Personal
Marital status: Married (in 2004)!

Hobbies: Watching PBS.

Musical Influences: The Kodo Drummers and others.

Bands other than Course of Empire
Toadies (live); pop poppins (live and studio); Cottonmouth,TX (live and studio); Jackopierce (studio), Meredith Louise Miller (studio), Come Together (live), American Horse (live), Richard Thompson (live), Shadows on the Moon / Halls of the Machine, James Hall / Pleasure Club, Tom Freund (live), The Blind Boys of Alabama (live), Maimou (live), John Cale (live).

Course of Empire
Michael Jerome accepted the invitation to join Course of Empire after his previous band (pop poppins) broke up temporarily in October 1993. Jerome joined the band after Initiation was recorded, but anyone who made it to the live shows heard the chemistry between Michael Jerome and Chad Lovell that gave Course of Empire their unique sound. Chad best described it in an article for Texas Beat, saying: "sometimes I'll do something and he'll look over at me like he's answering me on the back side. It's a good communication."

After Course of Empire
After the end of Course of Empire in July of 1998, Michael has continued his involvement in pop poppins, and has performed at a few charity events in the Dallas / Fort Worth area. He also performed live with the band American Horse. In 1999 and 2000, Michael joined songwriter Richard Thompson for his North American and European tours, and he also spent time playing drums for James Hall in studio and live appearances around the country. Despite his busy schedule, Michael also joined Tom Freund for a live show in Austin, and in May 2001, he performed with the Blind Boys of Alabama on a live television broadcast of the David Letterman show. In 2002, Michael has continued playing drums for James Hall (now touring as Pleasure Club). In addition, Michael is still the live and studio drummer for Mike Graff's ambient guitar project, Halls of the Machine. Their album titled "Atmospheres for Lovers and Sleepers" was released in 2001; this page features more information. In 2004, Michael was still drumming for Pleasure Club, and also performed with Maimou. In more recent years, he has continued extensive touring as a live drummer for Richard Thompson and, separately, with John Cale (of Velvet Underground fame). When he is not on the road, Michael is based in Los Angeles. You can find out more up to date information on his MySpace page.

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