Biography
Bill Janovitz gained widest recognition for his work as guitarist and frontman of Buffalo Tom, among the scant handful of acts to emerge from the American underground of the 1980s and sustain both creative standards and independence through the alternative-rock expansion of the following decade. He entered the world in Queens, New York, and passed the greater part of his youth on Long Island. At sixteen he relocated with his family to Massachusetts; once he finished high school he entered the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
His first instrument was trumpet, which he picked up in elementary school; by twelve he had switched to guitar, and at fourteen he assembled the Plastic Peach, whose set lists drew from Neil Young through Talking Heads. Some years afterward he joined the group he later characterized as “a tragically named high school band,” the Rambunctious Llamas, whose repertoire centered on new-wave and jangle-pop material. While still performing with the Llamas in his first semesters at college, Janovitz encountered fellow UMass students Chris Colbourn and Tom Maginnis, both already active in local groups. The three met repeatedly at area rock shows, discovered a mutual enthusiasm for Hüsker Dü, Mission of Burma, and the Replacements, and soon formed a trio with Colbourn on bass and Maginnis on drums.
Under the name Buffalo Tom they began performing in 1986 and quickly found support from Dinosaur Jr.’s J. Mascis, who lent them gear and, in 1989, produced their self-titled debut. Although that record reflected Mascis’s sonic imprint, the band’s distinct identity—more concise, polished, and emotionally direct—surfaced on the follow-up, Birdbrain, issued in 1990. European audiences responded first, and the 1992 release Let Me Come Over earned substantial college-radio attention for its powerful songs, among them several intensely emotional ballads that underscored the trio’s range and force. Their fourth album, Big Red Letter Day, brought commercial airplay via the driving single “Soda Jerk,” which also appeared in the television series My So-Called Life.
After that record Buffalo Tom paused activity, allowing Janovitz to record a backlog of songs on his own. The resulting Lonesome Billy, cut in a small Arizona studio, featured Joey Burns and John Convertino of Giant Sand and Calexico along with Fuzzy’s Chris Toppin and revealed a markedly roots-oriented approach. He rejoined the band for 1998’s Smitten, then, during another hiatus, issued the 2001 solo album Up Here, which delved further into folk-rock and singer-songwriter territory. The musicians assembled for those sessions—Toppin, bassist Josh Lattanzi, and drummer Tom Polce—coalesced into Crown Victoria, which began playing live and shared billing with Janovitz on the 2004 album Fireworks on TV!. A second side project, the Bathing Beauties, started as an occasional cover band for bar shows; besides Janovitz and Toppin the lineup includes producer Paul Kolderie on bass.
His first instrument was trumpet, which he picked up in elementary school; by twelve he had switched to guitar, and at fourteen he assembled the Plastic Peach, whose set lists drew from Neil Young through Talking Heads. Some years afterward he joined the group he later characterized as “a tragically named high school band,” the Rambunctious Llamas, whose repertoire centered on new-wave and jangle-pop material. While still performing with the Llamas in his first semesters at college, Janovitz encountered fellow UMass students Chris Colbourn and Tom Maginnis, both already active in local groups. The three met repeatedly at area rock shows, discovered a mutual enthusiasm for Hüsker Dü, Mission of Burma, and the Replacements, and soon formed a trio with Colbourn on bass and Maginnis on drums.
Under the name Buffalo Tom they began performing in 1986 and quickly found support from Dinosaur Jr.’s J. Mascis, who lent them gear and, in 1989, produced their self-titled debut. Although that record reflected Mascis’s sonic imprint, the band’s distinct identity—more concise, polished, and emotionally direct—surfaced on the follow-up, Birdbrain, issued in 1990. European audiences responded first, and the 1992 release Let Me Come Over earned substantial college-radio attention for its powerful songs, among them several intensely emotional ballads that underscored the trio’s range and force. Their fourth album, Big Red Letter Day, brought commercial airplay via the driving single “Soda Jerk,” which also appeared in the television series My So-Called Life.
After that record Buffalo Tom paused activity, allowing Janovitz to record a backlog of songs on his own. The resulting Lonesome Billy, cut in a small Arizona studio, featured Joey Burns and John Convertino of Giant Sand and Calexico along with Fuzzy’s Chris Toppin and revealed a markedly roots-oriented approach. He rejoined the band for 1998’s Smitten, then, during another hiatus, issued the 2001 solo album Up Here, which delved further into folk-rock and singer-songwriter territory. The musicians assembled for those sessions—Toppin, bassist Josh Lattanzi, and drummer Tom Polce—coalesced into Crown Victoria, which began playing live and shared billing with Janovitz on the 2004 album Fireworks on TV!. A second side project, the Bathing Beauties, started as an occasional cover band for bar shows; besides Janovitz and Toppin the lineup includes producer Paul Kolderie on bass.
Albums
