From their origins in the sweaty back-street punk clubs of the Boston hardcore scene, the Lemonheads and their photogenic singer/guitarist Evan Dando (b. Evan Griffith Dando, 4 March 1967, Boston, Massachusetts, USA) came full circle to feature on the cover of teen-pop magazines such as Smash Hits. The band first formed as the Whelps in 1985, with Jesse Peretz on bass and Dando and Ben Deily sharing guitar and drum duties. Enthused by DJ Curtis W. Casella’s radio show, they pestered him into releasing their debut EP, Laughing All The Way To The Cleaners, in a pressing of 1, 000 copies, on his newly activated Taang! label. It featured a cover version of Proud Scum’s ‘I Am A Rabbit’, an obscure New Zealand punk disc often aired by the DJ. By January 1987, Dando had recruited the band’s first regular drummer, Doug Trachten, but he stayed permanent only for their debut album, Hate Your Friends, allegedly pressed in over 70 different versions by Taang! with an eye on the collector’s market. This was a more balanced effort than the follow-up, which this time boasted the services of Blake Babies member John Strohm. Creator (reissued in 1996 with extra tracks) revealed Dando’s frustration at marrying commercial punk pop with a darker lyrical perspective, evident in the cover version of Charles Manson’s ‘Your Home Is Where You’re Happy’ (the first of several references to the 60s figurehead).
The band split shortly afterwards, following a disastrous Cambridge, Massachusetts gig where Dando insisted on playing sections of Guns N’Roses’ ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’ during every guitar solo. However, the offer of a European tour encouraged him to reunite the band, this time with himself as drummer, adding second guitarist Coorey Loog Brennan (ex-Italian band Superfetazione; Bullet Lavolta). After Lick was issued in 1989, Deily, Dando’s long-time associate and co-writer, decided to leave to continue his studies. He would subsequently assemble his own band, Pods. However, for the second time Dando dissolved the Lemonheads, immediately following their acclaimed major label debut, Lovey. Peretz moved to New York to pursue his interests in photography and film, while new recruit David Ryan (b. 20 October 1964, Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA) vacated the drum-stool. The new line-up featured Ben Daughtry (bass; ex-Squirrel Bait) and Byron Hoagland (drums). However, the new rhythm section was deemed untenable because Daughtry ‘had a beard’, so Peretz and Ryan (both Harvard graduates) returned to the fold.
The band, for some time hovering on the verge of a commercial breakthrough, finally achieved it by embarking on a series of cover versions; ‘Luka’ (Suzanne Vega) and ‘Different Drum’ (Michael Nesmith) were both Melody Maker singles of the week. There were also two cover versions on their Patience And Prudence EP, the old 50s chestnut ‘Gonna Get Along Without You Now’, plus a humorous reading of New Kids On The Block’s ‘Step By Step’ - wherein Dando imitated each of the five vocal parts. Other choices included Gram Parsons, hardcore legends the Misfits, and even a track from the musical Hair. However, the cover version that made them cover stars proper was an affectionate reading of Simon And Garfunkel’s ‘Mrs Robinson’. By 1992, Nic Dalton (b. 6 June 1966, Canberra, Australia; ex-Hummingbirds, and several other less famous Antipodean bands) had stepped in on bass to help out with touring commitments, his place eventually becoming permanent. Dando had met him while he was in Australia, where he discovered Tom Morgan (ex-Sneeze, who had also included Dalton in their ranks), who would co-write several songs for 1992’s It’s A Shame About Ray set. Dando’s ‘girlfriend’ Juliana Hatfield (bass, ex-Blake Babies) also helped out at various points, notably on ‘Bit Part’. She was the subject of ‘It’s About Time’ on the follow-up, Come On Feel The Lemonheads, on which she also sang backing vocals. Other guests included Belinda Carlisle.
The success of It’s A Shame About Ray offered a double-edged sword: the more pressure increased on Dando to write another hit album, the more he turned to hard drugs. Sessions were delayed as he took time out to repair a badly damaged voice, allegedly caused through smoking crack cocaine. That Come On Feel The Lemonheads emerged at the tailend of 1993 was surprise enough, but to hear Dando’s songwriting continue in its purple patch was even more gratifying. Car Button Cloth, recorded with a completely new line-up of the band, came in the wake of Dando’s further attempts to clean up. It was generally well received and contained some of his most mellow (some would say broody) songs to date.
The band was subsequently dropped by Atlantic Records, although the label issued a greatest hits album in 1998. Dando cleaned himself up and embarked on some well-received live dates in the new millennium. He released his excellent solo debut, Baby I’m Bored in early 2003. In 2005, Dando played a number of live dates with a new line-up of the Lemonheads. He then completed a highly enjoyable new Lemonheads album with Bill Stevenson (drums) and Karl Alvarez (bass) of the Descendents.
