Jules and the Polar Bears - Got No Breeding

Name: Jules and the Polar Bears
Album: Got No Breeding
Year: 1978
Style: Power Pop
Similar Bands: Journey, ELO, Kinks, Badfinger, Police, Steve Forbert, Todd Rundgren, Cheap Trick, Rockpile
"One-Word" Review: Melodic Powerpop
Based Out Of: LA, CA
Label: Columbia, CBS

Cover, Sleeve, Record

Back, Sleeve, Record

Got No Breeding (1978)

1. You Just Don't Wanna Know 4:09 (single)
2. Black Fever Sleep 4:09
3. Lovers By Rote 3:46
4. Shadows Break 4:46
5. Convict 3:28 / 
6. Got No Breeding 2:45
7. The Soul of Many Places 3:26
8. Love It Again 3:09
9. Home Somewhere 2:58
10. Following Every Finger 4:08
11. Driftwood From Disaster 2:02

Album Rating (1-10): 6.5

Members & Other Bands:

• Jules Shear - Vox, Guitar, Design (Funky Kings, Reckless Sleepers, Raisins in the Sun, Cyndi Lauper, Bangles, Iain Matthews, Aimee Mann, Matthew Sweet, Shear Shazar, Polar Pair more)
• Richard Bredice - Guitar (Mercy Ray, Kathy Troccoli, Michael English, Pressure, Scott Sechman)
• Stephen Hague - Keys, Engineer (La Seine, Polar Pair, Walter Egan, Gordan Lightfoot, Gleaming Spires, Ric Ocasek, OMD, Pere Ubu, Blur, James, Pretenders, Peter Gabriel, A-Ha,   many)
• David Beebe - Drums, Percussion (Banana Blender Surprise, El Orbits, Bob Beland, Slow Children, Mercy Ray, Roches, Randy Vanwarmer, Pal Shazar, Jimmy Somerville, Jesse Dayton, Nina Katchadourian)
• Larry Hirsch - Engineer, Percussion (Guthrie Thomas, Seventy Sevens, Maria Muldaur, SDteven Soles, Sand Rubies, Peter Case)
• Alex Rosenthal - Asst Engineer
• Dennis Moody - Asst Engineer
• John Golden - Mastering
• Elizabeth Lennard - Cover Art
• Max Hellweg - Sleeve Photo
• Alyson - Cover Lettering
• Tony - Design
• Eddie Reeves - Personal Mgmt
• Kenny Altman - Bass and Gone (Fifth Ave band, Strangers, White Horse, Bread & Butter, John Sebastian, Peter Gallway, Seanor & Koss, Melvin Van peebles, Reggie Knighton, David Batteau)
• Jim Gordon - Baritone Sax (Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, Jesse Davis, Shelley manne, Shotgun LTD, Duane Allman, Elvin Bishop, Hap Palmer, Alex Richman, Thomas & Richard Frost, Ben Sidran, Maria Muldaur, Stephen Cohn, Delaney Bramlett, Linda Ronstadt, Jesse Ed Davis, Becky Hobbs, Freddie King, Bonnie Raitt, Jessi Colter, Jackson Browne, Bert Jansch, Waylon Jennings, Gary Hill, Rick Danko, Tompall Glaser, the Band, Alpha Band, CY Walkin Band, Rick Cunha, Rod Stewart, Kayak, Ken Lauber, Ringio Starr, Rita Coolidge, Mike Bloomfield, Keb Mo, John kay & Co, Andrew belling, Leon Russell)
• Jerry Petersen - Tenor Sax (Billy Vera & The Beaters, Creation, HUB, Golden Avatar, Michael Cassidy, Olivia Newton-John, Cindy Bullens, Tonio K. Alpha Band, Ronnie Hawkins, Evie Sands, Foxy. Matthew Moore, Joe Dassin, Mouse, Edwin Starr, Norman Connors, Robbie Dupree, Chuck Francour, Ollie Mitchell's Sunday Band Kim Carnes, Nils Lofgren, peter Alsop, Danny Deardorf, Larry John McNally, Martha Bishop, Leslie Smith, Linda Ronstady, Motels, Kuniko Fukushima, APB, Bob Welch, Matthew Wilder, Marty Balin, DFX2, Carl Wilson, New Edition, Lynn Carey, Jack Wagner, ODA, Off Course, barbara, Dennis Edwards, Black Tie, Steve Narahara, Phyllis Nelson, 38 Special, Dwight willey, Amanda McBroom, Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Cris Williamson, Cruzados, Heidi, Dramarama, Michael Bolton, Gashouse Dave, Greg Cooper, John Miles, Teresa James, Rick Danko JJ Cale, Johnny Rivers)
• Jerry Jumonville - Tenor Sax (Delaney&Bonnie&Friends, Les Getrex & Creole Cooking, Dr. John, Ry Cooder, Duane Allman, Doobie Brothers, Maria Muldaur, Mike Bloomfield, Dave Mason, Bonnie Raitt, Iron Butterfly, Rod Stewart, Gap Band, Van Morrison, Johnny Rivers, Dusty Springfield, David Soul, Little Feat, Leo Sayer, Brooklyn Dreams, Albert Lee, Bette Midler, Harry Nilsson, Doobie Brothers, Ringo Starr, States, Eikichi Yazawa, Tommy Tutone, Michael Bolton, Smokey Robinson, Captain Beefheart,   some more)
• Mike Henderson - Tenor Sax (Eddie Cochran, Kelly Four, Allan Breed, Gary Paxton, Your Gang, Ben Benay. Pete Candoli, Firar Tuck, Tommy Roe, Marketts, Tony Conn, Johnny Legend & Skullcaps, Ray Campi, Jimmie Lee Maslon, The Ballroom, Lee Mallory,  )
• Mark Underwood - Trumpet (Darlene Zschech, West Australian Symphonic Orch, Serfs, 3rd Ave Blues Band, Becky Hobbs Andrae Crouch & the Disciples, Cate Bros., Van Morrison, Bette Midler, David Soul, Alvino Rey, Michael Vlatkovich, Vinny Golla, Hank Marvin, Rhibosome, Flow Dynamics)
• Lee Thornberg - Trumpet (Richard Cheese, Lounge Agaisnt the Machine, Supertramp, Bob Florence Ltd Ed. Bruce Eckovitz, Heart Attack Horns, Soul Lips, Steve Huffsteter, Tower of Power, Little Feat, Doobie Bros, Rod Stewart, more)
• Jay Pruitt - Trumpet
• Darrell Leonard - Trumpet, Horn Arrangement (Delaney&Bonnie&Friends, Phantom Blues Band, Texacali Horns, more)
• Skip Wiesner - Trombone
• Bill Edwards - Trombone
• Linda Small - Trombone (Gary Urwin Jazz Orch, Cate Bros, Tompall Glaser, Tavares, Pete Christlieb 11 piece band)

Unknown-ness: never heard of this band, but from the band name, lowercase font, color choice, and grittiness of the photo makes me think this is a good new wave band, maybe electronic & synth based, or maybe minimal and no wave. Perhaps like Martha & Muffins.

Album Review: So this is pretty straightforward power pop and a little pub rock. "Love It Again" has a little Police feel, but most has an ELO harmonic and Kinks pop feel: nothing too memorable or remarkable. Singer Shear was in a relationship with Aimee Mann at one point. Shear also created and hosted the first 13 episodes of MTV's Unplugged.

Stand Out Track: You Just Don't Wanna Know

Links:
spotify album
wiki - Jules Shear
allmusic
discogs
latimes
starling
musicmap
madnest
rateyourmusic
robert christgau
Jules Shear site