Peter Case

Peter Case began his career by making a little piece of rock 'n' roll history as part of power-pop trio The Nerves. This supergroup-in-retrospect also included Paul Collins, soon to form The Beat, and Jack Lee, who penned The Nerves’ best-known song, “Hanging on the Telephone,” which later became a hit for Blondie. The Nerves only stuck around long enough to release a seminal 1976 EP of tough-but-melodic, proto-New Wave gems, but by ’78, Case was leading L.A. rockers The Plimsouls. Their blend of garagey rock and ‘60s-influenced, Byrds-tinged pop made them cult heroes, but the closest they came to a hit was getting their single “A Million Miles Away” in the beloved 1983 teen flick Valley Girl, and they broke up soon afterwards. Case embarked on a solo career in 1986, by which time he was married to quirky songstress Victoria Williams. Over the years, Case’s solo albums veered from acoustic folk-blues to roots rock to rough-edged rock & roll, and featured guest appearances by everyone from Ry Cooder to Roger McGuinn. After having emergency heart surgery in 2009, Case bounced back with the rawest, most uncompromising record in his discography, the dirty, bluesy Dig.