The Bangles's Popular Music Videos
About The Bangles
Hometown
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Formed
1981
Genre
Pop
The Bangles were one of the touchstone bands of the 1980s, blending classic ’60s guitar pop with New Wave flair during an all-too-brief initial reign.
• The Los Angeles band, which came up as part of the ’60s-influenced “Paisley Underground” scene, released three LPs from 1984 to 1988 before splitting in 1989. The foursome put out two subsequent albums after regrouping in 1998.
• Singer and guitarist Susanna Hoffs formed the band in 1981 with sisters Debbi and Vicki Peterson on drums and guitar, respectively, and bassist Annette Zilinskas. After a self-titled 1982 EP, Zilinskas left the band and was replaced by former Runaways member Michael Steele.
• The Bangles released five singles, including the theme from the 1985 movie The Goonies, before breaking through in 1986 with the No. 2 hit “Manic Monday,” the first single from Different Light, their second album. Prince wrote the song.
• The band cemented their pop-cultural status later in 1986 with “Walk Like an Egyptian,” a No. 1 smash that spent four weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
• They continued their run of chart success in 1987 with a cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Hazy Shade of Winter,” which the group recorded for the Less Than Zero soundtrack. Two more Top 5 singles followed: “In Your Room” reached No. 5 in 1988, and “Eternal Flame” hit No. 1 in 1989. Both songs were from The Bangles’ 1988 album Everything.
• Rising tension among the musicians prompted the band to split in 1989. They reunited in 1998 to record the song “Get the Girl” for the movie Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.
• In 2003, The Bangles released the new album Doll Revolution, named for the opening track, a version of Elvis Costello’s song “Tear Off Your Own Head (It’s a Doll Revolution).”
• Bassist Michael Steele departed in 2005, leaving Hoffs and the Petersons to record their 2011 album Sweetheart of the Sun as a trio. In full-circle fashion, Annette Zilinskas rejoined The Bangles on bass in 2018.
Members of The Bangles include, or have included, Susanna Hoffs, Vicki Peterson, Debbi Peterson and more.
Musical InfluencesThe Bangles's musical influences include Blondie, Jefferson Airplane, Big Star and more.
Influenced by The BanglesThe Bangles has influenced the music of Girl Friday, Nina Gordon, Fefe Dobson and more.
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