List of Band Name Etymologies - W

W

• The Who - Were originally called The Detours, then changed their name to The Who after a suggestion by Townshend's friend Richard Barnes. Their first manager, Pete Meaden, renamed them The High Numbers, and they released one unsuccessful single, Zoot Suit, under that name. When EMI dropped them the band sacked Pete Meaden and went back to being called The Who. Another possible reason was because of Pete Townshend's grandmother, who would always refer to popular bands as "The Who?", due to her impaired hearing.
• Wilco – The group named itself "Wilco" after the CB radio voice procedure for "Will Comply", a choice which Tweedy has called "fairly ironic for a rock band to name themselves."
• Wu Tang Clan - RZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard adopted the name for the rap group after seeing the Kung fu film Shaolin and Wu Tang, which features a school of warriors trained in Wu-Tang style.
• Widespread Panic - Due to anxiety problems, lead guitarist Mike Houser used to have the nickname "Panic". One day he came home and announced that he didn't want to be just "Panic", he wanted to be "Widespread Panic".