Ric Ocasek
| Ric Ocasek | |
|---|---|
Ocasek in 2009
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Richard T. Otcasek |
| Born |
March 23, 1949 Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
| Genres | Rock, new wave |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter, record producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1973–present |
| Labels | Elektra, Geffen |
| Associated acts | The Cars |
| Website | ricocasek |
| Notable instruments | |
| Fender Jazzmaster | |
Richard T. Otcasek (born March 23, 1949), known as Ric Ocasek (/rɪk oʊˈkæsᵻk/), is an American songwriter, musician and record producer. He is best known as the vocalist, rhythm guitarist and songwriter for the rock band the Cars. Ocasek has been married to model Paulina Porizkova since 1989.
Ocasek grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. When Ocasek was 16 years old, his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from Maple Heights High School in 1963, Ocasek briefly attended Bowling Green State University and Antioch College. However, he dropped out to pursue a career in music.
Ocasek met future Cars bassist Benjamin Orr in Cleveland in the 1960s after Ocasek saw Orr performing with his band the Grasshoppers on the Big 5 Show, a local musical variety program. He reconnected with Orr a few years later in Columbus, Ohio, and the two began booking bands together. Soon, they formed one of their own and began to perform in and around Ohio State University.
Ocasek and Orr were in various bands in Columbus and Ann Arbor, Michigan before re-locating to Boston in the early 1970s. In Boston, they formed a Crosby, Stills and Nash-style folk rock band called Milkwood. They released one album, How's the Weather, on Paramount Records in early 1973 but it failed to chart. After Milkwood, Ocasek formed the group Richard and the Rabbits, which included Orr and keyboardist Greg Hawkes, who had played on Milkwood's album. Ocasek and Orr also performed as an acoustic duo during this period. Some of the songs they played became the early Cars songs. Later, Ocasek and Orr teamed up with guitarist Elliot Easton in the band Cap'n Swing. Cap'n Swing soon came to the attention of WBCN disc jockey Maxanne Sartori, who began playing songs from their demo tape on her show. After Cap'n Swing was rejected by several record labels, Ocasek got rid of the bass player and drummer and decided to form a band that better fit his style of writing. Orr took over on bass and David Robinson, best known for his career with the Modern Lovers, became the drummer. Hawkes returned to play keyboards and the band became "The Cars" in late 1976.
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