The Mighty Mighty Bosstones

About

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (informally referred to as The Bosstones and often stylized as The Mighty Mighty BossToneS) are an American ska punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1983. From the band's inception, lead vocalist Dicky Barrett, bassist Joe Gittleman, tenor saxophonist Tim "Johnny Vegas" Burton and dancer ("Bosstone") Ben Carr remained constant members. The band's final lineup also included drummer Joe Sirois, saxophonist Leon Silva, guitarist Lawrence Katz, keyboardist John Goetchius, and trombonist Chris Rhodes.

The Bosstones are often credited as one of the progenitors of the genre of ska punk and the creators of its subgenre ska-core, which mixes elements of ska with hardcore punk. Starting with the release of their 1989 debut Devil's Night Out, the band toured and recorded extensively throughout the 1990s, becoming influential in the development of the American third-wave ska scene and was one of the first bands to popularize the genre in the musical mainstream. They reached their commercial peak with their platinum-selling 1997 album Let's Face It and its hit single "The Impression That I Get". The band was also notable for being featured in the 1995 film Clueless as the frat party house band. The band had released seven studio albums, three EPs and a live album by the time they announced a hiatus in December 2003. In 2007, the Bosstones reunited to resume recording and touring, and released four more studio albums between 2009 and 2021. From 1994 to 2002, and again from 2007 to 2019, they hosted the annual Hometown Throwdown music festival, held annually around Christmas time in Cambridge and later Boston. The band disbanded in 2022, with Barrett reviving it in 2026.

From The Mighty Mighty Bosstones on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Members

Leon Silva 2016–now saxophone
Dicky Barrett now · original member lead vocals
Tim “Johnny Vegas” Burton now · original member background vocals, tenor saxophone
Ben Carr now · original member task
Joe Gittleman now · original member background vocals, electric bass guitar
Chris Rhodes now
Josh Dalsimer 1983–1991 · original member · former drums (drum set)
Nate Albert 1983–2000 · original member · former background vocals, electric guitar
Dennis Brockenborough 1991–2000 · former trombone
Joe Sirois 1991–2003 · former
Kevin Lenear 1991–2016 · former alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone
Roman Fleysher 1998–2008 · former tenor saxophone
Lawrence Katz 2000–2022 · former background vocals, electric guitar
John Goetchius 2008–2022 · former keyboard