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Thread: Bands with real or made up company/business names

  1. #1
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    Bands with real or made up company/business names

    Inspired by Lopez' entry on the word association thread: Illinois Speed Press. I'm sure there must be bands out there somewhere with names like The San Francisco Chinese Laundry or the Metal Delivery Company or the Brick Lane Bagel Bakery.


    Company though only in the sense of a firm. So in the sense of opera, ballet, theatre, orchestra is not allowed nor is company in the sense of socializing i.e. Bad Company, Misery Lovers Company.

    Same for Limited, only in the sense of a firm please.

    I will however allow ambiguous band names that can be interpreted in two ways e.g. British Sea Power (could refer to a maritime oil or utility company OR could refer to British naval supremacy in the 1700 and 1800s)


    But most importantly there must be a minimum of two words in the band name, otherwise we're going to end up with a list of every one word band name that is also the name shared by a company or part of a company - Lotus, Tesla, Wolf, Matchbox, Caterpillar, Bulldog etc.

    Off the top of my head here are some of the more well known ones. I'm expecting y'all to come in with some more modern and/or obscure ones

    Buffalo Springfield
    1910 Fruitgum Company
    The Electric Peanut Butter Company
    Pacific Gas & Electric
    Public Image Ltd.
    Big Brother & The Holding Company
    International Harvester
    British Sea Power


    I seem to remember a band with Power & Light in their name but can't remember the whole name.

  2. #2
    Emerson, Lake & Palmer sleezy lawfirm.
    "Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
    "[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM

  3. #3
    Premiata Forneria Marconi
    Chicago Transit Authority

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    Quote Originally Posted by Scrotum Scissor View Post
    Emerson, Lake & Palmer sleezy lawfirm.
    BUT NO!!! otherwise every band with personal names is going to be listed.

    Crosby, Still & Nash - farm implements and seed.
    Matthews Southern Comfort - moonshine stills

    no, stop that, lets not do that..it is far too amusing ....stop having fun

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    Quote Originally Posted by Rarebird View Post
    Chicago Transit Authority
    YES!...that was lurking somewhere in the recesses I just couldn't access it!

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    The Allman Brothers - 'gator hunters and snake removers!

    No, I said stop that!

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    The Doobie Brothers - quality chillums and roaches at reasonable prices!

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    Finnish new wave band Hassisen Kone ("Hassinen's machine") took their name from a local home appliance store. The store owner was allegedly highly offended by this and the store name was changed soon after the band hit the charts. I guess not everybody likes free publicity!

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    Yea, I mean why would a business object to that kind of great advertising, unless of course there was something offensive in the bands manifesto, lyrics, lifestyle etc. that had the opposite effect and drove customers away.

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    Big Star ==> Tennessee Grocery Chain. I had no idea of this until one day a co-worker from Nashville saw me listening and said "is that a band too?"

  11. #11
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    Lynyrd Skynyrd - Alabama sheep pimps
    no tunes, no dynamics, no nosebone

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    Cool! I love those kind of "lost knowledge" revelation moments.

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    Quote Originally Posted by nosebone View Post
    Lynyrd Skynyrd - Alabama sheep pimps
    Now, what have I said?

    ZZ Top - USMC barbers

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    MPD Ltd
    Boards of Canada
    Radio Birdman (not a radio station, but a band)
    Mumford & Sons

    and my all-time favourite:

    The Rock & Roll Double Bubble Trading Card Company of Philadelphia 19141

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    ...and some silly ones:

    Ashton, Gardner & Dyke - general home handymen: Chimney cleaning, gardening and plumbing experts
    Cooper, Bloomfield & Stills - Irish/Australian brewing consortium specialising in whisky and beer
    Wilson Phillips - maker of cigarette vending pachines in parking stations
    Bay City Rollers - San Francisco based business marketing roller-blinds

  16. #16
    Bachman Turner Overdrive: Could be a trucking company or maybe an amusement park ride.

    Van Der Graaf Generator: A German power company? A producer of Van Der Graafs?

    How to Dress Well - a clothier

    Venetian Snares - Italian drum manufacturer

    The Postal Service - self explanatory

    MGMT - a staffing company?

    Chemical Brothers - pharmaceutical

    Boards of Canada - A producer of Canadian boards.

    Cat Power - something both futuristic and impractical

    High on Fire - something recently registered in Colorado.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Facelift View Post
    Van Der Graaf Generator: A German power company? A producer of Van Der Graafs?
    I assume this is tongue in cheek and that you do know what the band was named after; if not, it's one of these: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_de_Graaff_generator

  18. #18
    Public Image LTD

  19. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by bob_32_116 View Post
    I assume this is tongue in cheek and that you do know what the band was named after; if not, it's one of these: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_de_Graaff_generator
    Yes - I'm just having fun with this.

  20. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by viukkis View Post
    Finnish new wave band Hassisen Kone ("Hassinen's machine") took their name from a local home appliance store. The store owner was allegedly highly offended by this and the store name was changed soon after the band hit the charts. I guess not everybody likes free publicity!
    In Germany you had the James Blast Orchester, which was forced to change their name to J.B.O. by the lawyers of James Last.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Rarebird View Post
    In Germany you had the James Blast Orchester, which was forced to change their name to J.B.O. by the lawyers of James Last.
    Didn't something similar happen with Chicago Transit Authority, which is why they (the band, not the transport organisation) dropped the name down to Chicago?

  22. #22
    Quote Originally Posted by bob_32_116 View Post
    Didn't something similar happen with Chicago Transit Authority, which is why they (the band, not the transport organisation) dropped the name down to Chicago?
    They were sued by the actual Chicago Transit Authority.

  23. #23
    For a while in the '80s the Tubes operated as "The Tubes Group," which was intended to sound corporate. As such they produced "The Completion Backward Principle" and "Remote Control."
    Cobra handling and cocaine use are a bad mix.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Vonta Jitty View Post
    Public Image LTD
    Opening post of thread

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    Café Jacques
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