You know that guitar riff. If you’re my age, you heard it and the song it comes from on the radio, and from its music video that got heavy rotation on MTV. If you’re younger, you may have heard this tune in a movie, television show, or commercial. If you’ve been alive for the past 30 years, you’ve heard the hit alternative/grunge song Cannonball, by the Dayton, Ohio based band The Breeders.
The Breeders are led by the Deal sisters, Kim and Kelley. The identical twins, who both went to Wayne High School in Huber Heights, had been involved in the music industry for several years before forming The Breeders (Kim was a member of The Pixies, a highly influential alternative rock group, before creating The Breeders). The Cannonball single, released in 1993, was from the group’s second major label album, Last Splash. The song reached number 44 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and was chosen as the best song of the year (1993) by the Village Voice. It’s also been ranked number 489 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. The single has become an American classic, especially with Gen-X music fans.
Crank up the volume, and rock out with a Dayton- made band led by two awesome and legendary Rock Grrrls.
Miami Valley Music Focus explores the places and people behind the music of Southwest, Ohio. This series is made possible by support from Ohio Arts Council.
