Urkel was an archetypal nerd, with large, thick eyeglasses, "high-water" pants held up by suspenders, multi-colored sweaters, and a high-pitched voice with a snorting laugh. While highly intelligent, he was also quite accident-prone (spawning his catch-phrase, "Did I do that?") and socially awkward. Urkel was originally a one-shot character on Family Matters, but, because of audience and ratings reaction, he became the show's main character and by the third season many felt the show had become "The Steve Urkel Show." His main interactions on the show were his crush on Laura Winslow, and his perpetual annoyance of her father Carl. Urkel also had an alter-ego, Stefan Urquelle.
Relatives
Urkel's parents did not seem to love him. Frequently, his comments alluded that he was a victim of verbal and emotional abuse (although this was never explicitly mentioned in the running gag). The Urkels were also very intelligent people; Steve and his family were known to do the Sunday crossword puzzle in pen in about 20 minutes. Steve's father is a brain surgeon. In 1995, the elder Urkels moved to Russia without Steve, who was then allowed to live with the Winslows.
In addition to his parents (who were never seen, although his mother once was heard off-screen), his family included his cousin Myrtle Urkel (also played by White), who thought of herself as a Southern belle; her father, Big Daddy Urkel (played by Reginald VelJohnson); Uncle Cecil (who was never seen, but often mentioned); Original Gangster Dawg (OGD), another cousin (also played by White), and Aunt Oona (Donna Summer), from Altoona, Pennsylvania who was shy and socially awkward, but is a talented singer.
In the episode "Man's Best Friend", Steve said his parents were Herb and Diane. However, in another episode, Steve was talking on the phone with his mother and called her Roberta.
In an early episode entitled The Big Fix AKA Mercy Date we see that Urkel has at least one relative who does care about him: his uncle Ernie, who drives him on his date with Laura and takes a picture.
Inventions
Urkel is known for inventing devices typically considered impossible, especially in the early '90s. These include:
Urkel Bot: an intelligent robot that fell in love with Laura and briefly became a police officer
Transformation Chamber: it turned him into "Stefan Urquelle" (with the help of "Cool Juice") as well as other odd characters (such as Elvis). At first the effects of the change were temporary, but eventually this was changed.
Expansion Machine: This machine makes objects bigger, but a small percentage of the times, it malfunctions and shrinks things instead.
Cloning Machine: The machine creates a second Urkel, but due to a delay in the effect, he thought it didn't work. One of these is eventually turned into Stefan permanently.
Urk-pad: a teleportation pad which sent him to Paris.
Time Machine: He knew it worked before testing it out, since Carl saw his future self appear in the living room.
Oddly enough, these inventions were really the only unrealistic elements of the show and all the other plotlines in the episode were far more reality based.
These stories strained credulity more and more in the show's later seasons, and the series gradually developed a self-aware sense of humor on the subject. In the season 8 episode "Father Time," Carl casually shrugs off Urkel's invention of a time-travel device, citing all Steve's previous impossible creations and insisting a time machine is "no big deal" in comparison.
The Ratings
Urkel was originally intended to be a one-time-only character in the 1989 episode, "Laura's First Date" where Carl, Eddie and Estelle separately set up dates for Laura for a Sadie Hawkins dance, and the first thing we learn about him is that he allegedly ate a mouse, and he later makes reference to a mouse when speaking to Carl, implying that it might be true. Urkel became the show's breakout character. Several scripts had to be hastily re-written to accommodate the Urkel character, while several first-season episodes that had been completed had new opening gags sequences filmed featuring Urkel. The addition of Urkel immediately helped the show's modest ratings. White was credited as a guest star in the first season and became a regular member of the cast in season two.
The Urkel dance
The Urkel dance was a novelty dance that originated in the episode Life of the Party. It was based around the character of Steve Urkel and essentially incorporated movements which made the dancer's posture more like his. The lyrics instructed the dancer how to pose: "If you want to do the Steve Urkel dance, all you have to do is hitch up your pants, bend your knees, and stick out your pelvis; (I'm telling you, baby, it's better than Elvis!)". It was popular enough to appear on another show, Step by Step. A promotional cassette single of the song that accompanies the dance was pressed and distributed in limited numbers.
Appearances on other shows
White has played Urkel on several sitcoms, most notably:
Full House – In the 1991 episode, "Stephanie Gets Framed" when he helps Stephanie Tanner (Jodie Sweetin) deal with her anxieties after she has to get glasses.
Step by Step — In the series' second episode, "The Dance," Urkel helps his science-fair pen pal, Mark Foster and lifts Alicia "Al" Lambert (Christine Lakin) spirits after her potential date dumps her just before a school dance. White reprises his "Do the Urkel" dance in the scene where Al gives her boyfriend his comeuppance. (White also has a short cameo in a 1997 episode.)
Meego — White makes an uncredited cameo in this short-lived CBS sitcom (which starred Bronson Pinchot).
Kenan and Kel— Kenan once turned on the television and before he changed the channel, you can hear Steve's trademark "did I do that."
Additionally, Steve once received a chain letter and thought he'd send it on to his friend Cory Matthews who lived in Philadelphia. It is the same Cory from Boy Meets World, though the two never actually meet on any show.
At the 1997 WWF Slammy Awards, the character was a nominee in the "Best Bow Tie" category, however, Jaleel White was not present at the ceremony and no real winner was ever awarded after Owen Hart stole the Slammy award.
Popular culture
Since the first TV appearance of this character, the term "Urkel" has been used as slang for geeks and nerds, especially when used to stigmatize high achieving African-American males.
In one of the episodes of Friends, Marcel the monkey turned Urkel into Spanish, and Rachel said; "Wow, Urkel in Spanish sounds like, Urkel."
In the South Park episode "Chickenpox", Eric Cartman, whilst at a sleep-over, unfurls a sleeping bag bearing the face of Urkel, to the surprise and horror of his friends. "It's my Urkel sleeping bag, isn't it cool?" Cartman then inquires enthusiastically, to which Kyle angrily replies "No it's not cool!"
The Simpsons— In the episode, 'Tis the 15th Season, as an example of the various incarnations of A Christmas Carol, there is one version with Steve as Scrooge. Ghost: Reform, Ebenezer Urkel! You have alienated all those who love you! Urkel as Scrooge: Did I do that?!
References to Urkel have also been featured in several episodes of The Simpsons. In "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming," Urkel is invited to Springfield as part of an "delegation of esteemed TV representatives" (after Sideshow Bob demands an end to television in lieu of detonating an atomic bomb). In "The Regina Monologues," a sign advertises "Urkel in 'Othello'" (recalling a 1991 episode where the nerd starred opposite Laura in a school production of "Romeo and Juliet"). Additionally, while not technically an appearance, Urkel is mentioned in the episode The Springfield Files, when Homer is describing an Alien: "The Alien has a sweet, heavenly voice ... like Urkel! And he appears every Friday night ... like Urkel!". Homer compares Bart to Urkel when his similar-sounding catchphrase 'I didn't do it' became popular, stating "Boy I'd like to smack that kid!".
English Grime rapper Jammer references Urkel in one of his most popular songs, "Murkle Man." Jammer states that he is "never gonna flex like Urkel," essentially stating that he will never act like, or be viewed as, a nerd.
American sitcom Malcolm in the Middle had a character (played by Craig Lamar Traylor) named Stevie Kenarban, who, apart from having Urkel's name, used glasses and looked strikingly similar like him (except for the fact Stevie Kenarban used a wheelchair.)
Jaleel White also lent his voice for the character of Sonic the Hedgehog in three separate Saturday morning cartoons during the 1990s. A lot of fans found it ironic considering the Sonic's "cool guy" personality and attitude, yet "Urkel" was chosen.
In episode 614: San Francisco International on Mystery Science Theater 3000, Mike Nelson dresses up as Urkel and has his robots as well as characters formerly appearing as cameos laughing endlessly at his impressions of Urkel's catchphrases and antics over several host segments.
Before the formation of Culture Club, George occasionally sang with the British group Bow Wow Wow with the stage name "Lieutenant Lush". His popularity in this role caused friction with the group's lead singer Annabella Lwin. After his tenure with the group, George decided to start his own band and enlisted Craig. Next came Moss, and finally Hay. The group recorded demos, which were paid for by EMI Records, but the label was unimpressed and decided not to sign the group. Upstart company Virgin Records heard the demos and signed the group in the UK, and Epic Records signed them in the US as Virgin did not have a US presence at the time.
Their first album, 1982's "Kissing to Be Clever", saw the release of their first single "White Boy". Although a clever dance song, it failed to reach the UK or U.S. Top 100 but George was still happy because "5000 people bought my song and didn't even know me". Next single "I'm Afraid of Me" also failed at radio. The release of the third single "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?", a reggae-influenced number, went to #1 in the UK in late 1982 and became a smash international hit, peaking at #1 in over a dozen countries (#2 in the US).
The debut of the band on the UK's flagship chart show Top Of The Pops prompted outlandish headlines in the tabloid newspapers the next day in reaction to George's androgynous look, eccentric dress sense and camp performance. GENDER BENDER!, WALLY OF THE WEEK and MR (OR IS IT MISS) WEIRD were typical of such headlines and made George a huge national celebrity in an instant, which he largely took in his stride, and a target of the papers for some years to come.
Culture Club's follow up single "Time (Clock of the Heart)", featuring George's soulful vocals over an R&B groove, became another hit in the UK and US, and "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" also became a Top 10 hit in America. This gave Culture Club the distinction of becoming the first band since The Beatles to garner three Top Ten hits in the US from a debut album. The album sold over two million copies in the U.S. and another three million worldwide at its time of release. George would go on to became a worldwide celebrity and favorite of new music network MTV.
Their second album, 1983's "Colour by Numbers" was a huge seller, with first single "Church of the Poison Mind", featuring backing vocalist Helen Terry, reaching the UK and US Top 10. Second single "Karma Chameleon" gave the band its second #1 hit in the UK where it sold over one million copies and became the best-selling single of 1983. It also made #1 in the US, topping the Hot 100 for three weeks, and would eventually hit #1 in sixteen countries and become one of the most played songs of the decade.
The album would go on to have additional hits including "Miss Me Blind" (#5 US), "It's a Miracle" (#4 UK, #13 US), and "Victims" (#3 UK), and sell four million copies in the US and another four million worldwide at its time of release.
Despite all this success, trouble was brewing within the Culture Club camp. Unknown to the public, George was romantically involved with the band's drummer Jon Moss. Even band members Craig and Hay were unaware. The relationship lasted over four years and was often turbulent, with physical and verbal abuse. The pressure to hide the relationship from the press and the public started to take its toll on the band.
George and Roy Hay had already written "Love Lies Lost" for backing singer Helen Terry and "Passing Friend" for the upcoming Beach Boys album when Culture Club was asked to write two songs for the movie soundtrack Electric Dreams. Both "The Dream" and "Love is Love", released as a single in Canada and Japan, was again written by George and Roy Hay but royalties split four ways as with the rest of group's songs at the time. George also collaborated on "Electric Dreams", sung by P. P. Arnold. The song was written with Phil Pickett who had also helped him write "Karma Chameleon" and had frequently played keyboards for the band.
Their next album, 1984's "Waking Up With the House on Fire", was a commercial and critical disappointment compared to "Colour by Numbers", (selling one and a half million copies worldwide upon its release, with 500,000 of those in the US), The album had one US and UK hit single with "The War Song", and moderate hits in "The Medal Song" (UK #32) and "Mistake No. 3" (US #33). George would later state that he felt the album experienced a lukewarm reception because it was rushed, due to pressure from Virgin and Epic to quickly release a followup album. At the end of 1984, the band were recruited by Bob Geldof to attend the Band Aid recording. George was in New York when Geldof called him, but managed to catch the final Concorde of the day and was the last singer to record a vocal track for the song "Do They Know It's Christmas". Eventually his interpretation of the second line was used in the final cut, plus some harmony vocals. He is not seen in the publicity photograph or the all-in crescendo on the video because these were done before he arrived at the studio.
In late 1985, George became addicted to cocaine. The addiction evolved to a heroin addiction and the band started to lose its place musically. Recording of their 1986 album "From Luxury to Heartache" dragged on for so long that producer Arif Mardin had to disband the sessions and leave it up to engineer Lew Hahn to record the final vocals. Songs like "Gusto Blusto" and "Reasons" took days for the addicted singer to finish. Nevertheless, the album consisted of decent musical output (and the hit single "Move Away", #7 UK, #12 US) but George and Jon's fights plus George's addiction created too much tension for the band to continue and a forthcoming American tour was cancelled. "From Luxury to Heartache" reached the Top 10 in the UK and the Top 40 in the US but sold only under a million worldwide.
Following the release of the album, rumours of George's addiction began to circulate, and by the summer of 1986, he announced that he was indeed addicted to drugs. In July, he was arrested by the British police for possession of cannabis. Several days later, keyboard player Michael Rudetski, who played on From Luxury to Heartache and had co-written “Sexuality” with George, was found dead of a heroin overdose in George's home.
Still battling his heroin addiction and subsequent dependence on prescription narcotics, George started recording his first solo album. In 1987, Sold was released and George enjoyed several hit singles including "Everything I Own" (UK #1), "Keep Me In Mind" (UK#29), "To be Reborn" (UK#13) as well as the title song (UK#24). He returned to the UK Top 40 in 1991 under the moniker "Jesus Loves You" with the minor hits "Bow Down Mister" (#27) and "Generations Of Love" (#35), both from the critically acclaimed album The Martyr Mantras which was released through his own record label "More Protein". George had written "Bow Down Mister" during a trip to India and with its reminiscence of "Karma Chameleon" it was intended for the Culture Club reunion, which never came about. His first Top 40 US single without Culture Club was "Live My Life", peaking at US#40. It was taken from the Hiding Out movie soundtrack. In 1992, he hit the U.S. Top 20 with the title song from another movie soundtrack, "The Crying Game" (US #15, UK #22).
Reunion
In 1998, the band put their issues aside and decided to do a reunion tour. Kicked off with a performance on VH1 Storytellers, the tour was a major success. A new compilation was released based around the Storytellers performance including new songs such as "I Just Wanna Be Loved", which hit UK #4. "I Just Wanna Be Loved" had been written during the Peter Asher reunion sessions in the early 1990s. Other songs from those sessions include "Bow Down Mister", "After the Love", "Life Has Rules" and "Mogul Tomb".
Despite heavy promotion their 1999 studio album Don't Mind If I Do was a commercial failure peaking at no. 64 in the UK album chart. The album included another UK top 30 hit single "Your Kisses Are Charity" (UK#25) and "Cold Shoulder" (UK#43).
The band went on to tour for a few more years, then reunited for a 20th anniversary concert in 2002 at the Royal Albert Hall, which was released on DVD the following year. Culture Club then became inactive again, largely due to Boy George's concentration on his successful career as a DJ.
Two original members of Culture Club (Craig and Moss), along with Pickett, will launch a new tour with another lead singer. (George and Roy Hay have declined to tour). Earlier in 2006, the band's record company placed an ad for a lead singer to "...take part in a 2007 World Tour and TV Series." The new singer, Sam Butcher was selected because of his own personality, "not a Boy George lookalike." George expressed his displeasure in the press with his replacement, even though Culture Club's MySpace page says otherwise. [1]. A tour was announced for December 2006 in the UK, but was postponed to give the new line-up time to finish recording their album.
"No living man am I! You look upon a woman." —Éowyn
Greetings! My name is Erica. I am otherwise known by my Chinese name, Fang Aili (pinyin: Fāng Àilì, traditional: 芳愛莉). I'm a 20-something woman currently living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I began contributing to Wikipedia in August 2005. I received administrator tools on 10 April 2006 and recently passed 18K edits. I am also an administrator on Commons.
If I have deleted your article and you object, please leave me a message. Please don't freak out. It is entirely possible I will restore your article if you ask politely.
Nerd, as a stereotypical or archetypal designation, refers to somebody who passionately pursues intellectual or esoteric knowledge or pastimes, rather than engaging in a social life, participating in organized sports, or other mainstream activities. The Merriam-Webster definition is an "unstylish, unattractive, or socially inept person; especially: one slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits."
The word "nerd" first appeared in Dr. Seuss's book If I Ran the Zoo[1], published in 1950, where it simply names one of Seuss's many comical imaginary animals. (The narrator Gerald McGrew claims that he would collect "a Nerkle, a Nerd, and a Seersucker too" for his imaginary zoo.)
The use of the "nerd" as slang goes back at least to 1951, when it was reported as a relatively new usage in Detroit, Michigan first by Newsweek[2] and then the St. Joseph, Michigan, Herald-Press[3]. By the early 1960s, usage of the term spread through the United States[4] and as far as Scotland[5]. Throughout this first decade, the definition was consistent—a dull person, a synonym of "square", "drip" and "scurve". During the next decade, it took on connotations of bookishness as well as social ineptitude, and the spelling "nurd" began to appear. The University of South Dakota's journal, Current Slang, contains four entries for "nurd" and one for "nerd" in 1970 and 1971. [6][7][8]
The first recorded use of the "nurd" spelling appeared in 1965, in the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Bachelor[9]. Oral tradition at RPI holds that the word was coined there, spelled as "knurd" ("drunk" spelled backwards), to describe those who studied rather than partied. This usage predates a similar coinage of "knurd" by author Terry Pratchett, but has not been documented prior to the "nurd" spelling in 1965.
Other theories of the word's origin include a variation on Mortimer Snerd, the name of Edgar Bergen's ventriloquist dummy and the Northern Electric Research and Development labs in Ontario, suggesting images of engineers wearing pocket protectors with the acronym N.E.R.D. printed on them, and a claim by Philip K. Dick to having coined "nurd".Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page).[10]. They typically appear either to lack confidence or to be indifferent or oblivious to the negative perceptions held of them by others, with the result that they become frequent objects of scorn, ridicule and social isolation. They show a pronounced interest in subjects which others tend to find dull or complex and difficult to comprehend, especially topics related to science, mathematics and technology, but also other domains, such as comic books and anime, complicated board games, role-playing games, science fiction, horror and fantasy literature, and competitive debate. They generally maintain encyclopedic knowledge of their chosen subject, easily recalling obscure or archival details.
In the practice of personality psychology, geeks and nerds can be said to be Myers-Briggs Type IndicatorINTP, ENTP or INTJ, and, in various cases, ENTJ. However, due to speculation over the difference of nerds and geeks, the types cannot be sorted into their subsequent classifications. Also, all types have the ability to be nerds, whereas the INTJ, INTP, ENTP, and ENTJ are near definites for being nerds. However, due to the stereotypical shyness and social ineptitude associated with nerds, the INTP and INTJ are more likely to be classified into that group than their Extroverted counterparts. These two types are the Introverted iNtuitive Thinkers. As Introverts they are stimulated by thoughts and ideas, rather than people and things. They are often quite happy spending hours absorbed in solitary activities. As iNtuitives, they are more inclined toward abstract concepts and subtle connections than in concrete examples or direct experience. As Thinkers, they are more adept in logic and reason than feelings or emotions. This combination makes INT's masters of mathematics, logic, and science, but rather oblivious to social graces. Both INTJs and INTPs tend to be outwardly nerdy and actively rebel against social rules they view as irrational and meaningless. However, INTJs tend to learn to put on a degree of surface conformism to draw less attention to themselves. For example long hair is, not surprisingly, common with INTP men, whereas INTJ men would keep their hair cut low, and dress conservatively.
In the works of Riso and Hudson, specifically Understanding the Enneagram revised edition, page 180, point 10, the term "nerd" is used as a primary reference to (and indication of being) Enneagram type 5.
Nerds and Asperger Syndrome
Many traits associated with the nerd stereotype, in particular an unusual penchant for accumulating highly specialized or technical knowledge, impaired social ability, as well as poor motor coordination, are characteristics of Asperger syndrome, an autistic spectrum disorder. The existence of the nerd concept in popular consciousness might be attributed to a tendency for certain behavioral and cognitive predispositions to covary, which at the extreme results in forms of autism. In support of this possibility, studies using a measure of autistic tendencies, the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) developed by Simon Baron-Cohen, find that occupations commonly linked to the nerd stereotype, especially fields of science and engineering, are associated with elevated AQ[11], with the highest average AQ seen among computer scientists, mathematicians and physicists. Other studies have found associations between heightened AQ and prenatal testosterone exposure[12] as well as genetic factors[13], suggesting a distinct genetic and developmental basis for traits associated with the nerd stereotype.
Contemporary pride
Many nerds are proud of their title as a nerd. As early as the mid-1980s, "nerd" developed distinct positive connotations within social spheres connected to computing and the Internet, to denote with pride a technically skilled person. This also extended toward financial success in these fields, with Bill Gates himself often described as a nerd, though a remarkably wealthy one. The 1990s is generally considered a time when the nerds finally "got their revenge", and many became fabulously wealthy as a result of the high-tech explosion. The popular computer-news website Slashdot uses the tagline "News for nerds. Stuff that matters." Similarly, the quote "Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one." — Charles J. Sykes, has been, ironically, popularized by the internet and incorrectly attributed to Bill Gates.
"My idea is to present an image to children that it is good to be intellectual, and not to care about the peer pressures to be anti-intellectual. I want every child to turn into a nerd - where that means someone who prefers studying and learning to competing for social dominance, which can unfortunately cause the downward spiral into social rejection."
An episode from the animated series Freakazoid titled "Nerdator" has a plot line that involves the use of nerds to power the mind of a Predator-like enemy, who delivers a memorable monologue on the importance of nerds:
"…what they lack in physical strength they make up in brain power. Who writes all the best selling books? Nerds. Who directs the top grossing Hollywood movies? Nerds. Who creates the highly advanced technology that only they can understand? …Nerds. And who are the people who run for the high office of the Presidency? No one but nerds."
There is an increasing number of people, including women ( a historically underrepresented demographic in the science and tech fields), who self-identify with the term nerd as badges of honor in their field, usually science, computers, and other technology. Many who style themselves thus may not necessarily represent the traditional profile that emphasizes the accompaniment of high intelligence with a degree of social alienation. The negative image of nerds has traditionally been more associated with men than women due to the stricter standards of masculine behavior.
^Rebecca Knickmeyer, Simon Baron-Cohen, Briony A. Fane, Sally Wheelwright, Greta A. Mathews, Gerard S. Conway, Charles G.D. Brook and Melissa Hines. Androgens and autistic traits: A study of individuals with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Hormones and Behavior, 50, 148-153 (2006)
^Francesca Happe, Patrick Bolton, Lee M. Butcher, et al. Genetic heterogeneity between the three components of the autism spectrum: a twin study. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry45:691 (2006)
Wilson and Pierson formed the band with drummer Keith Strickland, guitarist Ricky Wilson (Cindy's older brother) and vocalist Fred Schneider after a drunken night at a Chinese restaurant and played their first gig in 1977 at a St. Valentine's Day party for friends. The B-52's sound is marked by the vocals and lush harmonies of Wilson and Pierson, and the generally monotone or spoken-word vocals of Schneider.
The band's quirky take on the New Wave sound of their era was a combination of dance and surf music set apart by the unusual guitar tunings Ricky Wilson used. Their costume thrift-store chic set them apart as well. During the Mesopotamia tour, the band's famous wigs were under the care of Jackie Slayton, one of Athens's leading artists and long-time friend of the band.
Early recording success
The B-52's on the cover of their debut eponymous album.
Their first single, "Rock Lobster", recorded for DB Records in 1978 (see 1978 in music), was an underground success that led to the B-52's performing at CBGB's and Max's Kansas City in New York City. "52 Girls" was the B-side. Two versions of the single were released in the UK that featured the B-side "Running Around".
Their debut album, The B-52's, contained re-recorded versions of "Rock Lobster" and "52 Girls", along with six more originals and a remake of Petula Clark's classic "Downtown." It was eventually certified platinum.
The album had greater success overseas, especially in Australia, where it hit #7 on the back of three hit singles: "Planet Claire" (#43), "Rock Lobster" (#3) and "Private Idaho" (#11). "Rock Lobster" gave the band its first entry on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.
The follow-up, Wild Planet, reached the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 in 1980 and was certified gold. "Private Idaho" became their second Hot 100 entry; around this time the B-52's performed a breakout set on Saturday Night Live and were featured at the Heatwave festival in August 1980.
Party Mix! was released next, a remix album that took tracks from the first two LPs and presented them in extended forms.
Mid-point
Although recording sessions with David Byrne (of Talking Heads) failed, the recordings were released as the MesopotamiaEP in 1982 (Party Mix! and Mesopotamia would later be combined and released together on a single CD).
The Whammy! album in 1983 brought the band into electronic and drum machine experimentation, much to the chagrin of some of their early fans. "Legal Tender" became their third chart single. After the initial pressings of Whammy! were released, copyright issues with Yoko Ono led to the song "Don't Worry" being pulled and replaced on future copies of the album with a new track called "Moon 83", a variation on "There's A Moon in the Sky (Called the Moon)" from their debut album.
That year, the B-52's reformed to record Bouncing Off the Satellites. On October 12, 1985 Ricky Wilson died at age 32 of what was originally reported as cancer but was later revealed to be AIDS-related. Devastated, the band went into immediate seclusion and the album sank without any tour or promotion behind it.
Mainstream success
The B-52's on the cover of their breakthrough 1989 album "Cosmic Thing"
During the two year hiatus that followed Wilson's death, Strickland switched from drums to guitar, and the B-52's emerged in 1988 with a backing rhythm section which included Sara Lee, a former member of post-punk band, Gang of Four. Their song "Cosmic Thing" was a centerpiece of the soundtrack to the movie Earth Girls are Easy. In 1989 the band released the album Cosmic Thing which became their long-anticipated mainstream breakthrough. "Channel Z," a single from the new album, became an alternative and college radio hit, receiving significant airplay on MTV's modern rock show 120 Minutes.
"Love Shack" came next. With its party vibe and colorful music video (featuring a cameo by a then-unknown RuPaul) "Love Shack" not only became their first song to hit the US Top 40, but it went on to peak at #3. That peak was matched in early 1990 when "Roam" also hit #3. In Australia, the territory that had most embraced the band a decade earlier, "Love Shack" stayed at #1 for 8 weeks.
A third single, "Deadbeat Club,", which reminisced about the band's early days in Athens and whose video was shot on location and featured a cameo by R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, became a Top 30 hit. The Cosmic Thing album climbed into the Top 5 and earned multi-platinum certification. The group also had a hugely successful tour to support the record.
Continuing to be busy through 1990, Pierson lent her vocals to Iggy Pop's song "Candy," which gave him his first (and only) Hot 100/Top 40 hit. 1991 saw the repackaging and re-release of Schneider's solo record and gave him his first Hot 100 entry when "Monster" climbed to #85, and Pierson again guest-starred on a popular track, this time it being R.E.M.'s "Shiny Happy People," which hit the Top 10. Pierson appeared on several other songs from the band's chart-topping album, Out of Time.
In 1990 Cindy Wilson took time off from the band, with Julee Cruise filling in for her parts on the eventual tour. As a trio, The B-52's released Good Stuff in 1992, which gave them another top 40 hit. It is also the group's most overtly political album, having been activists and fund-raisers for environmental, AIDS and animal rights causes for many years.[1] Subsequent singles were not as successful and the album sold nowhere near as much as Cosmic Thing.
As of 2006 the B-52's continue to perform, electrifying audiences with their quirky, innovative style and lush vocals. Recently, the band announced they are working on a new album and a compilation of new remixes of their earlier work. On the band's official website [14] Fred Schneider recently commented that the band is "working away" and looking forward to "another productive session... there is still plenty of work to do".
Side projects, solo albums & collaborations
Prior to the formation of The B-52's, Kate Pierson was the lead singer of a folk band called the Sun Donuts.
Guitarist Ricky Wilson features on the track "Breakin' In My Heart" from Tom Verlaine's self-titled 1979 debut solo album.
Fred Schneider's solo album, Fred Schneider & The Shake Society, was released in 1984, and again in 1990 in a repackaged form.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Billboard's Dance Chart policy allowed multiple songs (or in some cases all songs) from an album or an EP to occupy the same position if more than one track was receiving significant play in dance clubs.
The correct name for the band is "The B-52's", even though plurals in standard English do not include apostrophes.
"The Chosen One" recorded by The B-52's is featured in the movie "Pokemon 2000: The Power Of One" and appears on the soundtrack by the same name.
Some models of the Amiga computer had the name of a B-52's song written on their motherboard. For example, the Amiga 500 had "B52/ROCK LOBSTER" written on it.
Drag artist RuPaul appeared in the videos for "Love Shack" and "Good Stuff".
According to The B-52's Fan Club Newsletter, circa 1982, "Song for a Future Generation" took a full 24 hours straight to record at A & M Records (Herb Alpert's then-company and site of the former Charlie Chaplin Studios in Los Angeles).
Singer Julee Cruise filled in for Cindy Wilson on the 1992–1993 Interdimensional Tourgasm, as well as the band's summer 1999 tour, when Cindy went on sabbatical.
The band recorded an alternate version of their hit "Love Shack" (entitled "Glove Slap") for TV show "The Simpsons".
The B-52's made a guest appearance and performed a new song called "Pump" in episode 7 of the third season of the TV series The L Word, which is broadcast on the cable TV channel Showtime. The new song entitled "Pump" is one of the songs to be released on The B-52's upcoming new album that is expected to be released in 2007.
Wow! is the fourth album released by Bananarama. It is entirely produced and co-written with the Stock Aitken Waterman production trio and is the last album by the girl group to generate significant chart hits in the U.S. Tensions between group member Siobhan Fahey and Stock, Aitken and Waterman regarding songwriting input and lyrical content (particularly with the track "Strike it Rich") prompted Fahey's departure from Bananarama months after its release. By the time of the album's fourth single ("I Want You Back") Fahey had been replaced with Jacquie O'Sullivan (the single version of the song was re-recorded with O'Sullivan).
On March 19, 2007, Bananarama's first six studio albums were re-issued by London Records. All re-issues are remastered and each includes several bonus tracks, consisting of B-sides and remixes.
Track listing
"I Can't Help It" (Dallin, Fahey, Woodward, Stock, Aitken, Waterman)
"I Heard a Rumour" (Dallin, Fahey, Woodward, Stock, Aitken, Waterman)
This is a Wikipediauser page. This is not an encyclopedia article or the talk page for an encyclopedia article. If you find this page on any site other than Wikipedia, you are viewing a mirror site. Be aware that the page may be outdated and that the user whom this page is about may have no personal affiliation with any site other than Wikipedia. The original page is located at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Fang_Aili.
