Ming Tea

Lore & Background

Myers formed Ming Tea with Sweet and Hoffs after his Saturday Night Live tenure in the early 1990s. The members all adopted 1960s personae and performed under pseudonyms, with Myers as lead singer under the name "Austin Powers". Myers's then-wife Robin Ruzan encouraged him to write a film based on the Powers character, leading to Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, directed by Hoffs's husband Jay Roach, who also directed the sequels.

Ming Tea recorded the song "BBC" for the end credits and soundtrack of International Man of Mystery, released in 1997. The band appeared in and performed the "psychedelic scene breaks" for the second film, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. The song "Daddy Wasn't There" appears in the 2002 sequel Goldmember, and a promotional music video for it was broadcast on music video channels.

The band's aesthetics, costumes, and instruments changed with each film. For "BBC", they wore mid-1960s mod fashions and used Fender and Rickenbacker guitars and a Gibson bass. For the third film, they adopted colorful late-1960s costumes and matching Musicvox Spaceranger guitars and bass. The drum set remained the same in each film: a rare British-made Arbiter set with a custom-art Ming Tea band logo on the bass drum head.

Reader's Guide

Ming Tea's significance lies in its role as a musical and comedic bridge between the Austin Powers film series and the real-world music scene. The band's songs, "BBC" and "Daddy Wasn't There," became part of the franchise's nostalgic soundtrack, reinforcing the 1960s spy-spoof aesthetic. The group's pseudonyms and period-accurate costumes and instruments added authenticity to the films' retro-mod atmosphere. Beyond the movies, the collaboration between Sweet and Hoffs led to their Under the Covers album series, recorded under the pseudonyms Sid and Susie, with Myers occasionally joining them onstage to perform "BBC". The band's name, according to Hoffs, came from a very obscure 1960s Italian movie starring Ursula Andress, The 10th Victim, which features the fictional Ming Tea Company. Ming Tea remains a footnote in pop culture as a playful, behind-the-scenes project that blended music and film comedy.

Did You Know?

• The band's name comes from the fictional Ming Tea Company in the 1960s Italian film The 10th Victim starring Ursula Andress.
• The drum set used in all Ming Tea appearances was a rare British-made Arbiter set with a custom-art band logo on the bass drum head.
• After Ming Tea, Sweet and Hoffs recorded three Under the Covers albums as Sid and Susie.