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[french_disko]

http://football.guardian.co.uk/thekn...554787,00.html

Other than the Kaiser Chiefs, St Etienne and (the more obscure) Van Basten, are there any other bands named after football clubs, players or managers?" wonders Derrick Cameron.
More than you can shake a drumstick at, Derrick. Many of you highlighted French "blues, pop and high-energy groove" band Aston Villa, who hail from the suburbs of Paris and have been on the scene since 1994. Not to be outdone, Premiership rivals Arsenal have leant their name to a Belgian dance-salsa band, while Manchester United were Mick Hucknall's inspiration for Simply Red. And Owen Griffiths adds: "I remember seeing a band at Reading in about 1999 called We Hate Tottenham. Good name, rubbish band."

John Wilkes casts the net slightly wider: "One of the most contrived names ever must be the Welsh 'lounge-core' group, 'Dynamo Dresden'. A German newspaper ran a story about them last year; apparently, the group leader saw Dynamo playing in the Uefa Cup during the 80s and became a fan. Or he remembered their name, at least." There's Georgia-based garage-soul band Red Star Belgrade, too. "One group to spring up in the 90s were Bocca Juniors (sic)," adds Simon Condliffe, "a short-lived collective of London DJs, fanzine writers and movers and shakers. The most notable member was Andrew Weatherall, producer of the classic Primal Scream album Screamadelica, along with fellow DJ/producer Terry Farley."
Then there's Sham 69, who were named after a piece of graffiti on a wall celebrating Walton & Hersham's successful 1969 season. Part of the wall having disappeared, the band adopted what was left.

And "Step forward Boa Morte," says Barry MacCarthy, "Cork's finest exponents of low-fi alt-country (www.boamorte.com). And their drummer, Birdy Hallissey, used to play in a Cork collective called Johhny Ekstrom, named after that fabulous marauding Swedish Visigoth of the 70s." Meanwhile Julian Minervini chips in with a band called Edson. "The band was formed by Pelle Carlberg in the summer of 1998," he says, "naming the band after the great Edson Arantes do Nascimento - Pele." And a band named simply 'Pele' was also formed during the 90s. Even one of the great man's predecessors, Leonaidas (credited with the invention of the bicycle kick), was honoured, this time by Manchester band 'Leonaidas Kiss'.

Also doing the rounds as a band name is one Mr Cruyff, not only the inspiration for Dutch outfit Johan, but also, according to Andrew Gardner, a local band in the northern Japanese city of Yamagata: The Cruyff Turn. There's also dance outfit Enzo Scifo, Seattle band Cantona and the Welsh language musings of Ian Rush. Posters for the Leeds festival in 2001 had a 'Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink' on the bottom of the bill, though whether or not this was an in-joke by promoters we're not sure.

Managers don't seem to engender the same inspiration. Lots of you reckoned Scottish popstrels Danny Wilson were named after the MK Dons boss. Not so: it was the 1952 Frank Sinatra film, Meet Danny Wilson. But Crewe Alexandra's Dario Gradi can rightly claim to be the inspiration for dj trio Dario G, which includes Crewe native Paul Spencer. And their Carnaval de Paris went on to become the theme for World Cup 98 too.

[Steve Temple]

De Barros

[soundian]

The Zoltan Vargas, Goixketcea (fuck it, you spell it, spanish dude, butcher of seville I think).

EDIT: Close, it's Goikoetxea, butcher of Bilbao.

that is just TASTELESS.
im not hungry anymore.

[Time Machine]

Was there nae a 70s prog-rock band called Scunthorpe United?

[Bobby]

Eric Euan are named after an imaginary footballer

[get lost]

Celtic Frost, rather chilly round Parkhead these days

[Keilan 303]

Afc Casualties

[Graeme]

KASULE...Victor Kasule used to play for ?

[April Ethereal]

I'm sure I've heard of a band called The Vauxhall Conference. Not a football team I know but close.