Bad Radio was a four-piece, American

funk rock Funk rock is a fusion genre that mixes elements of funk and Rock music, rock. James Brown and others declared that Little Richard and his mid-1950s road band, The Upsetters (American band), the Upsetters, were the first to put the funk in the ...

band that formed in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, California, in 1986. The band is most notable for having featured future

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

vocalist

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...

as its lead singer from 1988 to 1990. The band was a popular live band in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

, but never released a record on a

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product. Labels are most often affixed to packaging and containers using an adhesive, or sewing when affix ...

History

Bad Radio was formed in 1986 by vocalist Keith Wood, guitarist Dave George, bassist Dave Silva, and drummer Joey Ponchetti. The music of the original incarnation of the band was influenced by

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...

. Colapinto, John
"Pearl Jam's Mystery Man"
''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''. November 28, 1996. Between 1988 and 1990, future

lead singer

was the vocalist. After Vedder joined Bad Radio, the band moved on to a more

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

sound influenced by the

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...

. During his time with the band he premiered the song " Better Man", which would later be recorded with Pearl Jam. In 1989, the band released a 4-song demo tape which has been dubbed the ''Tower Records Demo''Tower Records Demo original j-card
due to it being sold locally in San Diego

Tower Records Tower Records is an international retail franchising, franchise and online music store that was formerly based in Sacramento, California, United States. From 1960 until 2006, Tower operated retail stores in the United States, which closed when ...

stores for about a year. Later that year the band released another demo tape titled ''What the Funk''. The demo tape was funded after winning a battle of the bands contest held by San Diego radio station 91X. The demo tape included recordings of songs titled, "I'm Alive", "Homeless", "What the Funk", and "Believe You Me". Vedder's last show with the band was February 11, 1990. After Vedder left, original band vocalist Keith Wood replaced him, and the band relocated to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, where the band was joined by a new drummer,

Dawn Richardson Dawn Richardson (born April 19, 1964) is an American rock drummer, teacher, and writer of instructional books on percussion. She is best known as drummer for the San Francisco-based band 4 Non Blondes from 1991 to 1994. Musical career Earl ...

. Richardson would later join the 4 Non Blondes.

Band members

* Dave George –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

(1986–1991) * Joey Ponchetti –

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s (1986–1990) * Dave Silva –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

(1986–1991) * Keith Wood –

vocal The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound producti ...

s (1986–1988, 1990-1991) * Petey Bates - Keyboards (1986-1988) *

– vocals (1988–1990) *

– drums (1990-1991)

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bad Radio Alternative rock groups from California Musical groups disestablished in 1990 Musical groups established in 1986 Musical groups from San Diego Musical quartets from California 1986 establishments in California

History

Band members

See also

Notes and references