Earth Quake (band)
Encyclopedia
Earth Quake was an American
rock
and power pop
band, formed in the San Francisco area in 1966, who released several album
s in the 1970s, mostly on Beserkley Records
, a company which they were involved in setting up.
bands of the 1950s and 1960s, such as the Kinks
, Muddy Waters
and the Yardbirds
, and played clubs and ballrooms in California in the late 1960s. They were managed by Matthew King Kaufman
, who got them a recording contract
with A&M Records
, where they released two albums, Earth Quake (1971) and Why Don't You Try Me? (1972) but with little commercial success.
After experiencing frustration at what he saw as A&M's incompetence in handling the band, and winning some compensation for the unauthorised use of their music in the movie The Getaway
, Kaufman set up Beserkley Records
in 1973. Earth Quake released four albums on Beserkley between 1975 and 1979, as well as working with other musicians including Jonathan Richman
(who they backed on his 1974 recording of "Roadrunner
"), Greg Kihn
(who sang backing vocals on some of their records), and guitarist Gary Phillipet (aka Gary Phillips
- previously of John Cipollina
's Copperhead). The band split up in the early 1980s, although a compilation album
, Sittin in the Middle of Madness, was issued in 2000.
John Doukas died on March 19, 2011, in South Africa, at the age of 62.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
and power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
band, formed in the San Francisco area in 1966, who released several album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
s in the 1970s, mostly on Beserkley Records
Beserkley Records
Beserkley Records was an independent record label based in Berkeley, California, from 1973 to 1984. Beserkely is usually regarded as a powerpop & rock and roll label; during the seventies, the band released albums by Earth Quake, Greg Kihn, Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers, The Rubinoos, and...
, a company which they were involved in setting up.
Band members
- John Doukas (lead vocals)
- Robbie Dunbar (guitar, piano, vocals)
- Stan Miller (bass, vocals)
- Steve Nelson (percussion, vocals)
- Gary PhillipsGary Phillips (keyboardist)Gary Phillips was a musician who played keyboard with The Greg Kihn Band. He joined them in 1981, just before their US #15 hit "The Breakup Song". In 1983 they had a #2 US/#63 UK hit with "Jeopardy". He was also a writer, who sang and played guitar in the Bay Area band Copperhead along with John...
(guitar, vocals, lead vocals)
Career
Originally Purple Earthquake, the band drew its influences from rock and bluesBlues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
bands of the 1950s and 1960s, such as the Kinks
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
, Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
and the Yardbirds
The Yardbirds
- Current :* Chris Dreja - rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Jim McCarty - drums, backing vocals * Ben King - lead guitar * David Smale - bass, backing vocals...
, and played clubs and ballrooms in California in the late 1960s. They were managed by Matthew King Kaufman
Matthew King Kaufman
Matthew "King" Kaufman was owner and chief producer at leading independent label Beserkley Records in Berkeley, California from the mid-1970s through the mid-1980s, successfully producing records by Jonathan Richman, Greg Kihn and others.-Biography:Raised in Baltimore, Kaufman graduated from law...
, who got them a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
, where they released two albums, Earth Quake (1971) and Why Don't You Try Me? (1972) but with little commercial success.
After experiencing frustration at what he saw as A&M's incompetence in handling the band, and winning some compensation for the unauthorised use of their music in the movie The Getaway
The Getaway (1972 film)
The Getaway is a 1972 American action-crime film directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw.The film is based on a novel by Jim Thompson, with the screenplay written by Walter Hill...
, Kaufman set up Beserkley Records
Beserkley Records
Beserkley Records was an independent record label based in Berkeley, California, from 1973 to 1984. Beserkely is usually regarded as a powerpop & rock and roll label; during the seventies, the band released albums by Earth Quake, Greg Kihn, Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers, The Rubinoos, and...
in 1973. Earth Quake released four albums on Beserkley between 1975 and 1979, as well as working with other musicians including Jonathan Richman
Jonathan Richman
Jonathan Michael Richman is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 1970 he founded The Modern Lovers, an influential proto-punk band. Since the mid-1970s, Richman has worked either solo or with low-key, generally acoustic backing...
(who they backed on his 1974 recording of "Roadrunner
Roadrunner (Jonathan Richman song)
"Roadrunner" is a song written by Jonathan Richman and recorded in various versions by Richman and his band, in most cases credited as The Modern Lovers.Critic Greil Marcus described it as "the most obvious song in the world, and the strangest"...
"), Greg Kihn
Greg Kihn
Greg Kihn is an American rock musician, radio personality and novelist.-Music:Kihn is the front man for The Greg Kihn Band, which released several singles and albums that made the charts in the early 1980s...
(who sang backing vocals on some of their records), and guitarist Gary Phillipet (aka Gary Phillips
Gary Phillips (keyboardist)
Gary Phillips was a musician who played keyboard with The Greg Kihn Band. He joined them in 1981, just before their US #15 hit "The Breakup Song". In 1983 they had a #2 US/#63 UK hit with "Jeopardy". He was also a writer, who sang and played guitar in the Bay Area band Copperhead along with John...
- previously of John Cipollina
John Cipollina
John Cipollina was a guitarist best known for his role as a founder and the lead guitarist of the prominent San Francisco rock band Quicksilver Messenger Service...
's Copperhead). The band split up in the early 1980s, although a compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
, Sittin in the Middle of Madness, was issued in 2000.
John Doukas died on March 19, 2011, in South Africa, at the age of 62.
Albums
- Earth Quake (A&M, 1971)
- Why Don't You Try Me? (A&M, 1972)
- Rocking The World (Beserkley, 1975)
- 8.5 (Beserkley, 1976)
- Leveled (Beserkley, 1977)
- Two Years In A Padded Cell (Beserkley, 1979)
- Sittin in the Middle of Madness (compilation, Castle Music, 2000, reissued 2003)