I think the Crickets started the whole trend of naming your band after a (misspelled?) creature of some sort, but the trend seems to have caught fire after the Beatles made it big. Can you think of an earlier instance than the Crickets? Which other creature names am I not listing? Why did this not-very-clever naming process linger for so long, and have such wide-reaching effects? When did it stop? Did it stop?
Countless Doo-Wop groups in the 1950s were named after birds. The Orioles, the Ravens, the Crows, the Larks, the Penguins, the Flamingos, the Robins, the Wrens…
The Who?
The Turtles!
Were there any animal-named musical groups before them during the big band, swing, or early jazz eras? Bob Crosby (Bing’s younger brother) had a group called the Bob-Cats during the 1930s, which was the first one that came to my mind, but I’m sure there were others.
For what it’s worth, I was in a surf band in the early 1980s called the Jag-wires.
I asked a similar question here, but I don’t think any bands earlier than The Crickets were mentioned in the discussion.
The Robins (originally the Bluebirds) for one predate the Crickets.
The first two that came to mind were Tame Impala and Blue Stingrays.
Tommy Dorsey and his Clambake Seven from 1930s.
Jerry Murad’s Harmonicats started performing under that name in the 1940s.
Wasn’t there some ‘Penquins’?
The Wolverines were around in the 1920s.
The Harvard Krokodiloes (1946).
The Whiffenpoofs (1909) were named for a mythical beast (of various origins).
This triggered an Abbot & Costello ‘Who’s on First’ scenario in my mind where instead of baseball they’re discussing rock music.
So Who’s the headliner at this concert?
The Who
Yes, that’s what I want to know
They’re not the headliners they’re opening for them.
Who?
Yes
You have to throw The Guess Who in there as well.
SCTV did it:
I like the way they processed the dialog so it sounds like the bandwidth & frequency response curve of 1940s radio.
I’m so disappointed that you’re all ignoring this seminal rock and roll band:
mmm