You’ve never heard of the Dee Gees, but its members have been together for more than 25 years and have won 12 Grammy Awards. Say hello to the newest Bee Gees tribute band, formed by members of best-selling American rock band Foo Fighters.
To mark Record Store Day on July 17, the Dave Grohl-founded six-piece will release a tribute to the Bee Gees, often referred to as the Kings of Disco, with five covers as well as five live versions of Foo Fighters’ songs.
The Dee Gees record, called Hail Satin, will be exclusively sold in vinyl and feature Bee Gees classics such as Tragedy, Night Fever and You Should Be Dancing.
The band made the announcement on Instagram on Thursday.
"Introducing ... the Dee Gees! Hail Satin – coming to a local record store and dance party near you!," the Foo Fighters posted.
The first Record Store Day was marked in 2008, when a number of independent record stores in the US joined hands to promote their businesses, deeply affected by digital downloads. The day is usually marked by the release of limited-edition CDs and vinyls available only at independent retailers.
While the actual date changes annually, this year, it’s being observed across two dates – June 12 and July 17.
But the Foo Fighters, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year, aren’t the only artists who’ve performed under a different name. Here are seven others, from Sir Paul McCartney to Mariah Carey:
U2 as Passengers
In 1995, rock band U2 released an album under the pseudonym Passengers. The side project was a result of improvisations during the recording sessions of their 1993 album Zooropa, and the band decided to release it under a different name because it didn't quite fit into their signature sound.
Called Original Soundtracks 1, many of the album's songs were written for imaginary films. It received a mixed reception, although one single, Miss Sarajevo, which featured tenor Luciano Pavarotti, became a massive hit in Europe. Lead singer Bono would later call it one of his favourite U2 songs.
Prince as Camille
Although it was never released, Prince had big plans for his alter-ego Camille, including a film. But the self-titled Camille, which featured the musical great singing in a high-pitched voice, was eventually shelved weeks before its planned release in 1986. While reasons for the cancellation are still not clear, some biographers attributed it to the recording label being unsure about releasing an album that wasn't under Prince's name.
Versions of songs recorded for Camille still made it to Prince's 1987 album Sign o' the Times, including If I Was Your Girlfriend and Strange Relationship.
Green Day as Foxboro Hot Tubs
With just one album to their name – Stop Drop and Roll!!!, released in 2008 – Green Day's garage-rock side project features all members of the band, as well as touring musicians. While the group has largely been on hiatus, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong teased their return in 2018. However, that seems unlikely now after Armstrong's other band, The Longshot, released their debut album that same year.
Mother Mary, from the Foxboro Hot Tubs' only album, was a surprise hit the year it was released.
Garth Brooks as Chris Gaines
Even as the only artist in music history to have released nine albums that achieved diamond status, Brooks wanted more, it seems. In 1999, he became Chris Gaines, a rock artist whose emotional conflict with fame would form the plot of a film.
Brooks cooked up the backstory and recorded an album called The Life of Chris Gaines as a precursor to the planned film. This befuddled his country music fans so much that the album became a flop. The movie was never made either, effectively ensuring Gaines's disappearance.
In March this year, Brooks expressed interest in reviving Gaines in his podcast Inside Studio G, announcing that the 1999 album would be re-released on all streaming sites.
“You’re going to have it in every format you can possibly imagine. It’s coming,” he said. “You’re going to have Chris Gaines stuff nobody’s ever heard before either. I love that project, so I’m excited.”
Sir Paul McCartney as Percy Thrillington
In 1977, an instrumental version of Paul and Linda McCartney's 1971 album Ram was released by an artist called Percy Thrillington. The album, Thrillington, was originally conceived as a companion piece with Ram but never released because the McCartneys got busy with their new band Wings.
When it was released six years later, it was met with a lukewarm response. It did become a collectors' item when it was assumed that Paul McCartney was behind the album, although the Beatles singer never admitted to it until 1989.
McCartney still seems thrilled to play Thrillington, starting a Twitter account under the pseudonym in 2012 and occasionally posting on it.
Freddie Mercury as Larry Lurex
Before he made his debut with Queen, Mercury recorded two singles as Larry Lurex, which were released in 1973. Lurex performed a version of The Ronettes song I Can Hear Music and Carole King's Goin' Back.
The songs were recorded while Queen was waiting for studio time to release their self-titled debut album in 1973. The name Larry Lurex was reportedly inspired by Gary Glitter, the former English glam rock singer now imprisoned for child sexual abuse.
Mariah Carey as Chick
Fun fact: I did an alternative album while I was making Daydream 👀 Just for laughs, but it got me through some dark days. Here's a little of what I wrote about it in #TheMeaningOfMariahCarey 🤟 S/O to my friend Clarissa who performs the lead w/ me as a hidden layer #Chick #TMOMC pic.twitter.com/Re23t5whcd
— Mariah Carey (@MariahCarey) September 27, 2020
Known for her RnB and pop classics, Mariah Carey made the shocking revelation in her memoir last year that she recorded an alternative rock album in 1995 under the band name Chick.
"I'd bring my little alt-rock song to the band and hum a silly guitar riff. They would pick it up and we would record it immediately. It was irreverent, raw, and urgent, and the band got into it," she wrote in The Meaning of Mariah Carey. "I actually started to love some of the songs. I would fully commit to my character. I was playing with the style of the breezy-grunge, punk-light white female singers who were popular at the time."
The album, Someone's Ugly Daughter, never saw the light of day, however. But Carey last year shared a snippet of a song, along with a page from her memoir, to show fans what could have been.
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Read more:
10 songs that capture the spirit of Juneteenth: from Beyonce to James Brown
From BTS and Billie Eilish to Prince and H.E.R.: seven albums to hear this summer
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