Biography
Ric Ocasek earned his greatest recognition serving as frontman, lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and chief songwriter for the Cars, yet he also maintained an active sideline as producer for numerous unrelated performers across several decades.
Richard Otcasek entered the world in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 23, 1944; by age sixteen his musical interests had been sparked by early rock figures such as Buddy Holly & the Crickets. Early in the 1970s he relocated from Cleveland to Boston and joined friend Ben Orzechowski in the folk outfit Milkwood, which issued the single, now-obscure album How’s the Weather in 1973. When that release failed to register on the charts the trio disbanded at once, although Otcasek and Orzechowski continued their partnership. Drawing inspiration from proto-punk acts the Modern Lovers, the Velvet Underground, and Roxy Music, the pair launched Rick & the Rabbits and adopted streamlined surnames—Orzechowski becoming Orr and Otcasek becoming Ocasek.
By the middle of the decade the expanded lineup incorporated Greg Hawkes on keyboards and synthesizers, Elliot Easton on guitar, and former Modern Lovers drummer Dave Robinson. The five-piece soon adopted the name the Cars, with Ocasek established as sole leader and sole writer of the group’s material, yielding a leaner sonic and visual identity that aligned precisely with the rising new-wave scene. Elektra signed the band, which achieved instant prominence through its landmark, million-selling self-titled debut in 1978. Subsequent LPs—Candy-O in 1979, Panorama in 1980, and Shake It Up in 1981—placed the Cars among the foremost rock attractions in the United States. During the same stretch Ocasek broadened his résumé by producing Suicide, Bad Brains, Romeo Void, and Iggy Pop while delivering his own first solo statement, Beatitude, in 1982.
MTV’s arrival elevated visual presentation to parity with sound, and the Cars proved ideally suited to the format; their 1984 album Heartbeat City ranked among the year’s dominant rock releases, generating multiple Top Ten singles alongside heavily rotated, visually distinctive videos. Around this period Ocasek drew tabloid notice through his relationship with, and subsequent marriage to, fashion model Paulina Porizkova, who had featured in the video for the Cars’ hit ballad “Drive.” In 1986 he issued his second solo album, This Side of Paradise, before rejoining the Cars for their last studio effort, the modestly received Door to Door, released in 1987; the group dissolved the following year.
Ocasek remained largely out of view immediately after the split, resurfacing only in 1990 with Fireball Zone. He continued releasing solo projects through the nineties: Quick Change World and Negative Theater in 1993, the Alan Vega collaboration Getchertikitz in 1996, and the Billy Corgan-produced Troublizing in 1997, which he briefly toured—the first such outing since the Cars’ breakup.
From the mid-nineties onward he resumed production duties for Bad Religion, Black 47, Johnny Bravo, D Generation, Guided by Voices, Hole, Possum Dixon, Martin Rev, Jonathan Richman, and both of Weezer’s self-titled hit albums issued in 1994 and 2001. In 2005 the Sanctuary distribution network granted him his own imprint, Inverse, for developing emerging talent and simultaneously released Nexterday, his first new solo album in eight years. He died of natural causes at age seventy-five on September 15, 2019.
Richard Otcasek entered the world in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 23, 1944; by age sixteen his musical interests had been sparked by early rock figures such as Buddy Holly & the Crickets. Early in the 1970s he relocated from Cleveland to Boston and joined friend Ben Orzechowski in the folk outfit Milkwood, which issued the single, now-obscure album How’s the Weather in 1973. When that release failed to register on the charts the trio disbanded at once, although Otcasek and Orzechowski continued their partnership. Drawing inspiration from proto-punk acts the Modern Lovers, the Velvet Underground, and Roxy Music, the pair launched Rick & the Rabbits and adopted streamlined surnames—Orzechowski becoming Orr and Otcasek becoming Ocasek.
By the middle of the decade the expanded lineup incorporated Greg Hawkes on keyboards and synthesizers, Elliot Easton on guitar, and former Modern Lovers drummer Dave Robinson. The five-piece soon adopted the name the Cars, with Ocasek established as sole leader and sole writer of the group’s material, yielding a leaner sonic and visual identity that aligned precisely with the rising new-wave scene. Elektra signed the band, which achieved instant prominence through its landmark, million-selling self-titled debut in 1978. Subsequent LPs—Candy-O in 1979, Panorama in 1980, and Shake It Up in 1981—placed the Cars among the foremost rock attractions in the United States. During the same stretch Ocasek broadened his résumé by producing Suicide, Bad Brains, Romeo Void, and Iggy Pop while delivering his own first solo statement, Beatitude, in 1982.
MTV’s arrival elevated visual presentation to parity with sound, and the Cars proved ideally suited to the format; their 1984 album Heartbeat City ranked among the year’s dominant rock releases, generating multiple Top Ten singles alongside heavily rotated, visually distinctive videos. Around this period Ocasek drew tabloid notice through his relationship with, and subsequent marriage to, fashion model Paulina Porizkova, who had featured in the video for the Cars’ hit ballad “Drive.” In 1986 he issued his second solo album, This Side of Paradise, before rejoining the Cars for their last studio effort, the modestly received Door to Door, released in 1987; the group dissolved the following year.
Ocasek remained largely out of view immediately after the split, resurfacing only in 1990 with Fireball Zone. He continued releasing solo projects through the nineties: Quick Change World and Negative Theater in 1993, the Alan Vega collaboration Getchertikitz in 1996, and the Billy Corgan-produced Troublizing in 1997, which he briefly toured—the first such outing since the Cars’ breakup.
From the mid-nineties onward he resumed production duties for Bad Religion, Black 47, Johnny Bravo, D Generation, Guided by Voices, Hole, Possum Dixon, Martin Rev, Jonathan Richman, and both of Weezer’s self-titled hit albums issued in 1994 and 2001. In 2005 the Sanctuary distribution network granted him his own imprint, Inverse, for developing emerging talent and simultaneously released Nexterday, his first new solo album in eight years. He died of natural causes at age seventy-five on September 15, 2019.
Albums
