How did bands acquire their names?

[jay66uk]

Led Zeppelin - after Keith Moon told them they would go down like a lead...they started off as New Yardbirds.

yeah, he said they would go down like a lead balloon, but they changed the name to "led" to stop the yanks mis-pronouncing the band name

That's what wiki writers who dislike West ham would have you believe ;-)

 

[seventeen hands]

The Libertines - after Marquis de Sade's The Lust Of The Libertines.
The Clash - after joe strummer read an article about a riot. ' a clash between rioters and police'

 

[Knight1979]

No one's done Joy Division??

Named after Hitler's prostitute brigade


Metallica: A friend of Lars Ulrich's was trying to start up a metal magazine and he was bouncing ideas off Lars of what it should be called, Lars took Metallica from him.

My Bloody Valentine: Horror B Movie I think

Pink Floyd: Combination of two old blues guys put together, someone can confirm the names

Brian Jonestown Massacre: Combination of Brian Jones from the Rolling Stones and the Jonestown cult massacre in California

 

[Hip Hop Uwe]

Dickless, pic may explain it.

 

[scowy68]

How about,Judas priest?I've just seen the maddest cover i've ever seen on their latest album.Not into the music or anything,can't even remember if i've ever heard them at all.But that Nostradamus album cover is awesome.

 

[blue jim]

Pogues, taken from póg mó hoin, kiss my arse, and turned into a name Pogue Mahone, then just Pogues.

 

[manclad]

Just remembered one of the obvious ones-

Agnetha
Benny
Bjorn
Anni-Frid

All first names of the group.

 

[DT King of all Geordies]

Not sure if it urban myth but the name of the family who lived next door to Ian Brady were called the Smiths.

 

[blue47766]

Pogues, taken from póg mó hoin, kiss my arse, and turned into a name Pogue Mahone, then just Pogues.

also Radio2 DJ Mark Radcliffes band is called Pogue Mahone. What about The Saw Doctors named after the men who went round Ireland sharpening knifes and saws or anything else. The name was only meant to be tempory but stuck

 

[barryo]

The Macc Lads got their name cos they were Lads from Macc(lesfield)

 

[Newlunar]

Rolling Stones - Muddy Waters song?
Fine Young Cannibals - film - All The Fine Young Cannibals.
Sham 69 - graffitti in the Hersham area of London
Small Faces - they were all small in stature & all wanted to be well known "faces"

yeah remember seeing a documentary about the band.wasn't it graffitti about hersham winning the league or something in 1969 but it had faded away a bit to leave just 'sham 69' on the wall.

I read once that the graffitti originally said Hersham Skinheads 69 and gradually faded to Sham 69.

 

[Joliet Jake Blues]

The Hollies – was the name of a Catholic Girls School in Didsbury, now part of Barlow RC High.

Uriah Heep – a character in David Copperfield

Boo Radleys – Arthur “Boo” Radley is a character in To Kill a Mockingbird

Ten Years After – Alvin Lee formed that band ten years after he formed his first one

Chicago were originally The Chicago Passenger Transport Authority but the real CPTA got a bit shirty about it. Imagine calling your band GMPTE?

Blood Sweat and Tears – a mangled version of Churchill’s speech about “blood toil, tears and sweat”.

Buffalo Springfield – a firm that made steamrollers

MC5 – The Motor City 5, band came from Detroit

 

[manclad]

REO Speedwagon - a 1930's make/model of fire engine
(designed by R E Olds - who was the founder of the Oldsmobile car company.)

 

[Mills-Mcfc]

My Chemical Romance

Bassist read a book called Tales of Chemical Romance
Then thought wouldnt it be cool to put a 'My' infront of Chemical Romance

 

[newcrossblue]

Oasis - Oasis Leisure Centre in Swindon (apparently). A complete dump of a place.

Made me laugh

 

[shadygiz]

The Hollies – was the name of a Catholic Girls School in Didsbury, now part of Barlow RC High.

Uriah Heep – a character in David Copperfield

Boo Radleys – Arthur “Boo” Radley is a character in To Kill a Mockingbird

Ten Years After – Alvin Lee formed that band ten years after he formed his first one

Chicago were originally The Chicago Passenger Transport Authority but the real CPTA got a bit shirty about it. Imagine calling your band GMPTE?

Blood Sweat and Tears – a mangled version of Churchill’s speech about “blood toil, tears and sweat”.

Buffalo Springfield – a firm that made steamrollers

MC5 – The Motor City 5, band came from Detroit

the hollies were originally called the dark 4....my uncle was the drummer ;)

 

[manclad]

REM - rapid eye movement (which occurs during periods of deep sleep &
when dreaming).