Chip Z’Nuff says Enuff Z’Nuff’s breakthrough with ‘New Thing’ on MTV changed the band’s trajectory overnight, taking the Chicago group from club stages to national television and arena tours during the late 1980s rock boom.
by Paul Cashmere
More than three decades after ‘New Thing’ became an MTV staple, Enuff Z’Nuff’s Chip Z’Nuff says the band’s rise was fuelled less by the Los Angeles glam scene and more by Midwestern power pop influences shared with bands like Cheap Trick.
Speaking to Noise11 ahead of the band’s Australian tour in November, Chip reflected on the impact of MTV, appearances on The Howard Stern Show and Late Night With David Letterman, and how Enuff Z’Nuff navigated an era that rapidly shifted from hard rock excess to grunge realism.
Enuff Z’Nuff emerged at the tail end of the 1980s hard rock explosion, but Chip argues the band was often misunderstood by media trying to categorise the era. While the group shared stages and aesthetics with Sunset Strip contemporaries, their musical DNA came from a different place.
“We’re a pop rock band at the end of the day,” Chip told Noise11. “People called it glam rock because everybody dressed the same, but our influences were more Beatles and Cheap Trick than Mötley Crüe.”
That distinction became clearer when MTV embraced ‘New Thing’ in 1989. The single, from the band’s self-titled debut album, became a breakout hit during the network’s peak influence years. Chip said the exposure fundamentally changed the band’s career.
“When MTV started playing ‘New Thing’, everything changed,” he said. “We were in the Top 10 for 62 weeks alongside Skid Row, Bon Jovi and Whitesnake.”
Watch the Noise11 interview with Chip Z’nuff:
The success quickly moved Enuff Z’Nuff from small clubs into larger theatres and arena support slots. Before the breakthrough, the band toured relentlessly in a van, playing wherever they could secure a booking.
“In the early days we played anywhere that would take us,” Chip said. “Then suddenly we started getting calls from Cheap Trick, Def Leppard, Mr. Big and Badlands wanting us out on tour.”
Management also played a role in positioning the band nationally. Early guidance from manager Doc McGhee was followed by a stint with veteran rock manager Herbie Herbert, known for steering the careers of Journey and Mr. Big. Chip credits Herbert with helping the band access bigger touring opportunities as MTV exposure intensified.
The television breakthrough extended beyond music video rotation. Appearances on The Howard Stern Show and Late Night With David Letterman helped establish the band’s profile outside hard rock circles.
Chip recalled that the group knew little about Howard Stern before making their first appearance.
“We were nervous,” he said. “Donnie and I went into the bathroom and smoked a joint before the show. Gary Dell’Abate came running in telling us we couldn’t smoke pot in the studio.”
The incident became an icebreaker. Chip said Stern appreciated the band’s lack of polish and authenticity. The exposure soon led to an invitation to perform on David Letterman’s program.
“We played ‘Baby Loves You’ and it went really well,” Chip said. “Then we came back a year later and did ‘Superstitious’ with the Letterman band.”
At the time, network television appearances could significantly influence album sales and touring demand. For Enuff Z’Nuff, those moments helped broaden the audience beyond Headbangers Ball viewers and hard rock radio.
The momentum slowed as alternative rock reshaped the music industry in the early 1990s. The arrival of Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden shifted label priorities and radio programming away from melodic hard rock acts associated with the MTV era.
Chip acknowledged the impact but said Enuff Z’Nuff never stopped recording or touring through the changing landscape.
“We found ourselves behind the eight-ball for a while,” he said. “But we never stopped making records and we never stopped touring.”
That persistence has become a defining part of the band’s legacy. While many contemporaries from the glam metal era disappeared after the early 1990s downturn, Enuff Z’Nuff continued releasing albums steadily. The group now has a catalogue exceeding 20 releases, with Chip stepping into the lead vocalist role following Donnie Vie’s departure.
The band’s ongoing relationship with Cheap Trick also reinforced the Midwestern connection that Chip believes separated Enuff Z’Nuff from the Sunset Strip stereotype. Daxx Nielsen, Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander have all collaborated with the group across multiple recordings.
“We’ve always had a good relationship with Cheap Trick,” Chip said. “We’re Midwest cats. That’s where we come from.”
Enuff Z’Nuff return to Australia in November alongside Pretty Boy Floyd for a run of club shows that intentionally mirrors the intimate venues where the band first built its audience before MTV transformed its career. Chip says the current shows mix classic material with newer songs drawn from the band’s later catalogue, including tracks from the recent album Xtra Cherries.
For a band often tied to a specific era of rock history, Enuff Z’Nuff continue to position themselves as a working group rather than a nostalgia act, still recording, still touring and still revisiting the song that changed everything, ‘New Thing’.
Dates:
November 5, Melbourne, Prince Bandroom
November 6, Adelaide, The Gov
November 7, Sydney, Manning Bar
November 8, Brisbane, The Triffid
Ticketing details available through official venue outlets.
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