The B-52's
Encyclopedia
The B-52's are an American rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band, formed in Athens, Georgia
Athens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...

 in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider
Fred Schneider
Frederick William "Fred" Schneider III is an American rock singer, best known as the frontman of the rock band The B-52's, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well-known for his sprechgesang which he developed from reciting poetry over guitars.-Early life:Schneider was born in Newark,...

 (vocals, cowbell), Kate Pierson
Kate Pierson
Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Pierson is an American vocalist and one of the lead singers and founding members of The B-52's. One of the multi-instrumentalists in the band, Pierson played guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments...

 (vocals, keyboards), Cindy Wilson
Cindy Wilson
Cynthia Leigh Wilson is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.- Career :...

 (vocals, tambourine, bongos), Ricky Wilson
Ricky Wilson (American musician)
Ricky Helton Wilson was an American instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and musician. He was best known as the original guitarist and founding member of New Wave rock band the B-52s...

 (guitar), and Keith Strickland
Keith Strickland
Julian Keith Strickland is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and one of the founding members of the The B-52s. Originally the band's drummer, Strickland switched to guitar after the death of guitarist Ricky Wilson in 1985...

 (drums). Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar. Rooted in New Wave and 1960s rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...

, the group later covered many genres
Music genre
A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other types of music...

 ranging from post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...

 to pop rock
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...

. The "guy vs. gals" vocals of Schneider, Pierson, and Wilson, sometimes used in call and response
Call and response (music)
In music, a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first...

 style ("Strobe Light," "Private Idaho
Private Idaho (song)
"Private Idaho" is a single released by The B-52's from their album Wild Planet.The single was their second Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, at #74...

", and "Good Stuff
Good Stuff (The B-52's song)
"Good Stuff" is a song by The B-52's and title track from their 1992 album. The song placed at #28 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and #1 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart. It also placed #21 in the UK. It was also nominated for a Grammy Award in 1993 for best alternative rock...

"), are a trademark. Presenting themselves as a positive, enthusiastic, slightly oddball party band, the B-52's tell tall tales, glorify wild youth, and celebrate wild romance. The band name had long been "The B-52's", until 2008 when they dropped the apostrophe
Apostrophe
The apostrophe is a punctuation mark, and sometimes a diacritic mark, in languages that use the Latin alphabet or certain other alphabets...

 and are now "The B-52s".

Formation and early years

The B-52's were formed when vocalist Cindy Wilson
Cindy Wilson
Cynthia Leigh Wilson is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.- Career :...

, aged nineteen, her older brother and guitarist Ricky
Ricky Wilson (American musician)
Ricky Helton Wilson was an American instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and musician. He was best known as the original guitarist and founding member of New Wave rock band the B-52s...

, aged twenty-three, organist and vocalist Kate Pierson
Kate Pierson
Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Pierson is an American vocalist and one of the lead singers and founding members of The B-52's. One of the multi-instrumentalists in the band, Pierson played guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments...

, aged twenty-eight, original drummer and percussionist Keith Strickland
Keith Strickland
Julian Keith Strickland is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and one of the founding members of the The B-52s. Originally the band's drummer, Strickland switched to guitar after the death of guitarist Ricky Wilson in 1985...

, aged twenty-three, and cowbell player and vocalist Fred Schneider
Fred Schneider
Frederick William "Fred" Schneider III is an American rock singer, best known as the frontman of the rock band The B-52's, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well-known for his sprechgesang which he developed from reciting poetry over guitars.-Early life:Schneider was born in Newark,...

, aged twenty-five, played an impromptu musical jam session after sharing a tropical Flaming Volcano
Flaming Volcano (cocktail)
The flaming volcano is a large tropical group cocktail made of rum, brandy, pineapple juice, orange juice, almond syrup, and sometimes other ingredients...

 drink at a local Chinese restaurant. They later played their first concert in 1977 at a Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day
Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...

 party for their friends.

The band's name comes from a particular beehive
Beehive (hairstyle)
The Beehive is a woman's hairstyle that resembles a beehive; it is elegant and it is also known as the B-52, for its similarity to the bulbous nose of the B-52 Stratofortress bomber. It originated as one of a variety of elaborately teased and lacquered versions of "big hair" that developed from...

 hairdo resembling the nose cone of the aircraft
B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber operated by the United States Air Force since the 1950s. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, who have continued to provide maintainence and upgrades to the aircraft in service...

 of the same name. Keith Strickland suggested the name after a dream he had one night, of a band performing in a hotel lounge. In the dream he heard someone whisper in his ear that the name of the band was "The B-52's." The band's quirky take on the New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...

 sound of their era was a combination of dance
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

 and surf music
Surf music
Surf music is a genre of popular music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Orange County and other areas of Southern California. It was particularly popular between 1961 and 1965, has subsequently been revived and was highly influential on subsequent rock music...

 set apart by the unusual guitar tunings used by Ricky Wilson. Their costume thrift-store chic
Chic (style)
Chic , meaning 'stylish' or 'smart', is an element of fashion.-Etymology:Chic is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s...

 set them apart as well.

Their first single, "Rock Lobster
Rock lobster
Jasus edwardsii, the southern rock lobster, red rock lobster, or spiny rock lobster, is a species of spiny lobster found throughout coastal waters of southern Australia and New Zealand including the Chatham Islands. This species is commonly called crayfish or crays in New Zealand and in Māori...

", recorded for DB Records
DB Records
DB Records is a record label owned by Danny Beard. The label's headquarters reside in the Wax N Facts record store in the Atlanta, Georgia neighborhood of Little Five Points.-History:In 1978, Danny Beard helped some friends in an Athens, Georgia rock band...

 in 1978, was an underground success, selling over 2,000 copies in total that led to The B-52's performing at CBGB
CBGB
CBGB was a music club at 315 Bowery at Bleecker Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.Founded by Hilly Kristal in 1973, it was originally intended to feature its namesake musical styles, but became a forum for American punk and New Wave bands like Ramones, Misfits, Television, the...

 and Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South, in New York City, which was a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s.-Origin of name:...

 in New York City. Two versions of the single were released in the United Kingdom; one featured the single in its original form, and the other featured the B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...

 "Running Around" in place of "52 Girls". The buzz created by the record in the UK meant their first show in London at the Electric Ballroom, London, was packed in anticipation, with many UK pop stars such as Green Gartside
Green Gartside
Green Gartside , is a British musician, and the frontman of the band Scritti Politti....

 from Scritti Politti
Scritti Politti
Scritti Politti are a British band, originally formed in 1977 in Leeds, Yorkshire, England. Although there have been various changes to the line-up, Cardiff-born singer-songwriter Green Gartside was the founding member of the band and the only member to have remained throughout the group's...

, Joe Jackson
Joe Jackson (musician)
Joe Jackson is an English musician and singer-songwriter now living in Berlin, whose five Grammy Award nominations span from 1979 to 2001...

 and others in attendance. In Canada, released on the Warner Bros. label
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...

, the single went from cult hit to bonafide smash, eventually going on to reach the number one position in the RPM-compiled national chart on May 24, 1980.

In 1979 The B-52's signed a contract with Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...

 agreeing to Chris Blackwell
Chris Blackwell
Christopher Percy Gordon "Chris" Blackwell is a British record producer and businessman, who was the founder of Island Records, acknowledged as the most successful and groundbreaking independent record company in history. Blackwell has been a music industry mogul for over fifty years...

 producing their debut studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

. Recorded at Compass Point Studios
Compass Point Studios
Compass Point Studios were founded in 1977 by Chris Blackwell, the owner of Island Records.In the late 1970s and mid-1980s, many musical artists from across the world came to the Bahamas to record music at its facilities. Many producers, including Chris Blackwell himself, used the studio to produce...

 in The Bahamas, and released on July 6, 1979 under the Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...

 label, The B-52's
The B-52's (album)
Critical reception for The B-52's was generally favorable; critics praised the album's kitschy lyrics and party atmosphere.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Fred Schneider – cowbell, toy piano, keyboard bass, Vocals, walkie talkie...

contained re-recorded versions of "Rock Lobster" and "52 Girls", six originals recorded solely for the album, and a remake of the Petula Clark
Petula Clark
Petula Clark, CBE is an English singer, actress, and composer whose career has spanned seven decades.Clark's professional career began as an entertainer on BBC Radio during World War II...

 single "Downtown
Downtown (Petula Clark song)
"Downtown" is a pop song composed by Tony Hatch which, as recorded by Petula Clark, became an international hit – No. 1 in the US and No. 2 in the UK – at the end of 1964.-Original recording:...

". It was a major success for the band, especially in Australia where it reached number three on the charts alongside its three singles "Planet Claire
Planet Claire
"Planet Claire" is the second single released by The B-52's from their self-titled debut album The B-52's. The single was their second single to chart anywhere, at #43 in Australia and #24 on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, along with album tracks "Rock Lobster" and "Dance This Mess Around"...

", "Rock Lobster", and "Dance This Mess Around". In the United States, the single "Rock Lobster" reached the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 chart, while the album itself was certified platinum
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...

 by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

.

The follow-up, Wild Planet
Wild Planet
Wild Planet is the second studio album by The B-52's, released in 1980. It contains the band's first experiments using electronic drum machines....

, reached number eighteen on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

 chart in 1980 and was certified gold. "Private Idaho
Private Idaho (song)
"Private Idaho" is a single released by The B-52's from their album Wild Planet.The single was their second Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, at #74...

" became their second Hot 100 entry. On January 26, 1980, The B-52's performed on Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

. They also performed at the Heatwave
Heatwave (festival)
Heatwave was a rock festival August 23, 1980, outside of Toronto at Mosport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario. The slogans used to promote the show were variously the "Punk Woodstock", the "New Wave Woodstock", or "The 1980s Big Beat Rock and Roll Party"....

 festival (billed as the "New Wave Woodstock") in Toronto, Canada in August 1980; and appeared in the Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...

 film One Trick Pony. Their third album Party Mix!
Party Mix!
Party Mix! is a 1981 remix album by The B-52's, released in between their second album Wild Planet and the Mesopotamia EP. On the original vinyl, this six-song collection contained songs from their first two albums remixed and sequenced to form two long songs, one on each side...

was released next, a remix album that took tracks from the first two LPs and presented them in extended forms. In interviews before his death, John Lennon cited "Rock Lobster" as an inspiration for his comeback.

Later years and death of Ricky Wilson

In 1981 the band collaborated with musician David Byrne
David Byrne (musician)
David Byrne is a musician and artist, best known as a founding member and principal songwriter of the American new wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography,...

 to produce a fourth studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

. Due to alleged conflicts with Byrne over the album's musical direction recording sessions for the album were aborted, prompting the band to release the album, Mesopotamia (1982), as an extended play (EP)
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

; in 1991, Party Mix! and Mesopotamia, the latter of which had been remixed, were combined and released together on a single compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

.

In 1983 the band released Whammy!
Whammy!
Media response to Whammy! was mixed, but generally positive; most critics agreed that while the album was generally weaker in songwriting structure than The B-52's' first two albums The B-52's and Wild Planet, it was an overall improvement over their previous album Mesopotamia, which received poor...

; this album brought the band into synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...

 and drum machine
Drum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...

 experimentation. The album entered the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

 chart in 1983, reaching number twenty-nine during the year. "Legal Tender
Legal Tender (song)
"Legal Tender" is the first single released by The B-52's from their 1983 album Whammy!. The single was their third Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, at #81. The song also peaked at #9 on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, along with album tracks "Whammy Kiss" and "Song for a Future Generation"...

" reached the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 chart, as well as the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Singles chart alongside "Whammy Kiss
Whammy Kiss
"Whammy Kiss" is the second single released by The B-52's from their 1983 album Whammy!.The song reached number nine on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, along with the album tracks "Legal Tender" and "Song for a Future Generation."-Chart positions:...

" and "Song for a Future Generation
Song for a Future Generation
"Song for a Future Generation" is the third single taken from The B-52's 1983 album Whammy!. It peaked at #63 on the UK Singles Chart and also reached number nine on the U.S...

". After initial pressings of Whammy! were released, copyright issues with Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...

 led to the song "Don't Worry" being removed and replaced on future pressings by "Moon 83", a remixed version of the track "There's a Moon in the Sky (Called the Moon)" from their debut album.
After taking a one year absence from their musical careers in 1984 The B-52's regrouped in 1985 to record Bouncing off the Satellites
Bouncing off the Satellites
- Personnel :Band* Fred Schneider – lead vocals* Keith Strickland – bass, guitar, harmonica, percussion, keyboards, sitar, vocals, backing vocals* Cindy Wilson – lead vocals* Kate Pierson – lead vocals* Ricky Wilson – lead guitar, bass, backing vocals...

, their fifth studio record, and in January of that year they performed in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, at Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in three cities: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Lisbon in Portugal and Madrid in Spain.Four incarnations of the festival were in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, 2001 and 2011, four in Lisbon, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, and two in Madrid in 2008 and 2010....

, and that was their largest crowd ever. During the recording, guitarist Wilson had been suffering from AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...

/HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

-related health complications. None of the other band members were aware of his illness. In an interview, fellow band member Kate Pierson stated that Wilson had kept his illness secret from his fellow band members because he "did not want anyone to worry about him or fuss about him." On October 12, 1985 Wilson died from the illness, at the age of 32. The band went into seclusion and did not tour to promote the album, prompting a hiatus from their musical careers.

Reformation and mainstream success

During the hiatus following Wilson's death Strickland switched from drums to guitar and began writing music. After Strickland played some of his new music for the other band members, they all agreed to try writing together again, with Pierson, Wilson and Schneider contributing the lyrics and melodies. In 1989 the band released Cosmic Thing
Cosmic Thing
Cosmic Thing is the fifth studio album by New Wave band The B-52's, released in 1989. It contains the singles "Love Shack" and "Roam", which remain two of their most popular tunes...

, their mainstream breakthrough. The single "Channel Z
Channel Z (song)
"Channel Z" is a single by The B-52's from their 1989 album Cosmic Thing. The song was about a fictional radio station whose motto was "Channel Z: All static, all day, Forever!". Television sets of the era typically had two analog channel selector dials, one for VHF band and one for UHF. The UHF...

", a single from the new album, became an alternative and college radio hit, hitting number one on the U.S. Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, receiving significant airplay on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

's modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...

 show 120 Minutes
120 Minutes
120 Minutes is a television show in the United States dedicated to alternative music, originally airing on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then on MTV's sister channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003....

.

The next single, "Love Shack
Love Shack
"Love Shack" is a single by rock band The B-52's. Originally released in 1989 from their album Cosmic Thing, the single was the band's biggest hit song and first million-copy seller...

", with its party vibe and colorful music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

, became their first top-40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately reaching #3 in November 1989. That peak was matched in March 1990 when their follow-up single, "Roam
Roam
"Roam" was the fourth single from The B-52's' 1989 hit album Cosmic Thing, following " Cosmic Thing," "Channel Z," and "Love Shack." Roam was a number-three hit on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in January 1990. The vocals are sung by Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson.The Discovery Channel used...

", also reached #3. In Australia, the country that had most embraced the band a decade earlier, "Love Shack
Love Shack
"Love Shack" is a single by rock band The B-52's. Originally released in 1989 from their album Cosmic Thing, the single was the band's biggest hit song and first million-copy seller...

" stayed at number one for eight weeks.

A fourth single, "Deadbeat Club
Deadbeat Club
"Deadbeat Club" was the fifth and last single released from The B-52's' album Cosmic Thing. It peaked at #30 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990. Based on chart performance, "Deadbeat Club" falls behind only the singles, "Love Shack", "Roam" and "Good Stuff" as their biggest hit. The song is about the...

", which reminisced about the band's early days in Athens and whose video was shot on location and featured a cameo by fellow Athens artist R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...

's Michael Stipe
Michael Stipe
John Michael Stipe is an American singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band R.E.M.Stipe is noted and occasionally parodied for the "mumbling" style of his early career as well as his social and political activism. He was in charge of R.E.M.'s visual image; often...

, reached #30. The Cosmic Thing album climbed into the U.S. top five and earned multi-platinum certification. it also had huge international success reaching #1 in both Australia and New Zealand and #8 in the UK. The group had a hugely successful world tour to support the record, and appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

in March, 1990. In 1990 the B-52's were nominated for 4 MTV Video Music Awards including Video of the Year. They won two awards, Best Group Video and Best Art Direction.

Pierson sang on Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...

's song "Candy
Candy (Iggy Pop song)
"Candy" is a song by Iggy Pop from his ninth solo album, Brick by Brick. The song is a duet with Kate Pierson of The B-52's, and was released as the album's second single in September 1990...

", which gave him a top-40 hit. In 1991 Schneider's solo record was repackaged and re-released, resulting in his first Hot 100 single when "Monster
Fred Schneider & the Shake Society
Fred Schneider and the Shake Society is an album by Fred Schneider. It was the first of two solo albums, and was re-released in 1991 as Fred Schneider ....

" climbed to #85, and Pierson again guest-starred on a popular track, this time it being fellow Athens, GA band R.E.M.'s "Shiny Happy People
Shiny Happy People
"Shiny Happy People" is a song by the band R.E.M.. The song appeared on their 1991 album Out of Time and was released as a single in the same year. The song features guest backing vocals by Kate Pierson of the B-52's, who also has a prominent role in the song's music video.It peaked at #10 on the...

", which reached #10 in September 1991. Pierson also appeared on two other songs from R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...

's chart-topping album Out of Time
Out of Time (album)
Out of Time is the seventh album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on Warner Bros. Records in 1991. With Out of Time R.E.M.'s status grew from that of a cult band to a massive international act. The record topped the album sales charts in both the U.S...

, "Near Wild Heaven
Near Wild Heaven
"Near Wild Heaven" was the third single released from R.E.M.'s seventh studio album Out of Time in 1991. The song was the first single released by the band to have had its lyrics both co-written and sung by bassist Mike Mills. According to a quotation from Peter Buck in R.E.M...

" and "Me in Honey".

In late 1990 Cindy Wilson
Cindy Wilson
Cynthia Leigh Wilson is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.- Career :...

 took time off from the band, with Julee Cruise
Julee Cruise
Julee Cruise is an American singer, and actress.With a distinctive, airy voice, Cruise has recorded three albums, but is probably best known for the lead vocal on "Falling," the theme song for the cult U.S. television series Twin Peaks...

 filling in for her parts on the eventual tour. As a trio, the B-52's released Good Stuff
Good Stuff
Good Stuff is the sixth studio album by New Wave band The B-52s, released in 1992. This is the first B-52s album in which vocalist Cindy Wilson does not appear, though she rejoined some years later....

in 1992, and the title track reached #28 in August of that year. The album made it to #18 in the U.S. It is also the group's most overtly political album, though they had been activists and fund-raisers for environmental, AIDS and animal rights causes for many years.

The band had their next chart entry in 1994 when, as The BC-52's, they appeared in The Flintstones
The Flintstones (film)
The Flintstones is a 1994 American live-action comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon television series of the same name about a Stone-Age man, his family and his best friend. The film was directed by Brian Levant, written by Tom S. Parker, Jim Jennewein and Steven E...

live-action movie and sang the title song. When released as a single, it reached #33 in the U.S. and #3 in the UK. In 1994, Kate Pierson and Fred Schneider also sang on the theme song for the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...

 series Rocko's Modern Life
Rocko's Modern Life
Rocko's Modern Life is an animated series created by Joe Murray. The show aired for four seasons between 1993 and 1996 on Nickelodeon. Rocko's Modern Life is based around the surreal, parodic adventures of an anthropomorphic wallaby named Rocko, and his life in the city of O-Town...

from the second season on. In the 1990s, former Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...

 drummer Sterling Campbell
Sterling Campbell
Sterling Campbell in New York City, New York, is an American rock drummer who has worked with numerous high-profile acts. He rose to attention in 1986, touring with Cyndi Lauper on her her True Colors World Tour, in 1986, and in 1987, joined Duran Duran...

 joined the band, but left in 2000 to tour with David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...

 and was replaced that year by Zachary Alford, who had recorded and toured with the band during the Cosmic Thing era.

A career retrospective, Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation
Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation
Time Capsule: Songs For a Future Generation is a greatest hits album released by the B-52's in 1998. The album presents sixteen of their single releases and fan-favorite album tracks in chronological order, with the addition of two newly-recorded songs exclusive to this collection. One of them,...

, appeared in 1998 along with two remixed maxi-singles "Summer of Love '98" and "Hallucinating Pluto". Cindy Wilson rejoined the group on two of the new songs and a major tour (with co-headliners the Pretenders
The Pretenders
The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...

) to promote the collection. "Debbie", another single from the album (a tribute to Blondie's
Blondie (band)
Blondie is an American rock band, founded by singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the early American New Wave and punk scenes of the mid-1970s...

 Debbie Harry
Debbie Harry
Deborah Ann "Debbie" Harry is an American singer-songwriter and actress, best known for being the lead singer of the punk rock and new wave band Blondie. She has also had success as a solo artist, and in the mid-1990s she performed and recorded as part of The Jazz Passengers...

), placed 35 on Billboard's Hot Modern Rock Tracks. In 1999 they recorded a parody of "Love Shack" called "Glove Slap" for an episode
E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)
"E-I-E-I-" is the fifth episode of the eleventh season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 7, 1999. In the episode, inspired by a Zorro movie, Homer begins slapping people with a glove and challenging them to duels...

 of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...

. They co-headlined another major tour in 2000 with the Go-Go's
The Go-Go's
The Go-Go’s are an all-female American rock band formed in 1978. They made history as the first all-female band that both wrote their own songs and played their own instruments to top the Billboard album charts....

. In 2000, the band recorded the song "The Chosen One" for the movie Pokemon: The Movie 2000
Pokémon: The Movie 2000
Pokémon: The Movie 2000, originally released in Japan as , is a 1999 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama as the second Pokémon feature-length film, complementing the Orange Islands saga of the series and featuring several new Pokémon, including Lugia and Slowking...

.

A more extensive anthology, Nude on the Moon: The B-52's Anthology
Nude on the Moon: The B-52's Anthology
Nude on the Moon: The B-52's Anthology is a two-CD compilation album containing 35 songs recorded by The B-52's between the years 1979 and 1998...

, appeared in 2002. The B-52's recorded the song "Orange You Glad It's Summer" for a Target
Target Corporation
Target Corporation, doing business as Target, is an American retailing company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the second-largest discount retailer in the United States, behind Walmart. The company is ranked at number 33 on the Fortune 500 and is a component of the Standard & Poor's...

 commercial that aired in spring/summer 2002. Target also used the song "Junebug" in a TV spot in 2007.

In late 2004 the band opened for Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...

 on a few dates of her Farewell Tour. In March 2006 they opened for The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

 at a benefit for the Robin Hood Foundation. They had three remix EPs released by Planet Clique: Whammy! in 2005, Mesopotamia in 2006 and Wild Planet in 2007. During this time span, they appeared on many television shows including The L Word
The L Word
The L Word is an American co-production television drama series originally shown on Showtime portraying the lives of a group of lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their friends, family and lovers in the trendy Greater Los Angeles, California city of West Hollywood...

, V.I.P.
V.I.P. (TV series)
V.I.P. is an American action/comedy-drama series starring Pamela Anderson. Created by J. F...

, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show
The Rosie O'Donnell Show is an Emmy Award-winning American daytime television talk show hosted and produced by actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. It aired for six seasons from 1996 to 2002...

, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with David Letterman
Late Night with David Letterman
Late Night with David Letterman is a nightly hour-long comedy talk show on NBC that was created and hosted by David Letterman. It premiered in 1982 as the first incarnation of the Late Night franchise and went off the air in 1993, after Letterman left NBC and moved to Late Show on CBS. Late Night...

, The Arsenio Hall Show
The Arsenio Hall Show
The Arsenio Hall Show is an American variety/talk show that aired late weeknights in syndication from January 3, 1989 to May 27, 1994. The show was created and hosted by comedian/actor Arsenio Hall.- Background :...

, Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...

, Live with Regis and Kelly
Live with Regis and Kelly
Live! with Kelly is a syndicated American television morning talk show, hosted by Kelly Ripa. The show has aired since 1983 in New York City and 1988 nationwide. Tony Pigg has been the show's announcer since its inception...

, The Today Show, Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...

and numerous times on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

.

Funplex and continued touring

Funplex
Funplex
Funplex is the seventh studio album by The B-52s, recorded during 2006 and 2007. The album was released on March 25, 2008 by Astralwerks Records with holdings by Go! Discs...

, the band's first original album in sixteen years (since 1992's Good Stuff), was released on March 25, 2008 by Astralwerks
Astralwerks
Astralwerks is a New York-based record label that releases primarily electronic music. It is owned by Virgin Records/EMI and distributed by Caroline Distribution in the United States....

. Talking about the record's sound, Keith Strickland noted, "It’s loud, sexy rock & roll with the beat turned up to hot pink." The album is produced by Steve Osborne
Steve Osborne
Steve Osborne is a multi-platinum selling British record producer. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, such as New Order, Doves, U2 and KT Tunstall. During the 1990s, Osborne was half of the Perfecto Records team, a production and remix collaboration with Paul Oakenfold; the artists...

, who was asked to work on the album based on his work with New Order
New Order
New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980 by Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris...

 on the album Get Ready
Get Ready (New Order album)
Get Ready is the seventh studio album by the English rock band New Order. Released in August 2001 by London Records, this was the group's first album in eight years, following 1993's Republic....

. With this album, the band dropped the apostrophe from their name and became The B-52s.

The album debuted at #11 on the Billboard charts in the U.S., immediately making it the second-highest charting B-52s album ever. The band toured in support of the album as well as making television appearances on talk shows, including The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...

, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...

, and performing on The Today Show on Memorial Day 2008. They also participated in the True Colors Tour 2008 with Cyndi Lauper
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album...

 and embarked on a European tour in July.

The first single from the album was "Funplex
Funplex (song)
"Funplex" is a song recorded by The B-52's. It is the title track and first single from the band's eighth full-length studio album Funplex...

", which was released digitally on January 29 to the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...

 in the U.S. The second single lifted from the album was "Juliet of the Spirits
Juliet of the Spirits (song)
"Juliet of the Spirits" is a song recorded by The B-52's. It is the second single from the band's eighth full length studio album, Funplex. A digital single and remix were released on September 9, 2008....

". Fred Schneider said in an interview that the album just broke even and could be The B-52s' last new studio album, though he later retracted that statement. The B-52s performed their hit track "Love Shack
Love Shack
"Love Shack" is a single by rock band The B-52's. Originally released in 1989 from their album Cosmic Thing, the single was the band's biggest hit song and first million-copy seller...

" with Sugarland at the 2009 CMT Music Awards
CMT Music Awards
The CMT Music Awards is a fan-voted awards show for country music videos and television performances. The awards ceremony is held every year in Nashville, Tennessee, and broadcast live on CMT. Voting takes place on CMT's website, CMT.com.-History:...

.

On February 18, 2011 the B-52s played a special 34th anniversary show at the Classic Center in their hometown of Athens, Georgia
Athens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...

. The performance took place four days after the 34th anniversary date of their first-ever show, February 14, 1977. The concert was filmed and recorded for With the Wild Crowd! Live in Athens, GA, released in October 2011. The DVD and Blu-ray will be released in 2012.

The B-52s still steadily play 50–60 live shows a year, including the closing show for the 2011 edition of the Montreal Jazz Festival, the setlist ranging from tracks on Funplex
Funplex
Funplex is the seventh studio album by The B-52s, recorded during 2006 and 2007. The album was released on March 25, 2008 by Astralwerks Records with holdings by Go! Discs...

to their greatest hits and songs never played live before (such as Bouncing off the Satellites
Bouncing off the Satellites
- Personnel :Band* Fred Schneider – lead vocals* Keith Strickland – bass, guitar, harmonica, percussion, keyboards, sitar, vocals, backing vocals* Cindy Wilson – lead vocals* Kate Pierson – lead vocals* Ricky Wilson – lead guitar, bass, backing vocals...

' "Wig"). The touring band includes musicians Sterling Campbell
Sterling Campbell
Sterling Campbell in New York City, New York, is an American rock drummer who has worked with numerous high-profile acts. He rose to attention in 1986, touring with Cyndi Lauper on her her True Colors World Tour, in 1986, and in 1987, joined Duran Duran...

 (drums), Paul Gordon
Paul Gordon
Paul Gordon may refer to:*Paul Gordon , retired American professional basketball player*Paul A. Gordon , Seventh-day Adventist and former director of the Ellen G. White Estate...

 (keyboards, guitar) and Tracy Wormworth
Tracy Wormworth
Tracy Wormworth is a bass guitarist working for more than 30 years in the music and television industry in the United States. She is the sister of percussionist James Wormworth....

 (bass).

Discography

Studio albums
  • The B-52's
    The B-52's (album)
    Critical reception for The B-52's was generally favorable; critics praised the album's kitschy lyrics and party atmosphere.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Fred Schneider – cowbell, toy piano, keyboard bass, Vocals, walkie talkie...

    (1979)
  • Wild Planet
    Wild Planet
    Wild Planet is the second studio album by The B-52's, released in 1980. It contains the band's first experiments using electronic drum machines....

    (1980)
  • Mesopotamia  (1982)
  • Whammy!
    Whammy!
    Media response to Whammy! was mixed, but generally positive; most critics agreed that while the album was generally weaker in songwriting structure than The B-52's' first two albums The B-52's and Wild Planet, it was an overall improvement over their previous album Mesopotamia, which received poor...

    (1983)
  • Bouncing off the Satellites
    Bouncing off the Satellites
    - Personnel :Band* Fred Schneider – lead vocals* Keith Strickland – bass, guitar, harmonica, percussion, keyboards, sitar, vocals, backing vocals* Cindy Wilson – lead vocals* Kate Pierson – lead vocals* Ricky Wilson – lead guitar, bass, backing vocals...

    (1986)
  • Cosmic Thing
    Cosmic Thing
    Cosmic Thing is the fifth studio album by New Wave band The B-52's, released in 1989. It contains the singles "Love Shack" and "Roam", which remain two of their most popular tunes...

    (1989)
  • Good Stuff
    Good Stuff
    Good Stuff is the sixth studio album by New Wave band The B-52s, released in 1992. This is the first B-52s album in which vocalist Cindy Wilson does not appear, though she rejoined some years later....

    (1992)
  • Funplex
    Funplex
    Funplex is the seventh studio album by The B-52s, recorded during 2006 and 2007. The album was released on March 25, 2008 by Astralwerks Records with holdings by Go! Discs...

    (2008)

Band members

Current
  • Kate Pierson
    Kate Pierson
    Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Pierson is an American vocalist and one of the lead singers and founding members of The B-52's. One of the multi-instrumentalists in the band, Pierson played guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments...

     – organs
    Electronic organ
    An electronic organ is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally, it was designed to imitate the sound of pipe organs, theatre organs, band sounds, or orchestral sounds....

    , guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

    , synthesizers, keyboards
    Keyboard instrument
    A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

    , bass guitar
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

    , vocals
    Singing
    Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

  • Fred Schneider
    Fred Schneider
    Frederick William "Fred" Schneider III is an American rock singer, best known as the frontman of the rock band The B-52's, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well-known for his sprechgesang which he developed from reciting poetry over guitars.-Early life:Schneider was born in Newark,...

     – vocals, cowbell, toy piano
    Toy piano
    The toy piano, also known as the kinderklavier , is a small piano-like musical instrument. The present form of the toy piano was invented in Philadelphia by a 17-year-old German immigrant named Albert Schoenhut. He worked as a repairman at Wanamaker's department store, repairing broken glass...

    , glockenspiel
    Glockenspiel
    A glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...

    , keyboards
  • Keith Strickland
    Keith Strickland
    Julian Keith Strickland is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and one of the founding members of the The B-52s. Originally the band's drummer, Strickland switched to guitar after the death of guitarist Ricky Wilson in 1985...

     – guitar, drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , bass guitar, synthesizers, marimba
    Marimba
    The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...

    , piano
    Piano
    The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

    , keyboards, programming, backing vocals
    Backing vocalist
    A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...

  • Cindy Wilson
    Cindy Wilson
    Cynthia Leigh Wilson is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.- Career :...

     – guitar, bongos, tambourine
    Tambourine
    The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....

    , vocals


Former
  • Ricky Wilson
    Ricky Wilson (American musician)
    Ricky Helton Wilson was an American instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and musician. He was best known as the original guitarist and founding member of New Wave rock band the B-52s...

     – guitars, organ, bass guitar, synthesizers

Further reading


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK