Great titles and names are hard to find. Writers and editors and publishers really wear themselves out, trying to find the catchy, effective titles that will lure an audience. And when you’re forming a band, you also want a name that says something about your personality, your music genre, the message of you music or you can just go and pick something random for the heck of it.
Stories Behind Band Names
Still, you have to like that name because that will be what people will remember you with and call you by. Here are some of the stories behind band names:
Bon Jovi
Yes, it is painfully obvious that Bon Jovi was named after its singer Jon Bon Jovi. What you may not know however, is that calling the band after himself wasn’t Jon’s idea. In fact, Jon Bon Jovi isn’t even his real name.
Italian American Jon Bon Jovi was born John Francis Bongiovi. Doesn’t sound very rocking, does it? So the producers thought it would be easier and catchier if he signed posters under Jon Bon Jovi. Jon liked the idea. The producers also thought it would be a cool name for a band as well. The other members accepted and Bon Jovi was born. Their debut album, Bon Jovi, was released in 1984.
Of course naming a band after the singer’s name had two side effects: 1) Everyone mistook Jon for an overly egoistic person and 2) People confused whether Bon Jovi was a band or just a person.
This was spoofed by Saturday Night Live crew in an episode in 2007, with Jon’s consent and presence. He hosted the episode and played himself in the Bon Jovi- related parts. In one stint, it was him insisting they named the band after him.
Poison
When Poison members heard a politician complaining that rock music is poison, they felt like they hit jackpot. Poison has a meaning that suits rock and roll and partying and mocks the viewpoints of conservatives.
Queen
Did it ever sound weird to you that a rock band consisting of men alone called themselves Queen? Legendary singer Freddie Mercury‘s sexual orientations aside, of course. Unexpectedly, the suggestion came from Mercury himself. After all, Queen is as powerful a word as it is feminine.
KISS
Nowadays KISS remind bloggers and writers of “Keep It Simple Stupid” , a guideline to make their writing more to the point and readable.
But of course this is not what the KISS members had in mind. While we don’t know for sure if they actually used KISS an abbreviation of something else or just for the word itself, KISS’ image pissed enough people off.
Some people were worried that their records included Satanic messages when played backwards. This was even made fun of in one of the episodes of the sitcom That 70’s Show. And of course people who believed KISS was in fact an “evil” band, believed KISS stood for Knight’s In Satan’s Service.
All we know for sure was that KISS has been a fun-loving glam rock/hard-rock band for decades.
Motley Crue
Motley Crue is an American glam/hard rock band founded in 1981 and is still active. Motley Crue also dressed up as what the members called in “their sisters’ clothes” . The name was coined by one of their friends when he called them a “motley-looking crew” . It was turned into Motley Crue, and then the styling was added.
Rock on!