Answering “Whatever Became Of” Questions from Twitter

First, if you’ve ever sent me a message on Twitter, my sincerest apologies for not replying promptly.  I get so many messages through Twitter, email and Facebook that it’s almost a full time job managing all of them.  Tip: for faster service, use old-fashioned email. The absolute last place you should send me a message is on Facebook.

I have pledged to do better in this area, starting now.  This is an attempt to catch up on some of the Twitter messages that ask about the current whereabouts of artists:

Clarence Carter:  The soul singer is now 76 years old but he continues to release a record almost every year.  His last album, Sing Along With Clarence Carter, came out last year.

Hindu Love Gods:  This was a temporary group formed by all four members of REM with their friends Warren Zevon and Bryan Cook.  They released just the one album (a self-titled thing in 1990).  Now that Warren is dead, the chances of this band ever doing anything ever again are zero.

Bruce Hornsby:  He’s still around and quite active with The Bruce Hornsby Trio and a project with country star Rickey Skaggs.  Bruce has also done a fair amount of work with the Grateful Dead over the last ten years.

Proclaimers:  The Reid twins turned 50 this year and continue to make albums and tour.

Romeo Void:  This San Francisco band was around for six years (1979-1985) and continue to milk their big hit, “Never Say Never.”  Singer Deborah Illyah became an art teacher but has dabbled in various recording projects over the years.

Sugar Ray:  Although they’ve kept a low profile over the last dozen years or so, the band is still a going concern, albeit with a few personnel changes.  The last album was Music for Cougars in 2009.  They have a big tour planned for this summer.