If someone says “Have you ever listened to ‘78 Saab’?” they are not refering to any Saab model, but a popular Australian ‘soft rock’ band.
78 Saab were a rock band from Australia. The band has stated that it was influenced by acts such as the Rolling Stones, R.E.M. and The Church.
For the purpose of attaining live performance experience, they entered the Australian National Campus Band Competition in 1996, with the band name chosen spontaneously in order to complete the entry form.
In a 2007 interview, Nash explained the inspiration for the “last minute” title:
“I used to own a 1978 Saab which I bought off my grandparents for around a thousand bucks when I was at university. Anyway, we entered a band competition and we had about three hours to come up with a name. “78 Saab” got thrown in the ring and for better or worse we’ve stuck with that name.”
When deciding for a catchy band name, one of the members thought of his 1978 Saab – and the rest is history!