The Knack

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The Knack are a Los Angeles-based rock band that rose to fame with their first single, "My Sharona", in 1979 (see 1979 in music) from their debut album, Get the Knack. "My Sharona" was an international hit that earned the band comparisons to The Beatles. Music critics hated disco, which dominated the music industry at the time, and were, at best, coolly receptive to other developing trends like punk rock, hip hop and heavy metal music. The Knack's power pop and hard rock influences earned them some critical credibility. After subsequent albums, though, the backlash against The Knack, similar to that of the Monkees a generation earlier, was strong, and the band broke up. They have since re-united and in 2001 put out their studio album Normal As The Next Guy and their live DVD Live From The Rock N'Roll Funhouse. They continue to tour and thrill fans with their high energy rock and roll performance.

The song "My Sharona" was later parodied by the Dead Kennedys with the song "Pull My Strings" which included lines such as "I'll make my music boring, I'll play my music slow, I ain't no artist, I'm a business man, No ideas of my own". Additionally, the chorus of "My Sharona" is parodied in the song, with the words "My Sharona" replaced with "My Payola". The song was also parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "My Bologna", replacing the chorus with "Never gonna stop, eat it up, such a tasty snack I always eat too much, then throw up, but I'll soon be back my-yi-yi-yi-yi oh! My Bologna!". Chicago radio personality Steve Dahl parodied the song as "Ayatollah" (following the Iranian Revolution of 1979), leading off with the line "Oooh, ya' got a real nice beard, a real nice beard." In 2004, Michael Youn, from french tv M6, parodied it again to make the soundtrack of his movie, "Le 11e commandement" (the 11th commandment). The title was "Comme des connards" (like morons). Also, the Mexican rock group Moderatto parodied this song as "Chaperona." On an episode of the Simpsons television show about a Karaoke contest, the three thugboys from Bart's school sing "My Sharona," outside the Simpson's house. Homer yells out the upstairs window, "That song is a rock and roll footnote."

Singer Doug Fieger, a native of Detroit, Michigan, had previously played in a country rock band called Sky. His brother Geoffrey Fieger is a well-known and often controversial lawyer and Michigan political candidate. Of the three other original members of the Knack (Berton Averre - Guitar, Prescott Niles - Bass, and Bruce Gary - Drums), Averre and Niles still currently play with The Knack. Several drummers have played for the group over the years, including Billy Ward (Serious Fun Album), Terry Bozzio (Zoom Album), and David Henderson as 'Holmes Jones' (Normal as the Next Guy and Live at the Rock N Roll Funhouse Albums). Currently Pat Torpey (Mr. Big) is playing the drums for the group.

In 2005, The Knack made an appearance on the TV program "Hit Me Baby One More Time".

The Knack continue to write and record new songs, and they play concerts several times per month. More information can be had at the band's website (link below). A Yahoo discussion group for The Knack is also available.