Bob Schneider

Schneider was born in Ypsilanti, Michigan to Bob Sr. and Katie Schneider (a teacher) and raised in El Paso and Munich, Germany together with his sister.[6] The son of an opera singer, he moved with his parents to Germany when he was two,[7] while his father received instruction from noted vocal teachers. It led to a marginal existence as “my parents had this big plan, but my dad just didn’t have the voice". He learned guitar and piano at an early age, and performed at his parents' parties.[6]

Before performing solo, he performed for years in various bands. He dropped out of the University of Texas at El Paso where he studied art, while performing in his first band, a funk-rock outfit called Joe Rockhead. The band independently released three albums before disbanding.[6] Schneider subsequently performed with Ugly Americans who were an opening act for the Dave Matthews Band and signed with the revived Capricorn Records.[8] In 1997, Schneider co-founded The Scabs, a funk ensemble that regularly played in around Austin and described as " inspired by The Rugburns (right down to the suits and ties) [with] bawdy show tunes and puerile blues in the beginning, but eventually the powerhouse funk took over when the Grooveline Horns were added".[6]

In 1999, Schneider formed a solo act, initially under the name Lonelyland, which became the title of his record released through Universal Records. His style has been described as "acoustic based songs with electronic beats and noises in the background (..) and other types of cross genre music. His live shows are known for improvisation [and] audience involvement".[9]

He went on to record the major-label solo albums Lonelyland (2001) and I'm Good Now (2004), which garnered him significantly more national attention and some critical acclaim. "Big Blue Sea" from the Lonelyland album received significant radio play, as did "Come With Me Tonight" from I'm Good Now. "Metal & Steel" from Lonelyland is, to date, Schneider's most played song.

The contracts that he signed with Universal in 2001 and Vanguard in 2004 allowed him to release albums as "side projects" on his own Shockorama Records.[3] Among the albums that have been self-released are Galaxy Kings and I've Seen The End of the World and It Looks Like This. All of these side projects were re-released by Vanguard in conjunction with the release of his 2006 album The Californian. Previously, these albums had limited availability as approximately 10,000 copies were produced. After releasing The Californian, Schneider also put out Greatest Hits Live, recorded in Austin on July 17, 2006, on Shockorama Records. He has a long-standing Monday night residency at the Saxon Pub and regularly plays at Antone's, both venues in Austin.[9] His live-band includes Harmoni Kelley (bass), Jeff Plankenhorn (guitars), Conrad Choucroun (drums), Danny Levin (cello) and Oliver Steck (accordion).[10]

In 2009, Schneider signed with Kirtland Records and released Lovely Creatures in September 2009. It featured the single "40 Dogs (Like Romeo and Juliet)", which peaked at #14 on the AAA Radio Chart. The album also featured Patty Griffin on the track "Changing Your Mind". He released a second album on the label entitled "A Perfect Day" on April 19, 2011, featuring the single "Let The Light In." "Burden of Proof" was released on June 11, 2013.

His next musical project, King Kong, was released in 2015 under the Shockorama label and was the result of a crowdsourcing campaign through PledgeMusic. King Kong saw its release over the course of 2015 in the form of three EPs (volumes collectively known as The King Kong Suite) as well as a full-length album made available to his online backers. In 2017, Schneider began making his massive backlog of recorded demos available to his fans through Patreon. His next album Blood and Bones was released on June 8, 2018.

On an episode of The Lone Star Plate podcast, Schneider said he turned down a part in the 2020 Netflix hit The Lost Husband because he didn't want to become an on-screen celebrity.

• 2000 – "Blue Skies for Everyone" was played during the opening sequence of the movie "Gun Shy," starring Liam Neeson and Sandra Bullock.
• 2000 – "Bullets" was used in the movie "Miss Congeniality," starring Sandra Bullock.
• 2001 – "Bullets" also appeared on the "Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back" soundtrack
• 2002 – "Big Blue Sea" was used in the movie "40 Days and 40 Nights," starring Josh Hartnett
• 2002 – "The World Exploded Into Love" appeared in the movie "Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood," starring Sandra Bullock
• 2006 – "The World Exploded Into Love" closed out the first episode of the television sitcom "Men in Trees," starring Anne Heche.
• 2009 – "Love Is Everywhere" is featured in the film and soundtrack of the movie "All About Steve," starring Sandra Bullock
• 2009 – "Changing Your Mind" is featured in the indie film "Harmony and Me," where he also has a role as a wedding singer[11]
• 2019 - “Bombanaza” (instrumental version) is featured during the closing credits for the Quentin Tarantino documentary, QT8: The First Eight.
• 2020 - "Wish the Wind Would Blow Me" and "The World Exploded Into Love" are both featured in the film "The Lost Husband," starring Josh Duhamel

Bob Schneider during live recording session at The Saint, May 2011

Bob Schneider has won 55 Austin Music Awards, to date, for multiple different projects ranging from 1992 to 2017.[10]

Bob Schneider

• Songs Sung and Played on Guitar at the Same Time (1998)
• Lonelyland (2000-Shockorama) & (2001-Universal)
• Underneath the Onion Trees (2000)
• The Galaxy Kings (2002)
• I Have Seen the End of the World and It Looks Like This (2003)
• I'm Good Now (2004)
• The Californian (2006)
• Greatest Hits Live (2006)
• Songs Sung & Played at the Same Time with People in the Room (2007)
• When the Sun Breaks Down on the Moon (2007)
• Love Is Everywhere EP (2009)
• Lovely Creatures (2009)
• Live At The Paramount Theatre (2009)
• Christmastime (2009)
• A Perfect Day (2011)
• Burden of Proof (2013)
• The King Kong Suite (2015)
• I Will Find You No Matter What: The Songs of Luc & Bob Schneider (2016) (Released as "The L")
• Blood and Bones (2018)
• In A Roomful Of Blood With A Sleeping Tiger (2021)

Almost every one of Schneider's live show are recorded by his sound engineer Jay Thomas and made available for purchase. Originally available only as a double-disc set sold after each performance, Bob began to make and continues to make these recordings (dubbed "Frunk") available for purchase through his website in early 2009. The double-disc sets were gradually phased out throughout 2010/2011.

• Schneider, Bob (2003). I Have Seen the End of the World and It Looks Like This. Shockorama Books.
• Schneider, Bob (2009). The Wild Melancholy. Shockorama Books.

• Music of Austin

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bob Schneider.

• Official website