Devo Artistfacts

Devo song list

Devo Artistfacts

1972-
Mark MothersbaughVocals, synthesizer
Jerry CasaleBass
Bob CasaleGuitar
Bob MothersbaughGuitar
Alan MyersDrums
Devo formed in 1972 by Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale when they were art students at Kent State University in Ohio. They were both there when the US National Guard killed four student protesters in 1970, an event that informed the band's subversive ideology.
The band is based on the concept of "De-evolution." The theory is that man has regressed, rather than evolved over the years.
Devo consider themselves more artists than musicians. Much of their concept is portrayed in their videos, which show them all dressed alike, going through robotic motions to indicate that people have lost their individuality.
Brian Eno produced their first album, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, released in 1978. Eno was also producing the Talking Heads at this time - he was drawn to the highly artistic sensibilities of both bands.
At first, they didn't want a record deal, figuring they would use their music as the basis for films they could sell instead of albums. When that didn't work out, they made a demo tape and earned a record deal by submitting a tape to Iggy Pop when he played a show in Cleveland on March 21, 1977. Pop shared it with David Bowie, who helped the band get gigs in New York City and a record deal with Warner Bros.
"Whip It" is their only hit, but many of their other songs were covered in the '90 by groups that discovered them. Nirvana, The Foo Fighters, and Soundgarden have all covered Devo songs.
Devo broke up in 1991 after eight albums but reunited to play the Lollapalooza Tour in 1996 and 1997. Over the next several years they played occasional shows, then started playing more frequently in 2005. They put out another album in 2010 called Something for Everybody.
Mark Mothersbaugh writes music for TV shows and commercials; you can hear his work on Pee-Wee's Playhouse and Rugrats. Mothersbaugh's wife and manager Anita Greenspan told Rolling Stone that his Rugrats theme paid for their home back in the '90s.
Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale had a small printing business in the '70s which inspired the title of a Neil Young album. Mothersbaugh was wearing a T-shirt he printed for a rust-removal company when Young saw it and used the slogan, "Rust Never Sleeps."
Their songs are often used in commercials, including spots for Swiffer, Honda, Miller Lite and Target. The band always re-records the songs for the commercials so they can keep all the performance rights. Jerry Casale explained in a Songfacts interview: "We only half control our songs because of a terrible publishing deal we made in 1978 with Richard Branson, who basically tricked Devo. Our lawyers, who were supposed to be looking out for us, encouraged us to sign this deal, which turned out to be more than an administration deal, it turned out to be a publishing deal when it came to ancillary use, which has to do with TV and film. Every time these things come up, we only control the song for song use, like on a record or compilation. When it comes to synching it to movies and TV, we are now in bed with EMI, who bought the publishing from Richard Branson long ago. They have as much say as us and make the lion's share of the money. We can say no, but we shoot ourselves in the foot by doing so. Better to make a little money for the wrong reasons 20 years later than to never make any money at all."
Devo's original business model was based on The Three Stooges, a series of short films that first appeared in the 1920s as movie theaters were showing up everywhere. Devo thought Laser Disc would a game-changer, allowing people to watch movies at home, so they worked on films centered around their songs hoping to take advantage. The technology failed spectacularly, but Devo's films didn't go to waste. They were able to run them at concerts before shows, and when MTV launched in 1981, they put the "Whip It" video in hot rotation.
In 2011, 30 years after "Whip It" made them MTV stars, their song "Uncontrollable Urge" became the theme song to the show Ridiculousness on the network. It proved very lucrative: Over 1500 episodes aired, then re-aired, earning the band royalties every time. Per their policy, they recorded a new version for the theme so they could keep more of those royalties.

Comments: 6

Mike from Germantown, MdI heard there's a group of kids churned out by Disney to cover Devo songs. They don't do it very well, and the lyrics are changed to make it more "family friendly".
Kelly from Santa Rosa, CaI have heard that DEVO and Neil Young have the same manager, and that they all live in the same area of La Honda California. I heard that Tracy Chapman also lives in this tiny rural mountain area, and that she has the same manager as Neil and DEVO....
Anna from Melbourne, AustraliaI like Devo! Go them for wearing flowerpots!
Dan from Special TowneI love their version of the Stones' Satisfaction
Matt from Napanee, CanadaIf I'm not mistaken Iggy was not as responsible as one Brian Eno was in getting there deal but yes Bowie was a big player in the deal.
Andrew from Jackson, MsDEVOlution still lives...

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