'''10,000 Maniacs''' is a US rock band, formed in 1981 and active with various line-ups since that time. Perhaps the most well-known member has been Natalie_Merchant, who left the band in 1993 to pursue a solo career.
The band was formed, as Still Life, in Jamestown,_New_York, by Steven_Gustafson (then 23 years old and a bass player), Dennis_Drew (23; keyboards) and Robert_Buck (22; guitar), Terry Newhouse (Buck's ex-wife and a vocalist) and Chet Cardinale (drums). Gustafson invited Merchant, then aged 17, to do some vocals. John_Lombardo (28; guitar) who was in a band called The Mills, used to play with Still Life occasionally and was invited to join permanently. Newhouse and Cardinale left the band in July, and Merchant became the main singer. Various drummers came and left. The band changed its name to Burn Victims and then to 10,000 Maniacs, after the low-budget horror movie ''Two_Thousand_Maniacs''.
They performed as 10,000 Maniacs for the first time on September_7, 1981 (Labor_Day), with a line-up of Merchant, Lombardo, Buck, Gustafson, Drew, and Tim Edborg (drums). Edborg left and Bob "Bob O Matic" Wachter was on drums for most of the 1981 gigs. Tired of playing other people's songs, they started to write their own, usually with Merchant writing lyrics and Lombardo the music. In February-March 1982, with Jim Foti on drums, the band recorded an EP called ''Human_Conflict_Number_Five''. More gigs followed in 1982.
At the beginning of 1983, drummer Jerry_Augustyniak (26) joined the band. The Maniacs met Augustyniak when they played in Buffalo,_New_York, where he was in a punk band called The Strains and he was invited to be part of the band. Between March and July they recorded songs for a second record, ''Secrets_of_the_I_Ching'' — their Debut_album — which was pressed by Mark Records for the band's own label, Christian Burial Music. The record was well-received by critics and it caught the attention of John_Peel, a DJ at Radio BBC_Radio_1 in London. One song, "My_Mother_the_War" turned out to be a minor hit in the United_Kingdom, and it entered the independent singles chart. During 1983 and 1984, touring was a way of life for the band and they also played some gigs in the UK. It was during this time that they lived in Athens, Georgia for a short while.
Peter Leak, an Englishman living in New York City, became interested in the band, made contact and was made their manager. With the help of Leak and Elektra_Records A&R; man Howard Thompson, 10,000 Maniacs signed to Elektra in 1985. They recorded their second full-length album, ''The_Wishing_Chair'', in London with Joe_Boyd as producer.
Lombardo left the band on July_14, 1986. The remaining five members started the recordings of a new album in Los_Angeles, with Peter_Asher as the producer. ''In_My_Tribe'', a more pop-rock oriented record, was released on July_7, (1987), hit the charts and established a large US audience for the group, which was expanded by ''Blind_Man's_Zoo'' (1989). In 1990, with the help of Lombardo, they remastered their first two records (Human Conflict and I-Ching) and released them as a compilation called ''Hope_Chest''. Lombardo and Mary_Ramsey, who had formed a folk act called John_&_Mary, opened gigs for the Maniacs on the Hope Chest Tour in 1990. In 1991, during the recordings of a new album, Merchant revealed to the other members that she would be leaving for a solo career in two years time. In 1992, ''Our_Time_in_Eden'' was released. On April_19, 1993, 10,000 Maniacs recorded ''MTV Unplugged'' and Merchant announced her leaving the band on MTV on August_5, 1993. (Her first solo album, ''Tigerlily'', was released by Elektra on June_20, 1995.) The 10,000 Maniacs ''MTV Unplugged'' CD was released in October of 1993. The remaining members of 10,000 Maniacs then absorbed John_&_Mary, with Ramsey on viola and vocals.
10,000 Maniacs released two albums with Mary Ramsey on vocals. In 1997 they released ''Love Among the Ruins'' and followed up in 1999 with ''The_Earth_Pressed_Flat''.
On December_19, 2000, Robert Buck died of liver failure at age 42. Their last concert with Buck had been on November_3, 2000, when the band played with the Buffalo_Philharmonic_Orchestra, in Buffalo,_New_York.
The band took a break. Gustafson and Drew, with Jeff_Erikson (guitar) started a band called Mighty Wallop. Jerry joined a band called Only Human. On December_5, 2001, a 10,000 Maniacs line-up comprising Gustafson, Drew, Augustyniak, Lombardo and Ramsey played on a Benefit_concert in Toronto, with Erikson on guitar. Lombardo and Ramsey left 10,000 Maniacs in 2002.
In 2003, Gustafson, Drew and Augustyniak formed a new line-up by adding Erikson on guitar and Oskar_Saville from Rubygrass on vocals, and played some gigs.
On January_27, 2004, Elektra/Asylum/Rhino Records released ''Campfire Songs'', subtitled "The Popular, Obscure and Unknown Recordings", a two CD set compilation, with 31 digitally remastered songs, four of them demos and one unreleased. The 2nd disc contained B-sides and outtakes throughout the band's (up to that point) career, including many covers. Jackson_Browne's "These Days" and Tom_Waits "I Hope that I Don't Fall in Love with You" were among those included.
==Discography==
*''Human_Conflict_Number_Five'' (1982)
*''Secrets_of_the_I_Ching'' (1983)
*''The_Wishing_Chair'' (1985)
*''In_My_Tribe'' (1987)
*''Blind_Man's_Zoo'' (1989)
*''Hope Chest: The Fredonia Recordings 1982-1983'' (1990)
*''Our_Time_in_Eden'' (1992)
*''MTV Unplugged'' (1993)
*''Love Among the Ruins'' (1997)
*''The_Earth_Pressed_Flat'' (1999)
*''Campfire_Songs:_The_Popular,_Obscure_and_Unknown_Recordings'' (2004)
==Singles==
{| class="wikitable"
|rowspan="2"|'''Year'''
|rowspan="2"| '''Title'''
|colspan="4"| '''Chart positions'''
|rowspan="2"| '''Album'''
|-
|US Hot 100
|US Modern Rock
|US Mainstream Rock
|UK
|-
| 1988
| "What's the Matter Here?"
| -
| #9
| -
| -
| ''In My Tribe''
|-
| 1989
| "Trouble Me"
| -
| #3
| -
| -
| ''Blind Man's Zoo''
|-
| 1989
| "Eat for Two"
| -
| #12
| -
| -
| ''Blind Man's Zoo''
|}
==External links==
*Official Site
*10,000 Maniacs Lyrics
*Natalie Merchant's website; includes official lyrics and sound clips.
*Robert Buck memorial and donation site
Ten Thousand Maniacs
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Ten Thousand Maniacs
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