The Cars

All Music Guide:

Blondie may have had a string of number one hits and Talking Heads may have won the hearts of the critics, but the Cars were the most successful American new wave band to emerge in the late '70s. With its sleek, mechanical pop/rock, the band racked up a string of platinum albums and Top 40 singles that made it one of the most popular American rock & roll bands of the late '70s and early '80s. While they were more commercially oriented than their New York peers, the Cars were nevertheless inspired by proto-punk, garage rock, and bubblegum pop. The difference was in packaging. Where their peers were as equally inspired by art as music, the Cars were strictly a rock & roll band, and while their music occasionally sounded clipped and distant, they had enough attitude to cross over to album rock radio, which is where they made their name. Nevertheless, the Cars remained a new wave band, picking up cues from the Velvet Underground, David Bowie, and Roxy Music. Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr's vocals uncannily recalled Lou Reed's deadpan delivery, while the band's insistent, rhythmic pulse was reminiscent of Berlin-era Iggy Pop. Furthermore, the Cars followed Roxy Music's lead regarding LP cover art, in their case having artist Alberto Vargas design a sexy pinup-style illustration for the cover of their sophomore album, Candy-O. Similar cover art remained the Cars' primary visual attraction until 1984, when the group made a series of striking videos to accompany the singles from Heartbeat City. The videos for "You Might Think," "Magic," and "Drive" became MTV staples, sending the Cars to near-superstar status. Instead of following through with their success, the Cars slowly faded away, quietly breaking up after releasing one final album in 1987.

Ric Ocasek (guitar, vocals) and Ben Orr (bass, vocals) had been collaborators for several years before forming the Cars in 1976. Ocasek began playing guitar and writing songs when he was ten. After briefly attending Antioch College and Bowling Green State University, he dropped out of school and moved to Cleveland where he met Orr, who had led the house band on the TV show Upbeat as a teenager. The two began writing songs and led bands in Cleveland, New York City, Woodstock, and Ann Arbor before settling in Cambridge, MA in the early '70s. In 1972, the pair was the core of a folk trio named Milkwood. The band released an album on Paramount Records in late 1972, which was ignored; the record featured keyboards by a session musician named Greg Hawkes. By 1974, Ocasek and Orr had formed Cap'n Swing, which featured Elliot Easton on lead guitar. Cap'n Swing became a popular concert attraction in Boston, but the group broke up in 1975. Ocasek, Orr, and Easton formed a new band called the Cars in 1976 with former Modern Lovers drummer Dave Robinson and keyboardist Hawkes.

Early in 1977, the Cars sent a demo tape of "Just What I Needed" to the influential Boston radio station WBCN and it quickly became the station's most-requested song. For the remainder of 1977, the Cars played Boston clubs, and by the end of the year they signed with Elektra Records. The group's eponymous debut album appeared in the summer of 1978 and it slowly built a following thanks to the hit singles "Just What I Needed" (number 27), "My Best Friend's Girl" (number 35), and "Good Times Roll" (number 41). The Cars stayed on the charts for over two and a half years, delaying the release of the group's second album, and it eventually sold over six million copies.

Recorded early in 1979, Candy-O wasn't released until later that summer. The album was an instant hit, quickly climbing to number three on the charts and going platinum two months after its release. The record launched the Top Ten hit "Let's Go" and sent the band to the arena rock circuit. Perhaps as a reaction to the Cars' quick success, the group explored more ambitious territory on 1980's Panorama. Though the album wasn't as big a hit as its predecessors, it nevertheless peaked at number five and went platinum. Before recording their fourth album, several bandmembers pursued extracurricular interests, with Ocasek earning a reputation as a successful new wave producer for his work with Suicide and Romeo Void (he even produced some demos for Iggy Pop). The Cars released their fourth album, Shake It Up, in the fall of 1981, and it quickly went platinum, with its title track becoming the group's first Top Ten single.

Following the success of Shake It Up, the band recorded the soundtrack to the short film Chapter-X and then took an extended leave, with Ocasek releasing his solo album Beatitude in 1982 and Hawkes issuing Niagara Falls the following year; Ocasek also produced the debut album from the hardcore punk band Bad Brains. The Cars reconvened in 1983 to record their fifth album, Heartbeat City, which was released in early 1984. Supported by a groundbreaking, computer-animated video, the album's first single, "You Might Think," became a Top Ten hit, sending Heartbeat City to number three on the album charts. Three other Top 40 singles -- "Magic" (number 12), "Drive" (number three), and "Hello Again" (number 20) -- followed later that year, and the record went triple platinum in the summer of 1985. At the end of the year, the group released Greatest Hits, which featured two new hit singles, "Tonight She Comes" and "You Are the Girl."

The Cars were on hiatus for much of 1985 and 1986, during which time Easton released Change No Change and Orr issued The Lace. During 1987, the group completed its seventh album, Door to Door. The album was a moderate hit upon its summer release in 1987, launching the single "You Are the Girl," which peaked at number 17. Door to Door had seemed half-hearted, sparking speculation that the group was on the verge of splitting up. The Cars announced in February of 1988 that they had indeed broken up. All of the members pursued solo careers, but only Ocasek released albums with regularity. By the '90s, he'd also become a much sought-after alt-rock producer, having worked with with the likes of Weezer, Bad Religion, Black 47, Hole, Guided by Voices, No Doubt, Nada Surf, Johnny Bravo, D Generation, Possum Dixon, Jonathan Richman, the Wannadies, and former Suicide members Alan Vega and Martin Rev. Easton later reappeared with Creedence Clearwater Revisited, while sadly, Orr lost a battle with pancreatic cancer and died on October 3, 2000.

After Orr's passing, a few new Cars releases appeared on the marketplace, including the concert DVD Live (taped originally in Germany during 1979, and featuring an interview with the group shortly before Orr's passing), a double-disc deluxe edition of their classic self-titled debut album, and a more extensive hits collection titled Complete Greatest Hits. By early 2002, Ocasek was at work putting together a Cars documentary film, comprised of backstage footage and unreleased promo clips that the band filmed itself. He also continued working on solo material, releasing Nexterday in 2005 to warm reviews. Meanwhile, Greg Hawkes and Elliot Easton teamed up with Todd Rundgren to form the New Cars, a pop supergroup whose repertoire included Rundgren's solo songs, the Cars' past hits, and some new material. The New Cars toured with Blondie in 2006 and released one record, the concert album It's Alive!, before Rundgren resumed his solo career the following year. By 2010, the Cars officially reunited for the first time in two decades, with the late Orr serving as the reunion's sole absentee. Working with producer Jacknife Lee, they took up temporary residence in a recording studio in Millbrook, NY, emerging with 2011's Move Like This.

Wikipedia:

The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band originated in Boston, Massachusetts, with lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson. They were signed to Elektra Records by George Daly, then A&R head, in 1977.

The Cars were at the forefront in merging 1970s guitar-oriented rock with the new synth-oriented pop that was then becoming popular and which would flower in the early 1980s. The Cars started fresh with their debut album The Cars which went on to go platinum in late 1978. The Cars' debut album was called a "genuine rock masterpiece" by Allmusic. The most successful and well known song from the album, "Just What I Needed", started as a demo in 1977. The song was sent as a mix tape to a local DJ in the Boston area, who played the song in heavy rotation. This soon caught the attention of other DJs, which led to the signing of the band by Elektra Records in 1977.

The band broke up in 1988, and Ocasek had always discouraged talk of a reunion since then, telling one interviewer in 1997 "I'm saying never and you can count on that." Bassist Benjamin Orr died in 2000 from pancreatic cancer. In 2005, Easton and Hawkes joined with Todd Rundgren to form a spin-off band, The New Cars, which performed classic Cars and Rundgren songs alongside new material. The surviving original members reunited in 2010 to record a new album, titled Move Like This, which was released May 10, 2011, and a tour to start on the same day.

History [edit]

Early years (1973–1975) [edit]

Before The Cars, the members of the band began coming together in several early forms. Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr met in Columbus, Ohio, where they began performing as a duo, covering rock and roll classics as well as performing their own material. After deciding that Boston would be a better place to break into the music business, Ocasek and Orr relocated there. It was there that they met Greg Hawkes, who had studied at the Berklee School of Music, and the three, along with lead guitarist Jas Goodkind, formed a folk band called Milkwood. They released an album titled How's the Weather on the Paramount label in 1973 that failed to chart.

After Milkwood, Ocasek and Orr formed the group Richard and the Rabbits, whose name was suggested by Jonathan Richman. They were a local club band for a while. Soon after, Hawkes temporarily left Ocasek and Orr and joined up with groups including Orphan, a soft-rock band, and Martin Mull and His Fabulous Furniture, a musical comedy act in which Mull played a variety of instruments. Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr then performed as an acoustic duo called simply Ocasek and Orr at the Idler coffeehouse in Cambridge. Some of the songs they played became the underlying music in early Cars songs.

Later, Ocasek and Orr teamed up with future Cars guitarist Elliot Easton (who had also studied at Berklee) in the band Cap'n Swing. Cap'n Swing also featured drummer Kevin Robichaud and a jazzy bass player, which clashed with Ocasek's more rock and roll leanings. Benjamin Orr acted as frontman, did not play an instrument, and sang the bulk of Cap'n Swing's demos. Ocasek soon got rid of the bass player, the keyboardist, and the drummer and decided to form a band that better fit his style of writing. Kevin Robichaud was replaced by David Robinson. Robinson said that he should really have a regular job instead, and that the Cars would be his last band. Best known for his career with the Modern Lovers, Robinson had also played in DMZ and the Pop! It was Robinson who came up with the name "The Cars," which led to automobile-related puns. Ocasek said of the name, "It's so easy to spell; it doesn't have a 'z' on the end; it's real authentic. It's pop art, in a sense." Hawkes returned to fill the keyboard slot, and the band was on its way.

Peak years (1976–1984) [edit]

The band spent the winter of 1976–77 playing throughout New England, developing the songs that would become their debut album. They shortly thereafter caught the attention of Maxanne Sartori, a local DJ on the Boston radio station WBCN, who began playing their demo of "Just What I Needed". By virtue of that airplay, the band was signed to Elektra Records. "Just What I Needed" would turn out to be the first single from the band’s debut album, The Cars, released in 1978 and reaching No. 18 on the Billboard 200. "My Best Friend's Girl" and "Good Times Roll" soon followed, charting on the Billboard Hot 100. The band commissioned famed Playboy artist Alberto Vargas to design the sexy illustration for the cover of their second album, Candy-O, released in 1979. Hits from that album included "Let's Go", "It's All I Can Do" and "Dangerous Type."

A more experimental album, Panorama, was released in 1980, charting only one Top 40 hit with "Touch and Go". Rolling Stone described the album as "an out-and-out drag". In 1981, the Cars purchased Intermedia Studios in Boston, renaming it Syncro Sound. The only Cars album recorded there was Shake It Up. It was their first album to spawn a top 10 single with the title track, and included another hit "Since You’re Gone". Following their 1982 tour, the Cars took a short break and went to work on solo projects, with Ocasek and Hawkes both releasing debut albums (Beatitude and Niagara Falls, respectively).

The Cars re-united and released their most successful album, Heartbeat City, in 1984. The first single, "You Might Think", helped The Cars win Video of the Year at the first MTV Video Music Awards. Other hit singles from the album included "Magic", "Hello Again", and "Why Can’t I Have You". Their most successful single, "Drive", gained particular notability when it was used in a video of the Ethiopian famine prepared by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and introduced by David Bowie at the 1985 Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in London (The Cars themselves performed in the Philadelphia Live Aid concert). Actor/director Timothy Hutton directed the band's 1984 "Drive" music video.

Greatest Hits, Door to Door and break-up (1985–1988) [edit]

After the resulting period of superstardom and another hit single, "Tonight She Comes", a No. 7 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart (their last No. 1), from their Greatest Hits, the Cars took time off again to pursue solo projects. Easton and Orr released their debut albums (Change No Change and The Lace, respectively), while Ocasek released his second solo album, This Side of Paradise. In 1987, the Cars released their sixth album, Door to Door. It contained their last major international hit, "You Are the Girl", but the album failed to approach the success of their previous albums. They announced the group's breakup in February 1988.

Post break-up and solo careers (1989–2009) [edit]

In the late 1990s, rumors circulated of a Cars reunion, with no results. However, in 1995 Rhino Records released a 2-CD set Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology, containing all the group's hits mixed with rarities (demos, non-album b-sides). They followed up with the releases of The Cars: Deluxe Edition (1999), their debut album in 2-CD format, and Complete Greatest Hits.

In the mid 1990s, Orr recorded tracks with guitarist John Kalishes for an unreleased follow-up to The Lace and performed with three bands, his own band "ORR", The Voices of Classic Rock, and Big People. Orr did appear with his former bandmates one last time in an interview for a documentary about the group prior to his death from pancreatic cancer in 2000.

Ocasek continued to perform as a solo artist, having released over seven studio albums. Robinson retired from music and spent most of his time working in his restaurant. In 2005, Easton and Hawkes combined their talents with Todd Rundgren, Prairie Prince (The Tubes, Utopia), and Kasim Sulton (Utopia, Meat Loaf) in a revamped lineup, The New Cars, to perform classic Cars songs along with selections from Rundgren's solo work and some new original material.

In 2008, the band's first album was released for the video game Rock Band.

Reunion and Move Like This (2010–present) [edit]

In 2010, the founding members of The Cars suggested a reunion when Ric Ocasek, Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes and David Robinson placed a photo of the four members together in Millbrook Sound Studios, Millbrook, NY on their Facebook page. On October 13, they also posted a snippet of a new song, "Blue Tip", on their Facebook page. A picture of Jacknife Lee in the studio was posted on the group's Facebook page hinting that he would be producing the new Cars album.

In October Billboard reported that a new album which may be supported by a tour is being recorded at veteran engineer Paul Orofino's studio in Millbrook, New York. A music clip of a new song, called "Sad Song", was added to the band's Facebook page on December 7, 2010; another clip of a song called "Free" was shared on their Facebook page on January 1, 2011. The official debut video for "Blue Tip" was released February 17, 2011. The video was directed by Roberto Serrini and Eron Otcasek from The Lab NYC and features the four members of the band, and NYC based street artist Joe Iurato. According to Rolling Stone, the surviving Cars mutually agreed there would be no replacing the late Benjamin Orr, so Hawkes and Lee handled all bass parts.

The new album, titled Move Like This, was released on May 10 by Hear Music/Concord Music Group, debuting at No. 7 on Billboard's album charts. The album's first single, "Sad Song", was released to radio stations March 1. In April 2011, The Cars announced a ten-city tour of the United States and Canada to start in May 2011.

Genres [edit]

The Cars have used genres that spanned through all of rock and pop music, including new wave, pop rock, protopunk, garage rock, and bubblegum pop. They have also used rockabilly in songs such as "My Best Friend's Girl". Robert Palmer, music critic for The New York Times and Rolling Stone, described The Cars' musical style by saying: "they have taken some important but disparate contemporary trends—punk minimalism, the labyrinthine synthesizer and guitar textures of art rock, the '50s rockabilly revival and the melodious terseness of power pop—and mixed them into a personal and appealing blend." They have also had hard rock-oriented songs including "You're All I've Got Tonight".