The practice of naming a group of musicians with a colorful moniker; not after one or more members of the group, or, in the case of an orchestra, after the city it resides in. When did this start? I’m pretty sure it predates the rock and roll era, but how far back does it go? Did roving bands of minstrels in the middle ages sit around the camp fire saying, “You know what would be a great name for our band? ‘Papal Indulgence’!”? Or is this a relatively recent custom?
It certainly pre-dates the rock and roll era. The Inkspots and such vocal groups had such names prior to that.
Beyond that? It wouldn’t surprise me if it went back to the gilded age in the 1890s or so. But I speak with no authority.
Had my roving band been around in Feudal times, I would likely have called it “Minstrel Cycle.”
I remember hearing a Car Talk episode a few years ago where the brothers (both part-time amateur musicologists) mentioned – offhand – that the naming conventions are a relatively modern development. I might postulate this is not the case, however, since in Shakespeare’s time, his performance troupe was named “The Chamberlain’s Men” and later the “Kings Men.” It’s a stretch, but perhaps it’s a start…
I personally think it’s an inherent effect of the business. After all, Gerry Dorsey mutated into Englebert Humperdick pretty readily; who knows what the Kingston Trio might have become had they tried to get hep.
No, those names were because the Chamberlain and later the King were the sponsors of the group.
>>>No, those names were because the Chamberlain and later the King were the sponsors of the group.<<<
Yes, I understand and disagree.
19th-century musical group names included the Christy Minstrels, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, and the Texas Medley Quartette. Ho-hum. The sounds they made were respectable and staid, therefore they needed dull names to preserve their straitlaced image.
Band names started to perk up slightly during the ragtime era circa 1900 with groups like the Five Musical Spinners. Ragtime was much more exciting music than anything ever heard before, so the band names could loosen up a bit.
You thought the Red Hot Chili Peppers is a modern band name? No way!
One of the first gonzo band names belonged to Jelly Roll Morton’s band The Red Hot Peppers in the 1920s. The modern band just added the word “Chili” I guess to avoid confusion with the earlier band. As Jelly Roll Morton transformed ragtime into jazz, musicians developed more striking band names. Like the Wolverines and Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five.
Rock-‘n’-roll grew out of rhythm-‘n’-blues, so it could draw on the tradition of jazz band names. The Crickets was Buddy Holly’s band. Supposedly influenced John Lennon to prefer an insectoid band name.