You may know them as the band that “needs more cowbell,” from the Saturday Night Live skit featuring Christopher Walken and Will Ferrell in 2000. You probably know them for their 1976 hit, “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” which resurfaced after the SNL skit, bringing the “cowbell” song back to the Billboard charts. And if you don’t know the ’70s rock band from that, then it’s highly likely you’ve heard them in the 1978 original film Halloween. Show Whatever the case may be, we’re curious about how did one of the earliest heavy-metal bands end up with the name Blue Öyster Cult? Let’s find out. The Band As PoetsIt’s never unlikely for musicians to also be poets, especially in the ’70s when art was popular in a time when the U.S. wasn’t. In the midst of the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement emerged musicians like Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, and Jim Morrison. Blue Öyster Cult is different from these traditional rock musicians, though, in two ways. The first is that they were a band that wavered between classic rock and heavy metal, never really establishing a steady genre. The second is that none of the band members were actually writing the poetry. Instead, it was their manager, Sandy Pearlman. He had a collection of poetry titled Imaginos, which later became the band’s eleventh studio album in 1988. Both the collection and the album follow the story of an alien conspiracy led by the alien, Imaginos. This is where their band name ties in—Blue Öyster Cult is just one of the poems from Pearlman’s Imaginos collection. The manager, producer, and poet claimed to have seen the name on a restaurant menu and liked it enough to have it as a poem title. The five original band members quickly latched on to Pearlman’s poem title, making it their official band name. Before The World Became Their OysterBefore they were “Blue Öyster Cult,” the New York-hailing artists were called “Soft White Underbelly.” This was another poem and decision made by Pearlman, and it was a reference to Winston Churchill, of all people. Churchill made a famous remark about Italy, where he called Italy the “soft underbelly of the Mediterranean.” The irony is that the band was never known for their politics. They had a reputation for being the “thinking man’s heavy metal” for covering topics like drugs and alien cults, not for covering the news. They took Pearlman’s poetry concepts and ran with them, whether that was Winston Churchill or aliens on Earth, it didn’t matter. A Statement PieceThe timeliness of their title says a lot in and of itself. When all of these rock musicians were making protest music and political anthems, Blue Öyster Cult was making music about fictional aliens taking over the Earth. The ’70s were the prime of cult culture, as the Manson family roamed California, taking over Hollywood and targeting rock stars and celebrities. Adding “cult” to their band name during this time became a statement piece. And finally, the “Ö” in Blue Öyster Cult was a popular trend for hard rock bands: Mötley Crüe, Motörhead and Hüsker Dü. Blue Öyster Cult is an American rock band. Initially formed in 1967 as Soft White Underbelly, they underwent several name and lineup changes before their 1972 debut album. The original lineup from their first album lasted from 1972 to 1981. It consisted of Eric Bloom, Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser, Allen Lanier, Joe Bouchard, and Albert Bouchard. Roeser, Lanier, and Albert Bouchard were co-founders of Soft White Underbelly, later joined by Bloom and Joe Bouchard when original members Les Braunstein and Andy Winters left the band. Blue Öyster Cult (often abbreviated BÖC) is an American heavy metal band from Long Island, New York, United States, best known for such hard rock and heavy metal songs as "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", "Godzilla" and "Burnin' for You", . Since the release of their self-titled debut album in 1972, the band has sold over 24 million albums worldwide, including 7 million in the United States alone. The band's music videos, especially "Burnin' for You", received heavy rotation on MTV when the music television network premiered in 1981, cementing the band's contribution to the development and success of the music video in modern pop culture. Today, BÖC's music continues to be played on AOR-friendly radio stations as well as in movies, television shows, and commercials, and even during sporting events. Blue Öyster Cult's current lineup includes long-time members Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser (lead guitar, vocals) and Eric Bloom (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboard), as well as Jules Radino (drums, percussion), Richie Castellano (keyboard, guitar, vocals), and Kasim Sulton (bass guitar). Contents
Personnel[]Members[]Current members
Discography[]Studio albums
External links[]
Who are the original members of Blue Öyster Cult?The band was founded in the late '60s with members Eric Bloom (vocals, stun guitar), Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser (lead guitar, vocals), Allen Lanier (keyboards, guitar), and rhythm section brothers Joe Bouchard (bass, vocals) and Albert Bouchard (drums, vocals).
Is Blue Öyster Cult from Long Island?For over four decades, Blue Öyster Cult has been thrilling fans of intelligent hard rock worldwide with powerful albums loaded with classic songs. Indeed, the Long Island, NY---based band is revered within the hard rock and heavy metal scene for its pioneering work.
How many members of Blue Öyster Cult are original?Blue Öyster Cult 1986-present. After the German leg of the tour behind Club Ninja, Joe Bouchard decided to leave the band. BÖC now only had two original members: Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma.
How did Blue Öyster Cult form?Blue Oyster Cult was formed at Stony Point University, when rock critic Sandy Pearlman wanted to form a band that would be an American answer to Black Sabbath. Pearlman never played, but he provided lyrics for the band and connections to record labels.
|
Where were the members of Blue Öyster Cult from?
Related Posts
Copyright © 2024 SignalDuo Inc.
