Me First and the Gimme Gimmes

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Background information
Origin California, United States
Genres Punk rock, pop punk[1][2]
Years active 1995–present
Labels Fat Wreck Chords
Associated acts Lagwagon, NOFX, Foo Fighters, Swingin' Utters, No Use for a Name
Website gimmegimmes.com
Members
Spike Slawson
Joey Cape
Chris Shiflett
Fat Mike
Dave Raun

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes (often shortened to just "Me First" or "The Gimme Gimmes") is a punk rock supergroup and cover band that formed in 1995. The Gimmes work exclusively as a cover band. The band is named after a children's book of the same name by Gerald G. Jampolsky and Diane V. Cirincione. The Gimmes have a habit of wearing quirky matching costumes during their live shows.

Contents

History

The band originally did not plan on releasing albums; rather, in their first year their work only appear on compilation albums. This changed in 1995, when the band began releasing singles named after the singer they had covered. They produced Billy, Diamond, Paul, Denver, Barry, Shannon, Stevens, and Elton in this manner. Their first full-length album, Have a Ball, was released July 29, 1997.

Each album by the band has a different theme: Have a Ball focuses on classic 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s songs by singer/songwriters like Elton John, Neil Diamond, and John Denver; Are a Drag consists entirely of showtunes, Blow in the Wind consists of 60s classics, Take a Break consists entirely of contemporary R&B songs by artists such as Boyz 2 Men, Lionel Richie, and Vanessa L. Williams; their fifth album, Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah, was recorded live at an actual bar mitzvah and consists of pop music from the 1960s through the 1980s by artists such as REO Speedwagon, Styx and The Beatles, as well as traditional songs like "Hava Nagila"; and Love Their Country's theme is country and western songs such as The Eagles and Garth Brooks. Their latest record, Have Another Ball! has the same theme as their debut which is 60's-80's music.

They entered the studio on April 3, 2006 to work on their sixth album, Love Their Country, which was released on October 17, 2006.[3] The theme of this album is country and western, and includes covers of tracks by Dixie Chicks, Garth Brooks, Hank Williams, Sr. and Johnny Cash.[4] Prior to the release of the album, Fat Wreck Chords released a digital label sampler, iFloyd which included "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky" by the band.[5]

In late 2006, Fat Wreck Chords released another digital label sampler Christmas Bonus, containing a previously-unreleased cover of Steve Goodman's "City of New Orleans".[6] In August 2006 Me First and the Gimme Gimmes were scheduled to play three dates at PNC Park after Pirates games, but after they got booed on the first night, the next two nights were cancelled. They were to play along with fireworks during the post-game "Skyblast" shows.

On December 5, 2007, Fat Wreck Chords released a flash MP3 holiday bonus sampler called Hanuk-Comp containing "The Boxer" which was originally released on the "Garf" single (released in 1997).[7] There is also a downloadable podcast that features commentary from Fat Mike and Floyd during breaks between songs in which the next album is revealed.[8] It is named Have Another Ball! and contains all the B-sides from Have a Ball. The album was released on July 8, 2008. Fat Wreck Records released "Go Down Under" on February 1, 2011. The EP features 5 songs from musicians that originated in Australia.[9] They have finished recording an album covering only Japanese music, aptly titled "Sing in Japanese", to coordinate with their upcoming tour in Japan.[10] The album will be released September 13.[11]

Members

The core lineup, left to right: Cape, Slawson, Raun, Burkett, and "Jake Jackson" (Chris Shiflett)

"Fill-in" members for tours

  • Brian Baker (of Minor Threat and Bad Religion) filled in for Shiftlett in 2006.
  • Chris Shiflett's brother, Scott Shiflett (of Face to Face and Viva Death) has been filling in for him on the band's most recent tours.
  • NOFX guitarist Eric Melvin filled in for Fat Mike on bass during the 2007 European tour and 2008 Australian tour.
  • Adam Stern from Youth Brigade and Royal Crown Revue filled in for Fat Mike on bass; Mark Mortenson from Screw 32 filled in for Dave Raun on drums; Grant McIntire also from Screw 32 filled in for Joey Cape on Guitar; and Barry d'live Ward from Rich Kids on LSD and Crosstops filled in for Chris Shiflett on guitar during the 1996 Tour.
  • Warren Fitzgerald of The Vandals & Lindsay McDougall of Frenzal Rhomb filled in on guitars during the bands participation in the 2003 Livid Festaival in Australia.

Costumes

The Gimmes have a habit of wearing quirky matching costumes during their live shows. Some of the themes match the albums, such as when they dress in cowboy outfits to accompany the album Love Their Country or in drag as various characters from musicals in Are a Drag. They have also worn pajamas, red suits, cheerleader outfits, shiny suits and fezzes, and, during one show in Camden, NJ on the Warped Tour, dressed as the band AFI (who in turn dressed as The Gimmes). Easily the most common and popular costume set are their matching Hawaiian shirts of varying styles and colors over the years.

Discography

Main article: Me First and the Gimme Gimmes discography

Albums

Year Title
1997 Have a Ball
1999 Are a Drag
2001 Blow in the Wind
2003 Take a Break
2004 Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah
2006 Love Their Country
2008 Have Another Ball
2011 Go Down Under
2011 Sing in Japanese

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Cover 'Desperado' | Spin Magazine Online". Spin.com. 2006-10-05. http://www.spin.com/features/heythisisawesome/2006/10/061005_mefirst/. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  2. ^ "INTERVIEW: Me First and the Gimme Gimmes: Punk Rock's Ultimate Cover Band". In Music We Trust. http://www.inmusicwetrust.com/articles/37h08.html. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  3. ^ "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Bad Astronaut record titles and release dates". Punknews.org. http://www.punknews.org/article/18612. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  4. ^ "News: Fat Wreck Chords". Fatwreck.com. http://fatwreck.com/news?page=3. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  5. ^ Fat Wreck Chords Sampler 2006[dead link]
  6. ^ Fat Wreck Chords :: Christmas Bonus[dead link]
  7. ^ "Fat Wreck Chords :: From The Dreidel To The Grave". S3.fatwreck.com. http://s3.fatwreck.com/dreidel/player.html. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  8. ^ "Community: Fat Wreck Chords". Fatwreck.com. http://www.fatwreck.com/community. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  9. ^ "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes :: Go Down Under – Records: Fat Wreck Chords". Fatwreck.com. http://www.fatwreck.com/record/detail/765. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  10. ^ "Me First And The Gimme Gimmes release a Japanese covers EP". Altpress.com. 2011-05-17. http://www.altpress.com/features/entry/me_first_and_the_gimme_gimmes_release_a_japanese_covers_ep/. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 
  11. ^ "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes :: Sing In Japanese - Records: Fat Wreck Chords". Fatwreck.com. http://www.fatwreck.com/record/detail/776. Retrieved 2011-10-25. 

External links

v · d · eMe First and the Gimme Gimmes
Studio albums
Live albums
Compilation albums
Have Another Ball
EPs
Turn Japanese · Go Down Under
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