Jack's Mannequin

Andrew McMahon began his musical career as the lead vocalist and pianist for the Orange County piano rock band Something Corporate. The primary impulse behind McMahon's solo project, Jack's Mannequin, was a song he recorded in December 2003 titled "Locked Doors". He felt the song had too different a style from previous Something Corporate material to be one of their songs. He realized that if he ever decided to release it, it would be on a solo album rather than a Something Corporate record.[4] Exhausted from months of touring in late summer 2004, the band decided to take a temporary break. During his time off, McMahon laid down piano and vocal tracks for a song on Hidden in Plain View's Life in Dreaming and two songs on Tommy Lee's Tommyland: The Ride.

While Something Corporate's other songwriter and lead guitarist Josh Partington created a side project of his own called Firescape, McMahon started writing his own songs. He did not expect the songs to be released. McMahon took a more therapeutic approach in writing these songs, resulting in a more personal and intimate testament of his songwriting. McMahon stated in an interview that they dealt with "coming home, and having home be way different than I had remembered it [...], abandoning a lot of people, and things, that I had normally been so attached to [...], exploring and being okay with myself, and not having to make excuses for who I am, and accepting who I am."[5] Although he just planned on recording these songs, they began to take shape collectively. He paid for the production out of his own pocket, which ultimately led to a record deal with Maverick Records.

He formed the band under the name Jack's Mannequin, which came to be after McMahon had considered the name "The Mannequins". However, after growing "bored of 'the' band names," he decided to sandwich it together with the title of a song he had completed for the record, "Dear Jack". Originally, there was said to be "not much significance behind the name," but upon McMahon's diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, "the band name became ironic--considering the Jack I wrote the song for & ultimately named the project after, suffered from childhood leukemia."[6]

Their first album, titled Everything in Transit, was released in August 2005 and received a positive response from fans and critics alike.[7] A summer tour was scheduled to support the record release, but was canceled after McMahon was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and received a stem cell transplant from his sister Kate.[8]

Music by Jack's Mannequin from Everything in Transit was featured in Season Three, Episode Fifteen of the TV series One Tree Hill.[9] Hilarie Burton's character on the show, Peyton Sawyer, appeared in the music video for 'The Mixed Tape,' from Everything In Transit.

In May 2013, nearly eight years after its 2005 release, the track Dark Blue went gold.[10] In August 2021, 16 years after its 2005 release, Everything In Transit went gold.[11]

Jack's Mannequin performing at The Grog Shop in Cleveland, Ohio, November 10, 2008.

The band began recording their second album in the summer of 2007. In August 2007, McMahon posted the lyrics to the song "Cellular Phone" on his blog,[12] which the band played live at several shows in 2007 and 2008. Also, in February 2008, videos of live performances of two songs off the record ("Caves"[13] and "Suicide Blonde"[14]) were uploaded onto YouTube for public viewing. McMahon then appeared on the cover of the January 2008 issue of Alternative Press.[15]

The album was entitled The Glass Passenger, and is a transcendent step-up, a catchy and listenable journey through McMahon's stories of love, life, and loss that moves from full-on upbeat rock ("Spinning") to melancholy introspection ("Annie Use Your Telescope") and all that lies between.[16] It was originally set for release on April 22, 2008, but the date was then tentatively set to June 3, and eventually delayed to be released on September 30, 2008.

The Ghost Overground EP was released to iTunes on August 5, 2008. The EP contains two tracks from the second album, "The Resolution" and "Bloodshot", and two live tracks from Everything in Transit. Another EP, In Valleys, was released on iTunes on September 9, containing one song from the album, "Swim," and three b-sides, "Cell Phone", "Sleazy Wednesday", and "At Full Speed".

On August 28, 2008, in an interview with MTV, Andrew revealed that the author Stephenie Meyer had written the treatment for the music video for "The Resolution" and was set to direct it the following week.[17] McMahon said of the filming, "It was a very cool shoot. Music videos are a tricky thing. They require a lot of trust in the team creating the visuals and that can be a little scary. That said, there was a great vibe on the set, and shooting by the water really made it an especially peaceful day, despite all the hard work that goes into it."[18]

On September 3, 2008, it was announced that Jack's Mannequin would be the headliner on a fall tour that featured the album. The tour was called "Hammers and Strings: An Evening with Jack's Mannequin and The Glass Passenger." The band toured many cities and played much of the album at these shows. This much-awaited tour saw many of the shows sell out in a few days. It was the first tour after The Glass Passenger's release.

On October 4, 2009, McMahon began a solo tour across the country to raise awareness of leukemia and to support the release of the Dear Jack documentary due out on November 3, 2009. On November 3, 2009, the EP associated with the Dear Jack documentary, also of the same name, was released, including the songs "Dear Jack", "Diane, the Skyscraper", "There, There Katie", and "Swim (Music Box)".

On September 28, 2010, it was announced bassist Jonathan "Dr. J" Sullivan left the band to pursue his other band, Kid Is Qual. McMahon stated, "Our dear friend, Dr. J, will be moving on to pursue new horizons with his band Kid is Qual. He will be sorely missed by us and the fans who have grown to love him, but we wish him great success on this new journey."[19] Mikey "The Kid" Wagner was later announced as the band's new bassist.

In an Alternative Press article, Andrew revealed that he planned to return to the studio in Spring 2010 to record his third full studio album with Jack's Mannequin. According to a LiveDaily interview with Relient K's lead vocalist, Matt Thiessen, Thiessen contributed around four songs or so to this Jack's Mannequin album.[20] 3 of these songs, "Amy, I", "People, Running", and "Platform Fire", were included on the album. This newest album was released on October 4.[21]

McMahon debuted a new song titled "Restless Dream" during an acoustic tour in Australia in February 2011. This song, along with "Hey Hey Hey (We're All Gonna Die)", and "Platform Fire", which was debuted in late 2010, are on the new album.

On March 21, 2011, McMahon sent an email to his fans announcing a summer tour with Guster and revealing the title of Jack's Mannequin's third studio album: "In a perfect world we will be finished with Jack's third album, 'People and Things', by the end of this month."[22]

On July 19, 2011, it was announced that People and Things would be released on October 4, 2011. The first single, "My Racing Thoughts", was released on August 2, 2011.[23]

According to AbsolutePunk.net, McMahon had this to say about the new album, "I consider 'People and Things' a relationship record. My goal with many of the songs was to strip away the flowery language and sentiment attached to newer love and replace it with starker, less blinded language about more binding love. In the time following the last Jack's album the people in my world were moving in together, getting married, trying to find quote unquote 'real jobs' and reconciling new lives that looked a lot less like youth than some of us cared for. Marriage is a bit of a beast to tackle in a pop record but when I wrote 'My Racing Thoughts,' it became clear how powerful and loaded a subject this kind of love is and somewhere in that moment I began to lock into the broad concept for the writing sessions to come." In another (unrelated) interview, McMahon established "this album should be different than the previous few. The first (Everything In Transit) was about breaking up, the second (The Glass Passenger) was about getting sick and recovering from it. I hated that album at first, until we wrote this one (People and Things) and I then realized how proud I am of all of my work. This album will be much more 'cheery' than the last one(s)."[24]

On February 2, 2012, McMahon foreshadowed the end to the band, saying, "I foresee an end to the usage of the name. I don't know that it's doing for me what it used to, in the sense that Jack's sort of really represented a freedom from something. And a really free approach to creating things that now is certainly wrapped up in a whole lot of turmoil and tumult in a very difficult time in my life. And to acknowledge that, I certainly think at some point I'm going to have to find a way to shake that loose. And I think to some extent that might mean retiring the name."[25]

On August 25, 2012, the Jack's Mannequin website redirected to andrewmcmahon.com, with McMahon decidedly putting out new music under his own name.

It was announced in September 2012 that Jack's Mannequin would perform their final show together at the 3rd Annual Dear Jack Benefit on November 11 in Los Angeles.[26] The show sold out faster than any other show of McMahon's career, and because of this, an additional performance was added for November 12.[27] Special guests for the shows included Jonathan "Dr. J" Sullivan, Jacques Brautbar, Matt Thiessen, and Stacy Clark.[28] Both of the two performances were recorded with the intention of releasing the concerts on DVD. In May 2013, a pre-order for "Live From The El Rey Theatre" was announced through McMahon's webstore, with profits benefiting the Dear Jack Foundation.

On November 30, 2015, McMahon announced that Jack's Mannequin would reunite for a short Everything in Transit tour called "Ten Years in Transit" to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the release of their debut album. "I am pleased to announce, the Jack's Mannequin band and I will be getting together for a handful of exclusive engagements to celebrate the album Everything in Transit. I will be the first to admit, I prefer keeping my focus in the present, but I cannot deny Transit's place in my life and the lives of my fans. Even as I announce these shows I know there will be disappointment over the fact this will not be a full tour. To those of you in markets we are not playing, please know we picked the routing that allowed us to play the most shows in the short time that was available." The lineup consisted of McMahon, Bobby "Raw" Anderson, Jay McMillan, and Mikey "The Kid" Wagner, with Zac Clark as a guest on keys.

On June 16, 2020, McMahon announced that Everything in Transit would be played in full in on July 10 and 11 at a drive-in show in Anaheim. "In a time where shows are scarce [due to the COVID-19 pandemic], this is an opportunity for us to gather safely and celebrate live music under the stars. It also felt like the perfect time to celebrate the 15th Anniversary of "Everything In Transit", which my band and I will be playing front-to-back, in addition to other favorite songs from The Wilderness and Something Corporate," McMahon stated in the show announcement.[29] A third show date on July 12 was added, and the July 11 show was available to livestream. Additional drive-in shows celebrating the 15th anniversary of Everything in Transit were later announced, in Oceanport, Schaumburg, Cedar Park, Glendale, and San Jose; however, the Glendale and San Jose shows were later canceled due to increasing COVID-19 cases in those cities.[30] The Jack's Mannequin moniker was not advertised for these shows. Instead, they were billed as, "Andrew McMahon's Drive-In Through A Dream: Celebrating 15 Years of Everything in Transit". The line up for the shows consisted of McMahon, Anderson, McMillan, Wagner, along with Morgan Paros in her debut with Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness. Zac Clark opened for the band at their Cedar Park show.

• "Kill the Messenger" 7" vinyl (2005)
• The Free Holiday EP (Online Streaming) (2006)
• The Ghost Overground (iTunes Store Exclusive) (August 5, 2008)
• In Valleys (iTunes Store Exclusive) (September 9, 2008)
• The Resolution EP (Rhapsody/VCast Exclusive) (September 23, 2008)
• Live from SoHo EP (iTunes Store Exclusive) (March 10, 2009)
• The Dear Jack EP (iTunes Store Exclusive) (November 3, 2009)

• "Lonely for Her" – bonus track on the iTunes Store version of Everything In Transit (2005)
• "The Lights and Buzz" – released as a digital download on the iTunes Store (2005)
• "Meet Me at My Window" – released on Sound of Superman (2006)[44]
• "Last Straw, AZ" – released online (2006)
• "Bruised (Remix)" – released on Snakes on a Plane: The Album (2006)
• "Bruised (Acoustic)" – released on Fearless Records' Punk Goes Acoustic 2 (2007)
• "God (feat. Mick Fleetwood)" – released on Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur (2007)[45]
• "La La Lie (West Coast Winter version)"- released on Punk the Clock Vol. 3: Property of Gentlemen (2007)
• "Mr. Tambourine Man" – released on Chimes of Freedom: Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International (2012)
• "Wrecking Ball Heart" – released as a digital download on AndrewMcMahon.com (2012) as the final recording by Jack's Mannequin