Before Less Than Jake, Vocalist and guitarist Chris Demakes and drummer Vinnie Fiorello led a local band named Good Grief with bassist Shaun Grief while attending high school in Port Charlotte, Florida. Good Grief broke up when Chris moved north to attend the University of Florida at Gainesville, Florida. On July 13th, 1992, what would become Less Than Jake was born. While Shaun moved to New York City (he would later return as the band's roadie), Chris and Vinnie started writing songs on the weekends before Vinnie joined Chris at the University of Florida. When Vinnie arrived, the two decided they needed a bass player. But first, they wanted a name. They decided to name the band after the dog Vinnie's family had owned while growing up in New Jersey. An 80lbs. pit bull, the pet was treated far more generously by his parents than, indeed, Vinnie himself was. With its own spot on the couch and takeout food ordered specifically to feed it, most everything else in the house was dubbed as being "less than Jake."