Milkwood

Many associate Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr so closely with new wave that imagining either musician in another genre feels nearly impossible. Long before the pair achieved fame as the creative core of the hit-making band the Cars, they played together in the little-known folk group Milkwood. Ocasek and Orr, still using their original surnames Otcasek and Orzechowski, had shared stages in various bands since the 1960s, yet only gained meaningful notice in the early 1970s. That recognition brought a recording contract with the Paramount label for Milkwood, whose lineup also featured Jas Goodkind. The trio’s sole album, the 1972 release How’s the Weather, displayed clear echoes of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and America. After the record vanished from view soon after its release, Milkwood dissolved; Ocasek and Orr then returned to their first musical passion, rock & roll, and went on to form one of the era’s most successful rock bands. Although rumors of a reissue have surfaced repeatedly, the long-unavailable album has never appeared on CD.