Known for Sound
John Arden "Jay" Ferguson (born May 10, 1947) is an American rock and pop musician known for his work with the bands Spirit and Jo Jo Gunne, and his 1978 solo hit "Thunder Island". His later career has been as a composer of music for television programs and films. Many people know Ferguson for composing the theme song for the American version of The Office on NBC. Ferguson was born on May 10, 1947, in Burbank in the San Fernando Valley, California, to John Becker and Kathleen Jane Ferguson. He grew up in the Van Nuys and Canoga Park sections of Los Angeles. Along with his brother Tom, an accomplished fiddle player, he formed a bluegrass group called The Oat Hill Stump Straddlers including Michael Fondiler and Steve Fondiler. He also held part-time jobs at different points as a theater usher and an architect's assistant for his father John Ferguson, taught piano in a music store, and studied at UCLA after high school. Spirit was founded in the mid-1960s. Many musicians of the time cited The Beatles and their music as an influence, and Ferguson was no exception. Reuniting with longtime musician friends Randy California and California's stepfather Ed Cassidy, who, with Mark Andes and John Locke were in a band called the Red Roosters - Ferguson joined with them to form a jazz-influenced rock group that was originally called Spirits Rebellious, after a Khalil Gibran passage. They later shortened the name to Spirit. Ferguson was the last member to join the band. Ferguson shared singing and songwriting duties with California, writing most of the songs on their first album. Spirit began playing at various nightclubs and concerts in the Los Angeles area, especially the clubs along the Sunset Strip, including Whisky a Go Go. At one of these shows, French film producer Jacques Demy saw Spirit perform and decided he wanted them in his next film. It led to a cameo role for the band and a short speaking part in which Ferguson played a character based loosely on himself in the film Model Shop. Spirit also provided much of the instrumental soundtrack. In 1982, after his sixth and last solo album, White Noise, Ferguson decided to become a soundtrack composer for movies and television. He has written music for over 15 feature films and many TV shows. His most recognizable composition as a TV and film scorer is the theme to the NBC-TV version of The Office, which won him the 2007 Film & TV Music Award for Best Score for a Comedy Television Program. (In The Office, he is also the guitarist in Kevin's band "Scrantonicity".) He is the composer of "Pictures of You" from the soundtrack to The Terminator, and the entire score to A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, Bad Dreams, the Tales From The Crypt episode "Forever Ambergris", as well as Tremors 2: Aftershocks, and Tremors 4: The Legend Begins. Ferguson is also the current soundtrack composer for NCIS: Los Angeles, having replaced original composer James S. Levine halfway through season one with Ferguson's music debuting in the season 1 episode, "Chinatown".
Born
May 10, 1947 (age 79)
Birthplace
Burbank, California, USA
Filmography
21 films, 2 shows


Tremors 4: The Legend Begins
2004 · 1h 41m
country: United States
In 1889, seventeen men die under mysterious circumstances, and spooked by recent events, the miners who populate the town leave in droves until there's nothing left but a shell of a community.


Driven
1998 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Set in the callous streets of L.A., a group of sleep deprived cab drivers are changed forever by the arrival of a mysterious new cabbie and the events of one incredible week.


Tremors 2: Aftershocks
1996 · 1h 40m
country: United States
Earl Bassett's celebrity after defeating the Graboid attack against the town of Perfection has proved short-lived, until he's recruited by a Mexican oil company whose workers have found more than they bargained for under the soil.


Double Dragon
1994 · 1h 36m
country: United States
Two brothers have half of a powerful ancient Chinese talisman. An evil gang leader has the other half, and determines to get the brothers' half and have a complete medallion so he can gain absolute power.


Tagteam
1991 · 1h
country: Unknown
Tricky Rick MacDonald and Billy The Body Youngblood are two of the best wrestlers in the country. They are told to take a dive by the wife of a promoter. If they don't, she will make sure they are blackballed from wrestling. When they don't do what she says, they are fired immediately. They try many jobs without any success. When they stop a grocery store robbery, they get the idea to be cops. So begins a new chapter in the life of this tag team. Bad guys, watch out!!!


Parker Kane
1990 · 1h 31m
country: United States
Parker Kane is a former Police Detective turned Private Investigator. When close friend Joey is murdered, leaving behind a briefcase full of money, Kane sets out to find out who was responsible. The trail of clues leads to a major scam involving illegal dumping of toxic waste.


A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child
1989 · 1h 29m
country: United States
The pregnant Alice finds Freddy Krueger striking through the sleeping mind of her unborn child, hoping to be reborn into the real world.


Gleaming the Cube
1989 · 1h 46m
country: United States
An Orange County teenager's carefree life of ditching class and skateboarding abandoned pools comes to a screeching halt when someone close to him dies. The cops rule the death a suicide, but the bereaved skater believes he was murdered. It's up to him to solve the case, with a skateboard.


License to Drive
1988 · 1h 30m
country: United States
Teenager Les Anderson thinks his life can't get any worse after he flunks his driver's exam, but he's wrong. Even though he didn't receive his license, Les refuses to break his date with the cool Mercedes Lane, and he decides to lift his family's prize luxury car for the occasion. Unfortunately, Mercedes sneaks some booze along and passes out drunk, and a confused Les makes the bad decision of enlisting his rebellious friend, Dean, to help.


Bad Dreams
1988 · 1h 26m
country: United States
Unity Field, a "free love" cult from the '70s, is mostly remembered for its notorious mass suicide led by Harris, its charismatic leader. While all members are supposed to burn in a fire together, young Cynthia is spared by chance. Years later, the nightmare of Unity Field remains buried in her mind. But when those around Cynthia start killing themselves, and she begins having visions of Harris, she may be forced to confront the past -- before it confronts her.


Pulse
1988 · 1h 31m
country: United States
An intelligent pulse of electricity moves from house to house, terrorizing occupants through their own appliances. Having already destroyed one household in a quiet neighborhood, the pulse finds itself in the home of a boy and his divorced father.


Best Seller
1987 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.


Quiet Cool
1986 · 1h 20m
country: United States
Joe Dylanne, a tough New York City police officer, is summoned to Northern California at the behest of Katy Greer, an old flame. Katy desperately needs Joe's help after the brutal killings of much of her family at the hands of rural marijuana dealers. Upon arriving in the area, Joe discovers that local law enforcement isn't helpful, and he must team up with Katy's survivalist nephew, to take down the murderous criminals.


Death of an Angel
1986 · 1h 31m
country: United States
Grace, a priest, tracks her missing daughter to a religious community where the strange father Angel is keeping a wooden Jesus figure that sheds actual blood. When the cross is stolen, Grace decides to help out to get her daughter back.