The Cars

Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr first met at a party in Columbus, Ohio in the early 1970s and started their musical career as a duo performing rock & roll. After moving to Boston they formed folk band Milkwood with Greg Hawkes and Jas Goodkind, releasing the album 'How's the Weather' in 1973. It was not a success, Milkwood evolved into Richard & the Rabbits and the band went through a further series of personnel and name changes before settling with The Cars, a name suggested by former Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers drummer David Robinson.

Promoted by a local DJ in Boston, the group released their debut album 'The Cars' in 1978 which went on to reach number 18 in the US Album Charts. They built a strong live following and had a string of soft rock hits with 'It's All I Can Do', 'Shake It Up', 'You Might Think' and 'Magic', but their biggest success came in 1985 when their song 'Drive' was used as the soundtrack to a harrowing video showing scenes of the famine in Ethiopia introduced by David Bowie at the Live Aid concert. It caused a sensation and was The Cars' defining moment. However, subsequent releases proved less successful and they split in 1988.

Rumours of a reunion surfaced in the late '90s but nothing was ever confirmed. After a battle with cancer, Orr died in 2000 at the age of 53. The remaining members finally reunited in 2010 with the release of new track 'Blue Tip' with album 'Move Like This' following shortly after. The album debuted at number seven on Billboard's Albums Chart and they embarked on an American tour. After a further seven years of silence, it was announced that The Cars were to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. They reunited to perform at the induction, but just a short time later, Ocasek passed away at his home in New York at the age of 75.