Originally, the band was all-female, with vocalist Linda Perry, bassist Christa Hillhouse, guitarist Shaunna Hall, and drummer Wanda Day.[4] However, before their album was released, Dawn Richardson replaced Day on drums, and Roger Rocha replaced Hall on guitar.
Perry left the band in 1994, and the remaining members disbanded shortly afterward.[5]
Career
Formation
Bassist Christa Hillhouse and guitarist Shaunna Hall had been roommates and met drummer Wanda Day when they joined a band she was playing in. When the three left that band, they started playing as a trio, but after seeing Perry sing at a solo performance, Hillhouse and Hall asked her to join as vocalist.
According to Perry, she and Hall were at Nightbreak, a San Francisco club, and when it was mentioned the trio was looking for a vocalist, Perry announced she was a singer, to which Hall replied, "I know". Their first rehearsal was supposed to be at 6:10 pm on October 17, 1989, but shortly after 5:00 pm the Loma Prieta earthquake hit the San Francisco area.[6][7]
The name of the band came from an experience the group had in the Bay Area with a blonde family. According to Christa Hillhouse, "Right next to us, there's a trash receptacle with a piece of pizza on top and the kid wanted to pick it up. The mom said, 'No, it's probably dirty, what with the pigeons and people.' And she stared right at us. We were Non Blondes."[8] They said the experience became a symbol that they did not fit the California stereotype.
Bigger, Better, Faster, More!
They got their start in the San Francisco bar scene, especially lesbian bars, gaining a significant lesbian following.[5][9] In July 1991, the band was signed to Interscope[4] following a performance at the Gavin Convention, where they opened for Primus on Valentine's Day of the same year. As they began pre-production for their debut album, Day was fired and replaced by Dawn Richardson. In 1992, while recording Bigger, Better, Faster, More! the album's producer, David Tickle, felt that Hall's guitar playing was "not happening" so she was let go from the band as well.[10] Guitarist Louis Metoyer finished the record.
The album and its song "What's Up?" was released as the album's second single in 1993. It was successful in the United States[11] and in several European countries, peaking at number one in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland.[citation needed]
Roger Rocha joined after completion of the album and stayed with the band until 1994.
The group disbanded in late 1994 during the recording of their second album. Perry has said that she had been unhappy with Bigger, Better, Faster, More![5] She has also explained that her sexuality had a part to play in her tensions with the group. Perry was an out lesbian, but band members Hillhouse and Richardson were less comfortable being as open about their sexuality in the early 1990s.[3]
Hall has recorded, produced, composed for, and performed with various artists, including vocalist Storm Large (1999–2001), guitarist Eric McFadden (1995–2001), and funk pioneer George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic and released "Electrofunkadelica: e3+FUNKnth = music for the body, mind & soul", a self-produced project in 2006 on Make Music, Not War! Records.
After leaving the Non Blondes in 1991, Day continued drumming with Malibu Barbi, and then Bad Dog Play Dead. In late 1992, an accident crushed her legs and broke her back, which made drumming very painful. She moved out of San Francisco in 1995, spent some time in Arizona and eventually went back to Salt Lake City.[16] Day died on July 10, 1997, and is buried in Tropic, Utah.[17]
Hillhouse maintains the official website for 4 Non Blondes.[18]
Perry and Hillhouse reunited in 1999 in support of Perry's solo tour.[19]
Reunion
On May 11, 2014, the group reunited to perform a concert at a fundraiser entitled "An Evening For Women: Celebrating Arts, Music and Equality" which was held at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. Perry produces the annual event for the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center to raise money for the center. According to Perry, "the majority of the money goes to the youth center program, which is basically kids that get thrown out on the street by their own parents for being gay."[20] The six songs on the track list were "Train", "Spaceman", "The Ladder", "Mighty Lady", "Superfly", and "What's Up?", and the fundraiser was organized by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.[21]
Dolly Parton and Linda Perry did a cover of the band's song "What's Up?" in 2023.[22]
^Indiana, Gary (July–August 1991). "4 Non Blondes Interview". Flipside.
^Griggs, Lee; Wyss, Dennis; Reingold, Edwin M.; Willwerth, James (October 30, 1989). "Earthquake". Time. Archived from the original on December 24, 2008. Retrieved November 13, 2008.
^Martin, Louise (September 24, 1993). "Mane of the game is success". The Age.
^Walters, Barry (September 17, 1996). "Nonblonde ambition". The Advocate. Vol. 716. pp. 81–82. ISSN0001-8996.
^Portwood, Jerry; Freeman, Jon; Spanos, Brittany; Exposito, Suzy; Lambe, Stacy; Camp, Zoe; Borton, Marcus; Shorey, Eric (June 1, 2019). "Music's Unsung LGBTQ Heroes". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
^Williams, Carla (October 15, 2004). "Music Video". glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture. Archived from the original on March 24, 2007. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
^ ab"4 Non Blondes Triumph Following A 'Shaky' Start". Billboard. December 11, 1993.
^De La O, Maria (October 1, 2011). "What's up with Linda Perry: The lesbian rock legend shares her heartbreak with a new album". Curve.
^ ab"Suchen nach "4 Non Blondes"" [Search for '4 Non Blondes']. Offizielle Deutsche Charts (in German). Media Control AG. Retrieved August 24, 2021. In "Suchen" box at upper right enter "4 Non Blondes" and then Return.
^ ab"'4 Non Blondes". DutchCharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
.jpg)
