While
the Sneakers never made much of an impact when they were together, the band marks the first appearance of several seminal figures of the alternative pop scene of the early '80s.
Chris Stamey,
Mitch Easter, and
Will Rigby formed the core of
the Sneakers, writing well-crafted, guitar-driven pop rockers; their self-titled debut EP was engineered by
Don Dixon, who went on to be a successful producer, as well as a solo artist. After one excellent full-length album,
the Sneakers broke up.
Stamey and
Rigby went on to form
the dBs, one of the '80s' best American guitar pop bands;
Easter led
Let's Active, as well as becoming a record producer (including
R.E.M.'s first two albums). However,
the Sneakers are more than a historical curiosity; although they didn't record very much, their album and EP contain some of the finest power pop of the late '70s. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine