Uncle Bonsai is an American contemporary folk trio from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, Washington. They formed in 1981, took a hiatus from 1989 to 1998, reformed for a few years, then took another hiatus until 2008, playing intermittently. Their earlier songs included "Suzy", "Charlie and Me", "Penis Envy", and "Boys Want Sex in the Morning", some of which occasionally resulted in

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(FCC) problems when played on the radio, and twenty-odd songs recounting the life experiences of a character named Doug ("Doug's First Date", "Doug at His Mom's", "Doug's First Job", "Doug Engaged", "Doug Gets Married", etc.). Their more recent works, including "The Baby's Head", "The Grim Parade", "20th Century Man," and "Where's the Milk", focus on the passing of time, the passing of genes, and the passing of pets – the truth of everything seemingly buried somewhere under the family tree. Uncle Bonsai has headlined at clubs and festivals throughout North America and opened for various artists, including

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In 1971, Raitt released her Bonnie Raitt (album), self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed Americana (mu ...

, TOTO,

Suzanne Vega Suzanne Nadine Vega ( Peck; born July 11, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter of Folk music, folk-inspired music. Vega's music career spans 40 years. In the mid-1980s and 1990s she released four singles that entered the Top 40 charts in the ...

, Loudon Wainwright III, and the Bobs. The original members were Andrew Ratshin, Arni Adler, and Ashley O'Keeffe. In March 2007 they announced that they would be recording and performing more frequently, with O'Keeffe replaced by singer/songwriter (and Mel Cooleys member) Patrice O'Neill. Most of the satirical songs were written by Ratshin, but Adler revealed her own brand of absurdist wit in several songs, including fan favorites "Cheerleaders on Drugs" and "Don't Put It In Your Mouth." The band's songs continue to receive airplay on

college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

and Dr. Demento. Andrew Ratshin also performs and records solo as the Electric Bonsai Band ("It's not electric, it's not a band - it's Ratshin on acoustic guitar."), and as part of a sextet, the Mel Cooleys. His records are available on his own Yellow Tail Records label.

Discography

* ''A Lonely Grain of Corn'' (1984; re-release 2001) * ''Boys Want Sex in the Morning'' (1986) * ''I Am Joe's Eyes'' (1990) lectric Bonsai Band* ''The Inessential Uncle Bonsai'' (1992, recorded in 1985–1989) * ''Myn Ynd Wymyn'' (1992, recorded in 1987) * ''But I'm Happy Now'' (1993) lectric Bonsai Band* ''Plain Brown Wrapper'' (1999) * ''Sponge Boy'' (CD single) (1999) * ''Doug'' (2000; recorded live on Aug. 4, 1998) ith Electric Bonsai Band and Mel Cooleys* ''Apology'' (2001) * ''The Grim Parade'' (2010) * ''The Family Feast: The Study of the Human Condition, First World Problems, and the Lasting Physiological and Psychological Effects of Eating Our Young'' (2017)

References

External links

Official web site

Official Electric Bonsai Band web site
* American folk musical groups American comedy folk musical groups Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups from Washington (state) {{US-folk-band-stub