The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies

Like Collective Soul and Cry of Love, the Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies emerged as a classic hard rock outfit precisely when grunge and alternative dominated the scene. Hook-driven songcraft allowed Collective Soul to climb the charts, whereas the Wheelies outlasted Cry of Love—which vanished after a lone hit—solely by lasting long enough to issue a follow-up LP, though a loyal audience never materialized.

The Nashville-formed Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies, whose moniker ranks among rock’s most outlandish, came together in 1990. By the post-Nirvana signing frenzy of 1993, Atlantic Records had brought aboard vocalist Mike Farris, bassist Steve Burgess, drummer Terry Thomas, and guitarists Rick White and Bob Watkins. After “Shakin’ the Blues” reached the album-rock Top Ten, the band’s self-titled debut arrived in early 1994. Two years of nonstop touring generated steady AOR rotation and more than 100,000 units sold, yet most of those copies soon appeared in used bins; consequently, the spring 1994 release of Magnolia drew scant attention. Big Wheel arrived in 1998.