Editing Cake (band) (section)

===Formation and ''Motorcade of Generosity'' (1991–1996)===
Cake was formed in 1991 when John McCrea, a Sacramento, California native who had moved to Los Angeles with a band only to see it "quickly crumble around him", returned to Sacramento.<ref name="mont1">{{cite news|title=Cake man talks about economic importance of short skirts|last=Montgomery|first=James|date=August 2, 2001|work=[[UWIRE]]}}</ref> He began looking for a new band to play with, having "grown tired of Sacramento's coffeehouse circuit",<ref name="jg1">{{cite news|title=Taking Cake|last=Green|first=Joshua|date=October 10, 1996|work=Westword|publisher=Village Voice Media}}</ref> and quickly attracted trumpet player [[Vince DiFiore]], guitarist [[Greg Brown (rock musician)|Greg Brown]], bassist Shon Meckfessel, and drummer [[Frank French]]. All were active in the music scene at the time; DiFiore notes that "[McCrea] came back and stole us from other bands".<ref name="sjmn1">{{cite news|title=Cake Gets a Taste of Success|last=Hopewell|first=Deb|date=September 20, 1996|work=San Jose Mercury News|publisher=MediaNews Group}}</ref> The band soon came up with the name "Cake"; rather than referring to the [[cake|food]], the name is meant to be "like when something insidiously becomes a part of your life...[we] mean it more as something that cakes onto your shoe and is just sort of there until you get rid of it".<ref name="cst1">{{cite news|title=Goofy Cake skewers 'cool'; Hipsters beware|last=Kim|first=Jae-Ha|date=October 4, 1996|work=Chicago Sun-Times|publisher=Sun-Times Media Group}}</ref> Meckfessel soon left to attend college and was replaced by [[Gabe Nelson]]. After touring and becoming part of the club scene in San Francisco, the band independently recorded and released ''[[Motorcade of Generosity]]'' in 1994,<ref name="sfc1">{{cite news|title=Cake Gets a Sweet Deal|last=Snyder|first=Michael|date=January 8, 1995|work=The San Francisco Chronicle|publisher=Hearst Corporation}}</ref> selling copies from their van as a method of paying touring expenses.<ref name="slc1">{{cite news|title=For Those Craving a Mix, Well, Let Them Eat Cake|last=Renzhofer|first=Martin|date=October 11, 1996|work=Salt Lake Tribune|publisher=MediaNews Group}}</ref>

''Motorcade'' was named one of the best indie releases of 1994 by ''[[Pulse! magazine|Pulse!]]'',<ref name="sjmn1" /> and after a concert at the [[Great American Music Hall]], [[Bonnie Simmons]] agreed to manage the band, leading to them signing a deal with [[Capricorn Records]], who re-released the album in 1995. The first single, "[[Rock 'n' Roll Lifestyle]]", hit number&nbsp;35 on the [[Modern Rock Tracks]] music chart<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Modern Rock Tracks|date=April 29, 1995|magazine=Billboard|publisher=[[Prometheus Global Media]]}}</ref> and was featured on MTV's [[120 Minutes]].<ref name="sjmn1" /> Critical reactions to the album were largely positive; Stephen Thompson in the ''[[Wisconsin State Journal]]'' described it as possessing "great lyrics, creative instrumentation and production that's about as simple as production gets",<ref>{{cite news|title=Cake Should Be Even Better In Live Show|last=Thompson|first=Stephen|date=September 21, 1995|work=Wisconsin State Journal|publisher=Lee Enterprises}}</ref> {{interlanguage link|Thomas Conner (journalist)|lt=Thomas Conner|de|Thomas Conner}} praised it for being "soulful and smooth, witty and gritty, this record makes the ghosts of [[Bob Wills]], [[Buddy Holly]] and [[Lou Reed]] smile" in the ''[[Tulsa World]]'',<ref>{{cite news|title=Music & More in '95|last=Conner|first=Thomas|author-link=:de:Thomas Conner|date=December 31, 1995|work=Tulsa World|publisher=World Publishing Company}}</ref> and Matt Weitz in the ''[[Dallas Observer]]'' noted its "gimlet eye and sardonic humor".<ref name="do1">{{cite news|title=Out There|last=Weitz|first=Matt|date=October 24, 1996|work=Dallas Observer|publisher=Village Voice Media}}</ref> The album was eventually nominated for a [[BAM (magazine)|Bammy Award]] in the category of "Outstanding Debut Album".<ref>{{cite news|title=New Bammie Awards Expanded To Reflect Diversity, Creativity of San Francisco Area Music Scene|date=December 15, 1995|work=PR Newswire|publisher=UBM plc}}</ref>

Nevertheless, some critics were less appreciative; John Wirt, in ''[[The Advocate (Louisiana)|The Advocate]]'', praised the album's sense of humor and "delicious" irreverence but noted that "[the] musicianship in Motorcade of Generosity suggests the Cake guys are mediocre players".<ref>{{cite news|title=The Advocate|last=Wirt|first=John|date=June 2, 1995|publisher=Capital City Press}}</ref> Mindy LaBernz, in ''[[The Austin Chronicle]]'', described the album as "cover-free, and, since we're on the subject, genre-free. A quartet made five by a trumpet player, Cake carry themselves with the snittiness of technically proficient, lyrically aware music lovers, who are almost anachronistically untrendy and brazenly proud of it".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/vol14/issue36/recviews.html|title=Record Reviews|last=LaBernz|first=Mindy|date=May 5, 1995|work=Austin Chronicle Corp.|publisher=The Austin Chronicle|access-date=June 11, 2011}}</ref> The signing to Capricorn and re-release of ''Motorcade'' led to both French and Nelson leaving the band, citing their dislike of "the prospect of extensive national touring"; they were replaced by Todd Roper and [[Victor Damiani]], respectively.<ref name="allm2" />