The Tubes (band)
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The Tubes are a San Francisco-based
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band. Their eponymous 1975 debut album included the single " White Punks on Dope," while their 1983 single "
She's a Beauty "She's a Beauty" is a song by American rock band The Tubes. Released in 1983 on The Tubes' album '' Outside Inside''. Co-written by Fee Waybill, producer David Foster and Toto guitarist Steve Lukather, the song was inspired by Waybill's experie ...
" was a top-10 U.S. hit and its music video was frequently played in the early days of
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
. The band also performed in the 1980 film ''
Xanadu Xanadu may refer to: * Shangdu, the ancient summer capital of Kublai Khan's empire in China * a metaphor for opulence or an idyllic place, based upon Coleridge's description of Shangdu in his poem ''Kubla Khan'' Other places * Xanadu (Titan), ...
'', singing the rock portion of the cross-genre song "Dancin'" opposite a big band.


History

The Tubes formed on March 22, 1972, in San Francisco, California, featuring members from two Phoenix, Arizona bands who had relocated to San Francisco in 1969. One, The Beans, included Bill Spooner, Rick Anderson, Vince Welnick and Bob McIntosh. The other, the Red White and Blues Band, featured Prairie Prince, Roger Steen, and David Killingsworth. After performing at Expo '70 in Japan, Killingsworth left the Red, White and Blues Band, leaving Steen and Prince to audition new bass players, albeit unsuccessfully. Before moving to San Francisco the Beans had been a local favorite in Phoenix, selling out shows with a tongue-in-cheek concept rock show called "The Mother of Ascension" featuring costumes and props. After moving, Bill Spooner worked at the Fillmore West concert hall sweeping floors in between Beans shows at the Longshoremen's Hall and other minor venues. The band's loud, heavy jamming style did not attract much attention, and the band needed to go back home to Phoenix. There they would sell out shows, which provided enough money to pay their rent. The Beans' manager and former Alice Cooper Group drummer, John Speer, suggested they add Prince and Steen along with their roadie John Waybill to one of these shows. Waybill's nickname among the band was "Fee," short for "
Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
," thanks to his copious head of hippie hair. "The Radar Men from Uranus" played the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, as well as a show in Mexico where they were run out of town by the police (it was where Rick Anderson almost drowned after he was washed out to sea while swimming). The group would stick together and play shows at biker bars such as The Inn of The Beginning in Cotati CA. The vocals at this time were shared by Spooner, Steen and Waybill as different characters. Prairie Prince and Phoenix high school friend Michael Cotten were attending art school at the
San Francisco Art Institute San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) was a private college of contemporary art in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1871, SFAI was one of the oldest art schools in the United States and the oldest west of the Mississippi River. Approximately ...
at this time; they attracted local press attention by painting a mural of crashing waves on the side of the Cliff House Restaurant. Cotten was asked by Spooner to buy an
ARP synthesizer ARP Instruments, Inc. was a Lexington, Massachusetts manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, founded by Alan Robert Pearlman in 1969. It created a popular and commercially successful range of synthesizers throughout the 1970s before de ...
instead of a film camera and began to perform with the band as well as create props and costumes. One of the first Tubes shows was at the Art Institute cafeteria as part of an art show for classmate and future Hollywood director Kathryn Bigelow. While experimenting with their stage show and art, Prince and Cotten met model Re Styles while painting the Cliff House Mural. Styles had been born Shirley Marie Macleod on March 30, 1950, in Middelburg, Netherlands. She had appeared in both Alejandro Jodorowsky's '' The Holy Mountain'' and Sun Ra's ''
Space Is the Place ''Space Is the Place'' is an 85-minute Afrofuturist science fiction film made in 1972 and released in 1974.Playboy'' and ''
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'' magazines. By 1975 she was credited with clothing design and dance co-ordination for the band. Onstage she would play
Patty Hearst Patricia Campbell Hearst (born February 20, 1954) is the granddaughter of American publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. She first became known for the events following her 1974 kidnapping by the Symbionese Liberation Army. She was found a ...
and dress in wild leather outfits during the "Mondo Bondage" dance with Waybill. By 1979, she and Prince were married. After several years of playing biker bars, the band needed help. They had a temporary agreement with producer
David Rubinson David Rubinson (born August 7, 1942 in Brooklyn, New York)Internet Movie DatabaseMini-Biography of David Rubinson Retrieved 2012-06-05.as of 2017 it's 1962? is an American recording engineer and music producer, who was particularly involved in music ...
and played on bills with The Pointer Sisters and
Sylvester Sylvester or Silvester is a name derived from the Latin adjective ''silvestris'' meaning "wooded" or "wild", which derives from the noun ''silva'' meaning "woodland". Classical Latin spells this with ''i''. In Classical Latin, ''y'' represented a ...
, but were still trying to find an audience. Prince had been hired by newly formed fusion rock band Journey to record demos, and approached their manager
Herbie Herbert Walter James "Herbie" Herbert II (February 5, 1948 – October 25, 2021) was an American Talent manager, music manager and musician. He was best known for his work with Santana (band), Santana and Journey (band), Journey. Early life Herbert wa ...
, a former
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roadie and Bill Graham employee. Herbert made a deal with Graham that if the Tubes could sell out three local shows, Graham would give him an opening slot on the show of his choice. Herbert booked shows at a local club called the Village, which sold out thanks to themes inspired by the San Francisco post-hippie underground culture such as "The Streaker's Ball" and "Mondo Bondage." Much to Graham's dismay, Herbert chose an opening slot for the upcoming Led Zeppelin show at Kezar Stadium. The band pulled out the stops, including Waybill dressed as an early version of "Quay Lewd" throwing " Cocaine" (flour) and "Pills" (candy) at the crowd, who threw it back. Graham threatened Herbert that the band would never play in San Francisco again but calmed down and eventually fell in love with the band, booking them at Winterland and other California venues for New Year's shows and Halloween. After the 1973 Led Zeppelin show, Herbert wanted to manage the band, but Spooner and the group went with local management team Mort Moriarty and Gary Peterson, also known as "Bag O' Bucks." Moriarty was interested in the use of video in rock music and saw the Tubes' stage show as the future of music videos. Bob McIntosh died of cancer at this time, leaving Prince as the only drummer. In 1974, Bag O' Bucks filmed a Tubes show at the California Hall and shopped the "video demo" around Los Angeles. George Daly,
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
head of A&R in San Francisco, made some Tubes demos, but CBS' corporate headquarters in New York City would not agree to signing the Tubes to Columbia due to the radical nature of their art. After 18 months, with no success at his own label, Daly, at the suggestion of
Rick Wakeman Richard Christopher Wakeman (born 18 May 1949) is an English keyboardist best known as a former member of the progressive rock band Yes across five tenures between 1971 and 2004, and for his solo albums released in the 1970s. Born and raised ...
, finally pitched the group to competitor A&M Records, where his former Columbia East Coast A&R colleague and friend, Kip Cohen, had recently headed the A&R division. Daly personally flew managers Moriarity and Petersen down to LA, and Cohen signed the Tubes to A&M, a rare example of cross-company support by major label executives. Working with lawyer Greg Fischbach, the band signed with A&M Records.


Debut album

The Tubes' first album, ''
The Tubes The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band. Their eponymous 1975 debut album included the single "White Punks on Dope," while their 1983 single "She's a Beauty" was a top-10 U.S. hit and its music video was frequently played in the early day ...
'' (1975), was produced by Al Kooper. The track " White Punks on Dope" was an "absurd anthem of wretched excess" and ridiculed the Hollywood kids of the rich and famous. Since then the song has been
covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...
by
Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albums ...
, and the German rock musician Nina Hagen took the tune and set new lyrics to it (not a translation of the original lyrics), titled her work " TV-Glotzer" ("
Couch Potato Sedentary lifestyle is a lifestyle type, in which one is physically inactive and does little or no physical movement and or exercise. A person living a sedentary lifestyle is often sitting or lying down while engaged in an activity like socia ...
"), using this song as the opening track of her own debut album ''
Nina Hagen Band Spliff was a Neue Deutsche Welle (New German Wave) rock band, active in the 1980s. Three of the members were already playing together in the political rock cabaret ''Lokomotive Kreuzberg'' (founded 1972 in Berlin) before they were 'adopted' by Ni ...
'' (1978). The album track "What Do You Want from Life?," which became another of the Tubes' signature songs, satirizes consumerism and celebrity culture and climaxes in a monologue by Waybill who, in a rapid game show announcer's patter, name-checks celebrities such as Bob Dylan, Paul Williams and
Randolph Mantooth Randolph Mantooth (born Randy DeRoy Mantooth, September 19, 1945) is an American actor who has worked in television, documentaries, theater, and film for more than 40 years. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, he was discovere ...
, as well as well-known products of the period, including the Dynagym exercise machine and a host of American vehicles such as "...a herd of
Winnebago Winnebago can refer to: * The exonym of the Ho-Chunk tribe of Native North Americans with reservations in Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin ** Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, a federally recognized tribe group in the state ** The Winnebago language of the ...
s" and a "
Mercury Montclair The Mercury Montclair is a series of full-size sedans that were manufactured and marketed by the Mercury division of Ford. The nameplate was used by the division twice, from the 1955 to the 1960 model years and from the 1964 to the 1968 model yea ...
..." as part of a list of things that, "if you're an American citizen, you are entitled to(,)" culminating in " a baby's arm holding an apple." By late 1975, the band created a stage show unlike any other after hiring Kenny Ortega to direct and choreograph, comedian
Jane Dornacker Jane Carroll Dornacker (October 1, 1947 – October 22, 1986) was an American rock musician, actress, comedian and traffic reporter. She gained fame as a comedian, actor, dancer and as an associate and songwriter for the San Francisco rock band ...
and her band "Leila and the Snakes," and event support/video pioneer T.J. McHose to run a live video feed with films for each song. The show was critically acclaimed and broke them into show business in Los Angeles during sold-out runs at the Roxy Theater, David Allen's Boarding House and
Bimbo's Bimbo's 365 Club, also known as Bimbo's 365, is an entertainment club located at 1025 Columbus Avenue in San Francisco. It specializes in live rock and jazz shows. The location is one of San Francisco's oldest nightclub sites, and has operated un ...
in San Francisco, as well as The Bottom Line in New York City. Compared at the time to '' The Rocky Horror Picture Show'', the Tubes' stage show was closer to '' Saturday Night Live'' with its mix of topical satire and subversive postmodern Andy Kaufman-like routines such as Waybill beating up a couple in the front row (who were planted) during the "Crime Medley," then taking off his disguise as the band launched into "Mondo Bondage" and a huge stack of "Kill Amplifiers" (cardboard) falling on Quay Lewd during the finale of "White Punks on Dope." The band was part of the mid-'70s underground comedy scene that included
The Credibility Gap The Credibility Gap was an American satirical comedy team active from 1968 through 1979. They emerged in the late 1960s delivering comedic commentary on the news for the Los Angeles AM rock radio station KRLA 1110, and proceeded to develop more ela ...
, Firesign Theater,
Ace Trucking Company ''Ace Trucking Co.'' is a comedy science fiction series that featured in the comic ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' from 1981 to 1986. Created by writers John Wagner and Alan Grant (writer), Alan Grant and artist Massimo Belardinelli, it followed t ...
,
Kentucky Fried Theater Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (abbreviated to ZAZ) were an American comedy filmmaking trio consisting of Jim Abrahams and brothers David and Jerry Zucker who specialized in writing slapstick comedy films during the 1980s. History David Zucker, ...
, Groundlings, Ken Shapiro's Channel One Video Theatre and National Lampoon. The L.A. Connection Comedy Theatre performed during the Tubes show intermission many times. In 1975, the Tubes were offered a spot on '' Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell'' and '' NBC's Saturday Night'', but manager Mort Moriarty wanted the band to be able to play several songs in a row to show off how tight their transitions were; both shows declined, and without major network TV appearances, the Tubes missed out on huge TV exposure, cementing their "cult" status until the early 1980s. The band's touring crew was up to 24 people at this point, making it hard to tour for the standard weeks on end most bands of the era were committing to build a fan base.


''Young and Rich''

The Tubes' second album, '' Young and Rich'' (1976) on A&M Records, was
produced Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...
by Ken Scott. It featured "Don't Touch Me There," a suggestive duet between Waybill and Styles, which was arranged in classic " Wall of Sound" style by Jack Nitzsche. The song was co-written by
Ron Nagle Ron Nagle (born February 21, 1939) is an American sculptor, musician and songwriter. He is known for small-scale, refined sculptures of great detail and compelling color. Nagle lives and works in San Francisco, California. Life Born in San Fr ...
and Tubes dancer/vocalist
Jane Dornacker Jane Carroll Dornacker (October 1, 1947 – October 22, 1986) was an American rock musician, actress, comedian and traffic reporter. She gained fame as a comedian, actor, dancer and as an associate and songwriter for the San Francisco rock band ...
. The band toured America with a new stage show including new numbers "Slipped My Disco," "Madam, I'm Adam" and "Pimp." They also played several sold out nights at The Shrine in Los Angeles and Bimbo's in San Francisco. Mingo Lewis joined the band after performing several shows with them at Bimbos.


''Now'', ''What Do You Want From Live'', ''Remote Control''

The Tubes' third album '' Now'' (1977) was an attempt to write less satirical songs with the band sharing song writing duties with Bill Spooner. It was recorded while the band was playing a special engagement on weekends at
The Whisky The Whisky a Go Go (informally nicknamed "the Whisky") is a historic nightclub in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is located at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip, corner North Clark Street, opposite North San Vicente Boul ...
in Los Angeles. They played a small American tour of the west coast and a month-long run at San Francisco's
Palace of Fine Arts The Palace of Fine Arts is a monumental structure located in the Marina District of San Francisco, California, originally constructed for the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition to exhibit works of art. Completely rebuilt from 1964 to ...
featuring the band's most elaborate stage show to date. The band had met manager Rikki Farr at a show opening for Alice Cooper. Farr fell in love with the band's stage show and agreed to manage them after they sued Bag O' Bucks to get out of their contract. He used his fame in England to promote them as "America's Answer to Punk." The band created a new "best of" stage show and finally played a tour of Europe. They were banned in several towns and attracted front page press attention for their dark satirical stage show that spoofed America's consumer culture with dancers, video and sketches. They appeared on '' The Old Grey Whistle Test'' and played "God-Bird-Change" and "White Punks on Dope." After their live record ''
What Do You Want from Live ''What Do You Want from Live'' is the debut live album released by The Tubes, and was recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London. Background The Tubes toured the UK at the height of the punk rock era in 1977. Despite their somewhat out-of-step ...
'' (1978), recorded during their record-breaking run at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, England, the band toured America and played a sold-out run at The Pantages Theater in Hollywood, which attracted celebrities such as the cast of '' Laverne and Shirley'',
Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
, Kate Jackson and
Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; he, חיים ויץ, ; born August 25, 1949) is an Israeli-American musician. Also known by his stage persona The Demon, he is the bassist and co-lead singer of Kiss, the hard rock band he co-founded with Paul ...
. The stage show had reached new levels of lewdness with Quay Lewd's large dildo hanging out of his costume and a fake bomb threat number called "The Terrorists of Rock," which caused Cher to flee the theater, believing the threat was real. She later asked the band to appear in her next TV special ''Cher...Special''. The band returned to Europe to follow up their big splash but it was cancelled after Waybill fell off stage and broke his leg. The band returned and played the dates in the fall before headlining the Knebworth Rock Festival with
Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...
,
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
and
Boomtown Rats The Boomtown Rats are an Irish rock band originally formed in Dublin in 1975. Between 1977 and 1985, they had a series of Irish and UK hits including "Like Clockwork", "Rat Trap", "I Don't Like Mondays" and "Banana Republic". The original line ...
. The fourth album for A&M, '' Remote Control'' (1979) was a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
produced by Todd Rundgren, about a television-addicted idiot-savant, inspired by the Jerzy Kosinski novel '' Being There'' (which was later made into
a movie ''A Movie'' (styled as ''A MOVIE'') is a 1958 experimental collage film by American artist Bruce Conner. It combines pieces of found footage taken from various sources such as newsreels, soft-core pornography, and B movies, all set to a score ...
starring Peter Sellers). The cover of ''Remote Control'' (1979) shows a baby (Rikki Farr's son) in a specially made "Vidi-Trainer" (a car seat/TV with a baby bottle nipple) created by Michael Cotten and Dave Mellot. Much of the new music was rewritten by Rundgren and the band in studio, including "Turn Me On" (formerly "Get Over It"); "The Terrorists of Rock" number was cannibalized to become "Telecide." Waybill and Re Styles shared vocals on "Prime Time," although Rundgren had tried to record a version with just Styles. When Waybill found out, he demanded to sing as well. The band performed the song on '' Top of the Pops'' and on tour in Europe before cutting it from the set, due to tensions between Waybill and Styles. Synth player and visual stylist Michael Cotten designed an innovative multimedia stage show for the "Remote Control" tour, which employed multiple TV monitors and a 35mm film projector, which according to Cotten, cost US$12,000 (equivalent to around $50,000 in 2022). They tested it (with no dress rehearsal) at UCLA's Royce Hall, but there were multiple technical problems, including the poor visibility of the small TV screens, and synchronisation problems with the film projections. The show was scrapped after Steen, Waybill and the group's management reportedly complained about the cost, and the show overtaking the music. This led to a stripped-down tour in the U.S, Japan and Europe with Squeeze as the support act. The band also played two shows at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, with Yellow Magic Orchestra as support; that show was released on home video in 1982. The band held an auction of Tubes stage props and costumes in 1980 at the Boarding House before the band attempted to play as a straight rock act for several sold-out shows at The Roxy in Los Angeles.


Music videos

John Tobler John Hugen Tobler (born 9 May 1943) is a British rock music journalist, writer, occasional broadcaster, and record company executive. With Pete Frame, he was one of the founders of ZigZag magazine in April 1969. The magazine focused on the " un ...
said that with their media savvy and theatrical skills, the Tubes were born to create rock video but arrived several years too early. However, the band did produce at least one collection of music videos, which were issued on the 1982 RCA Capacitance Electronic Disc and Pioneer Laserdisc ''The Tubes Video'', containing versions of twelve of the band's hits, including "White Punks on Dope," "Mondo Bondage," "Talk to Ya Later," and most of ''The Completion Backward Principle'' album, in slickly produced music videos based on the group's stage shows. It was directed by Russell Mulcahy and filmed at Shepperton Studios.


Stage show production pioneers

The Tubes put their creativity and art skills mainly into their live performances, in which songs could be full-fledged production numbers with props and costumes built at the Tubes Warehouse by the band, crew and friends. Everything was satirized, from a beach movie parody for "Sushi Girl," to leather clad S&M hijinks in "Mondo Bondage," to the game show antics of "What Do You Want from Life?" At their peak, their live act featured dozens of other performers, including
tap dancer Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perfo ...
s and acrobats. The Tubes' stage productions were choreographed by Kenny Ortega and featured cast members
Jane Dornacker Jane Carroll Dornacker (October 1, 1947 – October 22, 1986) was an American rock musician, actress, comedian and traffic reporter. She gained fame as a comedian, actor, dancer and as an associate and songwriter for the San Francisco rock band ...
, LeRoy Jones, Michael Holman, Michael Springer, Cindi Osborn, Heline Gouax, and Mary Niland from 1975 to 1977. From 1978 to 1979, the cast included Sharon Collins, Caty Bevan, and Loryanna Catalano. The ''Completion Backward'' tour featured Shelly Pang, Cheryl Hangland, Joey Richards, and
Cynthia Rhodes Cynthia Rhodes (born November 21, 1956) is a retired American actress, singer and dancer. Her film roles include Tina Tech in ''Flashdance'' (1983), Jackie in '' Staying Alive'' (1983), officer Karen Thompson in '' Runaway'' (1984), and Penny i ...
. From 1983 to 1985, Michele Gray (who later married Todd Rundgren) and Cheryl Hangland were principal dancers. Several crew members — including Tour Manager Steve "Chopper" Borges, Lee Collins, and Gail Lowe — made frequent appearances on stage in various roles as well. The Tubes' live shows in the late 1970s and early 1980s were rife with allusions to mainstream film: ''
Dr. Strangelove ''Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'', known simply and more commonly as ''Dr. Strangelove'', is a 1964 black comedy film that satirizes the Cold War fears of a nuclear conflict between the Soviet Union and t ...
'' (1964), '' Rollerball'' (1975), ''
Saturday Night Fever ''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American dance drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian-American man from the Brooklyn borough of New York. Manero spends his ...
'' (1977), '' Grease'' (1978)] then-forgotten B-movies 'Wild Women of Wongo'' (1958), ''Attack of the 50 Foot Woman">Wild_Women_of_Wongo.html" ;"title="'Wild Women of Wongo">'Wild Women of Wongo'' (1958), ''Attack of the 50 Foot Woman'' (1958)], music (Tom Jones (singer), Tom Jones, punk rock, a medley of Nelson Riddle television themes), contemporary pop culture (
Patty Hearst Patricia Campbell Hearst (born February 20, 1954) is the granddaughter of American publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. She first became known for the events following her 1974 kidnapping by the Symbionese Liberation Army. She was found a ...
, the Viking program), television ('' Let's Make a Deal'', ''
Fernwood 2Nite ''Fernwood 2 Night'' (or ''Fernwood Tonight'') is a comedic television program that was broadcast weeknights from July 1977 to September 1977. It was created by Norman Lear and produced by Alan Thicke as a spin-off/summer replacement for ''Ma ...
'', the anime ''
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''), and literature (
Nelson Algren Nelson Algren (born Nelson Ahlgren Abraham; March 28, 1909 – May 9, 1981) was an American writer. His 1949 novel ''The Man with the Golden Arm'' won the National Book Award and was adapted as the 1955 film of the same name. Algren articulated ...
's '' A Walk on the Wild Side''). These shows were expensive to produce, however, and while they earned the band a reputation for being one of the most entertaining live acts of the time, by the early 1980s, they'd left the band in debt to A&M Records, even after they'd sold their song rights for tour support.


Dropped by A&M Records and signing with Capitol Records

The band's fifth studio album, the self-produced ''Suffer for Sound'', was meant to complete the group's contract with A&M. The recession had affected the music industry, and many other bands were cut from A&M at the end of the 1970s. The band owed A&M a large amount of money and after playing the new record for
Jerry Moss Jerome S. Moss (born May 8, 1935) is an American recording executive, best known for being the co-founder of A&M Records, along with trumpet player and bandleader Herb Alpert. Music career After graduating from Brooklyn College with a degree ...
, Rikki Farr insulted Moss' taste in music to ensure that the band was let go and able to sign with a new label. Tubes friend Matt Leach compiled the outtakes,
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
s, and oddities selection ''
T.R.A.S.H. (Tubes Rarities and Smash Hits) ''T.R.A.S.H. (Tubes Rarities and Smash Hits)'' is a compilation album by the rock band The Tubes, released in November 1981.Strong, Martin C. (2002) ''The Great Rock Discography'', Canongate, , p. 1076 Background After four studio albums and a li ...
'' (1981). The band was signed to
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
by Bruce Garfield and
Bobby Colomby Robert Wayne Colomby (born 20 December 1944) is a jazz-rock fusion drummer, record producer and television presenter. He is best known as an original member of the group Blood, Sweat & Tears, which he co-founded in 1967. He has also played with ...
, toning down the X-rated sketches for the live shows and redesigning itself as a leaner ensemble with a view to release more accessible hits. The band worked with Bobby Colomby to find a new musical direction and then met with possible producers including
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter Jeffrey Allen "Skunk" Baxter (born December 13, 1948) is an American guitarist, known for his stints in the rock bands Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers during the 1970s and Spirit in the 1980s. More recently, he has worked as a defense consu ...
before deciding on David Foster. The Tubes and David Foster recorded "Gonna Get it Next Time" for the soundtrack of Chevy Chase's " Modern Problems" directed by Ken Shapiro.


New label, mainstream success

''
The Completion Backward Principle ''The Completion Backward Principle'' is the fifth studio album by the American rock group the Tubes. It is the group's first for Capitol Records. It was accompanied by a long form music video release of the same name, although it did not contain ...
'' (1981) was engineered by Humberto Gatica and produced by David Foster ( Earth, Wind and Fire). It featured the classic rock radio staple "Talk to Ya Later," written by Waybill, Foster and Toto guitarist
Steve Lukather Steven Lee Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to a stea ...
. The songwriting credits were shared again but included input from all members, including "Attack of the 50 Foot Woman" by Prince, "Think About Me" by Cotten, "Don't Want to Wait Anymore" by Vince Welnick and "Matter of Pride" by Steen. The album was a satire of Reagan's "
Morning in America "Prouder, Stronger, Better", commonly referred to by the name "Morning in America", is a 1984 political campaign television commercial, known for its opening line, "It's morning again in America." The ad was part of that year's presidential campaig ...
" corporate movement and included pictures of the band members cleaned up and wearing suits. The band also had their first Top 40 hit in the United States in 1981, "Don't Want to Wait Anymore," with vocals by Spooner. The band returned to the road in America and Europe with a new stage show designed by Cotten, Prince and Kenny Ortega, featuring new dancers including
Cynthia Rhodes Cynthia Rhodes (born November 21, 1956) is a retired American actress, singer and dancer. Her film roles include Tina Tech in ''Flashdance'' (1983), Jackie in '' Staying Alive'' (1983), officer Karen Thompson in '' Runaway'' (1984), and Penny i ...
, who would leave soon after to star in '' Flashdance'' and ''Staying Alive''. Re Styles was said to have left the band: Waybill said at the time that she was "going on to a Hollywood movie career or something". Styles, Cotten and Prince played as the Boring Squares in San Francisco in 1980. The trio were also said to have played a show on Bora Bora in 1984. While on tour in Italy the Tubes were forced off stage by local police with machine guns and they escaped the country with the promoter's money after he failed to deliver professional shows. The single "Sports Fans" was recorded live during halftime of the legendary San Francisco 49ers "
The Catch The Catch may refer to: Film and television * ''The Catch'' (U.S. TV series), 2016-2017 American mystery television series * ''The Catch'' (UK TV series), 2023 British family drama television series * ''The Catch'' (1961 film), 1961 film by Nagisa ...
" game; Tubes crew members can be seen on the side lines in the slow motion replay. As the band gained more mainstream popularity, Waybill auditioned for roles in '' Night Shift'' and ''
Streets of Fire ''Streets of Fire'' is a 1984 American neo-noir rock musical film directed by Walter Hill and co-written by Hill and Larry Gross. It is described in the opening credits and posters as "A Rock & Roll Fable" and is a mix of various movie genres wi ...
'' and also appeared on ''
Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on NBC, the first iteration of the ''Late Night'' franchise. It premiered on February 1, 1982, and was produced by Letterman's production company ...
'' twice. '' Outside Inside'' (1983) was produced by David Foster and included the number 10 US hit "
She's a Beauty "She's a Beauty" is a song by American rock band The Tubes. Released in 1983 on The Tubes' album '' Outside Inside''. Co-written by Fee Waybill, producer David Foster and Toto guitarist Steve Lukather, the song was inspired by Waybill's experie ...
." The album was recorded with several studio musicians, including members of Chicago and
Toto Toto may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters Pets * Toto (Oz), Toto (''Oz''), a dog in the novel and film ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' * Toto, in Japanese ''The Cat Returns#Plot, The Cat Returns'' Characters of agency * a ...
. The slicker sound added to the tension between the "art" oriented members of the group (Cotton, Spooner and Prince) and the pop-music fans (Steen and Waybill). The band performed "
The Monkey Time "The Monkey Time" is a song written by Curtis Mayfield and performed by Major Lance. It reached No. 2 on the U.S. R&B chart and No. 8 on the U.S. pop chart in 1963. It was featured on his 1963 album ''The Monkey Time'', was arranged by Johnny ...
" on '' Solid Gold'', and toured the United States, mostly playing theme parks like Six Flags Magic Mountain and colleges for a new generation of fans. The band also filmed an hour-long concert special at the Kabuki Theatre in San Francisco which played on MTV and was directed by Jim Yukich. "She's a Beauty" won song of the year and The Tubes performed live at the ''BAM'' music awards.


''Love Bomb'' and departure from Capitol Records

In 1984, the band teamed up with Todd Rundgren again for their eighth album, '' Love Bomb'' (1985). Tired of spending money at other recording studios, the band built their own studio with Rundgren called "Cavum Soni" and XTC recorded several tracks for '' Skylarking'' there with Todd.
Glen Tilbrook Glenn Martin Tilbrook (born 31 August 1957) is the lead singer and guitarist of the English band Squeeze, a band formed in the mid-1970s who broke through in the new wave era at the decade's end. He generally wrote the music for Squeeze's son ...
of Squeeze sings back up on "Night People." The entire recording process was video taped by a camera crew on
Betamax Betamax (also known as Beta, as in its logo) is a consumer-level analog recording and cassette format of magnetic tape for video, commonly known as a video cassette recorder. It was developed by Sony and was released in Japan on May 10, 1975, ...
. Bruce Garfield and
Bobby Colomby Robert Wayne Colomby (born 20 December 1944) is a jazz-rock fusion drummer, record producer and television presenter. He is best known as an original member of the group Blood, Sweat & Tears, which he co-founded in 1967. He has also played with ...
were dropped by Capitol in the company-wide layoffs that took place pre-reorganization, and like many of their label mates, the Tubes were also released; however, this occurred just as they were going on tour in support of the album. The band found it necessary to self-finance the tour as a matter of respect to honor their commitment to their fans. Between this tour's self-financing and the band's continued self-financing of their San Francisco recording studio built in 1980, the tour left the band a half million dollars in debt, obliging them to play less expensive and smaller venues for a year to pay off their financial commitments. The Tubes also recorded several songs for movie soundtracks including ''
Hardbodies ''Hardbodies'' is a 1984 American sex comedy film about three middle-aged men who hire a younger man to help them pick up women at the beach. The film was directed by Mark Griffiths, and stars Grant Cramer, Courtney Gains and Gary Wood. It was f ...
,'' '' My Science Project'', and ''
Heavenly Bodies "Heavenly Bodies" is a song written by Elaine Lifton, Gloria Nissenson and Lee Ritenour, and recorded by American country music artist Earl Thomas Conley. It was released in May 1982 as the first single from the album '' Somewhere Between Right ...
''. Bill Spooner also recorded a solo album titled ''First Chud'', released on
The Residents The Residents are an American art collective and art rock band best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, ''Meet the Residents'' (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music vi ...
' record label Ralph Records. Spooner's next solo project was ''Mall to Mars'', recorded with coproducer Jim Blake and featuring fellow Tubes member Prairie Prince on drums. The concept album was released on Visible Records, a label owned by long-time Tubes music publishing associate/copyright administrator Richard Kaye, and contains several cover versions including the " Theme from ''Star Trek''", " Dimming of the Day", and "They Kicked Me Out of the Band" (that Bill claims is not true... he says, he actually quit the Tubes).


Waybill departs

Waybill released a solo album produced by David Foster (''Read My Lips'',
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
) in 1984 and was on-camera talent for the 1985 MTV Video Awards. He also enjoyed a fruitful writing partnership with Capitol Records label mate
Richard Marx Richard Noel Marx (born September 16, 1963) is an American adult contemporary music, adult contemporary and pop rock singer-songwriter. He has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Marx's Richard Marx (album), self-titled debut album went tri ...
, their most popular and well known collaboration being " Edge of a Broken Heart," recorded by the female band Vixen. Waybill left the Tubes in 1986.


Personnel changes

Later in the year, the remaining members of the band hired longtime friend from Phoenix, Arizona, David Killingsworth, as lead vocalist. Killingsworth had been the singer in the Red and White Blues Band with Prince and Steen. The band appeared on ''
The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' on Fox in 1987 and played "Talk to Ya Later," a new song called "No Baby's Gonna Break My Heart," and were also interviewed. Michael Cotten relocated to New York City to pursue a career based on his artwork, stage design and production, and is considered one of the country's top production designers. In the fall of 1988, Bill Spooner traveled his final tour with the band and left in early 1989. Vince Welnick departed as well to take to the road with Todd Rundgren in 1989 and then joined the
Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...
in 1990. Gary Cambra joined on keyboards and guitar in 1989. He and Roger Steen took over most of the lead vocal duties after Killingsworth left in early 1990. In 1993, Fee Waybill rejoined the band. This lineup toured Europe and released two albums, a compilation and the 1996 album ''
Genius of America ''Genius of America'' is the eighth and most recent studio album to date by The Tubes and marked their return to the studio for the first time since 1985's '' Love Bomb''. The band self-produced the album and is their first body of work to inclu ...
''. David Medd joined in 1996 to play keyboards alongside Cambra. In 2001, the band released a live CD, ''The Tubes World Tour 2001'', and continued to tour.


2000–present

The band has toured the United States each year with a line-up of Waybill, Steen, Anderson, Medd, Gary Cambra and Prince. Cambra left in 2006. After a 2004 tour of the UK, the London show was released as a live album and DVD called ''Wild in London''. On June 2, 2006, former keyboardist Vince Welnick died by suicide. In September 2007, the remaining members reunited in Phoenix for induction into the Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall Of Fame. They toured the UK in 2009, and the UK and Europe in 2012. In July 2015, they started a 40th anniversary European tour, including dates in Germany, Sweden and the UK. Dates in the U.S. followed. In 2017, they toured Europe as support for Alice Cooper, also playing some solo warm-up gigs in the UK. On March 11. 2019, they announced a spring USA tour and will perform their ''The Completion Backward Principle'' album in its entirety. On April 17, 2022, Re Styles died at the age of 72. On December 16, 2022, Rick Anderson died at the age of 75.


The Tubes Project and other milestones

Michael Cotten started the Tubes Project in 2005, to save and digitize the band's reel to reel and video tape archive. The collection had been kept in the closet of Tubes fan club president Marilyn Wood's son after being discarded in the late 1980s. Included in the vault are full color shows taped for TV at Bimbos in San Francisco, 1975 and Dutch VARA TV from the 1977 European tour. Over 70 interviews were conducted with band members, crew, managers, cast and colleagues such as Re Styles, Todd Rundgren, Al Kooper,
Devo Devo (, originally ) is an American rock band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs (Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a ...
and David Foster. Hundreds of photos were scanned and compiled from band members and fan collections for use in the hour and half documentary. After leaving the band,
Jane Dornacker Jane Carroll Dornacker (October 1, 1947 – October 22, 1986) was an American rock musician, actress, comedian and traffic reporter. She gained fame as a comedian, actor, dancer and as an associate and songwriter for the San Francisco rock band ...
performed as stand-up comedian and later worked as a traffic reporter with the team that replaced Howard Stern at WNBC. She was killed in a helicopter crash in 1986, while giving a live report. A benefit show was held for her daughter at the Warfield in San Francisco with the Tubes and Todd Rundgren. On November 10, 2009, ''Mondo Birthmark,'' a CD of previously unreleased rarities, was released through the label Fuel 2000. The package was designed by Michael Cotten and
Prairie Prince Charles Lempriere "Prairie" Prince (born May 7, 1950) is an American drummer and graphic artist. He came to prominence in the 1970s as a member of the San Francisco–based rock group The Tubes, was a member of Jefferson Starship from 1992 to ...
with rare photos and interviews of the group. The early demos featured the band's first drummer, Bob Macintosh. On July 24, 2019, Kenny Ortega was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Fee, Michael Cotton and Michael Holman attended the ceremony.


Career highlights

* 1972: Tubes appear in Mitchell brothers pornographic film ''
Resurrection of Eve ''Resurrection of Eve '' is a 1973 American feature-length pornographic film produced by the Mitchell brothers and starring Marilyn Chambers, who had become a star in the Mitchell Brothers' previous picture, ''Behind the Green Door''. ''Resurrect ...
'' as Jesus Bongo and the Millionaires. * 1973: Opened for the
New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved much commercial succe ...
at the Matrix,
Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...
at Bimbos, and Led Zeppelin at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco. * 1974: Tubes shoot " video demo" at California Hall, which lands a record deal at A&M Records, Cotten/Prince paint "Flying Record" mural on A&M sound stage. * 1975: Tubes play for two weeks of shows at David Allen's nightclub
The Boarding House "The Boarding House" is a short story by James Joyce published in his 1914 collection ''Dubliners ''Dubliners'' is a collection of fifteen short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. It presents a naturalistic depiction of Irish mid ...
in San Francisco, several sell-out dates at
The Roxy Roxy, Roxey, and Roxie may refer to: People * Roxy (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name Places in the United States * Roxie, Mississippi, a town * Roxie, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Music * Roxy M ...
in Los Angeles and The Bottom Line in New York. On December 31, they sell out Bill Graham's Winterland Ballroom with the Stanford University marching band. * 1976: Held residency at Bimbos in San Francisco for one month, Prairie Prince dubbed "The One, The Only" by columnist Herb Caen. Tubes hold "Talent Hunt" at the Boarding House hosted by
Martin Mull Martin Eugene Mull (born August 18, 1943) is an American actor, comedian and musician who has appeared in many television and film roles. He is also a painter and recording artist. As an actor, he first became known in his role on ''Mary Hartman, ...
; Robin Williams is contestant but loses. * 1977: Held residency at the
Palace of Fine Arts The Palace of Fine Arts is a monumental structure located in the Marina District of San Francisco, California, originally constructed for the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition to exhibit works of art. Completely rebuilt from 1964 to ...
in San Francisco for one month, the Whisky a Go Go nightclub in Los Angeles for two shows a night for one month, and Hammersmith Odeon in London for a week. * 1977: Waybill breaks his leg during the recording of concert LP ''What Do You Want from Live?'', leading to the cancellation of the rest of the tour * 1978: Headlined the Knebworth Festival, with
Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...
and
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
. * 1978: The Tubes performed on '' Cher... Special'' (with special guest Dolly Parton) * 1979: Tubes play Japan; Cotten/Welnick/Prince/Styles appear on Japanese soap opera. Tubes appear in Andy Warhol's '' Interview'' magazine. * 1980: Made an appearance in the film ''
Xanadu Xanadu may refer to: * Shangdu, the ancient summer capital of Kublai Khan's empire in China * a metaphor for opulence or an idyllic place, based upon Coleridge's description of Shangdu in his poem ''Kubla Khan'' Other places * Xanadu (Titan), ...
'' singing the rock portion of the cross-genre song "Dancin'" opposite a big band. * 1980: Sold out the Roxy Theatre for 12 shows * 1981: Record
Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
nominated "The Tubes Video" at Shepperton Studios, one of the first long form
video disc Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
s. * 1981: Sang "Sushi Girl" and "Talk to Ya Later" on the television sketch comedy program '' SCTV'', Episode #86 airing July 24. * 1981: Played "Sushi Girl" and "Don't Want to Wait Anymore" on '' Tomorrow'' with Tom Snyder. Waybill, Spooner and Mike are interviewed by Tom. * 1981: Compose the song "Road Map of My Tears" for the film '' Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains'', in which Waybill and Welnick appear, among other musicians, as the fictional rock group The Metal Corpses. * 1982: Appeared in a commercial for Activision's video game ''
Megamania ''Megamania'' is an Atari 2600 game by Steve Cartwright and published by Activision in 1982. Versions were released for the Atari 5200 and Atari 8-bit family in 1983. ''Megamania'' is similar to Sega's 1981 arcade title ''Astro Blaster''. Both ...
''. * 1983: Appeared live on UK's Channel 4 music program '' The Tube''. * 1983: Opened several dates for David Bowie on the '' Serious Moonlight'' tour and on this tour, among other highlights, they were the first artists to ever play the newly opened Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. At the end of the Bowie tour, they played a few shows featuring their classic no-holds-barred theatrics in Portland, Oregon, and other west-coast cities. * 1985: Tour in a double bill with Todd Rundgren's Utopia, including a date at
Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Nicknamed "The Showplac ...
.


Discography


Studio albums


Compilation albums


Live albums


Singles


Video albums


See also


References


External links


Tubes Museum, complete timeline

The Tubes
at the Bill Graham Video Archive 1975–79.
Bill Spooner's website
with Tubes images.
Michael Cotten Studio

Prairie Prince's website

The Tubes on A&M Records

2007 Prairie Prince radio interview
on Rundgren Radio.
2009 Prairie Prince radio interview
on Rundgren Radio.



* – Inductee Biography
Michael Cotten Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2017) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tubes, The Rock music groups from Arizona Protopunk groups Musical groups from San Francisco Musical groups from Phoenix, Arizona Musical groups established in 1972 A&M Records artists Capitol Records artists Rock music groups from California