Jason Feddy

Jason Edward Feddy (born 22 February 1966) is an English musician who now makes his home in Southern California, United States.

In addition to a notable solo career as a singer/songwriter, Feddy has fronted several bands, as well as written and performed for television, movies, and the stage.

Feddy has also had a successful run hosting his own radio show.

In 1984 he became lead singer of his first professional band, "Soft Target," working men's clubs in the UK's North East and touring Norway.

Going solo as a singer/songwriter soon thereafter, he spent the next couple of decades touring and making albums, acquiring accolades and notoriety along the way.

Feddy has been featured in the prestigious London based Time Out (magazine) and on the cover of the Classic Rock Society journal.

He tours in Europe regularly to this day and has written songs for theater, television and film.

"By the time Jason Feddy starts, [its] not just standing room only, it’s breathing room only ... teaming hot, not just from shared body heat but shared anticipation ... Jason’s VOICE is just stunning, ... [a] high quality singer songwriting from a bloke who is a master, and knows his craft ...."

The Beatroots band was formed by Feddy in the spring of 2006 in response to a request from Laguna Beach's world-famous Festival of Arts (see Pageant of the Masters or Sawdust Art Festival).

The Festival was looking for a band to play Beatles songs on their music stage every Sunday afternoon the following summer.

They contacted Feddy, who brought the players together and formulated the show.

The Beatroots are a different kind of "tribute" band.

They don't dress up, they don't wear wigs.

They play the songs of The Beatles in their own style, staying close to the original, but improvising when the feeling takes them.

This makes for a truly energetic and alive experience for both the musicians and the audience.

Not a dreary copy-cat, but a real, organic living tribute.

The Beatroots show was a tremendous success at the Festival of the Arts—it ran for six incredible years—and to this day the band continues to appear at the Festival and various other venues.

The Beatroots are: Jason Feddy (lead vocals and guitar); Geoff Perlman (vocals/guitars); John Troy (vocals/bass) and Evan Stone (drums).

In the spring of 2010, Feddy and his band met with local performance poet, actor and teacher John Gardiner, to develop a performance piece of Shakespeare's songs with modern, acoustic based tunes combined with speeches from Shakespeare's plays.

The result is a fast-paced, off the cuff and energetic performance called Shakespeare's Fool, featuring 10 songs and 10 speeches from the Shakespeare canon accompanied by performance art by Feddy's actress wife, Ava Burton.

In 2014 Laguna Beach resident Clay Berryhill gathered together eight local musicians with big time musical careers, including Feddy as guitar player and singer, to create a new band modeled after the Traveling Wilburys, called the 133 Band.

In addition to Feddy, the 133 Band features Beth Fitchett-Wood (guitar & vocals), Steve Wood (keyboards & vocals) Poul Pedersen (guitar & vocals), Bob Hawkins (lead guitar), Alan Deremo (bass), Nick Hernandez (ukulele, guitar & vocals), and Drew Hester (drums).

The 133 Band made its debut by opening for The Beach Boys at the Irvine Bowl and continues to appear at numerous venues in southern California.

It has also produced an EP, a CD, and a documentary film about the making of the band and its members.

In 2017 Feddy co-narrated the short film "Everything Laguna Beach."

Feddy has written and performed songs for the Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen TV series So Little Time, feature film Divorce Invitation (starring Paul Sorvino & Elliott Gould), and soundtrack for the documentary film "Home Again."

There are songs in the plays of Shakespeare.

In the summer of 2018 Feddy debuted his Joe Cocker tribute band, "Mad Dogs & The Englishman".

Along with Jason as lead singer (who had in years past toured with Joe Cocker), the band features an all-star lineup of musicians including John Troy on bass (who has performed or recorded with Vince Gill, John Denver, Amy Grant, Belinda Carlisle, The Mamas and the Papas, Jesse Colin Young, John Oates, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Glenn Frey, Jack Tempchin and Honk); Ray Weston on drums (Iron Butterfly and touring or recording with Tom Jones, Robert Palmer, Bjork, Del Shannon, Right Said Fred, and many others); Richard Bredice on guitar (formerly with Jules Shear, Fall Out Boy, Common Sense); Dave Witham on keyboards (who has worked with Barbra Streisand, George Benson, Al Jarreau, José Feliciano, to name a few); Jimmy 'Z' Zavala on saxophone (who has toured and recorded with Rod Stewart, Tom Petty, Eurythmics, and has recorded with Dr. Dre, Barry White, Ziggy Marley, Carole King, Yes, Bon Jovi, Macy Gray, and countless others); and "The Chick" back-up signers Pat Hawk (formerly with Michael Bolton, John Denver, Bill Medley and The Righteous Brothers, Merry Clayton, Eric Carmen, Pet Shop Boys, Kenny G, Peabo Bryson, and more); Janis Leibhart (formerly with Michael Bolton 19 years), Moody Blues, Glenn Frey, k.d. lang, Charlie Rich, Engelbert Humperdinck, and The Righteous Brothers), and Lori Mark-Heingold (formerly with The Righteous Brothers, Bill Medley, Engelbert Humperdinck, Eric Carmen, Merry Clayton, Charlie Rich, and was a featured singer on "The Dirty Dancing" Tour).

The band opened to rave reviews: "We included Mad Dogs & The Englishman as part of our summer concert series. It was not only SOLD OUT but was one of the highlights of our year. Everyone was on their feet. It was an extraordinary performance. The band members were all top notch. Jason Feddy IS Joe Cocker!"

— Susan Davis, Director of Special Events Festival of Arts, Laguna Beach, California.

The band now regularly plays at numerous venues and events throughout the country.

In 2018, Feddy wrote fourteen original songs for the play Two's a Crowd, including the hit single "If Only."

The musical comedy, written and produced by award-winning comedienne Rita Rudner and her British producer husband Martin Bergman, opened at the Laguna Playhouse in September 2018, starring Rita Rudner and The Phantom of the Opera's Davis Gaines.

Feddy also served as Musical Director for the opening run.

In 2019 Feddy was named Laguna Beach "Artist of the Year."

Feddy was born in the city of Leeds, Yorkshire, England.

He left school at 16 and, after a couple of years drifting around Europe and the Middle East, returned to England and formed the rock 'n roll band Officer Dibble, which he fronted as a singer and guitar player.

The show opened a six-week off-Broadway run in New York City during the summer of 2019, with Feddy also appearing onstage and singing.

A review by the New York Times described Feddy's show persona as "rumpled charm."