Westworld (British band)
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1986 |
| Founder | Bob "Derwood" Andrews, Elizabeth Westwood |
| Defunct | 1994 |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
| Products | Pop rock, rockabilly music |
Westworld was a British band blending pop rock and rockabilly genres, active from 1986 until 1994. They are primarily recognized for their 1987 UK Top 20 single, "Sonic Boom Boy".
History
The group was established in 1986 by Bob "Derwood" Andrews, formerly the guitarist of Generation X, and American singer Elizabeth Westwood. The original lineup also featured drummer Nick Burton. Prior to the release of their third album, Burton departed and was succeeded by Gary "Gaz" Young and Tracey "T.J." O'Conner, which expanded the band into a four-member ensemble.
Westworld's sound fused elements of 1950s rock and roll, glam rock, and punk with contemporary electronic components such as beatboxes and sequencers. Their debut single, "Sonic Boom Boy," climbed to number 11 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1987 and was utilized in advertisements by Sony. Another track, "Ba-Na-Na-Bam-Boo," also reached the UK Top 40, peaking at number 37 that same year. The band produced three albums before moving to Arizona in 1992, where they formed the group Moondogg.
Although they did not achieve widespread success in the American market, their song "Painkiller" attained the position of number 17 on Live-105, a modern rock station in San Francisco, within its "Top 105.3 Songs of 1988" list. Westworld's music left an impact on other musicians; notably, The JAMs incorporated samples from Westworld alongside Whitney Houston and Isaac Hayes in their house mash-up single "Whitney Joins the JAMs".
The track "Ba-Na-Na-Bam-Boo" was included on the soundtrack for the 1987 film Planes, Trains & Automobiles, while "So Long Cowboy" appeared in the 1991 motion picture Point Break. In 2018, a retrospective album titled Sick Cool, featuring recordings from 1992 to 1994, was commercially released in the United States.
Studio albums
- Where the Action Is / Rockulator (1987)
- Beatbox Rock 'N' Roll (1988)
- Movers and Shakers (1991)
- Sick Cool (2018)
Compilation albums
- Beatbox Rock 'N' Roll (1997)
Singles
- "Sonic Boom Boy" (1987) UK #11, AUS #27
- "Ba-Na-Na-Bam-Boo" (1987) UK #37, AUS #79
- "Where the Action Is" (1987) UK #54
- "Silvermac" (1987) UK #42
- "Everything Good Is Bad" (1988) UK #72
- "Dance On" (1989)
- "Do No Wrong" (1991)
- "Lipsyncher" (1992)
Soundtrack appearances
| Title | Release | Soundtrack |
|---|---|---|
| "Ba-Na-Na-Bam-Boo" | 1987 | Planes, Trains and Automobiles |
| "So Long Cowboy" | 1991 | Point Break |