Rock Band Name Origins

This book details the origins of the names of 240 musical acts, focusing on the most popular groups (and a few individual performers) from the 1960s through today. Even casual music fans will recognize almost all of the acts discussed. A few one-hit wonders are included simply because their name is so unusual (Mungo Jerry, for example) that they warrant a place in the study. Each entry focuses on the meaning and/or origin of the act’s name, what it had been called previously, and any other names that were considered and rejected during the naming process. Also included are facts and figures about the act’s history and place in the rock music pantheon, the year the act was formed, the names of original members and later members of note and the act’s best known hit. The book lists bands alphabetically to give the casual reader the opportunity to open it to any page and read at leisure, the historian the ability to easily pinpoint the subject of his or her research, or the die-hard rock fan the chance to learn from A to Z the name origins of the biggest acts in rock and pop music history.

Attorney Greg Metzer lives in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Greg Metzer

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 256
Bibliographic Info: appendices, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2008
pISBN: 978-0-7864-3818-1
eISBN: 978-0-7864-5531-7
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      vii
Preface      1
Introduction      3

ABBA      7
AC/DC      8
Ace of Base      8
Aerosmith      9
a-ha      10
Alice in Chains      11
The All-American Rejects      12
The Amboy Dukes      13
Ambrosia      14
America      15
The Animals      16
Art of Noise      16
Asia      17
The B-52’s      18
The Babys      19
Backstreet Boys      20
Bad Company      21
Bad English      22
Badfinger      22
Bananarama      23
The Bangles      24
Barenaked Ladies      25
Bay City Rollers      26
The Beach Boys      27
The Beatles      28
The Bee Gees      28
Berlin      29
Big Brother & the Holding Company      30
The Black Crowes      31
Black Sabbath      32
Blind Melon      33
blink-182      34
Blondie      35
Blood, Sweat & Tears      35
Blue Öyster Cult      37
Blues Traveler      37
Blur      38
Jon Bon Jovi / Bon Jovi      39
The Boomtown Rats      40
David Bowie      41
The Box Tops      41
Bread      42
Buffalo Springfield      43
Bush      44
The Byrds      45
The Cars      46
Cheap Trick      46
Chubby Checker      47
Chic      48
Cinderella      49
The Clash      50
Coldplay      51
Collective Soul      52
Commodores      52
Alice Cooper      53
Elvis Costello      54
Counting Crows      55
The Cranberries      56
Cream      57
Creed      58
Creedence Clearwater Revival      59
Culture Club      60
The Cure      60
Bobby Darin      61
Deep Purple      62
Def Leppard      63
Depeche Mode      64
Derek and the Dominos      65
Devo      65
Dire Straits      66
Dr. Hook      67
The Doobie Brothers      68
The Doors      69
Duran Duran      70
Bob Dylan      71
The Eagles      72
Earth, Wind & Fire      72
Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)      73
Eurythmics      74
Evanescence      75
Fastball      76
The 5th Dimension      77
Firefall      78
Five for Fighting      79
The Flaming Lips      79
Fleetwood Mac      80
Foghat      81
Foo Fighters      82
Foreigner      83
Frankie Goes to Hollywood      84
Frankie Valli & the 4 Seasons      85
Garbage      86
Genesis      87
Gin Blossoms      88
Go-Go’s      89
Goo Goo Dolls      89
Grand Funk Railroad      90
Grateful Dead      91
Green Day      92
The Guess Who      93
Guns n’ Roses      94
Heart      95
Herman’s Hermits      95
The Hollies      96
The Honeydrippers      97
Hoobastank      98
The Hooters      99
Hootie & the Blowfish      100
The Human League      101
Icehouse      101
Billy Idol      102
INXS      103
Jefferson Airplane      104
Jethro Tull      105
Jimmy Eat World      106
Elton John      107
Journey      107
Keane      108
Chaka Khan / Rufus      109
The Kinks      110
Kiss      111
Kool & the Gang      112
Led Zeppelin      113
Level 42      114
Loverboy      115
The Lovin’ Spoonful      116
Lynyrd Skynyrd      116
Madness      117
The Mamas & The Papas      118
Marilyn Manson      119
Maroon 5      120
matchbox twenty      121
Meat Loaf      122
Metallica      123
Milli Vanilli      123
Moby      124
The Moody Blues      125
The Mothers of Invention      126
Mötley Crüe      127
Mott the Hoople      128
Mungo Jerry      129
Naked Eyes      130
New Order      130
Nickelback      131
Night Ranger      132
Nine Inch Nails      133
Nirvana      134
No Doubt      135
Oasis      135
Ohio Players      136
Oingo Boingo      137
The O’Jays      138
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark      139
The Outfield      140
Pablo Cruise      141
Parliament / Funkadelic      142
Pearl Jam      143
Pet Shop Boys      144
Phish      144
Pink Floyd      145
Poco      146
The Pretenders      147
Procol Harum      148
Psychedelic Furs      149
Puddle of Mudd      149
Pure Prairie League      150
Quarterflash      151
Queen / Freddie Mercury      152
? & the Mysterians      153
Radiohead      154
Rage Against the Machine      155
Ramones      156
Red Hot Chili Peppers      157
R.E.M.      158
REO Speedwagon      158
Paul Revere & the Raiders      159
The Righteous Brothers      160
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles      161
The Rolling Stones      162
Roxette      163
Roxy Music      164
Rush      165
Savage Garden      166
Scorpions      166
Scritti Politti      167
Sex Pistols      168
Simple Minds      169
Siouxsie & the Banshees      170
Sixpence None the Richer      171
Skid Row      172
Smash Mouth      173
Smashing Pumpkins      174
Soundgarden      175
Spice Girls      175
Spin Doctors      176
Spinners      177
Steely Dan      178
Steppenwolf      179
Cat Stevens      180
Sting / The Police      181
Stone Temple Pilots      182
Styx      183
Sugar Ray      184
Supertramp      185
The Supremes      185
Survivor      186
(The) Sweet      187
Talk Talk      188
Talking Heads      189
Tears for Fears      190
The Temptations      191
10cc      192
10,000 Maniacs      193
Tesla      194
Thin Lizzy      194
Third Eye Blind (3eb)      195
.38 Special      196
Thompson Twins      197
Three Dog Night      198
Toad the Wet Sprocket      199
Toto      200
Traveling Wilburys      201
The Troggs      201
The Tubes      202
The Turtles      203
Shania Twain      204
Twisted Sister      205
U2 / Bono / The Edge      206
Uriah Heep      207
The Velvet Underground      208
Vertical Horizon      209
Village People      210
The Wallflowers      211
Wang Chung      211
War      212
The Who      213
Stevie Wonder      214
XTC      215
Yes      216
ZZ Top      217

Appendix 1: Pervious Names      219
Appendix 2: Names Considered and Rejected      223
Index      225

“entertaining volume”—Booklist; “engaging…a well-constructed resource…highly entertaining…an ideal source for music fans”—ARBA; “enjoyable”—Reference & Research Book News.