“Tora” means “tiger” in Japanese, and the name is a play on the attack code used by the Japanese Imperial Navy during the attack on Pearl Harbor: “Tora, Tora, Tora.” However, the actual origin of the band name was more likely a reference to the Van Halen song of the same title from their 1980 album Women and Children First. In a 1989 Headbangers Ball interview, singer Anthony Corder and bassist Patrick Francis explained that a friend of the band created a list of 60–70 possible names, and Tora Tora stood out the most. They also mentioned that the band’s original name had been “Free Beer.” Tora Tora began as a local garage band and later earned studio time after winning a Battle of the Bands contest. They recorded the independent EP To Rock to Roll, after which the songs “Phantom Rider” and “Love’s a Bitch” received extensive airplay on local station Rock 98. After signing with A&M Records, the band recorded their debut album Surprise Attack in 1989. The album peaked at No. 47 on the Billboard Top 200 and featured the singles “Walkin’ Shoes” and “Guilty.” The track “Dancing with a Gypsy” appeared on the soundtrack of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure later that year. Tora Tora was also the first band from Memphis to have a music video (“Walkin’ Shoes”) on MTV. Their second album, Wild America (1992), reached No. 134 on the Billboard charts. Although it sold less than its predecessor, it marked a more mature step in their songwriting. A third album, Revolution Day, was recorded in 1994, but due to label restructuring it was never released at the time. After missing the release deadline, the band folded.
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Phantom Rider
Walkin’ shoes
Guilty
Shes Good Shes Bad
Nowhere to go but down
Amnesia
Everbright
Revolution Day 1994 Full Album
Bastards Of Beale 2029 Ful Album
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