On Thursday (January 27), the famed ska band, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, announced they will romp no more. The Boston-born band said, after nearly 50 years together, it’s over.
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“After decades of brotherhood, touring the world, and making great records together, we have decided to no longer continue on as a band,” they said in a statement on social media.
“Above all, we want to express our sincere gratitude to every single one of you who have supported us,” they added. “We could not have done any of it without you.”
As of yet, there is no stated reason for the sudden news. The band had been slated to perform at the Slam Dunk Festival in June. However, as Rolling Stone reports, the breakup does come just days after it was made known that a song promoted at an anti-vaccination rally in Washington, D.C. by Robert F. Kennedy was apparently composed by the Mighty Mighty Bosstones’ frontman Dicky Barrett (or, as Rolling Stone notes, at least someone by the same name).
The band had released 11 studio albums since the 1980s, including its latest, When God Was Great, in 2021. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones made big waves in the 1990s after releasing their album, Let’s Face It, which included the major hit, “The Impression That I Get.”
The band later performed on Saturday Night Live, which was a highlight for the multi-piece band, complete with horns, suits and a raucous attitude.
American Songwriter talked with Barrett last year and he expressed great enthusiasm with the band. “I think what it comes down to, is that it’s about family,” Barrett said about the band’s 2021 album. “It’s friends and it’s community. That’s what the whole record is about, the strength of other human beings you’ve surrounded yourself with. Those who have gone on the journey with you.”
