# Sports teams that are also band names **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [February 1, 2011, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816 "2011-02-01T20:29:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/1 "2011-02-01T20:29:48Z")
I heard a song this morning by a band called The National. Not the National_ **s** _, but close enough to make me think of the baseball team from DC. The Eagles are a football team and a rock band. What else? (Could probably have gone either here or Cafe Society - might have gotten different responses there too!) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/2 "2011-02-01T20:41:54Z")
Are we limited to SUCCESSFUl bands? If not, Adrian Belew of King Crimson has a band on the side called the BEARS. Can we count groups where a team name is part of the band’s name? If so, there’s Paul Revere and the RAIDERS. Back in the 80s, there was a hard rock band caled GIANT. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/3 "2011-02-01T20:42:11Z")
Chicago. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/4 "2011-02-01T20:49:45Z")
The Penguins were a popular doo wop group of the Fifties, and are now an NHL hockey team. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/5 "2011-02-01T20:56:49Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Are we limited to SUCCESSFUl bands? If not, Adrian Belew of King Crimson has a band on the side called the BEARS. > Can we count groups where a team name is part of the band’s name? If so, there’s Paul Revere and the RAIDERS. > > Back in the 80s, there was a hard rock band caled GIANT. Does that count? We can count whatever we want to count. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/6 "2011-02-01T20:57:44Z")
Well there is/was a band called The Stampeders (Sweet City Woman). They were from Calgary, home of CFL team Stampeders. ---
**Author:** ![soulmurk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@soulmurk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soulmurk)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/7 "2011-02-01T20:59:43Z")
A quick Google shows that every team in the NHL’s Atlantic Division (Devils, Rangers, Islanders, Penguins, Flyers) shares a name with a band, though it might depend on the as-of-yet undefined acceptable definition of band-- for instance The Rangers were a “Czech pop folk” group whose time was the 70s and early 80s and The Flyers are an indie band out of Texas who, for all I could find, don’t exist outside of a MySpace page. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/8 "2011-02-01T21:01:17Z")
some that don’t quite fit your definition John “Cougar” Mellencamp “Boston” Red Sox Maryland Terrapins - The Turtles New York ‘‘Flyers’’ - Philadelphia Flyers ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/9 "2011-02-01T21:05:41Z")
How about sports teams that were named after a song? I give you the St. Louis Blues. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/10 "2011-02-01T21:25:39Z")
There is a British electropop band named [St. Etienne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Etienne_%28band%29), which translates from the French as “St. Stephen” but in this case was named after the French soccer team [of that name](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AS_Saint-%C3%89tienne). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/11 "2011-02-01T21:55:50Z")
Night RANGER? And right after splitting with CCR, John Fogarty had a short-lived band called the Blue Ridge RANGERS. (It’s unclear, according to some reference books, whether there really was a band or whether the Rangers were really just John Fogarty and a few session men.) ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/12 "2011-02-01T22:41:34Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > How about sports teams that were named after a song? I give you the St. Louis Blues. Or named after a genre, like the Utah Jazz. ---
**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:** [February 1, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/13 "2011-02-01T22:47:53Z")
Ryan Adams & The Cardinals Bennie & The Jets? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/14 "2011-02-01T22:48:21Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > I heard a song this morning by a band called The National. > Not the National_ **s** _, but close enough to make me think of the baseball team from DC. > > The Eagles are a football team and a rock band. > > What else? > > (Could probably have gone either here or Cafe Society - might have gotten different responses there too!) And coincidentally, the Eagles (band) played the first event at Invesco Field, the new home of the Denver Broncos. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/15 "2011-02-01T22:50:50Z")
My high school mascot was SCORPIONS ---
**Author:** ![furt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/439d5e/32.png) [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/16 "2011-02-01T22:51:42Z")
They might be Giants. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/17 "2011-02-01T22:54:11Z")
bob marley and the _whalers_… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2011, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/18 "2011-02-01T23:29:33Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Back in the 80s, there was a hard rock band caled GIANT. Does that count? Well…They Might Be Giants. 😉 Gah, scooped! ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2011, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/19 "2011-02-02T00:37:21Z")
There’s The Commodores and the Vanderbilt Commodores. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2011, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816/20 "2011-02-02T01:28:54Z")
[Johnny and the Hurricanes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_and_the_Hurricanes) (Carolina Hurricanes). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-that-are-also-band-names/569816.md?page=2)