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Jadis
are a four-piece rock band from the south of England, which has existed
in various shapes and forms since the mid '80's. They became a full-time
gigging outfit in 1987 when they supported IQ on their "Nomzamo"
tour of Britain and Europe. 1988 saw them as support band to Marillion
on their "Clutching at Straws" U.K. tour, culminating in three
nights at the Hammersmith Odeon.
A
period of extensive touring then followed, in which Jadis played over
150 gigs in pubs and clubs throughout Britain, building up a substantial
following. In February 1989 they sold out their debut headline at
London's prestigious Marquee Club, and on the recording front, the band
issued several demo-tapes which were produced by Steve Rothery of
Marillion, and proved popular with Jadis' growing audience. Nothing,
it seemed could stop Jadis becoming a major act in their field of music
until in July 1989, a split in the band left founder Gary Chandler as
the only remaining member. All was not lost, however; Gary soon
recruited keyboardist Martin Orford from IQ, an old friend who lived
locally, and a chance meeting with drummer Steve Christey in a
fish-and-chip shop led to him joining the band. Together with
Bass-player Nick May, the new line-up was soon in great demand, and
headline billing at the Rougemont Festival in France and a major gig in
Germany marked the start of a most successful period for Jadis. In
the autumn of 1991, Nick May was replaced by John Jowitt, another IQ
member, and very soon afterwards, the band were in the studio to
commence the recording of their debut CD release "More Than Meets
The Eye", the first new album on the embryonic GEP label, which
Martin had helped to set up. Following its release in the spring of
1992, "More Than Meets" quickly won critical acclaim from
around the world, including recommendations and airplay on BBC Radio One
from both Alan Freeman and Tommy Vance, and rave reviews in the European
music press. The readers of the influential SI magazine in Holland voted
it album of the year, and the extensive "Lurve Ambassadors"
tour of Germany, Holland and France in November 1992 enhanced the band's
reputation as a live act still further.
1993
saw less live work for Jadis, although an appearance at the Uden
Festival in Holland was the band's biggest gig to date. Studio work was
much more frenetic however, and the "Once
Upon A Time" mini-CD appeared towards the end of the year. This
was intended to be the first in a series of releases featuring new
recordings of classic tracks from the band's early years, most of which
eventually ended up later on the “Medium
Rare” CD. The main priority however, was the writing of material
for the new album, a seemingly daunting task following the almost
universal popularity of "More Than Meets The Eye".
Recording
the next CD commenced in January 1994, and after almost three months of
painstaking work "Across The
Water" was released at the start of May, selling out of the
initial run of 3,000 discs in only 10 days. Jadis then embarked on a
promotional tour of Europe with American band Enchant, and at the end of
the year were voted Best Band by the Classic Rock Society. In addition,
"Across The Water" was voted best album. In
early 1995, John Jowitt and Martin Orford decided to leave the band to
carry on with their IQ commitments. The vacant bass player slot was
filled by Steve Hunt, though Martin Orford continued to play for Jadis
as a session musician until Mike Torr took over keyboard duties. With
The new line-up, Jadis released (on their own label) their third studio
album “Somersault”,
closely followed by the excellent live set “As
Daylight Fades”. Mike Torr parted company with Jadis in early
1998, followed by Steve Hunt in 1999. In November 1999 Gary and Steve
started work (with Martin Orford and John Jowitt again in the band) on a
new studio album “Understand” which was released in February 2000 and was
considered by many to be a real return to top form. With what many feel
to be the “classic” Jadis line-up back in place, the band has a very
bright future with more live shows and a new studio album planned for
2002. The band have also recently released a rarities CD “Medium
Rare”, and a brand new live CD “Alive
Outside”. The
following Jadis CD's are available through G.E.P. Limited: |
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1.
Sleepwalk |
 Across The Water GEPCD1009 1. Touch |
 Somersault DMJAD001 1. Live This Lie |
 As Daylight Fades JAD003 1. Sleepwalk |
 Understand JAD004 1. Where In The World |
 Medium Rare JAD005 1. Follow Me To Salzburg |
 Alive Outside JAD006 1. Understand 2. Where In The World 3. Racing Sideways 4. Wonderful World 5. Alive Inside 6. Counting All The Seconds 7. Batstein / Holding Your Breath 8. Weather With You / Hear Us 9. Comfortably Numb
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