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Sorry, there aren't any names left for bands...
By Bo Wilson, London Lite 08.10.07
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Today's new bands are finding it difficult to think of a name for themselves because all the good ones have been taken.
After 50 years, most of the obvious or inspired names have been used and lawyers advise new bands to check MySpace to see whether theirs are unique.
NME magazine last week apologised for awarding track of the week to a band called Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong, because its name was "ludicrous" and "a shocker".
Two of the other tipped bands were The Dykeenies and I Was A Cub Scout.
But whatever is thought of the quality of Jing Jang Jong's name, the band is causing confusion with two others, the Ting Tings and Jing Jings.
Good Books, a Radio 1-backed guitar band, has had similar problems after being mistaken for Good Shoes - another Radio 1-tipped band.
Music industry veteran, Nick Stewart said: "It's a problem because naming a band is as important as naming a record.
"Bands like U2, Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones realised that choosing a name is part of designing a commercial product. "The directness and clarity of their names helped sell millions of albums, tickets and T-shirts."
Mr Stewart agreed that sometimes more peculiar names, such as Spandau Ballet, have worked. But he added that he once refused to sign a band because they were called The Donkeys, and said calling a band I Was A Cub Scout suggested a "naive attitude to a commercially competitive business." I Was A Cub Scout lead singer, Todd Marriott, defended the band's choice, saying: "We knew there would be no other band with the same name."
How rock's greatest legends first made their names
The Beatles - In 1957 John Lennon assembled the Black Jacks, and then The Quarrymen. They became Johnny and the Moondogs, the Beatals, the Silver Beetles, the Silver Beatles, before The Beatles.
The Clash - From The 101'ers, the bassist Paul Simenon snatched a name from a tabloid headline.
Pink Floyd - Called Tea Set, until Syd Barrett combined the names of blues artists Pink Anderson and Floyd Council.
U2 - Originally The Hype, a friend suggested a name change to the spy plane shot down in Soviet airspace.
The Who - Began as the Detours and the High Numbers. After every new name idea, band members would say: "The who?"
Led Zeppelin - Keith Moon suggested that a group featuring himself and the guitarists Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page would "go down like a lead balloon".
The Spice Girls - Originally called Touch, changed their name after a song written for them called Sugar And Spice.
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Reader views (1)
Surely how good a band name is depends on the taste of the music listener? If it's memorable and people like the music that's all that really matters! Red Hot Chilli Peppers was a mouthful, and hard to remember when I was 14 but I did because I liked them. Same with Smashing Pumpkins. Surely the Beatles isn't a great name, but I think of the band not a small group of beatles so I like it! I remember seeing another band in your paper a few months back called Second Person, I didn't think it was that great a name then but I remembered it and was able to check them out...I like the band now so I like the name.
I Was a Cub Scout is an odd name but I'm not likely to forget it now...
- Andrew Thompson, London
