The son of amateur musicians, Adam Schlesinger has been performing in one band or another since his high school days. While attending Williams College, he met Chris Collingwood, with whom he would play guitar. After stints in other bands (including Belltower and Ivy, of which he still remains a member), Schlesinger joined with Collingwood to form Fountains of Wayne. Their self-titled debut album, which featured strong melodies in the 1960s pop style offset by knowing lyrics, was released in 1996.

In the meantime, Schlesinger had begun to become established in TV, providing music for the short-lived John Leguizamo series "House of Buggin'" (Fox, 1995), Hazelle Goodman's HBO comedy special (1995) and the short-lived "The Dana Carvey Show" (ABC, 1996). The songwriter contributed three tunes to the soundtrack of Tom Hanks' "That Thing You Do!" (1996), including the bouncy and infectious title tune. Written in the style of the 60s hits, with influences of groups like the Beatles and the Beach Boys, the ditty, which held up to repeated listenings, earned Schlesinger an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.