So, what do Derek and the Dominos, Herman’s Hermits, Judas Priest, the Marshall Tucker Band, and Molly Hatchet have in common? Well, this quiz was inspired by last week’s American Idol guest coaching stint of Hermits frontman Peter Noone (pictured, third from left, with his Idol charges), whose last name also can be read as "No one," which is how many members of his band were named Herman. Yep, all this week’s bands were named for people not actually in the band.
Extra credit goes to readers Lisa Beach,Andrea Dresdale, andTim Priester, who actually knew the stories behind the cryptic band names. Noone’s band got its name because someone thought he looked like Sherman from the Rocky & Bullwinkle cartoons; someone else misheard the name as Herman, and it stuck. Similarly, lore has it that Eric Clapton wanted to call his ’70s band Eric and the Dynamos, but a stage announcer garbled their name. (Another apocryphal tale says that "Derek" was a mashup of "Eric" and "Del," a Clapton nickname.) Judas Priest is named for a Bob Dylan song, the Marshall Tucker Band for a blind piano tuner, and Molly Hatchet for a legendary Southern prostitute who allegedly decapitated her johns.
Some of you thought this was pretty easy. "I would bet a lot of money that the lead singer for Mr. Mister is not named Mr. Mister as well. Ha," wrote Kate Royce. "In addition, all five bands are huge Dungeons & Dragons fanatics," claimed Priester. "Eric Clapton plays as an elf named Wiggly." (Man, if that’s true, I’ve lost any last vestiges of respect for ol’ Slowhand.)
Other readers noted the names of other bands we could have included in this quiz, such as Belle & Sebastian, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Camper Van Beethoven, the Dandy Warhols, Edward Bear, Hootie and the Blowfish, Jethro Tull, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Pink Floyd, Thompson Twins, Trashcan Sinatras, and Uriah Heep. Feel free to add your favorite band-that-doesn’t-include-its-namesake in the comments below. Meanwhile, this week’s correct respondents are listed after the jump.
David Baskind
Lisa Beach
Curt Berkowitz
Adam Bonin
Florrie Brafman
Carl E. Cheely
Julia Chesney
Fawn D.
Jon Delfin
Andrea Dresdale
Katie Escher
Michial Farmer
Enrique Fernández Roberts
Michael Gibson
Steven Gizicki
Stephaan Harris
Michael Harwood
Nicole Haschke
Melanie Jeanfils
Jason Johantges
Helen Labonc
David Lankford
Arlene Lassin
Derek Lawler
Nell Minow
Wendie Nicholas
Florinda Pendley Vasquez
Amy Plankenhorn
Tim Priester
Eric Reynolds
Harold Reynolds
Kate Royce
Sherrie Smith
Lorna Stadnik
Liz Townsend
Patrick A. Yearout
Thanks for playing, everyone! Come back Friday for another HeadScratcher…
Comments (1-19) of 19
His real name’s not Hootie? I don’t know what to believe in anymore.
“noone”isn’t a word.
It’s a proper noun. Peter Noone’s last name.
Peter Noone looks and still sounds wonderful. I always loved his sound. He looks better than all the contestants. They were fortunate to get him on the show.
Aww Yeah! In the mix again! That’s three Popwatch! Doesn’t that mean the genie has to grant me another pop culture wish?
So Popwatch Genie, please make this the best season of “The Shield” ever.
Tom, I didn’t get a chance to see your comment before adding my own. Per some interviews with “darius” (lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish), people only know him as “hootie”. Which brings up that scene in Jerry Macguire…
Actually the joke behind “Hootie snd the Blowfish” was that when the band went to college in I think North Carolina, Rucker was in the college’s gospel choir. There were two guys in the choir who’s nicknames were “Hootie” because he had thick round glasses that made him look like Woodsie the Owl, and his friend “Blowfish” because he had huge cheeks. VH1 interviewed them years ago. And “noon” while it is a proper noun is not “Noone”, but Peter Noone looks and sounds absolutely fantastic!
So Darius technically IS Hootie! Mr. Susman was wise to exclude such a band…
Okay, technically Belle & Sebastian were named for a French children’s book, but – at least in its initial incarnation – featured Isabel Campbell, who became (mistakenly) known as Belle.
But Ep, by that rationale Noone would have to be excluded because he was referred to as Herman and then you’d lose your pop culture wish.
You could’ve also included the Freddy Jones Band and James.
And Hootie was at South Carolina.
Out of curiosity, has anyone heard any of the Derek and the Dominos albums? I really dig a lot of Clapton’s 70’s work, but never heard anything off that album aside from Layla.
And Tom, you make a fantastic point. Please disregard my “hootie” comment…
Ep, Darius knew Hootie. There are also solo artist Englebert Humperdink and David Bowie, Humperdink named himself after a fictional character, and Bowie, after the knife. His real name was David Jones, but at the time The Monkees were popular, so he did not want to be confused with Davy Jones.
I can’t believe Frankie Goes to Hollywood was left off this list.
Not to mention The Smiths, Y Kant Tori Reed, Meet Danny Wilson, and Johnny Hates Jazz.
As a native of that area and a fanatical fanatic (yes, I know, redundant) of that time and space, I can verify that Stephanie is right. Darius was in choir with Hootie – but it was Columbia, South Carolina.
Anyone else find it odd that there were three Taylors in Duran Duran, and yet none were related?
Umphrey’s McGee: named for a guy on a cousin’s softball team.
Actually, Rob Halford’s birth name is Cedric Judas Liam Tyrone von Lebowitz.
Or maybe it’s Apple Paltrow. I’m not sure…
I’ve always liked the Ben Folds Five — which only has three members.
By the way, the best non-”Layla” song on the Derek and the Dominos album is “Thorn Tree in the Garden.” Awesome ballad!
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