The BoDeans
are a rock and roll and roots rock band formed in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1983 by Kurt Neumann (vocals & electric guitar) and Sam Llanas (vocals & acoustic guitar). In 1985, after adding a drummer and a bassist, the band signed a contract with Slash/Warner Records and recorded their first album. [1] In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band had several singles in the top 40 "mainstream rock" charts. In the mid-1990s, the band had two top 10 songs in the "Adult contemporary" charts.
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BODEANS TICKETS
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History
The original duo of
Kurt Neumann (vocals & electric guitar) and
Sam Llanas (vocals & acoustic guitar) started writing songs together after Llanas left college shortly after graduating from high school in 1979.
added
Guy Hoffman (drums) in 1984. The original name of the band was
Da BoDeans
.
[2] After the trio became a popular band on Milwaukee's East Side music scene, they decided to add Bob Griffin (bass). In 1985 the quartet signed a contract with
Slash/Warner Records and shortened their name to simply
BoDeans
. Under the guidance of producer
T-Bone Burnett, they entered Hollywood's
Sunset Sound Factory in October to record their first album. The critically acclaimed debut
Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams
was released in 1986.
In January 1987, a
Rolling Stone
reader poll voted them Best New American Band. Their second album,
Outside Looking In
, was released that year. Followed by that were
Home
(1989),
Black and White
(1991), and
Go Slow Down
(1993).
Their 1993 song "
Closer to Free" brought them to a much larger audience after it was selected as the theme song to the TV series
Party of Five
.
The band would return in 1999 to perform a cover of
The Beatles's "
I've Just Seen a Face" as the theme song for the show's short-lived spinoff
Time of Your Life
. Due to the newfound exposure, "Closer to Free" became the group's biggest pop hit, peaking at #16 on the
U.S. Hot 100, three years after its release.
"Closer to Free" was also the opening song used in the movie
Heavyweights
. In 1995,
Joe Dirt Car
, a 2 CD live set, was released followed by the 1996 album, "Blend." The band took some time off in the late 1990s so Neumann and Llanas could record solo albums. Sammy created the band Absinthe and their album
A Good Day To Die
. Kurt released his solo album called
Shy Dog
on which he plays all the instruments. Neumann said that they decided to stick with the BoDeans because they "realized that the sound we made together was bigger than the sound we made apart."
In 2001 the 17-song compilation
The Best Of BoDeans - Slash and Burn
was released on
London/Slash/Rhino. In 2004 they returned with new songs on
Resolution
released on
Rounder/Zoe.
A live album was released in 2005, entitled
Homebrewed: Live from the Pabst
. The group released the DVD for
Homebrewed: Live from the Pabst
at the end of 2005. In January 2006, Bob Griffin left the band for personal reasons. Efforts for the band to leave Warner created a three year long court battle, during which time they took a hiatus from the studio.
The BoDeans released their new album, entitled "Still", on
March 4,
2008.
The song "Pretty Ghost" from the new album "Still," became a single as of February 12, 2008. It has been announced that the band is lining up tour dates, along with a radio tour, and will be posted on their official website, as well as the band's MySpace page when they are all confirmed. The band recently appeared on the Minneapolis/St. Paul-area radio station Cities 97's "Studio C" program, and Artist Interviews podcast. They confirmed some tour dates ithe podcast, and played three songs, "Good Things," and two new songs, "Round Here Somewhere," and "Hearing." They were also interviewed, and had a Q&A about the new album.
It was stated that the first 15,000 copies of "Still" had some errors in the lyrics booklet. The record company recently re-released the album with the corrections in the booklet.
Recently, a live, acoustic CD became available on The BoDeans Official Website. It was recorded in Schaumburg, and Arlington Heights, Illinois, the 16, 17, and 18 of November of 2006. It features only Sammy, Kurt, and Bukka, and has 13 rare live, acoustic songs.
Discography
Albums
- Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams
(1986) US #115
- Outside Looking In
(1987) US #86
- Home
(1989) US #94
- Black and White
(1991) US #105
- Go Slow Down
(1993) US #127
- Joe Dirt Car
(1995) (2 CD live set) US #161
- Blend
(1996) US #132
- Slash and Burn
(2001) (Best of)
- The Leftovers
(2003) (Rarities collection)
- Resolution
(2004) US #196
- Homebrewed: Live from the Pabst
(2005) (2 CD live set)
- Still
(2008)
Videography
- Homebrewed: Live from the Pabst (2005) (DVD)
Music Videos
- She's a Runaway (1986)
- Fadeaway (1986)
- Only Love (1987)
- Dreams (1988)
- Good Work (1989)
- You Don't Get Much (1989)
- Good Things (1991)
- Black White & Blood Red (1991)
- Closer to Free (1993)
Singles
| Year
| Title
| Chart positions
[3]
| Album
|
| US Hot 100
| US Modern Rock
| US Mainstream Rock
| US Adult Top 40
| US Top 40 Mainstream
|
| 1987
| "Only Love"
| -
| -
| #16
| -
| -
| Outside Looking In
|
| 1988
| "Dreams"
| -
| -
| #32
| -
| -
| Outside Looking In
|
| 1989
| "You Don't Get Much"
| -
| #15
| #20
| -
| -
| Home
|
| 1991
| "Black, White, and Blood Red"
| -
| -
| #34
| -
| -
| Black and White
|
| 1993
| "Feed the Fire"
| -
| -
| #34
| -
| -
| Go Slow Down
|
| 1993
| "Closer to Free"
| #16
| -
| -
| #3
| #6
| Go Slow Down
|
| 1996
| "Hurt By Love"
| -
| -
| -
| #33
| #39
| Blend
|
Solo albums
- A Good Day To Die
(1998) (Absinthe/Sam Llanas solo project)
- Shy Dog
(1999) (Kurt Neumann solo project)
References
- And the BoDeans played on ... and on
- BoDeans search for a way back to the top
- Chart Positions at Allmusic.com