Friction Bailey

The acoustic rock of Friction Bailey draws much of its character from the lively vocal exchanges between married partners Steve Wesely and Joy Grace Guiles. Operating out of San Dimas, roughly thirty miles east of Los Angeles, the group centers on the two of them, though outside musicians appear from time to time. The pair first crossed paths as students at Azusa Pacific University and wed in 1995. Each had already spent years creating and playing original material—Steve shaped by the songwriting of Paul Simon, Paul Westerberg, and Stephen Malkmus, Joy shaped by the Sundays, Neil Young, and Ricki Lee Jones. They launched Friction Bailey during the mid-’90s and captured the band’s initial demo inside their apartment in 1998. Summer 2000 found them completing the debut album Tengo Yellow Pedal alongside producer Eric Shouse and engineer Ben Eggehorn; Eggehorn also supplied drums, while George Matamala added bass and keyboard parts to several tracks. Steve and Joy appear regularly as an acoustic duo yet sometimes expand to a full-band format.