On The Road Again Trivia Quiz

Answer: Boston

Boston are actually from Boston and had enormous success with their self titled debut album in 1976, which included the hit, "More Than A Feeling". The city of Boston is one of the oldest in USA and was the venue for The Boston Tea Party in 1773, a protest against the British policy of "taxation without representation" which sparked the start of the American Revolutionary War.

Answer: Kansas

Kansas have amazing longevity and a really hardcore fan base. To many people they are known for "Dust In The Wind" and "Carry On My Wayward Son", both of which were released in the 70s, but they have released many albums since then including the 2016 studio album "The Prelude Implicit" and the 2017 live album "Leftoverture: Live and Beyond". Mount Sunflower has a slightly misleading name, as at only 4039 feet, it isn't really a hill, never mind a mount, but it is the state's highest point and comes complete with a picnic table and a "little free library" for visitors.

Answer: Chicago

Chicago have been around since 1967 and have had several number one albums and singles as well as many other chart hits. Chicago, the city is known worldwide as "The Windy City" but it not known where this nickname comes from. Certainly Chicago is not the windiest city in USA, either in terms of amount of wind or wind speed and the main theories are it began as as reference to the Chicago White Stockings baseball team, or was first used when Chicago beat New York City in the ballot to stage the World's Fair in 1893, or my personal favourite, it described the long winded speeches given by politicians at the many political conventions the city hosted.

Answer: Alabama

Alabama have been active since 1969 and are a close knit band of three cousins, Randy Owen, Jeff Cook and Teddy Gentry who had their biggest success in the 1980s when they had over 20 number ones on both the American and Canadian country charts. The state of Alabama was at the heart of the civil rights struggle in the 1950s and 1960s and is home to the Edmund Pettus bridge in Selma where civil rights marchers were attacked on "Bloody Sunday" in March 1965 as well as being the home of Montgomery, site of Rosa Parks brave refusal to give up her seat in the "colored section" of a bus to a white passenger in 1955.

Answer: Texas

Texas were formed in 1986 in Glasgow, Scotland and have had much chart success throughout Europe since the release of their debut album in 1989, but none in Texas or the rest of USA. Texas, the state is the second largest in USA after Alaska and was a Mexican territory until 1836.

This Mexican influence has created its own food style, known as Tex-Mex which and includes combines northern Mexican cuisine with European cuisine and tastes. Puffy taco's are deep fried corn tortillas filled with regular taco fillings.

Answer: Phoenix

Phoenix the band are nothing to do with Arizona. They hail from Versailles, France and have been around since 1999, achieving chart success in Australia, Europe and North America. Should you ever find yourself in the city of Phoenix, I can personally recommend a visit to the Musical Instrument Museum, with over 15,000 instruments, a selection of which you can try in The Experience Gallery.

Answer: Calexico

Calexico are from Arizona and manage to blend traditional Mexican "mariachi" and "conjunto" music with a country rock vibe. They are very popular in Europe, probably more so than in their native USA and have released an E.P. performing with folk rock artist Iron & Wine. The town of Calexico, was the basis for Mexifornia, the town in the Fox animated show "Bordertown."

Answer: America

America are probably better known for "A Horse With No Name" and "Sister Golden Hair", the latter of which strangely wasn't a hit in UK. America is a huge mass, taking in Canada, USA, South America and a host of island nations and territories. Collectively, America takes up almost 30% of Earth's land area.

Answer: Asia

Asia formed in 1981 as a "supergroup" made up of members of Yes (Steve Howe and Geoff Downes), King Crimson (John Wetton) and Emerson, Lake and Palmer (Carl Palmer). They found success with their debut album, which has still to be repeated and only Downes and Palmer remain from the original line up. Asia the continent is the Earth's largest comprising countries such as China, India, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia to name a few.

Answer: Nazareth

Nazareth are a Scottish band, who took their name not from the biblical city but from Nazareth, Pennsylvania as mentioned in "The Weight" by The Band. The Synagogue Church which is underground in the city of Nazareth is believed to be where Jesus studied and prayed and Nazareth Village, an open-air museum in the city, reconstructs the daily life of inhabitants from the Biblical era.

As far as I know, there is no mention of Newcastle in the Bible, although Jesus with a Geordie accent would be something special.

Answer: Japan

Japan were from London, UK and active from mid 1970s to early 1990s, heavily influencing the fledgling New Romantic scene. "Ghosts" in 1982 was their biggest hit. The country of Japan is made up of 6,852 islands, the largest of which is Honshu. One of the smallest is Kinkasan, home to an eighth century Shinto shrine and according to the 2004 census, has a population of six.

Answer: Berlin

Berlin were a Californian band who had huge success with "Take My Breath Away" when it was used as the theme song for the Tom Cruise movie "Top Gun" (1986). Berlin is the capital of Germany and famously was divided until 1989 by the Berlin Wall. The demolition of the wall paved the way for the reunification of East and West Germany.

Answer: Portishead

Portishead come from the nearby city of Bristol and are one of the biggest selling trip-hop bands in UK. Their debut album was released in 1994 and the track "Sour Times" gave them chart success at home as well as Australia and USA. The town of Portishead in Somerset was home to "Portishead Radio" from 1928 to 2000 and played a huge role in land to sea and land to air communications in WWII.

By the mid 1980s, communications started to decrease as more satellite communications were used and the station closed in 2000.

Answer: Europe

Europe are a Swedish rock band who after just one minor hit in their home country, suddenly became a global phenomenon in 1986 when "The Final Countdown" reached number one in 25 countries. The continent of Europe is comprised of over 50 states including UK, France, Germany and Italy, while Greece is recognised as the birthplace of Western civilisation.

Answer: Styx

Styx from Chicago have been making music since 1972 and apart from "Best Of Times" have had hits with "Babe", "Mr. Roboto" and "Renegade" to name just a few. The river in the question is the boundary between the land of the living and the underworld (Hades) according to Greek mythology.