The Looters | it

There are two artists named The Looters

1. The Looters were a socially active San Francisco group fronted by Mat Callahan that were popular in the city's World Beat scene of the 1980's. They were signed to several record labels including Alternative Tentacles, Island and later Monster Music. They played an intelligent, energetic, political and passionate blend of rock with funk and latin overtones, becoming the first US band to be invited to play a stadium in Nicaragua after the ouster of Somoza. In the late 80's, their growing regional popularity earned them shows in the Bay Area opening large arenas for the Grateful Dead and Ziggy Marley, but they failed to gain support from radio or the industry at large.

They kept an independent spirit, and played a fundamental role in establishing the Komotion artists collective which was a recording studio, performance space and creative spawning ground utilized by numerous artists including Penelope Houston, Michael Franti, Cheb I Sabbah, Primus, Limbomaniacs, Bedlam Rovers, A Subtle Plague, Citizen Fish.

The Looters disbanded by the early 1990's and Mat Callahan went on to produce records in Switzerland, write books, and perform as a solo artist.


2. A fictional band from the 1981 cult classic film "Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains". The Looters consisted of Steve Jones, Paul Cook, Paul Simonon, and Ray Winstone. .