Smash Mouth
Smash Mouth is an American rock band from San Jose, California. The band was formed in 1994 and was originally composed of Steve Harwell, Kevin Coleman, Greg Camp, and Paul De Lisle. Harwell's departure in 2021 left De Lisle as the sole remaining original member. They are known for their songs "Walkin' on the Sun", "All Star", and "Then The Morning Comes", as well as a cover of The Monkees' "I'm a Believer".
The band adopted retro styles covering several decades of popular music. They have also performed numerous covers of popular songs, including War's "Why Can't We Be Friends?", Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up", Simple Minds' "Don't You ", ? & the Mysterians' "Can't Get Enough of You Baby", The Beatles' "Getting Better", Queen's "Under Pressure", House of Pain's "Jump Around", and "I Wan'na Be Like You" from The Jungle Book. They also composed two songs for the South Korean animated film Pororo, The Racing Adventure: "Beside Myself" and "Everything Just Crazy".
History
1990–1997: formation and ''Fush Yu Mang''
Smash Mouth's roots trace back to 1990 when Steve Harwell and Kevin Coleman met. Smash Mouth was then formed in 1994 by Harwell, who had formerly played in a rap group called F.O.S.. Coleman, who was Harwell's manager, knew guitarist Greg Camp and bassist Paul De Lisle, who had both played in a local punk band, and introduced the three musicians to each other. They began rehearsing together along with Coleman, who played as the drummer. They soon developed into a band, and named themselves Smashmouth, an American football term. During their early years, the band played largely rock music.The band's first publicity came when a demo of the song "Nervous in the Alley" was played by a San Jose radio station, KOME. Soon after, Interscope Records signed the band, and the group's debut album, Fush Yu Mang, was released in 1997, featuring another member: the keyboardist Michael Klooster. Also, upon signing to Interscope Records, the band changed their name from Smashmouth to Smash Mouth. The album seen commercial success peaking at number 19 on the US Billboard 200 and number 23 in Canada. It was led by the band's first major single "Walkin' on the Sun" which peaked at number 1 on the US Adult Top 40 and Alternative Songs charts and at number 3 in Canada. The singles "The Fonz" and a cover of "Why Can't We Be Friends" from the 1998 Kevin Bacon film Wild Things were also subsequently released. The album has since gone double platinum. During this time the band officially started touring regularly even opening for U2 on their PopMart Tour and got their first television appearance as the musical guest on episode 157 of ''Oddville, MTV.''
1998–2004: rise to fame, ''Astro Lounge'', ''Smash Mouth'', and ''Get the Picture?''
The band's second album, Astro Lounge, was released in 1999 and marked a change in direction, as it had less of the previous ska influence and more of a pop sound. It led to more publicity for the band, and ended up being one of the most critically acclaimed albums from the group. It peaked at number 6 on the US Billboard 200, the highest the band has ever charted in the states, and reached the top 20 in both Canada and New Zealand. Supported by the hit single "All Star" the song reached number 4 on both the Billboard hot 100 and Australia it then charted even higher in Canada peaking at number 2. "Then the Morning Comes" was also a hit for the band and peaked a number 11 on the Billboard hot 100. Astro Lounge has since been certified as triple platinum. Due to the rise in popularity Smash Mouth started to perform at more notable events including the 1999 Home Run Derby in July at Fenway Park after the band finished playing, Greg Camp said "Save Fenway Park", referencing plans to demolish the stadium and replace it with a new facility; this elicited boos from the crowd. On September 9, 1999 they performed in pouring rain, as the opening act of the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards. They also made appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan O'Brien.Also in 1999, The East Bay Sessions was released as a collection of early songs. Shortly after the release of the album, drummer Kevin Coleman left the band due to back problems. He was initially replaced by Michael Urbano, who was quickly replaced by Mitch Marine for the tour supporting Astro Lounge, who was subsequently replaced by Urbano after the tour.
In 2000 the band was nominated for a for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards for the song "All Star".
In 2001, Smash Mouth covered the Monkees' hit song "I'm a Believer". It peaked at number 25 on the Billboard hot 100 and was featured on both the soundtrack for Shrek and their self-titled album which was released on November 21, 2001. The album sold fewer copies than the band's earlier works peaking at number 48 on the Billboard 200, but it since been certified gold. Also in 2001, the group appeared as themselves in the climactic scene of the film Rat Race.
On September 26, 2001 the band appeared on Drew Carey's Back-to-School Rock 'n' Roll Comedy Hour. In 2002 the band played select shows as the opener for NSYNC on their Celebrity Tour.
In 2003, Get the Picture? was released, It is their last studio album to chart in the US. Peaking at number 100 on the Billboard 200. It featured the singles "You Are My Number One", "Hang On" and "Always Gets Her Way". Smash Mouth was dropped from Interscope shortly after the release of Get the Picture?. The songs "Hang On" and their cover of "Getting Better" both appeared The Cat in the Hat. That same year, the band performed a cover of the Sherman Brothers song "I Wanna Be Like You" for the animated film The Jungle Book 2. Also in 2003 the band appeared in animated form in the Television show Kim Possible, in the episode "Queen Bee" where their animated counter parts played the song "Come On, Come On".
2005–2011: new label, fluctuating lineup and ''Summer Girl''
Smash Mouth released the greatest hits compilation All Star Smash Hits in 2005. The album contains some more popular songs from previous Smash Mouth albums, as well as songs from soundtrack albums that were not on the band's releases. On certain networks and time slots, the album was advertised as having 18 tracks, including an edited version of "Flo". Smash Mouth played at Gumby's Birthday Celebration in August 2005. That same year the group once again appeared in animated form in an episode of What's New, Scooby-Doo titled "Reef Grief".In December 2005, the band released a Christmas album Gift of Rock. It featured covers of Christmas songs by many artists, such as the Kinks and the Ramones, and one original song, "Baggage Claim".
Smash Mouth's fifth studio album, originally to be titled Old Habits, was recorded in 2005 and expected to be released in early 2006. The band had said that the album was much more like the ska punk featured on Fush Yu Mang and The East Bay Sessions. In September 2005, the band performed what was tentatively going to be the album's first single, "Getaway Car", on Last Call with Carson Daly. The album was delayed many times, in the hope of gaining publicity with Harwell's appearance on the reality show The Surreal Life. Smash Mouth returned to the studio intent on improving the record. Old Habits was shelved, replaced by Summer Girl, which included some remixed Old Habits tracks as well as new songs. After being delayed in much the same way Old Habits was for several months, the album was released on September 19, 2006. Smash Mouth let Sony Pictures use much of their music from Summer Girl and other songs for the movie Zoom, whose opening titles credit the film's music to the band.
Before the release of Summer Girl, drummer Michael Urbano left the band without warning on February 14, 2006 due to creative differences. He was initially replaced by former drummer Mitch Marine, and then by Jason Sutter, best known for his work with American Hi-Fi and the Rembrandts. The band released their new album, Summer Girl, later that year. In early 2007, one year after joining the band, Sutter left Smash Mouth to play drums for former Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell; fill-in drummer Marine returned to Smash Mouth.
Band members changed over the course of several years. Greg Camp left the band in the summer of 2008 which was a big loss as he had written many of the band's biggest hits such as All Star and Walkin' on the Sun. Smash Mouth recruited Leroy Miller to play guitar. Leroy left in 2009 and Camp returned to the band, but in 2011 Camp left once again and this time the band recruited Sean Hurwitz. Hurwitz stayed until 2012, and was replaced by Mike Krompass. Later in 2012, Hurwitz returned. In 2009 Mitch Marine left once again and was replaced by Urbano, who left again after only one year in 2010, and was replaced by Marine once again. Marine left yet again after a brief spell in 2010 and was replaced by Randy Cooke. Cooke was briefly replaced by Jason Sutter in 2011, then Charlie Paxson.
In June 2011, a writer at Something Awful offered $20 if the band's lead singer, Steve Harwell, would eat 24 eggs. Others on Twitter began offering additional sums, eventually targeted to various charities. In July 2011, Harwell accepted the challenge if fans could gather pledges of $10,000 for St. Jude Children's Hospital. The fundraising goal was reached in less than a week. A self-styled "reality TV fan", Harwell requested that his friend celebrity chef Guy Fieri prepare the eggs. The event was held at Johnny Garlic's restaurant, in Dublin, California, on October 11, 2011. With about 150 people attending, Harwell was able to finish the eggs with the help of audience members as well as the San Jose Sharks mascot, Sharkie. $15,000 was raised for charity.
On July 17th, 2011, Smash Mouth performed live at the Hard Rock Cafe on the Vegas Strip, airing a 60 minute concert simultaneously across the US & Canada on HDNet Television, CBS Radio, and CBS Digital.