[7] Pollard has said that much of the inspiration for his songwriting has come from time spent hanging out with his high school friends from Dayton, a group he calls "The Monument Club".

That song 'Hank's Little Fingers' (on Devil Between My Toes) – Hank (Davidson) is the guy that inspired me to play the guitar.

"[5] When he heard the news, Pollard's father withdrew his financial support, forcing his son to get a job washing dishes.

[5] But the job rubbed off on him, and Pollard has stated that his years as a teacher inspired songs such as "Gold Star For Robot Boy", "Teenage FBI" and "Non-Absorbing".

In 1981, he began playing original songs with fellow Northridge High School alums Kevin Fennell and Mitch Mitchell.

For two years they recorded in the basement of Pollard's house, and played out under a variety of names (including Instant Lovelies, Acid Ranch and Coyote Call).

[5] In total, Guided by Voices released 16 full-length original albums between 1987 and 2004, as well as a large number of EPs and compilations.

I even resorted to bullshit tactics, like telling the band I was quitting and we were breaking up, then forming again a month later with new members.

"[11] To finance the band's early recordings, Pollard, his brother, and their manager obtained a loan from the Dayton Public Schools credit union.

In 1992, bowing to the lack of support from family and friends, and to the pressure of unpaid debt, Pollard broke up Guided by Voices after releasing Propeller, which he felt was their best album to date.

These albums were typically recorded with a small group consisting of current or former Guided by Voices members, and they were generally considered to informally be part of the Guided by Voices canon, as that band would regularly perform selections from the solo releases in concert.

After the dissolution of Guided by Voices in 2004, Robert Pollard launched his official solo career with the release of From a Compound Eye in February 2006.

Pollard's recent studio work has eschewed the live-band format, instead relying on the multi-instrumental talents of Todd Tobias, who produced several Guided by Voices albums.

In 2006, Pollard resumed touring with a new band informally dubbed "The Ascended Masters", which featured Tommy Keene on lead guitar and keyboards, Dave Phillips on guitar, Jon Wurster on drums, and Jason Narducy on bass, but subsequent to the cancellation of some 2006 dates due to a leg injury, Pollard announced his retirement from touring.

Pollard has also issued recordings under a variety of other band names and in collaboration with former GBV colleagues and other musicians.

In 2008, he formed a new band, Boston Spaceships, comprising Pollard, John Moen of The Decemberists and Perhapst, and Chris Slusarenko, who played in the final incarnation of Guided by Voices.

The band's first album, Brown Submarine, was released on September 16, 2008, on Guided by Voices, Inc., and was followed by a tour in the fall of that year.

However, once signed to a major label and constrained to the expectation of producing only a single album per 18 months, Pollard began the self-financed and released Fading Captain Series, a series of releases both under his own name, and a wide variety of pseudonyms.

In addition to solo and archival releases, Pollard began collaborating with fellow musicians and friends by mail via a process dubbed "postal rock" – Pollard would receive completed musical backing tracks, and add his own lyrics and vocals.

[19] Pollard's album Superman Was a Rocker was the first LP released on Happy Jack Rock Records (although the vinyl version of Circus Devils' Sgt.

June 2009 will see the first release from a new Happy Jack project Cosmos, a collaboration with Richard Davies titled Jar of Jam Ton of Bricks.

The first album release on Guided by Voices Inc. was Robert Pollard Is Off To Business, preceded by the 12-inch EP Weatherman And Skin Goddess.

[20] Pollard's collage art is featured on many Guided by Voices albums (notable exceptions being the two released on TVT Records).