Big Head Todd and the Monsters
| Big Head Todd and the Monsters | |
|---|---|
| Origin | 
Boulder, Colorado, |
| Years active | 1986-present |
| Label(s) | Big, Giant |
| Website | Official Site of Big Head Todd & the Monsters |
| Members | |
| Todd Park Mohr Brian Nevin Rob Squires Jeremy Lawton |
|
Big Head Todd & the Monsters is a rock band formed in 1986 in Colorado. The band has released a number of albums since 1989 with their 1993 album Sister Sweetly going platinum in the United States. The band has developed a sizable live following especially in the Mountain States of the United States.
Band history
The band was formed in 1986 with Todd Park Mohr on guitar and vocals, Brian Nevin drums and vocals and Rob Squires on bass and vocals. The trio had attended Columbine High School together and formed a band at the University of Colorado. The band name is a tribute to legendary blues/jazz "heads" (eg. Eddy Clean-head Vincent, etc.) It was actually just a fluke--they were scheduled to perform their first gig, but had no name...Todd came up with that at the spur of the moment and it stuck![1]
The band soon built up a following in Denver and Boulder. They toured extensively throughout the Mountain States and west coast of the US in their van dubbed "the Colonel" which clocked up over 400,000 miles.
In 1989, the band formed Big Records and released their first album Another Mayberry in 1989. Midnight Radio was released the following year. By 1993, Big Head Todd and the Monsters had developed a considerable live following across the US. Their first live album Big Head Todd and the Monsters Live was recorded at the H.O.R.D.E. Festival in 1993.
The group signed with Giant Records in 1993 and recorded Sister Sweetly with Prince associate David Z. producing. This album went platinum and spawned three singles that made the rock charts including "Bittersweet", "Circle" and "Brokenhearted Saviour".
Mohr produced the next album Strategem released in 1994. It reached #30 on the Billboard album charts but did not sell as well as its predecessors due to the lack of a hit single from the album.
The band contributed the song Tangerine to the 1995 Led Zeppelin tribute album Encomium: A Tribute to Led Zeppelin.
Jerry Harrison, formerly of the Talking Heads, produced the next album released in 1997. Blues legend John Lee Hooker was recording an album in the same studio and played with the band on a version of his best-known song "Boom Boom". Rob Squires described the recording of the track on the bands website. "Hooker has just this incredible presence. He walked into the room and literally everyone was intimidated including our producer and the people who work in the studio." (1) Bernie Worrell, formerly of P-Funk, played keyboards on the albums title track "Beautiful World". The album spawned two hit singles on the rock charts namely "Boom Boom" and "Resignation Superman". The Live Monsters album followed in 1998.
In 2002, the group released the follow up studio album Riviera. As Giant Records had closed its doors, the self-produced album was released through Big Records with distribution through Warner Music. Crimes of Passion was released in 2004 with Sanctuary Records distributing it. Another live album Live at the Fillmore was released in 2004.
In 2005, the group joined the throng of internet based music sales by releasing the single "Blue Sky" exclusively on iTunes. This single was written at the request of crewmembers of the Space Shuttle Discovery for their STS-114 Return to Flight mission in 2005, the first mission after the Columbia disaster. "Blue Sky" was written and performed as a tribute to the men and women of the American space program from the people keeping the space shuttle flying to the astronauts doing the flying.
Line up
- Todd Park Mohr - lead vocals/guitars/keyboards/saxophone
- Brian Nevin - drums/percussion/vocals
- Rob Squires - bass/vocals
- Jeremy Lawton - keyboards/pedal steel guitar/vocals
Discography
- Another Mayberry 1989
- Midnight Radio 1990
- Sister Sweetly 1993
- Strategem 1994
- Beautiful World 1997
- Live Monsters 1998
- Riviera 2002
- Crimes of Passion 2004
- Live at the Fillmore 2004
- From The Archives 2007
Chart Success
The following albums have charted on the Billboard album charts:
- Sister Sweetly #1 Billboard Heatseeker, #117 Billboard Album Chart 1993
- Strategem #30 Billboard Album Chart 1994
- Beautiful World #54 Billboard Album Chart 1997
- Riviera #166 Billboard Album Chart #2 Internet Chart
- Crimes of Passion #253 Internet albums
Charting singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions[2] | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Modern Rock | US Mainstream Rock | |||
| 1993 | "Bittersweet" | - | #14 | Sister Sweetly |
| 1993 | "Broken Hearted Savior" | - | #9 | Sister Sweetly |
| 1993 | "Circle" | - | #21 | Sister Sweetly |
| 1997 | "Resignation Superman" | #38 | #13 | Beautiful World |
| 1998 | "Boom Boom" | - | #29 | Beautiful World |
References
- ^ FAQ. BigHeadTodd.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-14.
- ^ Billboard Singles, Allmusic.com
External links
- Official Site of Big Head Todd & the Monsters
- Allmusic.com Big Head Todd and The Monsters
- Podcast.net with downloadable Big Head Todd & the Monsters tunes
- Todd Park Mohr's philosophy podcasts on Podcast.net
- Big Head Todd and the Monsters collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
- "Big Head Todd & the Monsters" article in Contemporary Musicians Volume 20 1997 cited on Galenet Biography Research Centre
- "Rock favourites Big Head Todd & the Monsters Set to Release New Album Riviera Set to Release New Album on Warner Bros Distributed Big Records" PR Newswire January 28 2002
- Management: Red Robot (http://www.redrobot.com)
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