Singing Hamsters

Yes, there really are singing hamsters.  Don't confuse this group with such bands as the Animals or the Eagles. Unlike these bands, their members are actually hamsters.

They weren't the first animals to sing and dance. By 1998, a group of kittens known as the “Feline Quartet” had already paved the way for animal bands with their astonishing vocal styling and cute, furry faces. Not a significant musical influence, the “Feline Quartet” can be credited with creating new opportunities for all those garage bands of pubescent pets who dream of hot August nights and adoring fans lifted to ecstasy by their throbbing, jungle sounds.

In late 1998, among those aspiring pet rockers was one Hampton Hamster. By day, Hampton faithfully executed his pet duties, but by night he and his musically gifted owners planned and practiced for the day that stardom and glory would be theirs.

One can almost hear the announcer say, “Ladies and Gentlemen, the Singing Hampsters!” That announcer would be SingingHampsters.com, the site that became the Singing Hamsters world stage and a shrine to millions of devoted fans.

They were an instant success. Not only did they capture the attention of the cyberspace tourist, but the imagination of musicians everywhere.

The site features the furry little singing hamsters belting out songs and shaking their booties to the beating of bongos. At one time, the website had 250,000 visitors a day. Their achievement was recognized in 1999 by being named the Most popular Christmas website of 1999.

Their influence on culture was profound.  You had people across the country trying to emulate the singing hamsters proud if not exuberant bootie shake. You had human bands claiming their music was being influenced by a pack of singing hamsters.  The Cuban Boys group even sampled some of the music before they cut their record, “Cognoscenti Versus Intelligentsia”. Some credit the Cuban Boys' success in beating out Sir Cliff Richard, a Christian vocalist, for top position on the Christmas music charts to the Singing Hampsters.

The singing sensation was aired on national UK radio by DJ John Peel who said that the Hampsters were just as popular as the Sex Pistols, noting that he hadn't received such a positive reaction to a sound since the the Sex Pistols' version of “God Save The Queen”. The little singers also played in a few trendy clubs where dancers grooved to the beat of the Singing Hampsters. 

The brain stormers behind this and behind the beats were Jenny McClaren, her brother Ricardo Autoban, and Skreen & Blu. They both run a little magazine in Eastbourne. All these brilliant people were signed up to EMI records in May of 1999.

The website is gone now, but the Singing Hamsters lives on as legends in the UK. And to think, it all started from a furry little hamster living in Canada known to friends as little Hamptom Hampster.