Yo La Tengo (original) (raw)

Yo La Tengo is an American rock band that never achieved popular success but has become a critics' favorite. Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley, a husband/wife duo, formed the band in 1984 (1984 in music). They went through several other bandmembers before stabilizing with Dave Schramm and Mike Lewis for their debut recording, "The River of Water". In 1986, their first LP, Ride the Tiger, was released (1986 in music).

Schramm and Lewis left the band, and Stephen Wichnewski joined, with Kaplan taking on the role of lead guitar. 1987's New Wave Hot Dogs did much to establish the band's reputation among rock critics, though it sold poorly (1987 in music). President Yo La Tengo (1989 in music) continued this trend, with raving reviews yet poor sales.

1990 saw the release of Fakebook, an album of mostly folk tunes, including covers from Gene Clark, Rex Garvin & the Mighty Cravers, the Escorts, the Flamin' Groovies, the Scene Is Now and the Kinks (1990 in music). May I Sing with Me (1992 in music) included new bassist James McNew (of Christmas). Painful (1993), Electr-o-Pura (1995 in music) and I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One (1997 in music) marked a steady progression towards folk-British Invasion oriented songs. They released And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out in 2000 (2000 in music) and Summer Sun in 2003 (2003 in music).