Buffalo Tom formed in 1986 with a friendship at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst among students Chris Colbourn, Tom Maginnis, and Bill Janovitz.
The band flirted with wider commercial success in the 1990s with radio airplay, constant touring and some television appearances.
After a hiatus in the late 90s and 2000s, Buffalo Tom returned occasionally to record and tour new music to a dedicated fan base — both in the states and other parts of the word.
Buffalo Tom’s latest album, 'Jump Rope', was released this past spring. A good opportunity, then, for us to bring a couple of the guys in to play live in NHPR’s Studio D.
Transcript
It's a thrill to see you [and hear] these songs played acoustically. I mean obviously you're known as an electric three piece. Really.
Bill Janovitz: Yeah, but Chris and I started even without Tom just as an acoustic duo up in a room of a house in Northampton, Massachusetts, when we were just fooling around. We were playing in other bands. We were using somebody's four track machine, and Tom was taking a semester off from [school]. We were all going to UMass Amherst at the time, and then he came back and we formed this little— we called it the Buffalo Tom Trio at first because our first gig was at the Iron Horse in Northampton, Massachusetts and it was like a folk open night. So we were like, ah, making folk jokes.
The UMass scene at the time, early to mid 80s, I mean— that was a burgeoning scene. There was a lot of stuff going on there. A lot of bands came out of that era.
Chris Colbourn: Yeah, and a lot of bands because of the colleges came to Amherst or Northampton to like X and The Feelies— and all kinds of things that I think we had, we had seen some of them.
We were coming out of high school, so we weren't old enough to go to clubs early on. So this is the first time we saw Black Flag and, you know, all these kinds of things that we thought of. And then also noticed J Mascis playing in Dinosaur [Jr.]. So it was a pretty great meld of, of all that kind of stuff. But the Flaming Lips would come to Northampton. I mean, so many great shows. It was just— we took it for granted, but it was a big inspiration for us to really be like, ‘Hey, if these guys can do it— look at they're in a van,’ you know, so maybe we can do this.
The new album is called ‘Jump Rope’. Why Jump Rope?
Janovitz: I think it was triggered by the art [in the album], right?
Colbourn: Yeah. And this is actually, literally, a jump rope. But it's a great series of photos from Mark Cohen, a photographer from the 70s [who] had this great series called "True Color" of shots in rural Pennsylvania that really— like for me, and I think the guys — like that era…that’s when we were little kids.
Janovitz: We don't know anything about these kids, but they're just being kids. Like you remember kids being.
Colbourn: Yeah, and you're outside because you had no choice. Yeah. Your parents told you to get outside and there's no internet.
Well, there's no attraction for staying inside either.
Colbourn: Yeah, there's not much going on.
Janovitz: The Brady Bunch is not until five.
Exactly. So we're out of popsicles.
Colbourne and Janovitz: So, yeah. [Laughter]
It's your first release post-pandemic…
Colbourn: Yeah, that sounds right.
I'm wondering how the COVID era kind of shaped or maybe didn't shape the writing process. The recording.
Colbourn: Process. I mean, I was really moved by COVID, I mean, and…
Janovich: Yeah, and in the backdrop of all that is like, you know, I think the song ‘Helmet' gets at this— It's like, when you're going through anything, you want somebody that's in charge of a government that's in charge. That you feel somewhat confident and is competent. That was not the case for a lot of us going through COVID. It just amplified the absurdity of everything and the tragedy of everything. So rarely do we sit down and write about anything, never mind something political. And because, you know, in a lot of songs, it's very difficult to write songs that have a political bent to it because it can get dated quite fast.
Before it even comes out.
Janovich: Yeah. And, you know, I was hoping certain things would be more dated than they were. We had plenty of time to process.
That is interesting because 'Helmet' is kind of a gallows humor sort of a story, a lyric, I guess. We've got to go through this. Put your helmet on.
So what gets you excited about making music now and getting on stage and playing?
Colbourn: I mean, I do think that being on the edge of being popular through the years, you know, really being in the music industry, but not really part of it, was a very healthy thing ultimately.
Like in a way, even in the 80s and 90s when we had some commercial success. But I think really through the years it's been a blessing that we've got a core [group of] people who come, and they really care about you. It's like a little family. It's like coming from a family that supports you, and then you go out into the world and you feel better about everything.
But we never had any kind of crazy moment of like, you know, knock on wood, drugs or things where we or some hit single or something that, like you, that's what you're known for. We've seen other bands, you know, kind of collapse through that kind of thing. And so because of that, I think we could weave this into our life, have kids, you know, get jobs, really enjoy that perk.
Like even when it's backstage and there's like chocolate bars. I'm like, this is awesome. Like, look at all these different chocolate bars in Holland.
Well, Bill and Chris from Buffalo Tom, I can't thank you enough for playing Live in Studio D, today.
Janovich: Oh, thanks!
Colbourn: Yeah, thanks for having us!
