Formation Bassist Christa Hillhouse and guitarist
Shaunna Hall had been roommates and met drummer Wanda Day when they joined a band she was playing in. When the three left that band, they started playing as a trio, but after seeing
Linda Perry sing at a solo performance, Hillhouse and Hall asked her to join as vocalist. According to Perry, she and Hall were at Nightbreak, a San Francisco club, and when it was mentioned the trio was looking for a vocalist, Perry announced she was a singer, to which Hall replied, "I know". Their first rehearsal was supposed to be at 6:10 pm on October 17, 1989, but shortly after 5:00 pm the
Loma Prieta earthquake hit the San Francisco area. The name of the band came from an experience the group had in the
Bay Area with a blonde family. According to Christa Hillhouse, "Right next to us, there's a trash receptacle with a piece of pizza on top and the kid wanted to pick it up. The mom said, 'No, it's probably dirty, what with the pigeons and people.' And she stared right at us. We were Non Blondes." They said the experience became a symbol that they did not fit the California stereotype. They got their start in the San Francisco bar scene, especially lesbian bars, gaining a significant lesbian following.
Bigger, Better, Faster, More! In July 1991, the band was signed to
Interscope following a performance at the
Gavin Convention, where they opened for
Primus on Valentine's Day of the same year. As they began pre-production for their debut album, Day was fired and replaced by Dawn Richardson. In 1992, while recording
Bigger, Better, Faster, More! the album's producer,
David Tickle, felt that Hall's guitar playing was "not happening" so she was let go from the band as well. Guitarist Louis Metoyer finished the record. The album and its song "
What's Up?" was released as the album's second single in 1993. It was successful in the United States and in several European countries, peaking at number one in Ireland, Austria, Germany, and Sweden. Roger Rocha joined after the completion of the album and stayed with the band until early 1994, when he was fired due to personal conflicts with the rest of the band. With
Concrete Blonde being on hiatus, 4 Non Blondes enlisted their guitarist
James Mankey, who recorded with them a cover of
Van Halen's "I'm the One" on the soundtrack for
Airheads and took part in a European tour and some dates in USA and Mexico. Openly lesbian lead singer Perry often performed with a prominent "dyke" sticker affixed to her guitar, including at the
Billboard Music Awards in 1993 and on
Late Night with David Letterman. 4 Non Blondes contributed the song "
Mary's House" to the film ''
Wayne's World 2 in 1993. They also contributed "Bless the Beasts and Children" to a 1994 The Carpenters tribute album If I Were a Carpenter'', and "
Misty Mountain Hop" Perry went solo in 1995. She has released solo work, and produced and written songs on albums by
Christina Aguilera,
Alicia Keys,
Pink,
Gwen Stefani,
Courtney Love, and
Kelly Osbourne. Hall has recorded, produced, composed for, and performed with various artists, including vocalist
Storm Large (1999–2001), guitarist
Eric McFadden (1995–2001), and funk pioneer
George Clinton &
Parliament Funkadelic. After leaving the Non Blondes in 1991, Day continued drumming with Malibu Barbi, and then Bad Dog Play Dead. In late 1992, an accident crushed her legs and broke her back, which made drumming very painful. She moved out of San Francisco in 1995, spent some time in Arizona and eventually went back to Salt Lake City. Day died on July 10, 1997, and is buried in
Tropic, Utah.
Reunion Hillhouse maintains the official website for 4 Non Blondes. Perry and Hillhouse reunited in 1999 in support of Perry's solo tour. On May 11, 2014, 4 Non Blondes reunited to perform a concert at a fundraiser entitled "An Evening For Women: Celebrating Arts, Music and Equality" which was held at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. Perry produces the annual event for the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center to raise money for the center. According to Perry, "the majority of the money goes to the youth center program, which is basically kids that get thrown out on the street by their own parents for being gay." The six songs on the track list were "Train", "
Spaceman", "The Ladder", "Mighty Lady", "Superfly", and "
What's Up?", and the fundraiser was organized by the
Los Angeles LGBT Center.
Dolly Parton and Linda Perry did a cover of the band's song "What's Up?" in 2023. In January 2025, a reunion at
BottleRock Napa Valley was announced, as well as further dates and confirmation of the existence of an upcoming studio album. ==Band members==