Cub Koda(1948-2000)
- Actor
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Michael "Cub" Koda was born on October 1, 1948, in Detroit, Michigan.
His father Max owned a small-town newspaper in Manchester, Michigan. He
got his nickname Cub from the character of Cubby on the TV show
The Mickey Mouse Club (1955).
Koda was a drummer at age five and formed his first group, The
Del-Tinos, while attending Manchester High School. The group recorded
three singles before breaking up in 1966. Cub formed the rock band
Brownsville Station in 1969, which
scored a big hit in 1973 with the terrifically thrilling teen attitude
anthem classic "Smokin' in the Boy's Room," which peaked at #3 on the
Billboard pop charts and sold over two million copies. Brownsville
Station continued to perform in concert and record albums, but
disbanded in 1979.
Koda began recording one-man band songs in such diverse music genres as
country, blues, R&B, jazz, rockabilly and early rock'n'roll with a
multi-track tape recorder while still a member of Brownsville Station;
these recordings were released as the album "That's What I Like About
the South!" in 1984. In 1979 he started writing the regular column "The
Vinyl Junkie" for "Goldmine" magazine. In 1980 Koda worked with blues
singer Hound Dog Taylor's backing band The Houserockers. He also began
writing liner notes and compiled records for numerous CD compilations
issued by Rhino Records, Time-Life, MCA and Motown; among the
compilations he wrote liner notes for are three volumes of the
acclaimed "Blues Masters" series and "Best of" retrospective
compilations for such artists as Link Wray,
The Trashmen,
Jimmy Reed and The Miller Sisters. He
was the editor and a contributing writer for the book "The All Music
Guide to Blues" and both co-wrote and edited the paperback publication
"Blues for Dummies" in 1998. In addition, Koda recorded and released
albums of his own material, which include "Welcome to My Job," "Abba
Dabba Dabba: A Bananza of Hits," "Box Lunch," and the especially
well-received "Noise Monkeys."
Cub Koda was still writing and recording music when he died suddenly of
kidney failure at the tragically young age of 51 on July 1, 2000.
His father Max owned a small-town newspaper in Manchester, Michigan. He
got his nickname Cub from the character of Cubby on the TV show
The Mickey Mouse Club (1955).
Koda was a drummer at age five and formed his first group, The
Del-Tinos, while attending Manchester High School. The group recorded
three singles before breaking up in 1966. Cub formed the rock band
Brownsville Station in 1969, which
scored a big hit in 1973 with the terrifically thrilling teen attitude
anthem classic "Smokin' in the Boy's Room," which peaked at #3 on the
Billboard pop charts and sold over two million copies. Brownsville
Station continued to perform in concert and record albums, but
disbanded in 1979.
Koda began recording one-man band songs in such diverse music genres as
country, blues, R&B, jazz, rockabilly and early rock'n'roll with a
multi-track tape recorder while still a member of Brownsville Station;
these recordings were released as the album "That's What I Like About
the South!" in 1984. In 1979 he started writing the regular column "The
Vinyl Junkie" for "Goldmine" magazine. In 1980 Koda worked with blues
singer Hound Dog Taylor's backing band The Houserockers. He also began
writing liner notes and compiled records for numerous CD compilations
issued by Rhino Records, Time-Life, MCA and Motown; among the
compilations he wrote liner notes for are three volumes of the
acclaimed "Blues Masters" series and "Best of" retrospective
compilations for such artists as Link Wray,
The Trashmen,
Jimmy Reed and The Miller Sisters. He
was the editor and a contributing writer for the book "The All Music
Guide to Blues" and both co-wrote and edited the paperback publication
"Blues for Dummies" in 1998. In addition, Koda recorded and released
albums of his own material, which include "Welcome to My Job," "Abba
Dabba Dabba: A Bananza of Hits," "Box Lunch," and the especially
well-received "Noise Monkeys."
Cub Koda was still writing and recording music when he died suddenly of
kidney failure at the tragically young age of 51 on July 1, 2000.