Music fans stumped after discovering what Thin Lizzy’s band name actually means
Iconic Irish rockers Thin Lizzy are nothing short of legendary.
The Dublin-born band, which hit the scene in 1969, boasted a lineup that initially featured bass guitarist, lead vocalist and key songwriter Phil Lynott, drummer Brian Downey, guitarist Eric Bell and organist Eric Wrixon. Though Wrixon bowed out early on.
Their sound defined a generation with Eric Bell rocking until the close of ’73 before Gary Moore briefly took the reins, only to be succeeded by the iconic twin lead guitar duo of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson in mid-1974.
Gorham was a mainstay until their 1983 split while Robertson rocked on until 1978 when familiar face, Moore, returned.
Snowy White stepped in for Moore in ’80 and John Sykes hopped aboard in ’82, with Darren Wharton also taking to the keys section in ’80. Known for penning hits like “Whiskey in the Jar”, “The Boys Are Back in Town” and “Waiting for an Alibi”, they’ve been etched into international music fame.
Yet, there’s a little-known nugget some eager fans on Reddit can’t stop talking about – What does “Thin Lizzy” actually stand for?
The question sparked a flurry of theories, with fans eager to offer their suggestions. One fan suggested: “The band’s name came from a robot character in The Dandy called Tin Lizzie, which they adjusted to Thin Lizzy as a playful reference to the local Dublin accent, in which ‘thin’ would be pronounced as ‘t’in’.”
Another chimed in with: “Dictionary.com: Tin Lizzie. A cheap, old, or run-down automobile (originally used as a nickname for early Ford cars, especially the Model T).”
Despite the numerous theories, the true origin of the name was revealed some time ago. The Dandy, a British children’s comic magazine first published in 1937 and running until 2012, featured a character named Tin Lizzie – a metallic robot maid, illustrated by Jack Prout.
This character, who graced the pages of the comic throughout the 1950s, seemed to have left a lasting impression on the band. In the late 1960s, Eric Bell was pondering a name for the band when he recalled the comic android, thinking something like Tin Lizzie would work well.
“It was [original guitarist] Eric Bell”, said original Thin Lizzy drummer Brian Downey. “We were throwing around ideas for a name after a rehearsal one night, and Eric suggested Tin Lizzie, who was a character in [children’s comic magazine] ‘The Dandy’.”
Ultimately, the band name was embraced, but Bell changed the spelling to Thin Lizzy, which cheekily nodded at their Dublin twang where “Thin” would be pronounced as “T’in.”
He remarked: “We all laughed at that one. But the next day, we were still trying to come up with a name, but nothing seemed right, so Eric again put forward Tin Lizzie.
“As we had nothing better, we thought why not? It was also Eric who suggested tweaking the spelling to Thin Lizzy.”
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