Adam Jones

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Jones's artistic journey began long before he picked up an electric guitar. Raised in Libertyville, Illinois, he was accepted into the Suzuki program and played violin through his freshman year of high school. As a child, he transformed animation ideas into three-dimensional sculptures, a hobby that later explained Tool's frequent use of 3D clay effects in their videos. He attended CalArts on a scholarship for art but left before completing his degree. Before that, he formed Electric Sheep with future Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello. The duo met in Los Angeles—Jones had moved there for film work, while Morello was already attending UCLA—and they learned guitar together without traditional lessons. His path led him to Rick Lazzarini's Character Shop, where he worked on the TV show Monsters for two years, designing makeup like a Grim Reaper and a zombie head later used in The Frighteners. He subsequently joined Stan Winston's workshop, sculpting a unique skull for Predator 2.

In Their Own Story

In the bustling world of 1980s Hollywood, Jones worked on iconic films including Jurassic Park, Batman Returns, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and Dances with Wolves. His specific contributions ranged from designing makeup for A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child to creating commercials for Duracell featuring boxers and taxicabs. These experiences in stop-motion camera techniques became the foundation for directing the majority of Tool's music videos, including "Sober," "Prison Sex," "Stinkfist," "Ænema," "Schism," "Parabola," and "Vicarious." Beyond film, Jones collaborated closely with Jello Biafra and The Melvins, contributing to albums like Never Breathe What You Can't See and Sieg Howdy!. He also appeared on the Mr. On August 14, 2011, he performed the US national anthem at WWE's SummerSlam in Los Angeles. Decades later, in 2025, WWE announced he provided guitar parts for The Lucha Brothers' entrance themes.

Reader's Guide

Jones is known for a playing style that avoids a single dominant technique, instead combining power chords, scratchy noise, chiming arpeggios, and off-beat rhythms. On the 2019 album Fear Inoculum, he utilized drop D tuning almost exclusively, though songs like "Parabola" and "Prison Sex" feature other tunings. He employs unusual time signatures, such as the 7/8 intro in "7empest," and heavy triplets on Lateralus and 10,000 Days. His sound is expanded through experimental tools; he famously used an epilator as a plectrum on Ænima and Lateralus, a talk box on "Jambi," and pick slides on "Third Eye." Live, his setup includes a DOD FX-40B Equalizer, Boss BF-2 Flanger, Boss DD-3 Digital Delay, a Dunlop Cry Baby, and an MXR Micro Amp. He primarily plays a prized 1979 Custom Silverburst Gibson Les Paul, which became a signature model in 2020, amplified by Marshall, Diezel, and Mesa Boogie stacks.

Did You Know?

• Jones designed a zombie head on a spike for Monsters that was later used in The Frighteners.
• He created the makeup actors wore for the music videos of "Schism" and "Parabol/Parabola."
• In 2010, he co-wrote an X-Files/30 Days of Night crossover comic with Steve Niles.
• Jones received a Grammy Award in 2007 for Best Recording Package for his art direction on Tool's album 10,000 Days.
• He used an epilator as a guitar pick on the albums Ænima and Lateralus to create unique textures.