The New Cars were a band formed in 2005 by two of the original members of the 1970s/1980s new wave band

the Cars The Cars were an American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek ( rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), Elliot Easton (lead guitar), Greg Hawkes (keyboards), ...

. The band was composed of original Cars members

Elliot Easton Elliot Easton (born Elliot Steinberg, December 18, 1953) is an American guitarist. He played lead guitar and sang backing vocals for The Cars, and his guitar solos are an integral part of the band's music. Easton has also recorded music as a so ...

and

Greg Hawkes Gregory A. Hawkes (born October 22, 1952) is an American musician best known as the keyboardist for the rock band The Cars. Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, United States, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth ...

, along with vocalist/guitarist

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...

, vocalist/bassist

Kasim Sulton Kasim Sulton (born December 8, 1955) 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. As a solo artist, Sulton ...

, and drummer

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 ...

. The band performed the Cars' songs, some new material, and selections from Rundgren's career.

History

In 2005, rumors began circulating that Easton and Hawkes would be teaming with

in a new Cars lineup, with Rundgren replacing the Cars' original vocalists

Ric Ocasek Richard Theodore Otcasek (March 23, 1944 – September 15, 2019), known as Ric Ocasek, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the primary co-lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, and frontman for the rock ...

and

Benjamin Orr Benjamin Orzechowski (September 8, 1947 – October 3, 2000), known professionally as Benjamin Orr, was an American musician best known as the bassist, co-lead vocalist, and co-founder of the rock band The Cars. He sang lead vocals on sever ...

. The rumors turned out to be true, with the revamped lineup calling themselves the New Cars. Two regular Rundgren collaborators, bassist

and drummer

, replaced bassist

and drummer

David Robinson David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...

in the new lineup. Robinson, who retired from the music industry years before, was invited to join the group but amicably declined. Ocasek, who had opted out of any possibilities of a reunion, gave his blessing to Easton and Hawkes, saying, "I want Elliot and Greg to be happy." On April 17, 2006, when Ocasek appeared on ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focuse ...

'' and was asked if there was anyone he wanted to put "on notice", he answered "Todd Rundgren". On March 20, 2006, the New Cars released a new original single, "Not Tonight", on

Eleven Seven Music Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12 * one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''E ...

. On May 9, 2006, they released an album "'' It's Alive!''", also on Eleven Seven Music. The album contained 18 tracks, consisting of 15 live recordings (12 classic Cars songs, the new single "Not Tonight", and 2 Todd Rundgren songs), plus 3 new original studio tracks. Rundgren referred to the project as "an opportunity... for me to pay my bills, play to a larger audience, work with musicians I know and like, and ideally have some fun for a year". In 2010, all four still-living original members of The Cars reunited for a new studio album and tour.

Tour

The band's first tour, the summer

Roadrage Tour The Road Rage Tour is a concert tour co-headlined by The New Cars and Blondie in the North America in 2006. Background The Road Rage Tour was The New Cars first tour, the first time an incarnation of The Cars has toured in seventeen years. VH- ...

with Blondie kicked off May 12, 2006, in

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. The spring leg of the 2006 tour had to be cut short because Easton had broken his collarbone on June 5 and was playing in great pain. Despite the fact the accompanying album had sold only 16,000 units, a winter leg of the tour ran from November through early December. The tour, titled ''Road Rage Winter Tour'' was a theatre tour of venues which were much smaller than their previous arena tour.

Post-2007 activity

The New Cars played their last concert in September 2007. Rundgren resumed his solo career, and his 2009 solo tour featured Kasim Sulton, Prairie Prince and Greg Hawkes as members of his backing band. A later Rundgren tour in 2010 featured band members Kasim Sulton and Prairie Prince. Rundgren joined

Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band is a live rock music, rock Supergroup (music), supergroup founded in 1989 with shifting personnel, led by former The Beatles, Beatles drummer and vocalist Ringo Starr. History and description Since 1989, Starr h ...

in 2012. In 2010, Hawkes and Easton reunited with surviving Cars members Ric Ocasek and David Robinson for an album and tour. Several years later, when Rundgren was asked how, looking back, he would characterize his time with the New Cars, he replied "Bittersweet. You know, we all put a lot of effort into it, but we got practically nothing out of it but aggravation."Todd Rundgren on his musical history, from Nazz to The New Cars · Set List · The A.V. Club

Band members

;Former members *

– lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar *

– lead guitar, backing vocals *

– keyboards, backing vocals *

– bass, lead and backing vocals *

– drums, percussion

Discography

Album

Single

References

External links

*
AOL Artist PageBillboard Artist PageAsbury Park Press Interview with Kasim Sulton
{{DEFAULTSORT:New Cars, The 2005 establishments in Massachusetts 2007 disestablishments in Massachusetts American new wave musical groups American power pop groups Rock music groups from Massachusetts Musical groups established in 2005 Musical groups disestablished in 2007 Musical groups from Boston The Cars Todd Rundgren