The Waitresses
| The Waitresses | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Akron, Ohio, United States |
| Genres | New wave |
| Years active | 1978–84 |
| Labels | ZE Records, Polydor, Omnivore |
| Associated acts | Tin Huey |
| Past members | Chris Butler Patty Donahue Billy Ficca Dan Klayman Mars Williams Dave Hofstra Ariel Warner Tracy Wormworth Ralph Carney Holly Beth Vincent |
The Waitresses were an experimental post-punk band from Akron, Ohio.[1][2] The group was led by guitarist/songwriter Chris Butler with lead vocals performed by Patty Donahue.[1][3]
Contents
Career
They had minor success in the United States with the song "I Know What Boys Like", from their 1982 debut album Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful.[3] The song was originally released by the band as a single on Antilles Records in 1980, but did not chart.[4][5] It became an underground hit, and when re-released in 1982, it peaked at No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100,[6] No. 23 on Billboard's Top Tracks chart,[7] No. 14 on the Australian Singles Chart (Kent Music Report),[5] and also charted in the UK.[2]
The Waitresses also recorded the theme song to the television program Square Pegs,[3][8] which aired during the 1982–83 season.[9] (The band appeared as themselves in the pilot episode.)[9] Their Christmas song "Christmas Wrapping" was originally released on the ZE Records album A Christmas Record in 1981,[1] and became a No. 45 hit in the United Kingdom in 1982.[3][10] The song was subsequently covered by the Spice Girls in 1998, as the B-side of their single "Goodbye"[1][11] and by the television show Glee sung by the character Brittany for their 2011 Christmas special.[12][12][13]
The group released two albums, Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful and Bruiseology, and one EP, I Could Rule the World If I Could Only Get the Parts.[1] For many years, none of these were easily available on CD, but that was rectified by 2013's Just Desserts: The Complete Waitresses, which collects virtually all of the band's recordings for Polygram.[14]
The band's lead singer Patty Donahue left in summer 1984 and was briefly replaced by Holly Beth Vincent. Vincent left the band two weeks later and Donahue returned.[2][3] The band finally split up in late 1984 after the departures of Carney and Klayman.
Donahue died of lung cancer at the age of 40 on December 9, 1996.[3]
Discography
Albums
| Released | Title | Chart positions Billboard 200 |
Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful? | 41 | Polydor |
| 1982 | I Could Rule the World If I Could Only Get the Parts EP | 128 | Polydor |
| 1983 | Bruiseology | 155 | Polydor |
| 1984 | Make the Weather EP | – | Polydor |
| 1990 | The Best of The Waitresses | – | Polydor |
| 1997 | King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents The Waitresses | – | King Biscuit |
| 2003 | 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of The Waitresses | – | Polydor |
| 2007 | Your Choice of Sides − A Collection of Outtakes & Obscuriosities | – | Unreleased[15] |
| 2013 | Just Desserts: The Complete Waitresses | – | Omnivore[14] |
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. | UK | |||
| 1978 | In "Short Stack" ("Slide" / "Clones") | — | — | single |
| 1980 | "I Know What Boys Like" / "No Guilt" | — | — | single[4] |
| 1981 | "Christmas Wrapping" | — | — | A Christmas Record |
| 1982 | "I Know What Boys Like" | 62 | — | Wasn't Tomorrow Wonderful? |
| "Square Pegs" | — | — | I Could Rule the World If I Could Only Get the Parts | |
| "Christmas Wrapping" | — | 45 | A Christmas Record | |
| 1983 | "Make the Weather" | — | — | Bruiseology |
Principal band members
- Patty Donahue (lead vocals, 1978–1983, 1984)
- Chris Butler (guitars, background vocals)
- Mars Williams (saxophone, reed instruments)
- Billy Ficca (drums)
- Dan Klayman (keyboards/organ)
- Tracy Wormworth (bass, background vocals) (1982–1984)
- David Hofstra (bass) (1978–1982)
- Ariel Warner (background vocals) (1978–1982)
- Ralph Carney (keyboards)
- Holly Beth Vincent (briefly replaced Donahue as lead vocalist, 1984)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Source states The Waitresses were based in Kent, Ohio, rather than Akron.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. "The self-made single, 'I Know What Boys Like', has been a New York club favorite for a couple of years now..." (emphasis added).
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. This chart shows the song at position 96, but includes an inset giving its highest chart position of 62.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Further reading
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
