Biography of Minutemen

At their best, The Minutemen made eclecticism seem as effortless as breathing: in songs that seldom lasted more than a minute (hence their name), this San Pedro, CA, trio touched on everything from jazz and funk to anarchist punk, bohemian beat poetry, and '70s dinosaur rock. Their songs (mostly written by either vocalist and guitarist D. Boon or bassist and vocalist Mike Watt) seethed with political outrage; their wry sense of humor (often pointed at themselves) separated them from the dead-serious punk brats on the West Coast, as did the diversity of their music. Their career was cut short in 1985 when Boon died in a car crash. Watt and MM drummer George Hurley formed fIREHOSE in 1986. ~ John Floyd