In 2005, Vesely released his debut album titled Awake. He claims 'In some ways a band is more powerful, but in other ways there are things you can do with one voice and one acoustic guitar that you couldn't do with an army of musicians behind you.' While some artists may fear the rawness of playing with just an acoustic guitar, John welcomes the honesty it comes along with. He released 'A Twist In My Story' as a reference to the divorce. Vesely was heart broken as can be seen in many of his songs. People around the world are merely getting to hear the songs 'second-hand.' While Vesely continues to market the affectionate biography, the couple broke up in 2008. The pseudonym Secondhand Serenade is a reference to the way in which his songs were 'serenades' sung to his wife Candice, with whom he has two young sons. She had wanted him to play a song and 'serenading her with a bass guitar was out of the question.' He has admitted he found his 'true calling' when he picked up the guitar.

Vesely began writing his own songs when he met his wife Candice Vesely.

Vesely was also the son of a Czech immigrant. Vesely follows in the tradition of John Ondrasik's Five for Fighting. After years of playing bass, he opted for an acoustic guitar. One of the bands he played in, Sounds Like Life, included fellow Bay Area artist Ronnie Day. He spent 8 years playing bass in local bands, featuring in a number of acts ranging in style from ska and hardcore to rock and pop. He started getting into music at the age of 12. Vesely was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area in a humorous family and as the son of a professor, commenting that 'getting into music was a tough and heavy thing' for him. John Vesely formed Secondhand Serenade in his home town of Menlo Park in California, USA, in 2004. The debut album used multitrack recording to create the sound of a band using technology, while the second album took a different path, using a proper band and synthesizers to establish a more accomplished sound. Vesely has released three studio albums to date under the name Secondhand Serenade: Awake in 2007, A Twist in My Story in 2008 and Hear Me Now in 2010.

Secondhand Serenade is an acoustic rock band, led by vocalist and guitarist John Vesely. Secondhand Serenade Discography (2007 - 2010)

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