The Lounge Lizards

The Lounge Lizards originated as a diversion for Manhattan’s downtown art crowd during its deep immersion in no wave, then spent more than ten years cycling through shifting personnel while delivering what the group called fake jazz laced with pop and avant-garde rock leanings. Saxophonist John Lurie anchored the earliest version, supported by his brother Evan on piano, guitarist Arto Lindsay, bassist Steve Piccolo, and drummer Anton Fier, the ex-Feelie; that configuration appeared exclusively on the band’s widely praised, wordless self-titled debut of 1981. Lindsay and Fier departed soon after to pursue extended individual careers, prompting the Lurie brothers to cut Live From the Drunken Boat in 1983 with an alternate and less engaging roster. While Evan Lurie took a break to make his debut solo piano album, the 1985 archival set Live 79/81 surfaced and the ensemble also tracked material alongside producer Teo Macero and the London Philharmonic. Reunion arrived in 1986 with the Lurie siblings joined by saxophonist Roy Nathanson, trombonist Curtis Fowlkes, guitarist Marc Ribot, bassist Erik Sanko, and drummer Dougie Bowne; together they documented Big Heart Live in Tokyo that year and the studio album No Pain for Cakes in 1987, the latter introducing the band’s first vocal track. Voice of Chunk, issued the following year, reached listeners solely through mail order. John Lurie additionally composed scores for several Jim Jarmusch pictures, among them Stranger Than Paradise (1986), Down By Law (1988), and Mystery Train (1989).