In 1986, The Cars co-founder and bassist Benjamin Orr released his first and only solo album, The Lace. Orr sang lead vocals on a number of The Cars best-known songs, including Drive, Let’s Go, and Just What I Needed. Stay the Night was the first single released from The Lace, and it was a moderate hit on the Hot 100 charts, peaking at number 24. The song faired much better on the Mainstream Rock charts where it peaked at number six and on the AC charts where it peaked at number two.
Sadly, Orr died at home in Atlanta on October 3, 2000 at the age of 53 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. The Cars’ Ric Ocasek wrote and recorded the song “Silver”, as a musical tribute to Orr. It appeared on Ocasek’s 2005 solo album, Nexterday. The Cars reunited ten years after Orr’s death and released their seventh studio album, Move Like This, in May 2011. Orr was given special thanks in the liner notes: “Ben, your spirit was with us on this one.”
Leave a Reply