The Nixons
(formed in 1990) were a US-American post-grunge rock band, finding some commercial success in the mid-1990s.
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THE NIXONS TICKETS
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Band history
The Nixons were founded in
Oklahoma City by singer/guitarist
Zac Maloy, guitarist Jesse Davis, bassist Ricky Brooks, and drummer
Tye Robison. The group released their debut
EP Six
in 1992 (after a self-titled album, released in 1990) on
Dragon Street Records and replaced Robison with John Humphrey, before releasing
Halo
in 1994 on Dallas-based
Rainmaker Records. This album features several songs also included on
Foma
, their official debut LP, released in 1995 on
MCA Records.
Foma
included the radio hits "Sister", " Happy Song", "Wire", and "Passion". The group capitalized on their success with big tours (about 300 shows a year), including dates with
Soul Asylum,
Radiohead, and
Toadies. Foma eventually peaked at #77 on the Billboard 200.
The group replaced
Ricky Brooks with
Ricky Wolking and released a self-titled album in 1997, which featured three singles: "The Fall", "Miss U.S.A." and "Baton Rouge". The band was subsequently dropped by
MCA, though their consistent gigging ensured a strong cult audience for 1999's
Scrapbook
EP (featuring b-sides, live and acoustic performances, including covers of
Elton John's
"Rocket Man" and
Cheap Trick's "Heaven Tonight"), which saw the band return to Rainmaker.
Their fourth album
The Latest Thing
, was released by
Koch in early 2000. It featured songs co-written by
Marti Frederiksen and
Jack Blades of
Night Ranger fame. Though Jesse Davis and John Humphrey recorded
The Latest Thing
, an unknown dispute caused them to leave the band before the subsequent promotional tour, which featured
Ray Luzier on drums and Scott "Scoob" Bush on guitar.
After a brief tour in support of
The Latest Thing
, the Nixons went on hiatus. As of early 2009, they have not released any new material or re-formed for any shows since that time.
Later projects
Davis, Brooks, and Humphrey reformed in early 2001 as
Huver, with a new lead singer, Garin Murdock. The band gigged heavily and reportedly signed a recording contract with Epic Records, but broke up in the summer of 2002 after independently releasing one EP.
John Humphrey has gone on to play drums in the band
Seether.
Ricky Wolking now plays bass for the Dallas-based rock band
Edgewater and has recorded a solo album as
Honky Mofo. Jesse Davis has a roots-rock/psychedelic jam band called
4 Points West which has released one EP and one full-length album. Davis also has a recording studio in Oklahoma City.
Zac Maloy released two albums and an EP as a solo artist which were fairly popular in the Southwest but did not chart nationally, and has since become a songwriter and producer, working with such acts as
Our Lady Peace,
Supercell,
The Daylights,
Hanson,
Chris Daughtry,
David Cook and
Bowling for Soup. Maloy also recently opened his own recording studio, Rosewater Studios, in
Tulsa. Original drummer Robison is a co-owner of
January Sound Studio in Dallas, and has worked as a producer/engineer with
Drowning Pool,
Chatterton, and
Collin Herring. Co-wrote songs with other songwriters including
Jonny Hetherington from
Art of Dying.
Discography
- 1990 - The Nixons (self-released, on cassette only)
- 1992 - Six EP (Dragon Street Records)
- 1994 - Halo
- 1995 - Foma
- #77 US
- 1997 - The Nixons (MCA)
- #188 US
- 1999 - Scrapbook EP
- 2000 - Latest Thing
Singles
Year
| Title
| Chart positions
| Album
|
US Hot 100
| US Mainstream Rock
| US Modern Rock
|
1996
| "Sister"
| #39
| #6
| #11
| Foma
|
1996
| "Wire"
| -
| #27
| -
| Foma
|
1997
| "Baton Rouge"
| -
| #9
| -
| The Nixons
|
1997
| "The Fall"
| -
| #22
| -
| The Nixons
|
2000
| "First Trip"
| -
| #32
| -
| Latest Thing
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Band members
- Zac Maloy - vocals, guitar (1990-2000)
- Jesse Davis - guitar, backing vocals (1990-2000)
- Ricky Brooks - bass (1990-1997)
- Ricky Wolking - bass, backing vocals (1997-2000)
- Tye Robison - drums, backing vocals, programming (1990-1992)
- John Humphrey - drums, backing vocals (1994-2000)
- Ray Luzier - drums (2000)
- Scott "Scoob" Bush [Guitar] [Backing Vocals]