• 1991-

  John McCreaLead vocals, guitar, piano, vibraslap

  Vince DiFioreTrumpet, keyboards, melodica, guiro, vocals

  Greg BrownGuitar1991-1997

  Gabe NelsonBass guitar, vocals1991, 1997-

  Paulo BaldiDrums, cowbell, tambourine, vocals2004-

  Xan McCurdyGuitar, vocals1997-

  Pete McNealDrums2001-2004
• Unknown to most of their fans, the band Cake is named after the verb, not the noun. Rather than referring to dessert, the band says the name refers to the point "when something insidiously becomes part of your life. We mean it more as something that cakes onto your shoe and is just sort of there until you get rid of it."
• In 1996, Cake released a cover of Gloria Gaynor's song "I Will Survive." Although it was a hit among Cake fans and reached #38 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart, Gaynor called it her "least favorite version" of the song. Gaynor didn't like how Cake changed some of the original lyrics to make it more profane.
• An instrumental version of Cake's 1996 hit song "The Distance" appeared in an episode of The Simpsons in 2000. After numerous delays due to licensing issues, the original song replaced the instrumental version in later syndicated airings.
• Cake's 2001 album Comfort Eagle was a huge success but the band was forced to cancel a number of live dates in light of the September 11 attacks. The band was planning on doing a second tour of Europe at the time but instead decided that it might not be a good idea to travel overseas. They played their planned US gigs and also streamed a show from the Yahoo! office in California online.
• The late Rick James appears in the video for the Cake song "Love You Madly." In the clip, James is judging a cooking competition between band members along with comedian Phyllis Diller and TV personality Jeff Smith. Billboard called the video "fresh, witty, and downright fun."
• Cake singer John McCrea is a big fan of the soft-rock '70s band Bread. "I think Bread was one of those bands that got overlooked at the time by people that were into music," he said. "But the songs are beautiful and you can't argue the geometry of the music."
• Cake say the key to their unique sound is, ironically, cheap guitars. Guitarist Xan McCurdy elaborates: "McCrea's guitar is a s--tty old starter guitar from the '60s. They probably made a million of them off an assembly line. We never get the exact same tone twice."
• Pete McNeal, who drummed for Cake from 2001 to 2004, was sentenced to 15 years to life in California state prison for child molestation on December 2, 2014. The incident occurred during a Thanksgiving party McNeal attended, where he allegedly molested a 3-year-old girl.
• Cake kicked off their 1999 world tour in Deerfield Beach, Florida, by playing the Bar Mitzvah of Mitchell Schop, a big fan who sent them a letter with the request. To prove his dedication, he sang his favorite Cake song to them over the phone, and amazingly, the band agreed.
  
  The intimate celebration included only about 60 guests; Mitchell later reflected, "This is my dream come true. I will never forget it."
• John McCrea's lyrics often take some strange turns, resulting in lines like:
  
  Beyond your latest ad campaigns
  An old man sits collecting stamps
  (from their song "Frank Sinatra")
  
  "I just sort of take notes about things that I find interesting or disturbing or upsetting," he told SubMerge magazine. "Then eventually I sit down and put all these little pieces of paper into songs and that's my process."

Comments

More Songfacts:

Big Yellow TaxiJoni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" is about the commercialization of Hawaii. On her first trip to the islands, she looked out of her hotel window and saw a parking lot as far as the eye could see.

We're Not Gonna Take ItTwisted Sister

Musically, the Twisted Sister song "We're Not Gonna Take It" is based on the Christmas tune "O Come All Ye Faithful."

The FlameCheap Trick

Cheap Trick hated the ballad "The Flame" but recorded it because they needed a hit, and the song delivered, going to #1.

The BestTina Turner

"The Best" by Tina Turner was originally recorded by Bonnie Tyler; Turner's hit version added a bridge and a saxophone solo by Edgar Winter.

RoyalsLorde

Lorde was 16 years and 11 months old when "Royals" topped the Hot 100. In doing so she became the youngest ever solo artist to write and perform a #1 hit.

GreaseFrankie Valli

The song "Grease," sung by Frankie Valli in the 1978 movie, was written by Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees.

Editor's Picks

The Untold Story Of Fiona Apple's Extraordinary MachineSong Writing

Fiona's highly-anticipated third album almost didn't make it. Here's how it finally came together after two years and a leak.

Brian Kehew: The Man Behind The RemastersSong Writing

Brian has unearthed outtakes by Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Costello and hundreds of other artists for reissues. Here's how he does it.

Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet SprocketSongwriter Interviews

The "All I Want" singer went through a long depression, playing some shows when he didn't want to be alive.

Marvin GayeFact or Fiction

Did Marvin try out with the Detroit Lions? Did he fake crazy to get out of military service? And what about the cross-dressing?

Steve Morse of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple's guitarist since 1994, Steve talks about writing songs with the band and how he puts his own spin on "Smoke On The Water."

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: '80s EditionMusic Quiz

You know the scenes - Tom Cruise in his own pants-off dance off, Molly Ringwald celebrating her birthday - but do you remember what song is playing?