Andy Prieboy (born April 17, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter, and author. He was lead singer of the band
Wall of Voodoo
Wall of Voodoo was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California who were active from 1977 until disbanding in 1989. Though largely an underground act for the majority of its existence, the band came to prominence when its 1982 single " ...
from 1983 to 1988. Later, he produced solo albums, musicals, and a novel.
Life and career
Prieboy was born in Los Angeles and raised in
East Chicago, Indiana
East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 26,370 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Centered around heavy industry, the city is home to the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwa ...
. Early in his career, he was in the San Francisco art band Eye Protection, which had one track on the compilation ''Rising Stars of San Francisco'': "Take Her Where The Boys Are". They also recorded a 7-inch single called "Elroy Jetson" with a
b-side of "Go Go Girl" on Eleph Records.
In 1983, he replaced
Stan Ridgway
Stanard "Stan" Ridgway (born April 5, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter, and film and television composer known for his distinctive voice, dramatic lyrical narratives, and eclectic solo albums. He was the original lead singer and a founding ...
as lead vocalist of
Wall of Voodoo
Wall of Voodoo was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California who were active from 1977 until disbanding in 1989. Though largely an underground act for the majority of its existence, the band came to prominence when its 1982 single " ...
. ''
Seven Days in Sammystown'' was the first Wall of Voodoo album to feature Prieboy, which was followed by ''
Happy Planet'', and finally ''
The Ugly Americans in Australia'' (a live album recorded to fulfill their recording obligations to
IRS Records
I.R.S. Records was a major American record label founded by Miles Copeland III and Jay Boberg in 1979. I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave music, n ...
).
His first Wall of Voodoo single "
Far Side of Crazy" is featured in the film ''
Head Office''. His demo for the song "Man Talk", which would finally appear on the album ''
...Upon My Wicked Son'', was featured in the early
Brad Pitt film ''
Cutting Class'' as well as other unreleased Wall of Voodoo demos. These same demos appeared in the film ''
C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D.''. He also appears in the film ''Blood and Concrete'' along with a few of his original songs (in that movie,
Jennifer Beals sings his song, "One Girl in a Million").
After leaving Wall of Voodoo, Prieboy signed with
MCA Music Publishing as a songwriter and went to work on new material for his first solo record ''
...Upon My Wicked Son'', which featured the song "
Tomorrow Wendy," about a woman dying of AIDS. The song featured a duet with
Johnette Napolitano
Johnette Napolitano (born Jonette L. Napolitano; September 22, 1957) is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter, and bassist for the alternative rock group Concrete Blonde.
Early life
Johnette Napolitano was born and r ...
, whose band
Concrete Blonde also recorded the song and released it on their album ''
Bloodletting'' the same year. The music video was directed by
Thomas Mignone.
MTV initially rejected the song's lyrical content and tone but Prieboy and Mignone decided to feature the decaying cities of
Hammond and
Gary in
Indiana
Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
as the "Wendy" character and the video received
Buzz Bin status at MTV. The song was also covered by the industrial project System Syn in early 2000s.
Linda Ronstadt and
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...
covered his song "Loving the Highway Man" from the same album. Prieboy then released an
EP called ''
Montezuma Was a Man of Faith'' which featured a
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
rendition of "
Whole Lotta Love" by
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
, featuring an uncredited Johnette Napolitano from Concrete Blonde. Prieboy's second solo album was entitled ''
Sins of Our Fathers''.
In the mid- to late-'90s, Prieboy played shows at the Los Angeles club
Largo with Rita D'Albert where they worked on an ongoing musical, ''White Trash Wins Lotto''; a
Gilbert and Sullivan-esque treatment of the rise and fall of an
Axl Rose-like character. It was also performed at
the Roxy Theatre on the
Sunset Strip for three sold out weekend-long engagements as well as two sold out weekends at New York City's
PS 122. Prieboy and crew also performed a medley from ''White Trash'' on the
Conan O'Brien show.
Prieboy is also the co-author with
Merrill Markoe of the novel ''The Psycho Ex Game'', based on his song "Psycho Ex". Markoe and Prieboy have lived together since 2004.
He released several songs via his website for online purchase. In 2012 Prieboy released the four-song downloadable EP ''Every Lady Gets A Song'', featuring accompaniment by former
Dils bassist Tony Kinman and
Devo drummer
David Kendrick.
On December 20, 2016, he released his lost album ''Virtue Triumphs''. The album was left unfinished and abandoned in 1992; it was meant to be the follow-up to his first solo work, ''...Upon My Wicked Son''. A corporate regime change ultimately swept him out, and the album stayed behind.
This was his first body of work that was not beholden to Wall of Voodoo.
Discography
Studio albums
EPs
Singles
References
External links
The Psycho Ex GameAndy Prieboy's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prieboy, Andy
Living people
American male singer-songwriters
American rock singers
Songwriters from Indiana
People from East Chicago, Indiana
1955 births
Wall of Voodoo members