Rod Jones

Rodric Iwan Pryce Jones (born 3 December 1976) is a British guitarist, singer, songwriter and music producer. He is best known as a founding member of Scottish indie rock band Idlewild, with whom he has co-written and recorded ten studio albums. Jones has released two solo albums and fronted the rock band The Birthday Suit. He is also a co-creator of the ongoing musical project The Fruit Tree Foundation.

Early life Jones was born in Durban, South Africa and grew up in London and Leeds, England. His parents are classical musicians, English soprano Alison Jack and Welsh conductor John Pryce-Jones. Jones began playing music at four years of age and initially resisted the musical influence of his parents.

Musical career

Idlewild Idlewild formed in Edinburgh, with the original line-up consisting of Jones, Roddy Woomble, Phil Scanlon and Colin Newton. Jones first met Newton and Woomble at an Edinburgh university, and the band proceeded to release seven albums and three compilations—two albums debuted in the UK "Top 10" chart, while twelve of Idlewild's singles ranked in the UK "Top 40" chart. Together with the band, Jones toured extensively, both in the UK and internationally, in headline and supporting roles; Idlewild toured with popular bands such as R.E.M., U2, The Rolling Stones, Pearl Jam and Coldplay. Following Idlewild's commitments for the band's seventh album, Post Electric Blues (released in October 2009), an "indefinite hiatus" was announced.

Solo Jones released his debut solo album, A Sentimental Education, in 2009. In a 2010 interview with The List website, Jones briefly explained the history of his inaugural solo effort: "This album only started out as a hobby initially,’ he says. 'I recorded the songs on my own and worked on them for about a year, until it got to the point that I thought what I was doing was actually OK." Music journalist, Chris Buckle, writing for the UK "independent cultural" media outlet, The Skinny, awarded the album two "stars" out of a possible total of five, stating that "his [Jones] voice is passable but leaves little impression, which wouldn't be a problem if the songs imposed themselves more strongly."

Jones released his second solo album, A Generation Innocence, in August 2012; however, while writing for the second album, Jones encountered a hurdle at the halfway mark, as he discovered that he was not satisfied with any of the material that he had written thus far. In 2011, Jones explained, "I was a bit fed up with the whole folk music thing – I mean every man and his dog was doing the faux folk thing"—Jones then proceeded to learn the drums and eventually formed the band, The Birthday Suit, to record the material that he had created in the period following the drumming diversion.

The Birthday Suit's second studio album, A Conversation Well Rehearsed was released on 3 December 2012.

Collaborations In 2000, Jones played second guitar for Graham Coxon on a UK solo tour that occurred in 2000.

Jones collaborated with Woomble on his solo album, My Secret is My Silence, released in 2006.

In 2006, Jones recorded a self-titled album with singer, Inara George, called George is Jones. The album was due for release in the autumn of 2006; however, the project has not been revived after a period of hiatus and has yet to be released. Jones notes that a release of the album is "doubtful", a situation that is due to "too many problems surrounding it."

Personal life Jones has been married twice. The song "Me and Mrs Jones" by Billy Paul was played at his first wedding. He married his second wife, Fiona, in September 2025, after a five-month engagement.

Discography Solo A Sentimental Education (2010) A Generation Innocence (2012)

Idlewild Captain (1998) Hope Is Important (1998) 100 Broken Windows (2000) The Remote Part (2002) Warnings/Promises (2005) Make Another World (2007) Post Electric Blues (2009) Everything Ever Written (2015) Interview Music (2019) Idlewild (2025)

The Birthday Suit The Eleventh Hour (2011) A Conversation Well Rehearsed (2012) A Hollow Hole Of Riches (2014)

The Fruit Tree Foundation First Edition (2011)

George is Jones George is Jones (unreleased) (2006)

Roddy Woomble My Secret is My Silence (2006)

Under One Sky Under One Sky (2009)