Was Not Was

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Biography

Was (Not Was) is an United States|American eclectic pop music|pop group founded by David Weiss (a.k.a. David Was ) and Don Fagenson (a.k.a. Don Was ). They gained popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s.

History

Weiss and Fagenson were childhood friends who grew up together in suburb an Detroit, Michigan|Detroit . Partly due to Fagenson's poverty they decided to form Was (Not Was) in 1979. The name of the band was derived from Fagenson's son Tony Fagenson|Tony , who enjoyed contradicting words such as "Blue" with "Not Blue". Their first recording was "Wheel Me Out", a 12-inch dance music|dance record for the avant-garde ZE Records . It was also included on the 2000 compilation album Disco Not Disco .

Their first album Was (Not Was) (album)|Was (Not Was) (1981) was an amalgam of rock music|rock , disco , Weiss's beat poetry , Reagan-era politics|political - society|social commentary, and jazz . On vocals they recruited Harry Bowens and "Sweet Pea" Atkinson , who proved to be distinctive, soulful front men, who frequently found themselves singing absurdist and satirical songs, alongside tender ballads. The MC5 's Wayne Kramer (guitarist)|Wayne Kramer , The Knack 's Doug Fieger and Charles Mingus|Mingus trumpeter Marcus Belgrave were among the guest players.

In 1982, the group played on ''Don't Walk Away , a solo album for lead singer "Sweet Pea" Atkinson.

The eclectic Born to Laugh at Tornadoes (1983) had even more guest musicians, including Ozzy Osbourne rapping over electro (music)|electro , Mitch Ryder belting out a techno-rockabilly number, Mel Tormé crooning an odd ballad about asphyxiation, and an abstract funk piece called "Man vs. the Empire Brain Building". Singer Donald Ray Mitchell joined the group as third lead vocalist.

In 1988, they found their biggest hit with the album What Up, Dog? , which featured the singles " Walk the Dinosaur " and "Spy in the House of Love". Special guests included Stevie Salas , John Patitucci , Frank Sinatra, Jr. , and a writing credit for Elvis Costello . Artist/animator Christoph Simon created videos to accompany some of their songs, such as "What Up Dog? ", "Dad I'm in Jail", and the Tom Waits -style "Earth to Doris". These appeared on MTV's Liquid Television and in various film festivals, including the Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation|Spike & Mike festival . About this time, the Was Brothers developed separate careers as producers, film scorers, and music supervisors.

The group followed up with Are You Okay? (album)|Are You Okay? in 1990, spearheaded by a cover of " Papa Was a Rollin' Stone ". Guest musicians included Iggy Pop , Leonard Cohen , The Roches , and Syd Straw . After a tour with Dire Straits in 1992 and a UK Top 5 single with " Shake Your Head " (vocals from Ozzy Osbourne and Kim Basinger ), Weiss and Fagenson drifted apart and nothing was heard from the band but a compilation album '' Hello Dad... I'm in Jail ''. Some members, however, did appear on Don's Orquestra Was project Forever Is a Long Long Time (1997), which re-interpreted Hank Williams in a jazz/R& B vein.

In 1997, Steve Winwood released a tune which borrowed not just the title of Was (Not Was)'s single "Spy in the House of Love" but also the bass line and other elements. However, no lawsuits ensued (or were settled out of court).
In late 2004, Was (Not Was) reformed and were back on stage for a two-month club tour through the Northeastern United States|Northeast and Eastern United States|East Coast of the US, as well as California , Missouri , Ohio , Illinois (including stops at the House of Blues in Cleveland, Ohio|Cleveland and Chicago ), Maryland , New York , and Pennsylvania (in the Trocadero Theatre|Trocadero in Philadelphia ). In October 2005, they played four gigs at the Jazz Café in London .

In 2008, they released their fifth studio album Boo! , featuring guest appearances from Kris Kristofferson , Wayne Kramer (guitarist)|Wayne Kramer , Marcus Miller and Booker T. Jones , plus a song originally co-written with Bob Dylan nearly 20 years earlier.

Detroit's Metro Times described the band as "an endearing mess... ...a sausage factory of funk, rock, jazz and electronic dance music, all providing a boogie-down backdrop for a radical (and witty) political message of unbridled personal freedom and skepticism of authority."Bowe, Brian J. "", Metro Times . December 29, 2004. On April 22, 2008, they performed on the British show Later... with Jools Holland , and on May 2, they were the musical guest on '' Late Night with Conan O'Brien .

The band toured the US in 2008, beginning on April 30.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Information	Chart positions
Year	Information	US	NZ	UK cite web
1981	Was (Not Was) (album) Released: 1981 (Expanded and reissued 2004 as Out Come the Freaks ) Labels: ZE/Island	–	–	–
1983	Born to Laugh at Tornadoes Released: September 1983 Labels: ZE/Geffen	134	–	–
1988	What Up, Dog? Released: April 1988 Labels: Chrysalis Records (US), Phonogram (UK)	43	41	47
1988	Spy in the House of Love (song) Released: 1988 (Single Mix) Labels: Chrysalis Records (US)	-	-	-
1990	Are You Okay? (album) Released: July 1990 Labels: Chrysalis Records (US), Fontana (UK)	99	34	35
2008	Boo& #33; (album) Released: April 8, 2008 Labels: Ryko	–	–	–
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Compilation albums

Year	Information	Chart positions
Year	Information	US	NZ	UK
1984	The Woodwork Squeaks Released: 1984 (Reissued and expanded in 2004) Labels: ZE/Island	–	–	–
1992	''Hello Dad... I'm in Jail Released: June 1992 Labels: Polygram, Fontana (UK)	–	–	61
2004	The Collection Released: May 2004 Labels: Spectrum Music	–	–	–
2010	Hey, King Kong!!!: Pick of the Litter 1980-2010 Released: February 23, 2010 Labels: Micro Werks	–	–	–
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Singles

Year	Title	Album	url=Allmusic
Year	Title	Album	US Hot 100	US Club Play	US R& B/ Hip-Hop	AUS cite book	IRL cite web	NZ	UK
1980	"Wheel Me Out"	—	–	34	–	–	–	–	–
1981	" Out Come the Freaks "	Was (Not Was)	–	9	–	–	–	–	–
1982	"Tell Me That I'm Dreaming"	Was (Not Was)	–	3	–	–	–	–	–
1983	" Smile (Was (Not Was) song)	Born to Laugh at Tornadoes	–	–	–	–	–	–	-
1983	"Knocked Down, Made Small (Treated Like a Rubber Ball)"		–	–	–	–	–	–	–
1984	" Out Come the Freaks		–	–	–	–	–	–	41
1986	"Robot Girl"	What Up, Dog?	–	–	–	–	–	–	95
1987	" Spy in the House of Love (Was (Not Was) song)		16	1	77	79	–	41	51
	" Walk the Dinosaur "		7	11	–	9	11	16	10
	"Boy's Gone Crazy"		–	–	–	–	–	–	84
1988	" Spy in the House of Love (Was (Not Was) song)		–	–	–	–	13	–	21
	" Out Come the Freaks		–	–	–	–	–	–	44
	"Anything Can Happen"		75	19	–	–	–	–	67
1990	" Papa Was a Rollin' Stone "	Are You Okay?	–	10	60	75	11	22	12
	"How the Heart Behaves"		–	35	–	–	–	–	53
	"I Feel Better Than James Brown"		–	–	–	–	–	–	91
1992	" Listen Like Thieves (song)	''Hello Dad...I'm in Jail	–	–	–	–	–	–	58
	" Shake Your Head "		–	–	–	41	8	–	4
	"Somewhere in America (There's a Street Named after My Dad)"		–	–	–	–	–	–	57
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Contributions

A Christmas Record (1981, ZE Records) - "Christmas Time In The Motor City"

''That's The Way I Feel Now: A Tribute to Thelonious Monk (1984, A& M Records) - "Ba-Lue-Bolivar-Ba-Lues-Are"

Stay Awake (album)|Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films (1988, A& M Records) - "Baby Mine"

Copyright Citations

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Urban/R&B Music Artists