Jeb Loy Nichols
[ < Jah Woosh ]		[ Keith Levene > ]

Source: www.jebloynichols.com

Born in Lander, Wyoming, Jeb moved to Warrensburg, Missouri when he was seven. As a kid he travelled with his family to bluegrass festivals, and that, along with country, were his biggest musical influences. While in high school, he latched onto the then-burgeoning sound of punk rock. Jeb was so entranced by the brave, loud, new world of punk that when he graduated from high school, he moved to New York City. [There he] started hanging at clubs like Tier 3 and the Mudd Club [and] became friends with members of the Slits and Neneh Cherry.

After two years in New York, Jeb went to London for what was supposed to be an extended vacation. He shared a house with Ari Up from the Slits, Neneh and producer Adrian Sherwood. Like New York, London represented cultural freedom. That freedom to throw caution to the wind and just make some noise appealed to Jeb, who had temporarily abandoned his art to make music. Under the guise of Jeb Loy & The Oil Wells his early On-U career was brief - offering forth the tracks 'Things That Make U.S.' for On-U's first compilation, 'Wild Paarty Sounds Volume 1' and the still unreleased 'Hostage In Iran' for a single that was shelved.

He [later] formed a country band which often opened up for a then-struggling band called The Pogues. By 1990 a tape of songs that he recorded with Dave Schramm (of The Schramms) ended up at OKra Records. OKra offered Jeb a deal and [he] hastily threw together a band that included his wife Lorraine Morley. The Fellow Travellers merged country-tinged, acoustic-based songs with dub and recorded an album in three days, the first of three for the group.

In the mid 1990s Jeb found employment as chief designer of the artwork on releases by Pete Holdsworth's Pressure Sounds and Green Tea labels - his own distinctive house style still appears on many of their releases to this day. 1997 saw the launch of his own solo career with the album 'Lovers Knot' and a single 'As The Rain'. In a nod to old times, the single's title track received the Adrian Sherwood remix treatment to all round acclaim.

Several other albums have since followed, and by the time 2003's 7" 'October EP' was issued on Green Tea, Jeb had relocated to North Wales - his new rural surroundings acting as an inspiration for the furthering of his music and art.

(Adapted from Jeb's biography, formally at www.jebloynichols.com)

[ < Jah Woosh ]

[ Keith Levene > ]