The Upper Crust
Encyclopedia
The Upper Crust is an American
hard rock
band
from Boston
, Massachusetts
. The members adopt the personae of 18th century aristocratic
fop
s and sing songs from that perspective. They use titles of nobility
, wear powdered wigs and period costumes, and maintain a snob
bish attitude while performing live and on their albums. The members say that their guiding philosophy
is "if not great and excellent, then debauched."
Their major music influence is Bon Scott
-era AC/DC
, along with glam rock
band Kiss
and fictional heavy metal
band Spinal Tap
. Rolling Stone
wrote, "[d]ismiss Boston's Upper Crust as a joke rock band if you must, but give them this much: they're actually funny, and there's as much rock as mock to their singular brand of ‘roque’", adding "there's plenty of worthy riffs and double-entendre wit to go around". The group originated from a Boston
surf rock band called 'The Clamdiggers'. Other related bands were The Bags
, The Titanics, The Satanics, The Flies, The Oysters and Seks Bomba.
The Upper Crust has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
. The music video game Guitar Hero included the band’s signature song
"Eureka, I've Found Love" as a bonus song. The band has also guest starred in an episode of Codename: Kids Next Door
(Operation P.A.R.T.Y.) on Cartoon Network
, January 26, 2007.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. The members adopt the personae of 18th century aristocratic
Aristocracy (class)
The aristocracy are people considered to be in the highest social class in a society which has or once had a political system of Aristocracy. Aristocrats possess hereditary titles granted by a monarch, which once granted them feudal or legal privileges, or deriving, as in Ancient Greece and India,...
fop
Fop
Fop became a pejorative term for a foolish man over-concerned with his appearance and clothes in 17th century England. Some of the very many similar alternative terms are: "coxcomb", fribble, "popinjay" , fashion-monger, and "ninny"...
s and sing songs from that perspective. They use titles of nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
, wear powdered wigs and period costumes, and maintain a snob
Snob
A snob is someone who believes that some people are inherently inferior to him or her for any one of a variety of reasons, including real or supposed intellect, wealth, education, ancestry, taste, beauty, nationality, et cetera. Often, the form of snobbery reflects the snob's personal attributes...
bish attitude while performing live and on their albums. The members say that their guiding philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
is "if not great and excellent, then debauched."
Their major music influence is Bon Scott
Bon Scott
Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott was a Scottish-born Australian rock musician, best known for being the lead singer and lyricist of Australian hard rock band AC/DC from 1974 until his death in 1980...
-era AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
, along with glam rock
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
band Kiss
KISS (band)
Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in January 1973. Well-known for its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
and fictional heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Spinal Tap
Spinal Tap (band)
Spinal Tap is a parody heavy metal band that first appeared on a failed 1979 ABC TV sketch comedy pilot called "The T.V. Show", starring Rob Reiner...
. 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...
wrote, "[d]ismiss Boston's Upper Crust as a joke rock band if you must, but give them this much: they're actually funny, and there's as much rock as mock to their singular brand of ‘roque’", adding "there's plenty of worthy riffs and double-entendre wit to go around". The group originated from a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
surf rock band called 'The Clamdiggers'. Other related bands were The Bags
The Bags (1985)
The Bags are a hard rock/punk rock band from Lexington, Massachusetts — formed in 1985 — and are not to be confused with The Bags, a punk rock band formed in 1977. The band is composed of members Jon Hardy, Jim Janota, and Crispin Wood...
, The Titanics, The Satanics, The Flies, The Oysters and Seks Bomba.
The Upper Crust has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is a Peabody Award-winning American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish American comedian Craig Ferguson. Ferguson, the third regular host of the Late Late Show franchise, follows Late Show with David Letterman in the CBS late-night lineup...
. The music video game Guitar Hero included the band’s signature song
Signature song
A signature song is the one song that a popular and well-established singer or band is most closely identified with or best known for, even if they have had success with a variety of songs...
"Eureka, I've Found Love" as a bonus song. The band has also guest starred in an episode of Codename: Kids Next Door
Codename: Kids Next Door
Codename: Kids Next Door, also known as Kids Next Door or by its acronym KND, is an American animated television series created by Tom Warburton and produced by Curious Pictures in Santa Monica, California.. The series debuted on Cartoon Network on December 6, 2002 and aired its final episode on...
(Operation P.A.R.T.Y.) on Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (United States)
Cartoon Network is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting which primarily airs animated programming. The channel was launched on October 1, 1992 after Turner purchased the animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1991...
, January 26, 2007.
Members
- Lord Bendover (Nat Freedberg) (guitar, vocals) (1995–present)
- Count Bassie (Chris Cote) (bass, vocals) (1996–present)
- The Duc D'istortion (Dave Fredette) (guitar, vocals) (1995–present)
- Jackie Kickassis (Jim Janota) (drums) (1995–present)
Former members
- Lord Rockingham (Ted WidmerEdward L. WidmerEdward Ladd Widmer is a historian, writer, and librarian, who served as a speechwriter in the later days of the Clinton White House.His parents were Eric G. Widmer and Ellen B. Widmer...
) (guitar, vocals) (1995–1997) - Marquis de Roque (aka Marquis Marque, Marc Mazzarelli) (bass, bad vocals) (1995–1996)
Discography
- Let Them Eat Rock LP (1995) (Upstart Records)
- The Decline and Fall of The Upper Crust LP (1997) (Emperor Norton RecordsEmperor Norton RecordsEmperor Norton Records, was a Los Angeles-based electronica, hip-hop, and dance-music record label. Among the artists featured on the label were Ladytron, Arling & Cameron, Money Mark, Ugly Duckling, and Fantastic Plastic Machine...
) - Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be: A Tribute to AC/DC one track, "Back in Black" (1999) (Reptilian Records)
- Entitled - double live album (2000) (Reptilian Records)
- Once More Into the Breeches LP (2001) (Emperor Norton Records)
- Cream of the Crust CD (2006) (Upper Crust Ltd)
- Revenge for Imagined Slights (2009)
External links
- Carioli, Carly. "Money shots: Why the Upper Crust rule, Boston Phoenix, July 6–13, 2000.
- Green, James Jr. "The Buckled Shoe of Rock: Paul Revere & The Raiders vs. The Upper Crust", Crawdaddy! Magazine, November 12, 2008.