The musicians of The Cars are bright representatives of the so-called "new wave of rock". Stylistically and ideologically, the band members managed to abandon the previous "highlights" of the sound of rock music.
The history of the creation and composition of the group The Cars
The team was created back in 1976 in the United States of America. But a little more than 6 years passed before the official creation of the cult team.
The talented Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr are at the origins of the group. The guys met after Orr's performance. Then he was part of the little-known group Grasshoppers at the Big 5 Show in Cleveland. The musicians were in different teams - in Columbus and Ann Arbor before moving to Boston in the early 1970s.
Already in Boston, Rick and Benjamin, together with guitarist Jason Goodkind, created their own project. The trio was named Milkwood.
In the early 1970s, the label Paramount Records even contributed to the release of the band's LP. We are talking about the record How's The Weather?. The musicians counted on an increase in popularity, but the music lovers did not like the collection. It did not make it to any charts, and, from a commercial point of view, turned out to be a "failure".
New breath
Soon Rick and Benjamin created a new project-group Richard and the Rabbits. In addition to the ideological inspirers, Greg Hawks entered the team. After that, Ocasek and Orr performed as an acoustic duo, Ocasek and Orr, at the small Idler in Cambridge. Some of the tracks that the guys recorded as a duet entered the repertoire of The Cars.
Things were successful, so Ocasek and Orr invited guitarist Elliot Easton to join their band. The musicians began performing under the name Cap'n Swing. Soon several more members joined the line-up, namely Glenn Evans, and then Kevin Robichaux. Benjamin was the main vocalist in the band, so he didn't play bass.
The Cap'n Swing team has finally been noticed by fans of heavy music. And once fortune smiled at the guys. WBCN disc jockey Maxan Sartori drew attention to them. The celebrity began to play songs from the demolent band in her show.
Ocasek made several attempts to join popular labels. However, the companies did not consider the young band promising, so they showed the musicians the door. After that, Ocasek fired the bass player and drummer and created his own brainchild, which, in his opinion, was worthy of being called the best on the “new wave of rock” scene.
Orr took up the bass guitar, David Robinson got the drum set, Hawkes returned to the keyboards. The group began performing under the name The Cars.
Creative way and music of the group
The debut concert of the new band took place on the last day of 1976 in New Hampshire. After that, the guys worked in a recording studio to create a debut album. The composition Just What I Needed, which was released in 1977, made an unforgettable impression on fans and music critics. It was played on Boston radio. This turn of events for the musicians was only good. They signed with Elektra Records.
In 1978, the group's discography was replenished with a LP of the same name. The record was warmly received by numerous fans and music critics. The album took the 18th position on the Billboard 200. Among the songs, the fans noted the tracks Bye Bye Love and Moving in Stereo.
A year later, the presentation of the Candy-O album took place. The highlight of the album was the cover. The collection took the honorable 3rd position in terms of the number of sales in America. In support of the studio album, the musicians went on a big tour.
In 1980, the band's discography was updated with the Panorama album. The record became experimental. It peaked at number 5 on the US charts. Fans received the work warmly, which cannot be said about music critics.
A year later, the team created their own recording studio, which was called Syncro Sound. At the studio, the musicians recorded material for Shake It Up. In support of the LP, the musicians went on tour, after which Ocasek and Hawks announced that they were taking a short break. At this time, the musicians were engaged in a solo career. Their personal discography has been enriched with new albums.
Breakup of The Cars
After returning to the group, the musicians worked on creating a new album. Soon the group's discography was replenished with the disc Heartbeat City. This album is considered by music critics to be the most successful. The song You Might Think won the Video of the Year award from the MTV Video Music Awards.
After some time, the "fans" enjoyed the compositions of the new LP, which was called Tonight She Comes. The album topped the Top Rocks Tracks charts.
After the presentation of the studio album, the musicians again took up a solo career. In the late 1980s, the band released the album Door to Door, which included the track You Are the Girl. As a result, the song became a real hit.
The composition You Are the Girl is the only track that was not "shot" by music critics. The rest of the work was a "failure". In 1988, The Cars announced the dissolution of the group.
In the mid-1990s, information appeared about the revival of the group. At the same time, the label Rhino Records implemented a double compilation with accumulated creations.
Then Orr played with several bands, wrote compositions with John Kalishes. And also teamed up with former colleagues to give a detailed interview to create a documentary film.
In the early 2000s, it became known about the death of Benjamin. At the time of his death, he was only 53 years old. He battled pancreatic cancer for a long time. Soloist Ocasek recorded 7 solo LPs.
Robinson retired forever from creativity. The man realized himself in the restaurant business. Soon, Easton with Hawks, Kasim Sulton, Prairie Prince and Todd Rundgren created a new project, The New Cars.
The Cars today
In 2010, the team got together again. The musicians took several photos for the social network and announced their decision to reunite. At the same time, a presentation of a new track, which was called Blue Tip, took place. Soon, clips for the compositions Free and Sad Song appeared on the official page of the group. A year later, the presentation of the video clip for the track Blue Tip took place.
A year later, the group's discography was replenished with a new album. Longplay was called Move Like This. The disc took the honorable 7th position in the hit parade. In support of the new collection, the musicians went on a large-scale tour. After that, the band members again took a break. In 2018, the musicians teamed up to be included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 2019, the mastermind and leader of The Cars, Ric Ocasek, died. The soloist of the band died at the age of 75. The musician died of heart disease complicated by emphysema.
