Benjamin Orr - Wikiwand

The Grasshoppers: 1964–1965

Formed in Cleveland, Ohio, the Grasshoppers were an instrumental-based foursome.^[7] Their featured band members were Louis Pratile (lead guitar), Jerry Zadar (bass guitar), and Sid Turner (drummer). They were joined by the then-seventeen-year-old Orzechowski, who became their lead singer, rhythm guitarist, and sometimes doubled as a drummer.^[6]

In 1965, the Grasshoppers released two singles on the Sunburst label: "Mod Socks" and "Pink Champagne (and Red Roses)", the latter written by Orzechowski.

The Grasshoppers (and later the Mixed Emotions) were also the house band on the Big 5 Show, more commonly known as Upbeat, a musical variety television show produced by WEWS-TV in Cleveland.^[5]

Mixed Emotions: 1966

The Grasshoppers dissolved in 1966 when two of the band members were drafted into the U.S. Army. Orzechowski then played in the band Mixed Emotions, which featured Joe Kurelic (drummer), Chris Kamburoff (rhythm guitar), David Gardina (bass guitar), and Jimmy Vince with Orzechowski (lead guitar) as lead vocalists.^[8] The band recorded three unreleased tracks: "Forever You Have My Heart", "I'll Do My Cryin' In The Rain" and "I Can't Help It".^[9]

He later joined another band, the Colours. Eventually Orzechowski was drafted as well, although he received a deferment after approximately a year and a half in the Army.^[10][11]

Various groups: ID Nirvana, Leatherwood

Orr first met Ric Ocasek in Cleveland in the mid-1960s, after Ocasek saw Orr performing with the Grasshoppers on the Big 5 Show.^[12] A few years later, Orr moved to Columbus, Ohio, where he and Ocasek formed a musical partnership that would continue in various incarnations (until the breakup of the Cars in 1988). In the late 1960s, they formed the bands ID Nirvana and Leatherwood, performing in and around Ohio State University.^[12]

Milkwood: 1970–1972

In the early 1970s, after moving to Boston, Massachusetts, the two musicians formed the folk trio Milkwood with guitarist Jim Goodkind. The group was named after a Dylan Thomas poem called "Under Milkwood".^[13] In 1972, the group released one album, How's the Weather? under Paramount Records which failed to chart.^[14] From the list of songs on the album, Orr wrote "Lincoln Park".^[13]

Various groups: Ocasek & Orr, Richard and the Rabbits

Remaining in Boston, the duo Ocasek and Orr then formed another band, Richard and the Rabbits, featuring keyboardist Greg Hawkes.

Cap'n Swing: 1975–1976

This was followed by another Ocasek and Orr band, Cap'n Swing, "an almost famous band". The additional band members included guitarist Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes, Todd Roberto, Danny (Schliftman) Louis, and Glenn Evans.^[15]

They would perform songs such as "City Lights", "Jezebel", "Strawberry Moonlight", "Will You Still Love Me Tonight", and "Come Back Down". A few of these songs would make an appearance in the early days of the Cars, in 1977. In later years, there was a CD released labeled the Jezebel album, which contained demos.^[15]

After the group broke up in 1976, Orr, Ocasek, Hawkes, Easton and drummer David Robinson formed the Cars.

The Cars: 1977–1988

As a member of the Cars, Orr sang lead vocal on some of the band's best-known songs, including their first hit in the top 40, "Just What I Needed", "Let's Go", and "Drive", their highest-charting single in the United States.

Orr's work with the Cars spanned eleven years and six studio albums culminating with Door to Door, before the group disbanded in 1988. Afterwards, he and the other members pursued solo work.

Solo career

Orr released his only solo album, The Lace, in 1986. He cowrote the music and lyrics with his long-time girlfriend Diane Grey Page, who also sang backing vocals and appeared on the album's back cover.^[16]

The album featured a top-40 pop and top-10 album rock hit, "Stay the Night".^[17] An accompanying music video for the song was played in heavy rotation on MTV.^[18] A second single, "Too Hot to Stop", was also released, but did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100, although it reached No. 25 on the album rock chart.

In the late 1980s, Orr worked with Joni Mitchell's husband Larry Klein, who coproduced The Lace. Orr provided backing vocals for "Number One" and "The Beat of Black Wings" for Mitchell's 1988 album Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm.^[19]

In the mid-1990s, Orr recorded tracks with guitarist John Kalishes for an unreleased follow-up album to The Lace, including a rendition of Stan Meissner's "River of Fire". Although the album was never officially released, multiple tracks exist.^[20]

Various groups: ORR Band, Voices of Classic Rock, Big People

From 1998 until his death in 2000, Orr performed with his own band ORR and two side bands, Voices of Classic Rock with Mickey Thomas and John Cafferty,^[21][22] and cover band Big People^[2] with Pat Travers, Jeff Carlisi (of 38 Special), Derek St. Holmes (of Ted Nugent's band) and Liberty DeVitto (of Billy Joel's band).