Original Names for Some Famous Bands

Bands undergo a lot of changes before they become famous – members, musical styles, location, names … We’re going to be focusing on the last one here. 

See if you can match the famous band with their original names (often, one of many). Just match the number from the 1st group with the correct letter from the 2nd. Then, scroll down to see how well you did.

Original Name	Band
1.  Artistics	A.  Allman Brothers Band
2.  Blue Boys	B.  The Band
3.  Blue Velvets	C.  Beach Boys
4.  Broken Combs	D.  Beatles
5.  Carl & the Passions	E.  Black Sabbath
6.  Detours	F.   Creedence Clearwater Revival
7.  Escorts	G.  Eagles
8.  Falling Spikes	H.  Grateful Dead
9   Feedback	I.    Nirvana
10.  Hawks	J.   Pearl Jam
11.  Johnny & the Moondogs	K.   Pink Floyd
12.  Leonard's Lodgers	L.   Queen
13.  Mookie Blaylock	M.  Radiohead
14.  On a Friday	N.  Red Hot Chili Peppers
15.  Pen Cap Chew	O.  Rolling Stones
16.  Polka Tulk Blues Band	P.   Talking Heads
17.  Smile	Q.   U2
18.  Teen King and the Emergencies	R.   Van Halen
19.  Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem	S.   Velvet Underground
20.  Warlocks	T.    The Who

Got ‘em all written down?  Well, let’s scroll down and see how you did.

Artistics – Talking Heads

• Formed at Rhode Island School of Design

Blue Boys – Rolling Stones

• “Rolling Stones” was after a Muddy Waters song

Blue Velvets – Creedence Clearwater Revival

• AKA Vision, Golliwogs

Broken Combs – Van Halen

• AKA Genesis (already taken), Mammoth, Trojan Rubber Company

Carl & the Passions – Beach Boys

• AKA the Pendletones (already taken)

Detours – The Who

• Other ideas included No One, The Group & The Hair

Escorts – Allman Brothers Band

• AKA Allman Joys, Hour Glass

Falling Spikes – Velvet Underground

• AKA Primitives, Warlocks (already taken)

Feedback – U2

• AKA The Hype

Hawks – The Band

• Originally the backup band for rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins

Johnny & the Moondogs – The Beatles

• AKA Quarrymen, Rainbows

Leonard's Lodgers – Pink Floyd

• AKA Sigma 6, Spectrum 5, Meggadeaths, Abdabs, Screaming Abdabs

Mookie Blaylock – Pearl Jam

• After an NBA player

On a Friday – Radiohead 

• After when they practiced

Pen Cap Chew – Nirvana 

• AKA Sellouts, Skid Row, Ted Ed Fred, Bliss

Polka Tulk Blues Band – Black Sabbath

• After brand of talcum powder or an Indian/Pakistani clothing shop

Smile – Queen 

• Freddie Mercury was originally Farokh Bulsara

Teen King and the Emergencies – Eagles 

• Originally, Linda Ronstadt’s backup band

Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem – Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Formed at Fairfax High School, in LA

Warlocks – Grateful Dead

• “Grateful Dead” was picked randomly from a dictionary