Chances are you’ve heard it before.
That Akron Sound.
And no, we are not talking about the sound of orange construction barrels being rolled about the city.
This is the soundtrack for a generation of Akronites and musicians born in the Rubber City amidst its gritty industrial era in the ’70s and ’80s.
This genre of music was born in small clubs in Greater Akron and spread across the world as some of the bands of the era born here went on to bigger fame.
As America celebrates its 250th anniversary, the Akron Beacon Journal along with the Akron History Center are taking a monthly look at the city’s contribution to the fabric of the nation.
And Akron certainly had many contributions to America’s song book ‒ from early jazz influences to that certain DJ by the name of Alan Freed who worked first at WAKR before he went off to Cleveland and coined the phrase “rock and roll.”
Akron’s resident historian David Lieberth, president of the Akron History Center, said the music landscape in 1976 very much reflected the times in Akron.
“It rebelled against generations of conformity to both the rubber and music industries and would become something more that did not fit neatly into a single genre,” he said. “Each band had its own unique sound that would come to collectively define what would become known as the ‘Akron Sound.'”
And the uniqueness would be reflected not only in the music but also by some of the bands themselves.
Devo’s unique Energy Domes that members wore on their heads were just about as famous as the band’s big hits, which included “Whip It.”
Another band of the era had a catchy tune that is still impossible to escape, particularly at the holidays.
As big as “I Know What Boys Like” ended up on the charts, the Waitresses other ear-worm hit was the holiday “Christmas Wrapping” single.
The other notable bands of the era born in Akron include: The Numbers Band, Tin-Huey, The Bizarros, The Rubber City Rebels, Chi-Pig, Hammer Damage and Unit 5.
The Akron History Center has a display dedicated to the bands of the era.
Lieberth said it was English record producer Liam Starnberg who coined the phrase “Akron Sound” when putting together an album featuring notable Rubber City bands in the late 1970s.
The album even had a scratch-and-sniff sticker shaped like a tire on the cover that smelled like rubber.
The genre was helped on the international stage by Chrissy Hynde, who formed The Pretenders in London and released a self-titled album in 1980.
Hynde can still be spotted on stage wearing an Akron-inspired T-shirt.
The so-called “Akron Sound” began to fade by 1984.
But it certainly is not forgotten.
University of Akron professor David Giffels, a former Beacon Journal writer, has helped pen a couple books about the era and the band Devo.
He also contributed to a project for the city’s bicentennial last year about the role these bands played in the city’s history and also on national and international stages.
One thing these bands had in common, Giffels said, is in spite of the varying styles of songs in the punk and new wave movement, there was a common love of Akron and remembering where they started.
“I think (these bands’) Akron identity has more to do with like their get down and dirty work ethic,” he said. “The way they made it was they got into a van and they just set off. They would play wherever anybody would have them.
“They had just sort of nothing more than hard work and stubbornness, which is a very Akron Rust Belt trait. And I think this gives them their Akron identity.”
And this musical legacy continues today.
Just like that “Just a Kid from Akron” NBA star LeBron James, Giffels points out that when the next generation of famous musicians from the Rubber City take the stage in huge arenas today, the first words out of the music duo’s mouths are “We are the Black Keys from Akron, Ohio.”
Giffels is now working on a book about the Black Keys, who often feature images of Akron during their concerts and on their album covers.
“They’ve always used that Akron identity as a key part of who they are even living in Nashville now,” he said.
How can you contribute to this yearlong project?
We’d like to hear from you about what you think the city of Akron’s major contribution to American history has been.
We are collecting your suggestions and plan to use them to help chart our course and also share some of them in our final installment of the monthly series of articles planned for December.
Send along your suggestions − along with a paragraph or two explaining why − by email to vop@thebeaconjournal.com with the subject line “Akron’s contributions,” or mail it to Voice of the People, Akron Beacon Journal, 388 S. Main St., Suite 720, Akron, OH 44311. Be sure to include your full name, city of residence and contact information.
Or, fill out the form below to submit your ideas.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What is the ‘Akron Sound’ that shaped a generation? | America’s 250th
Reporting by Craig Webb, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
