1 week Ago By Ellie Hook
Some band names are very much self-explanatory, but not Weezer! Weezer might now be one of music's most famous band names , but it wasn’t always the case. Before the band debuted with their now-iconic self-titled blue album, they were a group of boys in California writing songs about after parties and trying to land their first gig. But by February 1992, the band had secured all four members : Rivers Cuomo, who took control of the microphone, guitar and keyboards, Patrick Wilson, the drummer and backing vocals, Brian Bell, who was on guitar, keyboards and also backing vocals, and Scott Shriner, the man who rocked the bass guitar, keyboards and backing vocals.
While they had figured out who the band would actually consist of, they still hadn't come up with a name. By the time they booked a support slot in March of 1992, they had been asked to play ahead of Dogstar, the grunge band fronted by actor Keanu Reeves, and they needed to come up with a name to give to the booking agent, fast. They finally agreed on Weezer, a name they have stuck with ever since, but where did inspiration for it come from? It turns out the US indie rockers found inspiration thanks to frontman Cuomo's debilitating health condition.
From a young age Cuomo has suffered with asthma and as a result his ‘friends’ called him "Weezer". During a conversation with Conan O’Brien, Cuomo also revealed Weezer was a nickname that his father had called him during childhood. “That’s what my dad called me when I was very young,” the musician, now 54, shared before explaining the origin of the nickname.
When Cuomo asked his father about the origin of the name, he told him he had borrowed it from the character of the same name in the comedy television series Our Gang, also referred to as The Little Rascals. Bobby Hutchins starred in the series as Wheezer in the late 1920s. Cuomo’s father thought that Wheezer was the “cool one,” so he gave his son the nickname.
Under pressure to accept their support gig with Dogstar, Cuomo thought his childhood moniker, with a letter removed, was the perfect fit and unknowingly created one of the most iconic band names in guitar music. Click here to follow the Mirror US on Google News to stay up to date with all the latest news, sport and entertainment stories. DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.
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