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The Bangles
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Bangles | |
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 The Bangles in publicity photo: Susanna Hoffs, Debbi Peterson, Michael Steele and Vicki Peterson.
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | The Supersonic Bangs, The Bangs |
| Origin |  Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genre(s) | Rock, Pop |
| Years active | 1981–1988 2000–present |
| Label(s) | I.R.S., Columbia, Koch |
| Website | The Bangles.com |
| Members | |
| Susanna Hoffs Debbi Peterson Vicki Peterson |
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| Former members | |
| Annette Zilinskas Michael Steele |
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The Bangles were one of the new generation of independent all-women bands that followed The Go-Go's in the early 1980s.
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The band was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981 as The Supersonic Bangs, later shortened to The Bangs. The band was part of the so-called Paisley Underground scene in LA, which featured groups that played a mixture of 1960s influenced folk-rock and jangle pop with a more modern punk-ish/garage band undertone.
They were forced to change their name to The Bangles when a band from New Jersey, also named The Bangs, threatened to sue.[1]
The initial Bangles line-up of Susanna Hoffs (vocals/guitars), Vicki Peterson (guitars/vocals), Debbi Peterson (drums/vocals) and Annette Zilinskas (bass/vocals) recorded at least one single as the Bangs, then made their recorded debut as the Bangles with a self titled EP, which was released on their manager Miles Copeland's Faulty Products label in 1982. Zilinskas subsequently left the band, and was replaced on bass by Michael Steele.
The Bangles' full-length debut album on Columbia, All Over the Place (1984), captured their power-pop roots, featuring the singles "Hero Takes a Fall" and the Kimberley Rew-penned "Going Down To Liverpool" (originally recorded by Rew's band Katrina and the Waves). The record attracted good critical notices, and the video for "Liverpool" featured Leonard Nimoy, which helped to generate further publicity.
All this went some way to attracting the attention of Prince, who later wrote "Manic Monday" for the group.[2]
"Manic Monday" went on to become a #2 hit in the US, the UK and Germany, outsold at the time only by another Prince composition, his own "Kiss". The accompanying album Different Light (1986) was more polished than its predecessor and, with the help of the worldwide #1 hit "Walk Like an Egyptian", saw the band firmly in the mainstream as radio and MTV stalwarts.
There was friction among band members after the media began singling out Hoffs as the lead singer of the group, due to Columbia Records practice of releasing only singles on which Hoffs sang lead vocal. In fact, the group's albums were fairly evenly divided among all of the band's members, all of whom wrote or co-wrote their songs. [3] In 1987, Hoffs starred in a film, The Allnighter, which was directed by her mother, Tamar Simon-Hoffs, and was critically panned. That, and the firing of their manager Miles Copeland, further exacerbated the dissent among the band members.[4] But they soon had another US #2 hit with a cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade Of Winter" from the soundtrack of the film Less Than Zero, whereas on the other side of the Atlantic the melancholic "If She Knew What She Wants" reached the German Top 20.
1988's Everything was another multi-platinum smash and included their biggest selling single in the soft ballad "Eternal Flame" which was inspired by Elvis Presley's eternal flames and one at a local synagogue in Palm Springs which co-writer Billy Steinberg attended. The single became another worldwide No.1 hit. [5]
The working relationships within the band had broken down, however, and they split shortly after,[3] with Hoffs embarking on a solo career and Vicki Peterson touring as a member of the Go-Go's and the Continental Drifters.
Hoffs released a solo album When You're a Boy, produced by former Bangles producer David Kahne. The album spawned a minor hit "My Side of the Bed",and a Cyndi Lauper penned "Unconditional Love", but it stalled, and Hoffs was dropped from Columbia during the recording of her second solo album.[6] The second solo album Susanna Hoffs, released in 1996, fared better critically,[7] but it too had disappointing sales. Hoffs married film director Jay Roach (Austin Powers and Meet the Parents), and their union led to the Bangles' reunion of 2000.[7] Vicki Peterson joined and contributed songs to the New Orleans band the Continental Drifters, which received rave reviews. Debbie Peterson had a short-lived career with Siobhan Maher under the name of Kindred Spirit, while Steele lived in semi-retirement in California.
In 2000, the Bangles re-formed to tour. The group was also inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2000.[8] In 2001–2002 they recorded a new album Doll Revolution. A cover version of "Eternal Flame" was a 2001 UK #1 for Atomic Kitten. Doll Revolution, featuring such songs as "Stealing Rosemary", "Ride the Ride", "Nickel Romeo", and the single "Something That You Said", was released in early 2003. The title track was written by Elvis Costello, who initially recorded it for his 2002 album When I Was Cruel. Doll Revolution was a solid comeback success in Germany after the Bangles had performed in Germany's biggest TV show Wetten dass, but failed to make any impact in other important markets such as the UK, the U.S. and Australia.
In 2005, the Bangles announced the departure of Michael Steele. Steele was replaced by Abby Travis for live appearances. Travis is not an official member of the group.[9] On December 31, 2005, they reunited to perform "Hazy Shade of Winter" in front of Times Square and later performed "Eternal Flame" as part of Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve 2006. Their third holiday single, "Light My Way", is available as a download via iTunes. August 2007 saw the release of their first official live DVD, Return to Bangleonia - Live in Concert.
Like many other modern music groups, the Bangles have contributed to many other artists' works and to compilations. They provided the song "I Got Nothing" for the soundtrack album for the 1985 film The Goonies, and made a cameo appearance in Cyndi Lauper's music video for "Goonies 'R' Good Enough". Lauper later enlisted them for backup vocals in her 1986 song "Change of Heart". In February 2001, the first-season Gilmore Girls episode "Concert Interruptus" involved a trip to see a Bangles concert, and featured cameos and music by the band.[10] They also covered the Beatles hit "Good Day Sunshine" for the 2006 album All Together Now: Beatles Stuff for Kids of All Ages.[11]
Several artists have honored the Bangles, more or less, in their own songs. The Saw Doctors include an irreverant tribute to them, "I'd Love to Kiss the Bangles", on their 2003 album Play It Again Sham!.[12] Alternative-country artist Robbie Fulks sings a wistful ode to "That Bangle Girl", a song identified as one of his "personal favorites", on his 2000 Very Best album.[13]
- Susanna Hoffs - vocals/guitars
- Vicki Peterson - guitars/vocals/bass
- Debbi Peterson - drums/vocals/bass
- Annette Zilinskas - bass/vocals (1982-1983)
- Michael Steele - bass/guitars/vocals (1983-2005)
| Year | Title | US Chart | UK Album Chart |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | The Bangles (EP) | - | - |
| 1984 | All Over The Place | 80 | 86 |
| 1986 | Different Light | 2 | 3 |
| 1988 | Everything | 15 | 5 |
| 1990 | Greatest Hits | 97 | 4 |
| 2003 | Doll Revolution | - | 62 |
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| 1981 | "Getting Out of Hand" | - | - | Locally released in USA only | |
| 1983 | "The Real World (Remix)" | - | - | The Bangles | Promo-only release in USA only |
| 1984 | "Hero Takes a Fall" | - | 96 | All Over the Place | |
| 1985 | "Going Down to Liverpool" | - | 79 | All Over the Place | |
| 1986 | "Manic Monday" | 2 | 2 | Different Light | Written by "Christopher" (Prince)[2] |
| 1986 | "If She Knew What She Wants" | 29 | 31 | Different Light | |
| 1986 | "Going Down to Liverpool (re-release)" | - | 56 | All Over the Place | UK only |
| 1986 | "Walk Like an Egyptian" | 1 | 3 | Different Light | |
| 1987 | "Walking Down Your Street" | 11 | 16 | Different Light | |
| 1987 | "Following" | - | 55 | Different Light | UK only |
| 1987 | "Hazy Shade of Winter" | 2 | 11 | Less Than Zero soundtrack | |
| 1988 | "In Your Room" | 5 | 35 | Everything | |
| 1989 | "Eternal Flame" | 1 | 1 | Everything | |
| 1989 | "Be with You" | 30 | 23 | Everything | |
| 1989 | "I'll Set You Free (remix)" | - | 74 | Everything | |
| 1990 | "Everything I Wanted" | - | - | Greatest Hits | Continental Europe/Australia only |
| 1990 | "Walk Like an Egyptian (remix)" | - | 73 | Greatest Hits | UK only |
| 1990 | "The Eternal Mix" | - | - | Greatest Hits | Promo only, Spain only |
| 2003 | "Something That You Said" | - | 38 | Doll Revolution | |
| 2003 | "Tear Off Your Own Head" | - | - | Doll Revolution | Continental Europe & Japan only |
| 2003 | "I Will Take Care of You " | - | 74 | Doll Revolution | UK Only |
| 2006 | "Light My Way" | - | - | - | Download Only (iTunes) |
| Year | Title | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | The Haircut | Cameo appearance |
| 1990 | The Bangles - Greatest Hits: Videos (VHS) | |
| 2003 | Doll Revolution Bonus DVD | |
| 2005 | The Bangles - Greatest Hits: Videos (DVD) | |
| 2007 | Return to Bangleonia (Live DVD) | Recorded live at House of Blues, Hollywood, September 2000 |
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- Susanna Hoffs is the subject of Freddy Blohm's "The Corner of Her Eye".
- In July 2004, The Bangles were made Companions of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts.
- In 1988 Vicki Petterson and former Kiss guitarist Vinnie Vincent wrote a song together, called "Make A Play For Her Now" for the Bangles' Everything album.
- ^ The Punkpopmod Archives The Bangs biography. Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ a b Greenwald, Matthew. "Manic Monday: The Bangles: Song Review". All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2006-09-08.
- ^ a b Muze UK Ltd, Biography of The Bangles Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ The Bangles Collective Biography. Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, 500 Nr. 1 hits uit de Top 40, page 261, 9023009444
- ^ nndb.com Biography Susanna Hoffs Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ a b BBC Biography The Bangles Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ Vocal Hall of Fame The Bangles page. Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ theage.com.au "Bangles shake again" Retrieved: Sept 15, 2006
- ^ "Gilmore Girls: Concert Interruptus (2001)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2007-11-25. Excerpts of the songs "Hero Takes a Fall" and "Eternal Flame" were featured in the concert that the Gilmore party attended.
- ^ Berick, Michael. All Together Now: Beatles Stuff for Kids of All Ages [B&N Exclusive]. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Sleger, Dave. "Play it Again Sham!". All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Fink, Matt. "The Very Best of Robbie Fulks". All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-11-25. Although Fulks never says her name, the line "When the little one took the mike, I knew I'd fallen" suggests the particular "Bangle girl" he pines for is Susanna Hoffs, the shortest member of the group and frequent lead singer.