The Rubinoos
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| The Rubinoos | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Berkeley, California, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | Power pop |
| Years active | 1970–1985 1999–present |
| Label(s) | Air Mail Recordings Beserkley Records Warner Bros. Records Castle Communications Wounded Bird Records |
| Associated acts | Vox Pop The Mighty Echoes Psycotic Pineapple |
| Website | official site |
| Members | |
| Jon Rubin Tommy Dunbar Al Chan Susie Davis David Rokeach |
|
| Former members | |
| Donn Spindt (1975-85) Royse Ader (1975-85) Michael Boyd Curly Keranen |
|
The Rubinoos are an American power pop band, first formed in the 1970s and then reformed in 1999. They are best known for their singles "I Think We're Alone Now" (1977, a cover of the hit by Tommy James & the Shondells) and "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" (1979), and for the theme song to the 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds.
Contents |
[edit] History
Jon Rubin and Tommy Dunbar formed the group as middle school students in Berkeley, California in 1973. In 1975, the group (now including Donn Spindt and Royse Ader) signed with Beserkley Records, an independent Berkeley label that also featured Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers and Greg Kihn. Their single "Gorilla" appeared on the first Beserkley release, the 1975 compilation album Beserkley Chartbusters.
In 1977, the unknown Beserkley released The Rubinoos' self-titled debut album. It was well-reviewed, and the single "I Think We're Alone Now" reached #45 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became Beserkley's first hit. The group appeared on American Bandstand (live) and So It Goes (by video).
The group's next album was Back To The Drawing Board (1979), featuring the single "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend", which had been released in 1978 and received heavy airplay in England and Europe but not in America. In support of this album, the Rubinoos appeared on Rock Goes To College and were the opening act for Elvis Costello on the American portion of his Armed Forces tour.
Ader and Spindt left the group after Back To The Drawing Board. In 1983, the group, now consisting of just Rubin and Dunbar, signed with Warner Bros. Records and released the EP Party of Two, produced by Todd Rundgren. In 1984, they recorded "Revenge of the Nerds" and "Breakdown" for the film Revenge of the Nerds.
The Rubinoos officially disbanded in 1985. In 1989, Dunbar, Spindt, Al Chan, and John Seabury formed the group Vox Pop. During the 1990s, two Rubinoos compilations, Basement Tapes and Garage Sale were released; their success led the band to reunite and perform at the 1999 International Pop Overthrow Festival in Los Angeles. The group then released Paleophonic (1998), the all-covers Crimes Against Music (2003), the 2002 concert album Live in Japan (2004), and the freshly recorded Twist Pop Sin (2006). In 2007, Castle Communications issued the 63-song retrospective Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the Rubinoos.
[edit] Lawsuit
In 2007, Dunbar and co-writer James Gangwer sued Canadian pop-punk singer Avril Lavigne, claiming that her hit song "Girlfriend" has too much in common with "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend".
Filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, the case also names Avril Lavigne Publishing, her songwriting partner Dr. Luke, RCA Records, and Apple Inc. as defendants.[1] Lavigne's manager, Terry McBride, denied that "Girlfriend" was copied from "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," and pointed out that "Boyfriend" itself is similar to The Rolling Stones' "Get off of My Cloud". The two parties reached a confidential settlement in January 2008.
[edit] Members
[edit] Current lineup
- Jon Rubin - Vocals
- Tommy Dunbar - Guitar, vocals
- Al Chan - Bass, vocals
- Susie Davis - Keyboards, vocals
- David Rokeach- Drums
[edit] Former members
- Donn Spindt (1975 - 1985) - Drums, vocals
- Royse Ader (1975 - 1980) - Bass, vocals
- Michael Boyd - Keyboards
- Rush Limbaugh - Waste of Space
- Greg "Curly" Keranen - Bass, vocals
- Alex Carlin - Organ
- Danny Wood - Saxophone
- Ralph Granich - Drums
[edit] Discography
[edit] Studio albums
- The Rubinoos (1977)
- Back to the Drawing Board (1979)
- Party of Two EP (1983)
- Paleophonic (1998)
- Crimes Against Music (2003)
- Twist Pop Sin (2006)
[edit] Live albums and compilations
- Basement Tapes (1993)
- Garage Sale (1994)
- Live in Japan (2004)
- Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the Rubinoos (2007)
