There ain't no party like a Miami party. 'Cause a Miami party don't stop.
But besides that undeniable truth, there's also the fact that a Miami party comes in, like, a million different permutations.
We live in a weird, sexy, superdiverse land of "Peanut Butter Jelly" time, Cuban-American country music hoedowns, horn-blowing punk circle pits, Carribean disco freakfests, and degenerate rock 'n' roll shows.
Need proof? Just check the cut for numbers 20 to 16 in Crossfade's epic list of the 50 Best Miami Bands of All Time.
20. Buckwheat Boyz
Ostensibly, the Buckwheat Boyz's absurd, Miami bass-inspired party anthems were ridiculously hyperactive kid-friendly chant-alongs about fun and food. But as we all know, the finest, freakiest, and filthiest of all sexual euphemisms are inspired by good times and edible yummies. So when the Boyz are screaming and thrusting through some "Peanut Butter Jelly," are they really talking about schooltime sandwiches? Or penises in butts with the aid of a lil' KY?
Together for only four years and one album, the Buckwheat Boyz still managed two major contributions to Miami/world music history: (1) Inadvertently inspiring a wacky Internet meme that began with an unofficial "PBJ" video featuring a manically dancing animated banana and ended with a Family Guy gag; and (2) Selling a follow-up food-related hit entitled "Ice Cream and Cake" (which may or may not be about sticking your cone in her cake and leaving behind a sweet dairy treat) to Baskin-Robbins for the purposes of a lip-smacking national marketing campaign. -- S. Pajot
19. The Mavericks
If the Miami music scene is great at producing anything, it's bizarre anomalies. Take The Mavericks, definitely the city's only proper country act to enjoy nearly a decade of mainstream success. And it was fronted by a Cuban-American, Raul Malo, to boot.
But beyond the novelty factor, The Mavericks charmed fans with stylistic roots in classic country à la Cash and Cline, not to mention songwriting chops that were strong enough for some 14 songs to hit the Billboard country charts between 1991 and 2003. And if you missed The Mavericks' twang the first time 'round ... Well, the band properly reunited this year. -- Arielle Castillo
18. Against All Authority
Nearly two decades of South Florida punks got their first black eye skanking to "All Fall Down," jumped up onto the stage for the first time to sing along with "Walkin' Revolution," or generally learned how to live a no-fucks-to-give "Lifestyle of Rebellion" from Triple A and its synthesis of street punk, Black Bloc politics and third-wave horns peppered with Latin cadence. If this band ever reunites, every hipster in town will devolve into a 16-year-old shithead with a Destroy What Destroys You patch and a burning desire for one last spin around the circle pit. -- Matt Preira
17. T-Connection
Before the Baha Men let the dogs out, T-Connection was the first Bahamian band to have major international success. Led by brothers Theophilus and Kirkwood Coakley, the group scored a string of funk and disco hits after relocating from Nassau to Miami and joining Henry Stone's mighty TK Records roster in the mid '70s.
"Do What You Wanna Do," one of the first singles to be released in the 12-inch format, was T-Connection's most popular cut, reaching No. 1 on the dance charts in 1977. But the group continued to crank out hits into the '80s before disbanding, though they reformed earlier this year for a few dates in Nassau. -- Jesse Serwer
16. The Eat
This punk outfit exists but an inch or two away from South Florida punk rock's ground zero. Though Critical Mass's 1978 single "Silver Screen" was technically Miami's first punk record, The Eat's "Communist Radio" b/w "Catholic Love" is probably the most sought-after slab to ever emerge from the entire sprawling expanse of Dade County. Record pricing index, Popsike, shows that the 45 regularly sells for nearly $1,000! And with good reason. Because if it weren't for that little wax disc catching on like wildfire, degenerate rock 'n' roll would have taken even longer to make it to the tip of the Sunshine State. -- Matt Preira
Check out the other installments of Crossfade's 50 Best Miami Bands of All Time:
-From 50 to 46: Scraping Teeth, Frank Williams & The Rocketeers, Iko Iko, ANR, Miami Bass Warriors
-From 45 to 41: Nuclear Valdez, The Goods, Locos Por Juana, Cynic, Avenue D
-From 40 to 36: The Agency, Pygmy, Suenalo, Triple C's, The Crumbs
-From 35 to 31: Quit, Young and Restless, The Reactions, Afrobeta, Cavity
-From 25 to 21: Critical Mass, Phoenicia, The Dogs, Chickenhead, Floor
-From 20 to 16: Buckwheat Boyz, The Mavericks, Against All Authority, T-Connection, The Eat
-From 10 to 6: Murk, NRBQ, Exposé, Poison Clan, Load
-From 5 to 1: KC and the Sunshine Band, Sam & Dave, Harry Pussy, Miami Sound Machine, 2 Live Crew
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