Elliot Easton
Encyclopedia
Elliot Easton plays lead guitar and sings backing vocals for The Cars
. His guitar solos are integral part of the band's hit singles
. He studied music at the Berklee College of Music
. He plays guitar left-handed
.
Upon the collapse of The Cars in 1988, Easton played in bands such as the new wave
supergroup The New Cars
and the roots rock
group Creedence Clearwater Revisited
. He has also played in songs by newer artists such as the power pop
band the Click Five, whose guitarist Joe Guese referred to him as "the Boston connection".
, featuring songs co-written with Jules Shear
. A later band project, Band of Angels, was formed with singer Danny Malone, and recorded one album, Band of Angels, which was not released, but selections from which were included in the 1996 CD release of Change No Change.
In the mid-1990s, Easton produced and played on the first two albums by Amy Rigby
. He was also the lead guitarist on Jules Shear's 1994 album "Healing Bones".
In 1998, Easton's playing was featured on No Cats, an album from bassist Lee Rocker
of Stray Cats
. He contributed guitar parts for "Rumblin' Bass" and "One Way or Another." According to both Easton and Rocker, the two have known each other since they were young boys growing up in New York.
Easton then joined Creedence Clearwater Revisited
, the modern touring version of Creedence Clearwater Revival
.
He has also played with Ric Ocasek
as a solo artist.
Easton was a member of The New Cars
, along with original Cars keyboardist Greg Hawkes
, singer/songwriter Todd Rundgren
, former Utopia
bassist/vocalist Kasim Sulton
, and Tubes
drummer Prairie Prince
. In June 2006, the band released a live album, It's Alive!
, that includes three new studio tracks.
He was featured and played the solo in the Click Five song "Angel To You (Devil To Me)".
In 2010, Easton reunited with the surviving original members of The Cars to record their first album in 24 years, titled Move Like This
, which was released on May 10, 2011.
in the mid-1980s and currently a Gibson SG
. He played a red Dean ML (an ad can be seen on the manufacturer's website) with white binding around the time of the first Cars album; he has also played a Gretsch Duo Jet, among many other makes and models.
Easton makes a cameo appearance in the upcoming Australian mockumentary musical film Ricky! The Movie.
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
. His guitar solos are integral part of the band's hit singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
. He studied music at the Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
. He plays guitar left-handed
Left-handed
Left-handedness is the preference for the left hand over the right for everyday activities such as writing. In ancient times it was seen as a sign of the devil, and was abhorred in many cultures...
.
Upon the collapse of The Cars in 1988, Easton played in bands such as the new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
supergroup The New Cars
The New Cars
The New Cars was a band formed in 2005 with two of the original members of the 1970s/1980s new wave band The Cars. The band was composed of Todd Rundgren, drummer Prairie Prince, Kasim Sulton, and original Cars members Greg Hawkes and Elliot Easton...
and the roots rock
Roots rock
Roots rock is a term now used to describe rock music that looks back to rock's origins in folk, blues and country music. It is particularly associated with the creation of hybrid sub-genres from the later 1960s including country rock and Southern rock, which have been seen as responses to the...
group Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited is a band formed in 1995 by former Creedence Clearwater Revival members Stu Cook and Doug Clifford .-The band:...
. He has also played in songs by newer artists such as the 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 the Click Five, whose guitarist Joe Guese referred to him as "the Boston connection".
Solo career
Easton released one solo album in 1985, Change No ChangeChange No Change
Change No Change, is the only solo album released by Elliot Easton of The Cars. It was originally released in 1985 by Elektra Records, re-released in 1995 by Rhino Records, and most recently, by Wounded Bird in 2006....
, featuring songs co-written with Jules Shear
Jules Shear
Jules Mark Shear is a US singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Pittsburgh in 1952. Although he has had only one minor hit as a performer , he has recorded almost 20 albums to date...
. A later band project, Band of Angels, was formed with singer Danny Malone, and recorded one album, Band of Angels, which was not released, but selections from which were included in the 1996 CD release of Change No Change.
In the mid-1990s, Easton produced and played on the first two albums by Amy Rigby
Amy Rigby
Amy Rigby is an American singer-songwriter. After playing with several New York bands she began a solo career, recording several albums which had only modest sales despite enthusiastic reviews. She settled into a career of touring small venues and private parties while raising a daughter, then...
. He was also the lead guitarist on Jules Shear's 1994 album "Healing Bones".
In 1998, Easton's playing was featured on No Cats, an album from bassist Lee Rocker
Lee Rocker
Lee Rocker is an American rockabilly double bass player. He is the son of the classical clarinetists Stanley Drucker and Naomi Drucker. His sister Roseanne is a country music singer-songwriter...
of Stray Cats
Stray Cats
Stray Cats are an American Rockabilly band formed in 1980 by guitarist/vocalist Brian Setzer , upright bassist Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom in the Long Island town of Massapequa, New York. The group had numerous hit singles in the UK, Australia and the U.S...
. He contributed guitar parts for "Rumblin' Bass" and "One Way or Another." According to both Easton and Rocker, the two have known each other since they were young boys growing up in New York.
Easton then joined Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited is a band formed in 1995 by former Creedence Clearwater Revival members Stu Cook and Doug Clifford .-The band:...
, the modern touring version of Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival was an American rock band that gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a number of successful singles drawn from various albums....
.
He has also played with Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek is an American musician and music producer. He is best known as lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band, The Cars....
as a solo artist.
Easton was a member of The New Cars
The New Cars
The New Cars was a band formed in 2005 with two of the original members of the 1970s/1980s new wave band The Cars. The band was composed of Todd Rundgren, drummer Prairie Prince, Kasim Sulton, and original Cars members Greg Hawkes and Elliot Easton...
, along with original Cars keyboardist Greg Hawkes
Greg Hawkes
Greg Hawkes is a musician best known as the keyboardist for the Rock band The Cars.Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth. He then attended Berklee College of Music for two years, majoring in composition and flute...
, singer/songwriter Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
, former Utopia
Utopia (rock band)
Utopia was an American progressive rock band, led by Todd Rundgren that toured and recorded from 1973 to 1986.-History:The first two albums, Todd Rundgren's Utopia and Another Live featured lengthy, complex and highly arranged progressive rock pieces, performed by a six-piece multi-instrumentalist...
bassist/vocalist Kasim Sulton
Kasim Sulton
Kasim Sulton is an American bass guitarist, keyboardist, and vocalist. Best known for his work with Utopia, Sulton sang lead on 1980's "Set Me Free," Utopia's only top 40 hit in the United States...
, and Tubes
The Tubes
The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band, whose 1975 debut album included the hit single, "White Punks on Dope". During its first fifteen years or so, the band's live performances combined quasi-pornography with wild satires of media, consumerism, and politics...
drummer Prairie Prince
Prairie Prince
Prairie Prince is a rock drummer. He was a member of The Tubes and a founding member of Journey...
. In June 2006, the band released a live album, It's Alive!
It's Alive! (album)
It's Alive! is the album released by The New Cars. The album features fifteen live tracks, thirteen of which are songs known as being performed by the original Cars. The remaining two, "I Saw the Light" and "Open My Eyes", were popularized by New Cars member Todd Rundgren...
, that includes three new studio tracks.
He was featured and played the solo in the Click Five song "Angel To You (Devil To Me)".
In 2010, Easton reunited with the surviving original members of The Cars to record their first album in 24 years, titled Move Like This
Move Like This
-Best Buy edition:This enhanced CD also has videos for "Sad Song" and "Blue Tip.""Rocket USA" is a cover of a 1977 song by the American band Suicide, from their self-titled debut.-Personnel:The Cars*Ric Ocasek – lead and background vocals, guitars, keyboards...
, which was released on May 10, 2011.
Personal life
Elliot Easton is married and has one daughter. Elliot Easton has a brother named Leslie and a sister named Lisa.Trivia
Easton has played several signature model guitars over the years: a KramerKramer Guitars
Kramer Guitars is an American manufacturer of electric guitars and basses. Kramer produced aluminum-necked electric guitars and basses in the 1970s and wooden-necked guitars catering to hard rock and heavy metal musicians in the 1980s; Kramer is currently a division of Gibson Guitar Corporation...
in the mid-1980s and currently a Gibson SG
Gibson SG
At the launch of the SG in 1961, Gibson offered four variants of the SG; the SG Junior , the SG Special, the SG Standard, and the top-of-the-line SG Custom. However, Gibson's current core variants as of 2010 are the SG Standard and the SG Special...
. He played a red Dean ML (an ad can be seen on the manufacturer's website) with white binding around the time of the first Cars album; he has also played a Gretsch Duo Jet, among many other makes and models.
Easton makes a cameo appearance in the upcoming Australian mockumentary musical film Ricky! The Movie.
Solo discography
- Change No ChangeChange No ChangeChange No Change, is the only solo album released by Elliot Easton of The Cars. It was originally released in 1985 by Elektra Records, re-released in 1995 by Rhino Records, and most recently, by Wounded Bird in 2006....
(1985 Elektra RecordsElektra RecordsElektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
, 2006 Re-Release & Remastered)
- "(Wearing Down) Like a Wheel" (1985)
- "Shayla" (1985)
- "Tools of Your Labor" (1985)
- "Monte Carlo Nights" (1995 Elliot Easton's Tiki Gods)