Railroad Jerk's lineup changed frequently, but the core members were Minnesota native Marcellus Hall (vocals, guitar) and North Carolina-born, New Jersey–bred Tony Lee (bass).[1] The two met in Trenton, New Jersey in early 1989 and formed the band with drummer Jez Aspinall and second guitarist Chris Mueller rounding out the quartet.[2] Hall chose the band's name because he "liked the clack and clang of the two words together."[3]
The band gained a following on the Manhattan club scene and were signed to indie label Matador Records, for whom they recorded four albums[4] — all well received critically — before breaking up in the late 1990s.[1]
Their first two albums, Railroad Jerk (1990) and Raise the Plow (1993), did well, but Railroad Jerk reached its biggest success with One Track Mind (1995).[1] The band made two music videos for the record: "Rollerkoaster" and "Bang the Drum", both directed by Jim Spring and Jens Jurgensen.
Around the time their fourth album — The Third Rail (1996) was released — the band recorded demos for a fifth Railroad Jerk LP which was to be entitled 'Masterpiecemeal'. This final LP was never released. Dave Varenka and Marcellus Hall went on to form the band White Hassle.[citation needed]
