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On August 11, 1992, Jackyl released their debut album on Geffen Records. It was the middle of Grunge, but Jackyl’s loud, proud and unapologetic rock songs, produced by Brendan O’Brien (Stone Temple Pilots, AC/DC), earned the LP double-platinum status. (And helped land the band a scene-stealing spot on Woodstock ’94.) Videos for the singles “The Lumberjack” (with Jesse James Dupree performing his iconic chainsaw solo), “I Stand Alone,” “Down On Me,” “Dirty Little Mind,” “When Will It Rain” and “Back Off Brother” earned rave reviews and rabid fans for the band’s no-holds-barred energy and lyrics.
On August 11, 2022—30 years to the day of Jackyl’s debut—the lineup plays Sturgis, South Dakota’s Full Throttle Saloon, in a raucous celebration of the lineup’s 30th anniversary that also marks the debut of the quartet’s brand-new album_, Jackyl 30 Coming In Hot_ and first single, “Get All Up In It.”
“Jeff, Chris and Roman coming down on the ‘one’ together is still a force of nature,” says Dupree. “Thirty years together and I feel we’ve found an honest place about our new music, our fans and us as a band, on and offstage.”
Jackyl 30 Coming In Hot, which also includes the new tunes “Bad Decision” and “Another Round (Coming in Hot)” is only the latest highpoint of the Southern-bred band’s career. From the get-go, Jackyl were unafraid to stand up for free speech; their “I Stand Alone” video featured the band performing in front of a K-Mart as a protest for the store refusing to sell their album. Other bold moves? Dupree entered a Longhorn Steakhouse with a chainsaw to “surprise” a group of influential radio programmers. That generated a class-action lawsuit that reportedly cost the band more than $1 million.
But the ever-growing legion of fans loved Jackyl’s songs and antics, helping 1994’s Push Comes to Shove album go platinum, thanks in part to the singles “Push Comes to Shove” and “Headed for Destruction.” 1993 saw “Mental *@%.!” featured on The Beavis & Butt-head Experience, a compilation album of songs tied in with MTV’s hit cartoon series; it was eventually certified triple platinum.
Hitting the road non-stop, Jackyl’s tour mates in those early days included Aerosmith, KISS, ZZ Top, Ted Nugent and Damn Yankees. One of the biggest audiences? Jackyl’s performance at Woodstock 94. The appearance made national news and featured on late night shows, including Late Night with David Letterman. The double-album Woodstock 94 went platinum and included “Headed For Destruction” (a track from Push Comes To Shove).
Another groundbreaking musical moment came in 1996. Jackyl followed A&R legend John Kalodner (who had signed them to Geffen) to Sony Music’s Epic Records. The resultant record, 1997’s Cut the Crap was produced by Mike Fraser (AC/DC, Metallica) and mixed by Kevin Shirley (silverchair, Aerosmith). The rock radio hit “Locked and Loaded” included guest vocals by AC/DC’s Brian Johnson. It was the first time Johnson had recorded with any artist but AC/DC since joining the band 17 years earlier.
