The Del Fuegos

After disbanding in the late 1980s, the various members of the

Del Fuegos went on to lead remarkable second lives. In the New Year,

however, all four original members of the acclaimed Boston quartet will

come together for a 12-city tour of the Eastern Seaboard and Midwest.                                                                

The Del Fuegos are among a handful of legendary rock and roll exports from

Boston, Mass. Recording alongside X, the Blasters, Los Lobos, and others

for L.A. ‘s Slash Records, the Del Fuegos burned brightly through the

1980s. They played more than 200 dates a year internationally and

released albums that were consistently favorites of audiences and

critics alike. Even before they released their first record, Rolling

Stone named them a band to watch. Touring with groups ranging from the Kinks

to the Replacements to INXS, ZZ Top and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers,

the Del Fuegos played a style of rock and roll that knocked down the

door, stole your girlfriend, and won your heart. Over six busy years,

they built a reputation. And then they disappeared.                                                                                             

Of course, not every disappearance is of the same kind. In the case of the Del

Fuegos, it ‘s the character of their disappearance that is finally so

Intriguing.  After breaking up, none of the band members took a job at a

bait shop.  Neither did any of the band members take jobs at Guitar

Center. The Del Fuegos dispersed . . . widely. In time, some reports

filtered in: two of the band members earned PhDs, one launched a drug

and alcohol rehab, and one started a new movement in family music. No

one would have called it. Four members . . . and each one reinvented

himself. And now they’re back, if only for a short visit.