Tora Tora is an American

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

band formed in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

in 1985.

Name

"Tora" means "tiger" in Japanese and the name is a play on the code name for attack used by the Japanese Imperial Navy during their attack on

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

, "Tora, Tora, Tora". The actual origin of the band name was more likely a reference to the song of the same name recorded by Van Halen on their 1980 release ''

Women and Children First "Women and children first", known to a lesser extent as the ''Birkenhead'' drill, is an unofficial code of conduct and gender role whereby the lives of women and children were to be saved first in a life-threatening situation, typically aband ...

''. In a 1989 ''

Headbangers Ball ''Headbangers Ball'' is a music television program that consists of heavy metal music videos airing on MTV and its global affiliates. The show began on MTV on April 18, 1987, playing heavy metal music videos from both well-known and more obsc ...

'' interview with singer Anthony Corder and bassist Patrick Francis, they said that a friend of the band came up with a list of 60 to 70 different names for their band, and they picked the name Tora Tora because it stood out to them the most. They mentioned in the same interview that the original name of the band had been "Free Beer".

History

Tora Tora started out as a local garage band then eventually got studio time when they won a local Battle of the Bands contest. Following this, the band recorded ''To Rock to Roll'' as an independent EP. After its release the songs "Phantom Rider" and "Love's A Bitch" received extensive airplay on local radio station Rock 98. After signing with

A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...

, they recorded their debut album ''Surprise! Attack'' in 1989. This album peaked on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s Top 200 at No. 47 and featured the singles "Walkin' Shoes" and "Guilty." The single "Dancing With a Gypsy" was on the soundtrack for the film ''

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

'' later that year. Tora Tora was the first band from Memphis, Tennessee, to have a music video, "Walkin' Shoes" on MTV. In 1992, their second album, ''Wild America'', was released. It only achieved No. 134 on the Billboard charts and it did not sell as well, but, it was a more mature step at songwriting. A third album, ''Revolution Day'', was recorded in 1994, but it was never released due to label restructuring. After missing the due date, the band folded. In 2008, all four original band members reunited to do several performances. One was a sold out performance at Newby's, a local club in Memphis, to celebrate their 20th anniversary of receiving their recording contract. After the show, a record was sold to fans which included songs from their first two albums and material slated for their unreleased ''Revolution Day'' album. The album was titled ''The Warehouse... 20 Years Later''. The second occurred during

Rocklahoma Rocklahoma is an annual 3-day hard rock and metal festival held in Pryor Creek, Oklahoma, Pryor, Oklahoma. The festival features 3 official stages, as well as many unofficial campground parties and performing acts and onsite vendors. There were ...

2008. The band played another reunion show at

The New Daisy Theatre The New Daisy Theatre is a music venue located on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee. It plays host to both local and national acts, as well the site of rental events. The theater opened in 1936 and has featured artists such as John Lee Hooke ...

on March 7, 2009, in Memphis. At the end of 2009, Tora Tora signed with the

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

based FNA Records and released three albums. ''Before & After'', ''Bombs Away: The Unreleased Surprise Attack Recordings'', and ''Miss B. Haven': The Unreleased Wild America Recordings''. On February 28, 2011, FNA Records in conjunction with the band decided after 17 years since the completion of their third album, which was shelved indefinitely at the time due to label complications, to release their "lost album" ''Revolution Day''. Anthony Corder stated about the Revolution Day Sessions: Since 2008, the band has been somewhat active playing shows almost every year. In 2019, they released the album Bastards of Beale drawing strong reviews. Tora Tora continues to tour and in 2024 released a compilation album called "Best of the Rest.". The album contains four singles released between 2021-2024. The album also contains studio Outtakes and Demos from previous Tora Tora albums including Revolution Day. The album is on streaming but a run of limited edition CDs has also been released. Tora Tora is continuing to tour and has plans to continue to release new music.

Band members

* Anthony Corder – vocals, acoustic guitar * Keith Douglas – guitar, backing vocals * Patrick Francis – bass guitar, backing vocals * John Patterson – drums

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

Surprise Attack Military deception (MILDEC) is an attempt by a military unit to gain an advantage during warfare by misleading adversary decision makers into taking action or inaction that creates favorable conditions for the deceiving force. This is usually ...

'' (1989) No. 47 US ''Billboard'' 200 * '' Wild America'' (1992) No. 132 US ''Billboard'' 200 * ''Revolution Day'' (1994) * ''Bastards of Beale'' (2019)

Compilation albums

* ''Revolution Day'' (1994/2011) (recorded in 1994, Previously unreleased – released on February 28, 2011, by FNA Records) * ''Before & After'' (2009) FNA Records * ''Bombs Away: The Unreleased Surprise Attack Recordings'' (2009) FNA Records * ''Miss B. Haven': The Unreleased Wild America Recordings'' (2010) FNA Records * ''Best of the Rest'' (2024) Club Tora Records

Extended plays

* ''To Rock to Roll'' (1987) * ''Unplugged'' (2020)

Singles

* "Walkin' Shoes" (1989) No. 86 US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 * "Guilty" * "Phantom Rider" * "Amnesia" * "Dead Man's Hand" * "Faith Healer"

Soundtrack appearances

Home video

* ''Live: A Benefit for Patrick Francis'' (2016)

References

External links

Official Tora Tora Myspace
*
FNA RecordsSleazeRoxx article detailing the reunionArticle detailing performance at Newby's
{{Authority control 1985 establishments in Tennessee A&M Records artists Glam metal musical groups from Tennessee Hard rock musical groups from Tennessee Heavy metal musical groups from Tennessee Musical groups established in 1985 Musical groups from Memphis, Tennessee