# Bands named after real people that weren’t members of the band **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 13, 2026, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635 "2026-01-13T10:27:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/1 "2026-01-13T10:27:29Z")
Today I learned that The Marshall Tucker Band had no member named Marshall Tucker. What other bands were named for a non-member? It has to be first and last names so someone like Jane’s Addiction wouldn’t count. Off the top of my head: Jethro Tull Lynard Skynyrd (more or less) Greta Van Fleet (again a misspelling) I’m sure that there are a ton of others but it’s very early in the morning and I’m sleepy. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/2 "2026-01-13T10:33:20Z")
Uriah Heep. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/3 "2026-01-13T10:39:30Z")
Molly Hatchet? ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/4 "2026-01-13T10:44:58Z")
I wondered about them. According to wiki, the name doesn’t appear to be an actual person’s name. Also, all of the original members are now dead, not that that matters for purposes of this thread. I just thought it was interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/5 "2026-01-13T11:09:33Z")
Franz Ferdinand ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/6 "2026-01-13T11:10:28Z")
Babe Ruth. ---
**Author:** ![kk\_fusion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kk_fusion/32/15276_2.png) [@kk\_fusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kk_fusion)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/7 "2026-01-13T11:48:02Z")
Does _The Elvis Presley Tribute Band_ and similar tribute/memorial acts count? ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/8 "2026-01-13T12:00:57Z")
If a misspelling of the name counts, like Lynryrd Skynyrd, how about Gnarls Barkley? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/9 "2026-01-13T12:01:36Z")
Would Hootie and the Blowfish count? (“(The unlikely moniker was borrowed from the nicknames of two college friends.”) ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/10 "2026-01-13T12:22:00Z")
Pink Floyd? “Which one is Pink?” ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/11 "2026-01-13T12:42:48Z")
Bob Moses is named after Robert Moses, designer of NY Central Park. Gnarls Barkley is named after Charles Barkley, retired NBA basketball player. The band denies this, though. Luscious Jackson is named after Lucious Jackson, retired NBA basketball player. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/12 "2026-01-13T13:28:39Z")
“Alice Cooper” has some kind of convoluted backstory Pretty Boy Floyd, the LA glam band whose name inspired rival band Overdrive to call themselves Ugly Kid Joe Catherine Wheel, indirectly named for St. Catherine of Alexandria Pablo Cruise; according to Casey Kasem, they were named after a drifter The Dandy Warhols The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/13 "2026-01-13T13:31:56Z")
The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza. If they were larger, it would have become confusing because Tony Danza is a dancer amongst other things. But they flew under the radar enough that they weren’t worth it to sue or give free publicity to. But apparently not under the radar enough that Tony didn’t mention them on his short lived talk show. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/14 "2026-01-13T13:36:02Z")
I don’t think Uriah Heep is a real person, unless Dickens wanted to get sued real badly. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/15 "2026-01-13T13:57:45Z")
There was a band called Iron Eyes Cody that broke up after discovering that he had lied about his Native American heritage (later reforming under a new name) ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/16 "2026-01-13T14:14:07Z")
Paul Revere and the Raiders ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/17 "2026-01-13T14:17:16Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > I don’t think Uriah Heep is a real person, unless Dickens wanted to get sued real badly. Not so fast. According to the German wiki (for some reason, this info isn’t on their English wiki page): > [@](#): > > Byron hatte die Idee, dem Bandsound [Keyboards](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyboard) hinzuzufügen und der Gruppe den Namen Uriah Heep zu geben. Er bezieht sich auf einen arbeitssuchenden [Roadie](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roadie), der sich nach der Figur aus dem Roman _[David Copperfield](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Copperfield_(Roman))_ von [Charles Dickens](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens) benannt hatte.[[2]](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uriah_Heep#cite_note-2) > > [my translation:] > > Byron had the idea of adding keyboards to the band sound and giving the band the name Uriah Heep. It refers to a job seeking roadie who had named himself after a character in Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield. So the band named themselves after a real person who had named himself after the Dickens character. > **[Uriah Heep](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uriah_Heep)** > > Uriah Heep ist eine britische Hardrock-Band. Sie wurde 1969 gegründet und zählt zu den frühen und erfolgreichsten Vertretern des Genres. Die Geschichte der Band ist geprägt von häufigen Mitgliederwechseln, musikalischen Differenzen und Drogenproblemen. Der Gitarrist Mick Box ist seit 1980 das einzige verbliebene Gründungsmitglied und leitet heute die Gruppe. > Im Unterschied zu vielen anderen Interpreten gewichtet Uriah Heep in einem Teil ihrer Werke die melodische Seite des Hardrock durch ihren a... ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/18 "2026-01-13T14:19:43Z")
Shakespears (sic) Sister. William Shakespeare did in fact have a sister, Joan Shakespeare Hart. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/19 "2026-01-13T14:21:17Z")
> [@mcgato](#): > > Bob Moses is named after Robert Moses, designer of NY Central Park. Robert Moses built _a lot_ of stuff in and around New York City but he didn’t design Central Park. (Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux designed it.) ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2026, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635/20 "2026-01-13T14:26:24Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > Shakespears (sic) Sister. William Shakespeare did in fact have a sister, Joan Shakespeare Hart. And of course first and foremost, they named themselves after the Smiths song “Shakespeare’s Sister”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-named-after-real-people-that-weren-t-members-of-the-band/1026635.md?page=2)