John Francis Vigliatura IV

Jack Vigliatura was the lead singer of For Squirrels. John Francis “Jack” Vigliatura, IV, was born on December 20th, 1973, in Massachusetts. Later in life, Jack would move to Clearwater, Florida, where he would meet Travis Tooke and Bill White. They all attended East Lake High School and met each other through the school’s soccer team. While they were enrolled at the University of Florida, Bill and Travis launched their musical careers after buying guitars from a local pawn shop. Their first band consisted of just Jack V., Travis, Bill, and a drum machine. Later they would recruit a friend named Jay Russel to be their drummer in 1993, but after he left to study law at Stetson University they recruited Jack Griego, and thusly they had their definitive line-up. One of Jack Vig’s songwriting's most significant influences was his childhood in a small New England town. This was likely what inspired historically-based songs like Plymouth, Flagboy, and Orangeworker. He seemed to be in touch with history and lore, and world events, which is seen in ‘Mighty K.C.’ A song about both the death of Kurt Cobain, it was written in the same week he died, and the Rwandan Genocide. One, much smaller, and lesser-known influence may also have been the suicides of Kurt Cobain’s fans following his death. Understandably, but unfortunately, they largely went unreported so they wouldn’t encourage or inspire others to do the same. When Rich Ulloa, their first manager, first saw For Squirrels playing, they were at a venue called Rose's in Miami. Jack Vig was in the middle of a demonstration on how to disco dance, and in the words of Rich, “I thought, ‘What am I seeing?’ Jack had great moves and a sense of drama that no one I’ve seen before or after has had. When he walked on the stage, you’re not looking at anything else. That was the key to the band’s success. It was three o’clock in the morning, and I thought, ‘I have to work with this band. Have to.’” Rich also said, "I was immediately taken by them. They had a wonderfully fresh personality, stage presence, and passion." (You can see Jack's disco demonstration here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeRg4ihL7WQ&list=PLcsl_vOiePZv6j3I7zllY7dfISyRQWE1U&index=13 ) After For Squirrel's recorded Example, prior to their tour Jack secretly married his high-school sweetheart, Kim, in Gainesville on August 9th, 1995. They had dated their junior and senior years at East Lake High School and had begun dating again in early 1995. On September 8th, 1995 Jack was driving the band's tour van through Liberty County, Georgia when the rear right tire blew, causing the van to swing sideways, flip, and roll 3 times. The crash killed Jack, bassist Bill White, and their tour manager Tim Bender. Jack and Bill are buried side by side in Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park. Jack was only 21 years old. An inscription on Jack’s tombstone reads, “God is good. Rejoice in the Lord Always! Dearly loved and respected son, brother, husband, grandson, nephew, cousin, and friend to all.”