Majosha - Get that Bug Outta Your System
1989
I sure could have used the Internet in 1990. It was around then that I first heard the song "Get That Bug Outta Your System" by Majosha, a curiously named band that absolutely no one seemed to know about. I had discovered them on the late night Jacksonville radio show "Dangerous Exposure" and immediately went out searching for their cassette. However, every record store clerk I asked gave me the same answer: "Never heard of them." Eventually, I just gave up.
Luckily, I always taped Dangerous Exposure, and I had a rough tape dub of the song. I played it occasionally throughout the years and its charms never wore off. Sometime in 2004, I decided to do an Internet search just to see if anything came up. Much to my surprise, I discovered that Ben Folds (yes, the Ben Folds) was the main man behind Majosha. In addition to playing bass, he also played piano and wrote some of the songs, including "Get That Bug Outta Your System."
Folds formed Majosha in Greensboro, North Carolina in 1988 and their first show was at a Duke Battle of the Bands, which they won. Other band members included guitarist Millard Powers and drummer Dave Rich, one of Folds' friends from UNC-Greensboro.
The band played parties in the area and released a self-produced EP called "Party Night: Five Songs About Jesus". I haven't heard the tape, but according to a Ben Folds fan site, "There were 4 songs, and none were about Jesus. The 4 songs were: Get That Bug (Outta Your System), Kalamazoo, Where's Bohemia and Cool Whip."
The band started to get more popular in the area and eventually put out Shut Up and Listen to Majosha on vinyl and cassette. Many of the songs from the earlier cassette were re-recorded, including "Get That Bug Outta Your System." About fifteen years later after my initial search began, I finally found that album on the internet. Actual copies of the cassette and lp are extremely rare, with the vinyl fetching between $200 and $300, so this is probably all I'm ever gonna get.
Majosha broke up in 1990 and Folds went on to a few other short-lived projects before founding Ben Folds Five.
2 comments:
I dug up some compilation tapes from the late 80s that I made during my years as a college radio DJ. One of them had lost it's case and track listing. This is one of the songs! And your blog helped me rediscover the band name. Thanks!
However - I have 4 other songs with unidentified artists - and it's KILLING me!
If you email me mp3's I can take a stab at identifying the songs. The late '80s is a tough era though because a lot of that stuff gets zero attention these days.
Post a Comment