Love Jones

Formed in 1990 by two former punk rockers, Love Jones fit into the so-called "cocktail nation" of the early '90s. In some ways a reaction to the grunge/alternative wave that swept through America in 1992, the members of the cocktail nation celebrated the aesthetics and music of the '50s and early '60s — the lounge jazz, crooning pop, and martinis. Love Jones played any sort of pop music that could fit that label — pop, blues, R&B, bossa nova, doo wop. Former Squirrel Bait and Lemonheads drummer Ben Daughtrey and bassist Barry Thomas formed the group in the spring of 1990; soon afterward, the duo added singer/guitarist Chris Hawpe, drummer Stuart Johnson, and singer Jonathan Palmer, with Daughtrey playing various percussion instruments and singing. After playing for a year in Louisville, KY, the group moved out to Hollywood where they eventually received a contract with Zoo Entertainment. Love Jones released its first record, Here's to the Losers, in late 1993.