Spring Heeled Jack USA - Jolene

What this video is

Released in 1998 at the apex of the third-wave ska commercial bubble, 'Jolene' by Spring Heeled Jack USA (Ignition Records/Tommy Boy) captures the East Coast ska-punk scene at the moment of its greatest mainstream visibility. The band, rooted in New Haven, Connecticut, had graduated from Moon Ska Records to a major-distributed label alongside touring partners Reel Big Fish, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Dance…

Why it matters

A representative artifact of late-1990s East Coast third-wave ska-punk at its commercial peak. 'Jolene' demonstrates the genre's pop-punk absorption — blaring horns over driving guitars and melodic vocals — that briefly earned MTV adjacency. As the lead single from Songs From Suburbia…