The B-52's

The B-52's are a rock band from Athens, Georgia; the first of many from the college town that has become one of the most important centers in alternative rock. The name comes from the bouffant wigs that are a part of the band's distinctive look, worn by singers Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson. Along with Wilson and Pierson, Keith Strickland, Ricky Wilson (Cindy's older brother) and Fred Schneider formed the band after a drunken night at a Chinese restaurant. Their sound is particularly marked by the vocals of Wilson and Pierson, with Kate singing in a slightly deeper voice, along with the generally monotone or spoken-word vocals of Schneider. Aside from their vocals, the band also had a unique New Wave sound that was a combination of dance and surf music and the unusual guitar-string tunings utilized by Ricky Wilson. Although part of the new wave movement, their music was more experimental than most new wave, indulging in all manner of odd vocal and synthesizer effects. It created a quirky dance sound that became very popular.

Discography

Albums

• The B-52's (1979) (US #18) (US sales: Gold)
• Wild Planet (1980) (US #59) (US: 2 million)
• Party Mix (1982) (US #55)
• Mesopotamia (1982)
• Whammy! (1983) (US #171) (US sales: Platinum)
• Bouncing Off the Satellites (1986) (US #85) (US sales: Gold)
• Cosmic Thing (1989) (US #4) (US sales: 4 million copies)
• Party Mix / Mesopotamia (1992) #184
• Good Stuff (1992) (US #16) (US sales: Platinum)
• Time Capsule (1998) (US #93)
• '
• Nude on the Moon (2002)

Singles

• "Rock Lobster" (US #56, UK #37) (1979)
• "Private Idaho" (US #74) (1980)
• "Legal Tender" (US #81) (1983)
• "Rock Lobster"/"Planet Claire" (reissue) (UK #12) (1986)
• "Channel Z" (1989)
• "Love Shack" (US #3) (1989)
• "Roam" (US #3)(1990)
• "Deadbeat Club" (US #30) (1990)
• "Good Stuff" (US #28, UK #21) (1992)
• "(Meet) The Flintstones" (as "The BC-52's") (US #33, UK #3) (1994)

Hot Dance Music/Club Play History

• 1979 Planet Claire / Rock Lobster / Dance This Mess Around (#24)+
• 1980 Private Idaho / Give Me Back My Man / Party Out Of Bounds (#5)+
• 1981 Party Mix! (all cuts) (#55)+
• 1982 Mesopotamia / Deep Sleep / Cake (#13)+
• 1983 Whammy Kiss / Legal Tender / Song For a Future Generation (#9)+
• 1984 Monster / Boonga (The New Jersey Caveman) (as "Fred Schneider and the Shake Society") (#25)+
• 1986 Summer Of Love (#3)
• 1986 Girl From Ipanema Goes To Greenland (#10)
• 1989 Love Shack (#7)
• 1990 Roam (#10)
• 1994 (Meet) The Flintstones (as "The BC-52's") (#3)
• 1998 Debbie (#32)

Videos

• The B-52's 1979-1989 (1989) VHS video tape - with remarkably good sound quality.

+ in the seventies and eighties, Billboard's Dance Chart policy allowed multiple songs (or in some cases all songs) from an album or an EP to occupy the same position if more than one track was receiving significant play in dance clubs.

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