The Crash Test Dummies are a Pop-Folk band from Canada

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-- BIOGRAPHY --

Brad Roberts (lead vocals, bass) Ellen Reid (vocals, piano) Dan Roberts (guitar) Ben Darvill (harmonica, mandolin) Michel Dorge (drums, accordion)

Led by former bartender and University scholar Brad Roberts, Winnipeg's the Crash Test Dummies first appeared on the Canadian music scene in the late 1980's and began to achieve commercial success with the release of their debut album, 'The Ghosts That Haunt Me', in 1991.  With the distinct baritone growl of Roberts, the Dummies were able to break onto charts with the title track, a cover of The Replacements' "Androgynous" and the smash hit "Superman's Song". The video received heavy MuchMusic rotation and was well received south of the border as well.

The album eventually reached quadruple platinum sales (400,000) in Canada, largely due to "Superman's Song", and earned the Dummies a 1991 Juno Award (The Canadian Version of the Grammy) for 'Group of the Year'. The album would go on to sell 1 million copies worldwide.  However, their international status wasn't declared until the follow-up album, 'God Shuffled His Feet', in 1993. The Dummies were fortunate in landing their new material on the untried U.S. market adult album-oriented alternative rock (AAA) format.

Radio stations put the single "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm" into heavy rotation and the video increased the band's exposure in the US. Three additional singles - "Afternoons & Coffeespoons", "Swimming In Your Ocean" and "In The Days Of The Caveman" - caused the album to reach platinum sales status south of the border (one million copies) by mid-1994. It also earned the Dummies three Grammy nominations and three more Juno nominations. 'God Shuffled His Feet' went on to sell more than five and a half million copies worldwide.  A tour helped as well with their debuts on TV shows like 'Late Night With David Letterman' (3 appearances), 'Conan O'Brien', 'Saturday Night Live', 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno', and several European appearances.

During this period BMG compiled all the band's video clips and strung them together with new footage of the band acting out a scripted story. "Symptomology Of A Rock Band" was directed by Canadian filmmaker Kris Lefcoe.  With the release of 1996's "A Worm's Life", the band ran into a bit of controversy over the contents of their video for the single "He Liked To Feel It" which depicted graphic dental shots of a teenager trying to remove his own teeth. In Canada YTV refused to play the clip and in the U.S. RCA removed 8 shots before MTV would air the clip.

The band toured Europe throughout 1997 and returned to the studio to record their next album 'Give Yourself A Hand' featuring the 1999 single "Keep A Lid On Things" and its follow-up "Get You In The Morning" (featuring Ellen Reid on lead vocals). The band is currently touring the record with the additional firepower of keyboards courtesy of Ray Coburn (Honyemoon Suite, Dayna Manning).  The band have continued to release albums, and tour in support of them


-- ALBUMS --

Year 1991 1993 1996 1999 2001 2002 2003 2004

Album Title The Ghosts That Haunt Me God Shuffled His Feet A Worm's Life Give Yourself A Hand I Don't Care That You Don't Mind Jingle All the Way Puss 'n' Boots Songs of the Unforgiven


-- HIT SINGLES --

Year 1991 1991 1992 1993 1994 1994 1994 1995 1996 1997 1999 1999 2001

Song Title Superman's Song The Ghosts That Haunt Me Androgynous Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm Swimming in Your Ocean Afternoons and Coffeespoons God Shuffled His Feet The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead He Liked to Feel It My Own Sunrise Keep A Lid on Things Get You in the Morning Every Morning

Canada #4 #23 #73 #14 #6 #7 #14 #4 #2 #33 #5 #45 ??

United States #56 -- -- #4 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

United Kingdom -- -- --#2--#23--#30 -- -- -- -- --

1997 - My Enemies


-- MUSIC VIDEOS --

Afternoons and Coffeespoons | He Liked to Feel It | Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm | Superman's Song | Swimming in Your Ocean

"The Ghosts That Haunt Me", "God Shuffled His Feet", and "Give Yourself a Hand" are all GREAT albums.

"A Worm's Life" is only ok. I really want "Songs of the Unforgiven", though.

I should also state that they're not always pop-folk.

They have albums that are country and R&B/techno, too. o_O

I really wouldn't recommend "Songs of the Unforgiven".. it creates a really nice atmosphere, but it gets boring after a while.. the songs start blurring together, it gets dull.

I don't like "A Worm's Life" too much either.. there's a few good tracks, but it seems like they really didn't try.

"God Shuffled His Feet" is very good, but occasionally stumbles a bit. Forgiveably so, however.

"The Ghosts That Haunt Me" is amazing. Wow.

"Give Yourself A Hand" is good as a joke, but otherwise, it's not that great of an album for me.

I only know "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm"...their biggest hit in the U.S.

I just remember the Superman Song.

It's probably noteworthy that since "I Don't Care That You Don't Mind", only Brad Roberts and Ellen Reid remain.. they call in Guest musicians to take care of everything else, except on "Songs of the Unforgiven", which were all recorded in a church by Brad and Ellen alone, I believe.