mammals or fowl (not fish) is classified as ...

) then joined on guitar. A live EP recorded at the

and

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Kent ...

was planned for 1981 release as a flexi-disc in FLEX!! fanzine, but magazine folded before release. Sessions at

Fantasy Studios Fantasy Studios was a music recording studio in Berkeley, California, at the Zaentz Media Center, known for its recording of award-winning albums including Journey's ''Escape'' and Green Day's ''Dookie''. Built as a private recording studio for ...

for an EP "Teenage Rebellion" took place in 1981, but went unreleased at the time. Both the Fantasy sessions and the live recordings, along with the 2 singles were released in February 2022 on the album "Make Love Not War." After the band's dissolution, Marc and Nervo formed the Art Faggots with Ray Farrell (ex

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of the b ...

Road Manager) and Nervo's wife Marge on Drums. They also later formed Bo with Marc Monosonic and Snoopy. Bo opened for Isocracy, Rancid,

The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guita ...

Crimpshrine Crimpshrine was an American punk rock band from Berkeley, California. The group was formed in 1982 by Aaron Cometbus, founder of the seminal punk rock zine ''Cometbus'', and future Operation Ivy vocalist Jesse Michaels. They grew out of the East ...

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a powe ...

and others at Berkeley's

924 Gilman Street The Alternative Music Foundation located at 924 Gilman Street, often referred to by its fans simply as "Gilman", is a non-profit, all-ages, collectively organized music club. It is located in the West Berkeley area of Berkeley, California, about ...

in the late 1980s. Former Jars members remain active in music. Marc hosts the Sunday Morning Hangover on Eugene,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

KWVA KWVA (88.1 FM) is a college radio station broadcasting from the EMU building on the University of Oregon campus in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Licensed to the University of Oregon, it serves the Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area and has a ...

, for which he was honored as the

Eugene Weekly ''Eugene Weekly'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published in Eugene, Oregon. The paper, published every Thursday, has a circulation of 39,850. It publishes an annual "Best of Eugene" list, a restaurant guide ("Chow!"), and special section ...

's Top Radio Show award; archived recordings of his shows can be found at Archive.org. Mik McDow played with Beltain up until he died on February 7, 2019. Armin Hammer is a recording engineer; he owns San Francisco's A. Hammer Mastering & Digital Media and is still active with his band True Margrit. In 2014, J.D. Buhl released a new single ("Esmeralda" b/w "You're On My Mind") produced by Gary Hobish (Armin Hammer) with Mik Dow, Michael Montalto and Hammer on guitar, Gary Nervo on organ, Andrew Broadbent on drums and John C. Berry of Psycotic Pineapple on bass. He followed this with several compilation releases including the vinyl issue LITTLE VICTORIES which included several of the first Jars and Saviors garage recordings, and an album of all-new material (B-SIDES) that included contributions from Hammer, Dow, Montalto, and many others. It was completed and released 2 weeks before J.D. died after a long bout with cancer on August 14, 2017. In February 2022 The Jars released their first LP, "Make Love Not War" combining their singles with ten previously unheard studio tracks and live performances.

Discography

* The Jars - “Start Rite Now" b/w “Psycho” and “Electric 3rd Rail” (

, 1980) * The Jars - "Time Of The Assassins" b/w "Jar Wars" (Universal Records erkeley, CA 1981) * The Jars - "Make Love Not War" LP (Sonomonic Records, 2022)

External links

The Jars on MySpace (with recordings)The Jars Discography at discogs.com Bandcamp
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jars, The American new wave musicians Musical groups from Berkeley, California