Music Flashback: Billy and the Boingers

Billy and the Boingers was a short-lived American Rock Band that had some minor success during the mid 1980′s.

The group was originally formed in Bloom County, Minnesota in the summer of 1984.

At that time, the band consisted of:

Bill the Cat – Lead Tongue, Vocals
Opus Croakus – Rhythm Tuba
Nameless Rabbit – Drums, Percussion

The Group’s debut album “Billy and the Boingers Bootleg” was released in early 1985. It was a critical flop but did yield the minor hits “I’m a Boinger” and “U Stink but I love You“.

Soon, the band was building a devoted legion of fans, stalkers, and groupies around the globe.

Lead Tongue Bill the Cat became a hit on the talk show circuit with his unique and complex grasp of the English Language..

“Ack!” soon became a worldwide catchphrase.

Merchandising riches soon followed as Bill the Cat Shirts, Hats, Jewelry, Lingerie, and Stuffed Animals quickly became the rage among the group’s rabid fan base.

The band seemed on the brink of Superstardom, even with just having the one critically savaged album under their belts.

Lead Tongue Bill the Cat quickly became internationally known for his amazing four-octave range.

Even Gene Simmons of KISS has stated that he envied Bill’s extraordinary tongue skills.

The group launched a successful world tour that spanned the globe during much of 1985 and 1986.

In 1988, the group went back into the studio to record their second original album. Strife within the band soon caused Nameless Rabbit to threaten to depart the band. The band added local friend Steve Dallas as lead Smoker, mainly so that he could stand in front of the disgruntled rabbit during the photo shoot for the new album cover.

The subsequent Album “The Joshua Tree” was due to be released in 1999. The Irish Band U2 quickly sued Billy and the Boingers, claiming copyright infringement, stating that the band had copied not only the title of a U2 album of the same name, but had also copied the original artwork on the cover.

The “Billy and the Boingers” version of “The Joshua Tree” was never released as U2 successfully and easily won their legal case on all counts.

Later, they returned to the road, opening for such as acts as Judas Priest, Wham!, and Rick Astley.

Times were getting tough.

Struggling to stay relevant in the cruel world of Rock Music, the band decided to take a drastic change of direction in 1990 which resulted in their changing their name to “DeathTongue“. The new band embraced a dark brand of Heavy Metal music that did not resonate with their fans.

Although they toured lightly in 1990, “DeathTongue” never recorded a studio album.

With that, the band officially disbanded in 1991.

Opus Croakus became an out of work Underwear Model.

Bill the Cat, considered the greatest Lead Tongue of his generation, tried branching off into the world of male modeling, but was highly unsuccessful.

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Billy and the Boingers have all but vanished off the face of the Earth.

Today, their whereabouts are unknown, but their legend lives on.

**Rumors are that Bill may come out of Retirement for the next installment of Dancing with the Stars. We can only hope this is true. **