The Buggles facts for kids
The Buggles was an English music group made up of two talented musicians: Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes. Trevor Horn was the singer and played bass guitar and guitar, while Geoff Downes played keyboards. They are most famous for their very first song, Video Killed the Radio Star, which came out in 1979. This song was a huge hit, reaching number one in 16 different countries!
The music video for Video Killed the Radio Star was also very special. It was the very first music video ever shown on MTV in the United States! This happened on August 1, 1981, at 12:01 AM.
After their second album, Adventures in Modern Recording, didn't do as well, the group decided to break up in 1981.
Contents
The Buggles Story
Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes first met in the mid-1970s. They were both trying out for the backing band of a singer named Tina Charles. They also worked with her producer, Biddu, whose music helped inspire their own early songs.
Trevor Horn shared that the band was first going to be called "The Bugs." He said, "The Bugs were like imaginary insects in recording studios that caused trouble." But then someone joked that "The Bugs" would never be as famous as The Beatles. So, they changed the name to "The Buggles" as a fun play on words.
Their Big Hit: "Video Killed the Radio Star"
The Buggles' first big song, "Video Killed the Radio Star," was released in September 1979. It quickly became the 444th song to reach number one on the music charts in the United Kingdom. It stayed at the top for one week and also hit number one in 15 other countries! A famous composer named Hans Zimmer even worked on this song and appears briefly in its music video.
The End of The Buggles
After their first album, Downes and Horn started working on their second album, Adventures in Modern Recording. One song, I Am a Camera, was finished as a Buggles song. However, during the recording of the album, Geoff Downes left the group. He went on to form a new band called Asia with Steve Howe, who was also a member of the band Yes.
Trevor Horn finished the album with help from other songwriters and musicians. Adventures in Modern Recording was released in late 1981. Sadly, the five songs released from this album – I Am a Camera, Adventures in Modern Recording, On TV, Lenny, and Beatnik – were not as successful as "Video Killed the Radio Star." Because of this, The Buggles came to an end.
The Buggles' Music
Studio albums
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK |
CAN |
NOR |
SWE |
USA |
|||||||||
| 1980 | The Age of Plastic | 27 | 83 |
23 | 24 | — | |||||||
| 1981 | Adventures in Modern Recording | — | — | — | 50 | 161 | |||||||
| "—" means the song or album did not appear on the music chart. | |||||||||||||
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK |
AUT |
CHE |
GER |
IRL |
NLD |
NZL |
SWE |
USA |
ZAF |
|||||
| 1979 | "Video Killed the Radio Star" | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 40 | 6 | The Age of Plastic |
| 1980 | "Living in the Plastic Age" | 16 | — | — | 5 | 29 | — | — | 29 | — | — | — | — | |
| "Clean Clean" | 38 | — | — | — | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Elstree" | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981 | "I Am a Camera" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 46 | — | — | — | — | Adventures in Modern Recording |
| "Adventures in Modern Recording" | — | — | — | — | — | — | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982 | "On TV" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Lenny" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 17 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Beatnik" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" means the song or album did not appear on the music chart. | ||||||||||||||
Music videos
- "Video Killed the Radio Star"
- "Living in the Plastic Age"
- "Clean Clean"
- "Elstree"
- "I Am a Camera"
- "Adventures in Modern Recording"
Images for kids
-
The Buggles' name was a funny take on The Beatles, shown here in 1964.
-
Geoff Downes (on the right) performing with his later band, Asia, in 2006.
See also
In Spanish: The Buggles para niños
