{{infobox record label | image	| type Subsidiary | parent Universal Music Group | founded 1980 | founder David Geffen | status | distributor Interscope-Geffen-A&M;(In the US)Polydor Records(Outside the US) | genre Various | country USA | location Santa Monica, California | url Geffen.com }}

Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M; label group.

Company history

Beginnings

Geffen Records was founded in 1980 by music industry businessman David Geffen who, in the early 1970s, had founded Asylum Records. Geffen stepped down from Asylum in 1975, when he crossed over to film and was named a vice-president of Warner Brothers Pictures. He was fired from Warner circa 1978, but remained locked in a 5-year contract, preventing him from working elsewhere. He returned to work in 1980 and struck a deal with Warner Bros. Records to create Geffen Records. Warner provided 100 percent of the funding for the label's operations and distributed the label's releases in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom - CBS/Epic Records handled distribution in the rest of the world until 1985, when Warner Bros. also took over those territories. However, in the United Kingdom the label switched distribution from Warner Bros. to CBS in 1981. Profits were split 50/50 between Geffen and the respective distributors.

Geffen Records' first signee was disco superstar Donna Summer, whose gold-selling album ''The Wanderer'' became the label's first release in 1980. The label followed it up with ''Double Fantasy'' by John Lennon and Yoko Ono. It was Lennon's first new album since 1975. Two weeks after it entered the charts, Lennon was murdered in New York City. Subsequently, the album went on to sell millions and gave Geffen its first number-one album and single (the rights to the album are now owned by EMI).

As the 1980s progressed, Geffen would go on to have success with such acts as Quarterflash, Oxo, Asia, Wang Chung, Kylie Minogue and Sammy Hagar. In the meantime, the label continued to sign a handful of established music icons, including: Elton John, Irene Cara, Cher, Don Henley, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Jennifer Holliday and Sonic Youth. Toward the end of the decade, the company also began making a name for itself as an emerging rock label, thanks to the success of Whitesnake (US only), Guns N' Roses, Tesla, and the mainstream comeback of '70s era rockers Aerosmith. This prompted Geffen to create a subsidiary label, named DGC Records in 1990, which focused on more progressive sounds (along with some heavy metal acts) and would later embrace the emergence of alternative rock, Nirvana being an example. Geffen also distributed the first incarnation of Def American Recordings through Warner Bros. from 1988 to 1990.

Acquisition by MCA

After a decade of operating through Warner, when its contract with the company expired, the label was sold to MCA Music Entertainment (later renamed Universal Music Group) in 1990. The deal ultimately earned David Geffen an estimated US$800 million in stock (until the Japanese conglomerate, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.'s cash acquisition of MCA in 1991, made Geffen a billionaire) and an employment contract that ran until 1995. Following the sale, Geffen Records operated as one of MCA's leading independently managed labels. Geffen stepped down as head of the label in 1995 and collaborated with Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg to form DreamWorks SKG, an ambitious multimedia empire dealing in film, television, books, and music. Geffen Records would distribute releases on the new operation's DreamWorks Records subsidiary.

Interscope-Geffen-A&M;

Universal Music Group acquired PolyGram in 1999, resulting in a corporate reorganization of labels. Geffen Records, along with A&M; Records, was subsequently merged into Interscope Records. Although Geffen would continue to exist as a brand, it was downsized to fit into the greater expansion of Interscope (who also took over distribution of DreamWorks Records). At the same time, international distribution of Interscope and Geffen releases switched to ex-PolyGram label Polydor Records, which had already been distributing A&M; releases overseas (in return for A&M; handling Polydor releases in the US).

By 2000, despite Geffen Records no longer being independently operated within UMG and taking a more submissive position behind Interscope, it continued to do steady business—so much so that in 2003, UMG folded MCA Records into Geffen. Though Geffen had been substantially a pop-rock label, its absorption of MCA (and its back catalogues) led to a more diverse roster; with former MCA artists such as Mary J. Blige, The Roots, Blink-182, and Common now featured on the label. Meanwhile, DreamWorks Records also folded, with artists such as Nelly Furtado, Lifehouse and Rufus Wainwright being absorbed by Geffen as well. DGC Records was folded in 2003, but was revived in 2007.

Geffen's absorption of the MCA and DreamWorks labels, along with its continuing to sign new acts such as Ashlee Simpson, Angels & Airwaves, Snoop Dogg, and The Game, had boosted the company to the extent that it began gaining equal footing with the main Interscope label, leading some industry insiders to speculate that it could revert back to operating as an independently managed imprint at UMG again. At the end of 2007, however, Geffen was absorbed further into Interscope, laying off sixty employees.

In 2009, it was announced that Geffen Records had signed an agreement with the Holy See to produce an album of marian songs and prayers from Pope Benedict XVI.

Labels under Geffen

Flawless Records

Kon Live Distribution

Tass Radio Records

eleveneleven

Artists

List of Geffen Records artists

See also

Geffen Records discography

List of record labels

References

External links

Geffen Records

Category:Record labels established in 1980 Category:American record labels Category:Vivendi subsidiaries Category:Rock record labels Category:Heavy metal record labels Category:Pop record labels Category:Labels distributed by Universal Music Group

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name	Greyson Chance
background	solo_singer
birth name	Greyson Michael Chance
born	August 16, 1997Wichita Falls, Texas, U.S.
origin	Edmond, Oklahoma, U.S.
instrument	Piano, vocals
genre	Pop rock
years active	2010–present
label	eleveneleven, Maverick, Streamline, Geffen
website	greyson-official.com
notable instruments	}}

Greyson Michael Chance (born August 16, 1997) is an American pop rock singer and pianist whose April 2010 performance of Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi" at a sixth-grade music festival became a hit on YouTube, gaining over 42 million views. Two of his original compositions, "Stars" and "Broken Hearts", gained over 5 and 7 million views respectively on his YouTube channel. His debut single, "Waiting Outside the Lines", was released in October 2010. Chance's début album, ''Hold On 'til the Night,'' was released on August 2, 2011.

Personal life

Chance was born on August 16, 1997 in Wichita Falls, Texas, and currently resides in Edmond, Oklahoma. He is the youngest child of Scott and Lisa Chance; he has a sixteen-year-old sister, Alexa, and a nineteen-year-old brother, Tanner, both of whom also play music. Chance began playing the piano at the age of 8 and has had three years of piano lessons; however, he had no formal vocal training.

Of his inspiration, Chance said, "I love artists who are able to communicate their emotions through music and sing from the heart. That’s what I’m hoping to do with my songs." He is emboldened by Lady Gaga; after seeing her performance of "Paparazzi" at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, he said: "I was awestruck by her performance. I love her sense of drama and theatricality, plus she’s an amazing singer and piano player." Chance is also inspired by Christina Aguilera, rock band Augustana, R&B; singer John Legend, singer-songwriter Elton John, and John Lennon, of The Beatles fame.

Appearances

Chance's "Paparazzi" cover video was posted to YouTube, on April 28, 2010, and for almost two weeks the video generated low views. At least two social websites, GossipBoy.ca and reddit.com, posted video embeds on May 10, 2010. Ellen DeGeneres first saw the video after Chance's brother, Tanner Chance, wrote to her show suggesting she watch it. The video had about 10,000 views when DeGeneres first saw it; while explaining her reasons for naming her new record label "eleveneleven", she listed as one reason the fact that she first saw Chance's ''Paparazzi'' cover on May 11, 2010. Also, she states that 11 is Greyson's soccer jersey number. On the afternoon of May 11, ''Yahoo! Music'' reported: "As of this writing, the video has got more than 36,000 views so far, and he's even been invited to perform on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''".

On May 12, 2010 Greyson Chance taped an interview and performance of "Paparazzi" for ''Ellen'' in Los Angeles. It was broadcast on May 13. During the interview, Chance received a phone call from Lady Gaga, who the boy says is his "true inspiration." This first appearance on ''Ellen'' was followed by a second appearance on the show, airing May 26, 2010, on which Chance performed his original song "Broken Hearts," received a $10,000.00 award for winning ''Ellen's Wonderful Web of Wonderment'' contest, a brand new Yamaha piano, and was announced as DeGeneres's first signed artist to her new recording label eleveneleven. Chance now has many fans on online social sites such as Facebook and Twitter. He is the 28th most subscribed musician of all time on YouTube, with a 286,000 subscriber base, as of January 3, 2011. Greyson Chance also appeared at We Day (also known as Me to We Day 2010) in downtown Toronto at the Air Canada Centre, where he performed "Fire" by Augustana.

In the media

On the morning of May 11, 2010, Chance's cover video of "Paparazzi" was embedded at RyanSeacrest.com, which reported finding the video via BuzzFeed, a website that attempts to track and predict emerging viral internet memes. Later in the day, ''TVGuide'', ''The Huffington Post'', and Yahoo! Music's video blog, Video Ga Ga, also posted articles embedding the video; ''TVGuide'' mentioned in its article that a Facebook fan page had already been started for Chance. That afternoon, Ryan Seacrest and DeGeneres linked the video on their Twitter accounts, as did celebrity Ashton Kutcher later that evening.

On May 12, 2010, DeGeneres' announcement of Chance's booking, on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', was broadcast at different times across the U.S. and posted to her website. ''Wall Street Journal'' and ''Los Angeles Times'', among other mainstream media, posted articles embedding the video and announcing the forthcoming appearance. That evening, ABC World News broadcast a report on Chance which was introduced by Diane Sawyer, who said the story struck ABC News as "part ''Billy Elliot'' and part ''Glee''." That evening, Guy Oseary, an L.A.-based entertainment manager whose clients include Madonna, Demi Moore, and Ashton Kutcher, recommended Greyson's "Paparazzi" video on Twitter.

On May 13, 2010, Chance's appearance on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' was broadcast, and mainstream media, including CBS and People, reported on the appearance. That morning, Ryan Seacrest posted another link on Twitter, this time to the video of Chance appearing on ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''. Not only has he received attention from DeGeneres and Seacrest but also, on May 14, singer, songwriter, and author David Archuleta linked the video on Twitter claiming that Greyson "is talented."

On May 15, 2010, Greyson Chance created an official MySpace page and an official Twitter account. The same day, Crazed Hits, a music industry "tip-sheet" run by Alex Wilhelm, while citing no sources, reported that Interscope Records had signed 12-year-old Chance to a record deal. That same day, NewsOK posted a video, "Three Things to Know about Greyson Michael Chance", and an article in which Chance's father, was quoted as saying the family would spend the weekend deciding how they wanted to proceed before signing any contracts.

On May 18, 2010, ''The New York Post'' reported on the deal with Interscope Records, citing Chance's sister and father as confirming the deal; ''The Post'' also reported that calls made to Chance's school were being referred to Guy Oseary. On May 25, Ellen DeGeneres announced that she had formed a record label called eleveneleven and Chance was her first artist. Guy Oseary who manages Madonna's career and Troy Carter, who manages Lady Gaga's career, would be co-managers of Greyson Chance's career, but no partnership with a major recording label had been finalized.

The chronology of events has resulted in media analysis of the marketing phenomenon as separate from musical or biographical elements. On May 15, 2010, The Christian Science Monitor published an article written by Gloria Goodale, a staff writer for the publication; citing Chance's quick rise to media attention and the establishment of various official and fan websites for Chance, as well as concerns raised by music industry analyst Jeff Snyder about the quality of the video itself, Goodale asked “whether there's a Big Media hand behind sixth grader Greyson Michael Chance.” On May 18, 2010, Goodale followed up on this article with a second article for The Christian Science Monitor focusing on the modern "age of media manipulation", which she introduced by saying, "Reports so far suggest that the Greyson Chance YouTube video is legit." On May 18, 2010, ITN News posted a video report to its YouTube channel, in which many of the same questions were raised; highlighting aspects of Chance's "Paparazzi" video, media industry analyst Alan Stevens pointed out the growing inability within our modern media culture to distinguish between videos which are produced by amateurs and videos which are produced by professionals but made to appear amateur in origin.

His debut single title "Waiting Outside the Lines" was released to iTunes on October 26, 2010. It was released digitally in the UK on December 9. The single also contained a studio version of his cover of Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi". In early December 2010 he visited both Paris and London, appearing on local radio stations and giving private concerts in both cities.

On February 5, Greyson Chance entered the National spotlight again with an appearance/performance of "Waiting Outside The Lines" on the CBS Early Show, while stopping through New York on his tour with Miranda Cosgrove.

On May 17, 2011 his new single "Unfriend You" was released to iTunes.

On April 9, he started the Waiting 4U tour with Australian pop/R&B; singer Cody Simpson in Ivins, Utah. The tour ended on May 18, 2011 in Portland, Oregon.

On May 23, Greyson visited The Ellen DeGeneres Show to premiere his new single, "Unfriend You". After the performance, Greyson revealed a solid release date for his upcoming debut album, Hold On 'Til the Night, which is set to be released on August 2, 2011. The music video features cameo from ''Victorious'' star, Ariana Grande.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album	Peak position	Sales
		! style="width:40px;"
2011	''Hold On 'til the Night''	* Released: August 2, 2011	* Label: eleveneleven,
Year	Single	Peak	Album
!width="40"
		12
		—

Music videos

Year	Song	Director
2010	"Waiting Outside the Lines"	[[Sanaa Hamri">Maverick Records	* Format: [[Compact disc			* US: 16,000

Singles

Year	Single	Peak	Album
!width="40"
		12
		—

Music videos

Year	Song	Director
2010	"Waiting Outside the Lines"	[[Sanaa Hamri
2011	"Unfriend You"	Marc Klasfeld

Tours

Waiting 4U Tour

Awards and recognition

! Year	! Category	! Award	! Result
	Choice Web Star	Teen Choice Awards
Icon of Tomorrow
Teen Pick: YouTube Artist	Hollywood Teen TV Awards
2011	Favorite Viral Video Star	People's Choice Awards

References

External links

Official website

Category:1997 births Category:American pianists Category:American male singers Category:American pop pianists Category:American pop singers Category:Living people Category:American child singers Category:Musicians from Oklahoma Category:Internet memes Category:People from Oklahoma Category:People from Edmond, Oklahoma

ar:غريسون تشانس de:Greyson Chance es:Greyson Chance fa:گریسون چنس fr:Greyson Chance id:Greyson Chance ka:გრეისონ ჩენსი hu:Greyson Chance nl:Greyson Chance ja:グレイソン・チャンス nn:Greyson Chance pl:Greyson Chance pt:Greyson Chance ro:Greyson Chance ru:Ченс, Грейсон fi:Greyson Michael Chance sv:Greyson Chance uk:Грейсон Ченс zh:桂森·燦斯

name	Edie Brickell
background	solo_singer
birth name	Edie Arlisa Brickell
birth date	March 10, 1966
origin	Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas, United States
genre	Alternative rockFolk rockJangle popJam rockNew waveNeo-psychedeliaPop rock
occupation	Singer-songwriter, guitarist
years active	1985–present
label	Geffen
associated acts	Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, The Heavy Circles, The Gaddabouts
website	www.ediebrickell.com
notable instruments	}}

'' Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter best known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went #4 on the US Albums Chart.

Life and career

Brickell was born in Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas. She attended high school at the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas. She attended Southern Methodist University for a year and a half. In 1985, she made the decision one night in a bar to get up on stage with a local folk rock group, New Bohemians. She would join the band as lead singer. After the band was signed to a recording contract, the label changed the group's name to Edie Brickell & New Bohemians. Their 1988 debut album ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' became a critical and commercial success, with the big hit, "What I Am." The band's follow-up album, ''Ghost of a Dog'' (1990), did not fare as well. As a solo artist, Brickell released ''Picture Perfect Morning'' (1994) and ''Volcano'' (2003). In 2006 she reunited with some of the original members of New Bohemians and they released the album ''Stranger Things''.

In late 2007, Brickell and her stepson Harper Simon formed the band The Heavy Circles. They released a single on iTunes entitled "Hands On." The Heavy Circles released a debut album on February 12, 2008, featuring Sean Lennon, Martha Wainwright, and members of Cibo Matto.

In 2010, Brickell became a founding member of new band The Gaddabouts, consisting of Steve Gadd - drums, Edie Brickell - lead vocal, guitar, Andy Fairweather Low - electric & acoustic guitars, background vocals, Pino Palladino - bass, guitar, also featuring Dan Block, Ronnie Cuber, Joey DeFrancesco, Gil Goldstein, Marcus Rojas.http://www.thegaddabouts.com/the-band/

Brickell had a role as a folk singer in the 1989 film, ''Born on the Fourth of July''. Her version of Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" is featured on the film's soundtrack. She also sang a cover version of Lou Reed's Walk on the Wild Side in the 1990 film Flashback. Her "Good Times" video was included as part of the multimedia samples on the Windows 95 installation CD-ROM.

Her father, Eddie Brickell, "the Fort Worth Southpaw", was posthumously inducted into the Texas State Bowling Association Hall of Fame in 1988.

Brickell married singer-songwriter Paul Simon on May 30, 1992. Brickell was performing on NBC's ''Saturday Night Live'' on Saturday November 5, 1988 when she noticed Simon standing in front of the cameraman. "He made me mess the song up when I looked at him," she said with a smile. "We can show the kids the tape and say, 'Look, that's when we first laid eyes on each other.'" Brickell and Simon have three children - Adrian, Lulu and Gabriel.

Discography

''It's Like This...'' (1986)

''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' (1988) US #4, 2x platinum

''Ghost of a Dog'' (1990)

''Picture Perfect Morning'' (1994)

''The Live Montauk Sessions'' (2000)

''The Ultimate Collection'' (2002)

''Volcano'' (2003)

''Stranger Things'' (2006)

''The Heavy Circles'' (2008)

''Edie Brickell'' (2011)

''The Gaddabouts'' (2011)

Other contributions

''Microsoft Windows 95'' (1995) - "Good Times" Video

''WFUV: City Folk Live VII'' (2004) - "Take a Walk"

References

External links

Edie Brickell official website

New Bohemians official website

[ Edie Brickell] in Allmusic

Category:1966 births Category:American female singers Category:American pop singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Songwriters from Texas Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Dallas, Texas

af:Edie Brickell da:Edie Brickell de:Edie Brickell es:Edie Brickell fr:Edie Brickell it:Edie Brickell hu:Edie Brickell nl:Edie Brickell no:Edie Brickell pl:Edie Brickell pt:Edie Brickell fi:Edie Brickell sv:Edie Brickell

name	Peter Cetera
background	solo_singer
birth name	Peter Paul Cetera
birth date	September 13, 1944
origin	Chicago, Illinois, USA
instrument	VocalsElectric bassGuitar
genre	RockAdult contemporary
years active	1966–present
label	Warner Bros. RecordsRiver North Records
associated acts	Chicago
website	www.petercetera.com
notable instruments	}}

Peter Paul Cetera (born September 13, 1944, Chicago, Illinois) is an American singer, songwriter, bassist and producer best known for being an original member of the rock band Chicago, before launching a successful solo career. As a solo artist, Cetera has scored five Top 40 singles, including two that reached number 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

Early life

Family

Cetera ( ) was born and raised in the Morgan Park section of Chicago, Illinois, located on the far South Side. He was the second of six children and is of Polish descent. According to one source his father worked as a "machinist". Cetera's siblings include two brothers, Tim Cetera and Kenny Cetera, who are listed as contributing musicians on some of the recordings he made with Chicago and on some of his solo recordings.

Formal education

Cetera attended Mendel Catholic Prep High School, graduating in 1962, and is listed among the "Notable Alumni".

Musical beginnings

Cetera's interest in music began at 11 years of age when his parents bought him an accordion instead of the guitar he wanted. When he was 15, some older students from his high school took him to a club to see a band called The Rebel Rockers, which led to his purchasing an acoustic guitar at Montgomery Ward.

He eventually took up the electric bass, and with some high school friends—a drummer, guitarist and saxophone player—Cetera began playing the local dance circuit, dividing lead vocals with the guitarist. Cetera played in several groups in the Chicago area, including a popular local rock band named The Exceptions, which toured the Midwest in the mid 1960s, releasing two albums and several singles. Cetera is quoted as saying, "By the time I was 18 I was making more money than my dad."

Professional music career

Tenure in Chicago

In December 1967, Cetera arrived early for a show to watch a band called The Big Thing. Impressed by their use of a horn section combined with rock and roll, Cetera left The Exceptions to join The Big Thing within two weeks. The Big Thing, which soon changed its name to The Chicago Transit Authority (and eventually shortened it to Chicago after complaints by the actual CTA), released their self-titled debut album ''The Chicago Transit Authority'' on Columbia Records in 1969. Cetera sang lead vocal on three of the eleven songs on the album, with his tenor voice complementing the baritone voices of the two other lead singers in the group, keyboardist Robert Lamm and guitarist Terry Kath.

His trademark singing style would develop as a result of having to sing for a period of time with a wired-shut jaw after getting into a brawl at a Los Angeles Dodgers game in 1969.

The follow-up album, ''Chicago'', vaulted the band to popular status throughout the world. The song "25 or 6 to 4" was the first major hit single with Cetera singing lead vocals. ''Chicago'' is also notable for featuring Cetera's first songwriting effort, "Where Do We Go From Here?"

As the 1970s progressed, Cetera would become a more prolific songwriter for the group, contributing the hits "Wishing You Were Here" (#11) and "Happy Man" from the 1974 album ''Chicago VII''. His biggest singing and songwriting accomplishment with Chicago came in 1976 with their first worldwide No. 1 single, the ballad "If You Leave Me Now." Cetera's next composition in 1977, "Baby, What A Big Surprise" (#4), also became a major hit and cemented the band's status in the late 1970s as a "ballad band."

By the end of the 1970s, with the rise of disco music, Chicago's popularity declined, culminating in the release of the band's poorest-selling album ''Chicago XIV'' (#71) in 1980. Columbia Records subsequently bought out the remainder of Chicago's contract. In 1981, Cetera released his first solo album, ''Peter Cetera'', on Warner Bros. Records, after personally buying the rights from his previous contract with Columbia Records, who would not release the project. The album was, subsequently, a commercial failure, which Cetera attributed to Warner Bros.' refusal to promote him as a solo artist out of fear that he would leave Chicago, who had only recently signed with the label.

In 1982, David Foster was brought in as producer and the resulting group effort was ''Chicago 16'' (#9). The album represented a major comeback for Chicago, and leading the way was the hit single co-written (with Foster) and featured Cetera on lead vocals, "Hard to Say I'm Sorry," which went to #1 in the charts. The song also featured in the movie 'Summer Lovers' starring Daryl Hannah. The second single, "Love Me Tomorrow," was also co-written (again with Foster) and sung by Cetera, reaching No. 22 on the singles chart. The third single, "What You're Missing," was yet again sung by Cetera. In 1983, he took a break from his duties as Chicago frontman to add backing vocals on Paul Anka's final U.S. Top-40 hit ''Hold Me Til The Mornin' Comes'', which debuted in the summer of that year.

When ''Chicago 17'' was released in 1984, it became the veteran band's most successful selling album in their history, eventually going on to sell over 7 million copies in the United States alone. All four singles released from the album were sung by Cetera, including three which he co-wrote, and all of them charted in the top 20: "Stay the Night" (#16), "Hard Habit to Break" (#3), "You're the Inspiration" (#3) and "Along Comes a Woman" (#14).

With the advent of the music video and the growing popularity of MTV, Cetera became the 'face' and public leader of the longtime faceless band that was Chicago.

Departure from Chicago

With his newfound popularity, Cetera was interested in recording another solo album. In addition, he had stated his lack of interest for the extensive touring schedule of the band, especially to promote ''Chicago 17''. When the ''17 Tour'' concluded in May 1985, Chicago's management, along with several members of the band, had expressed a desire to book another tour for that summer and start work on the next Chicago album. Cetera insisted that they take a break from touring so that he could concentrate on a solo album and spend more time with his family.

After the band rejected his offer to stay in the band while recording a solo album (similar to the arrangement between Phil Collins and Genesis at the time), it was announced that Cetera and Chicago would go their separate ways in July 1985.

Solo career

Almost immediately, Cetera continued his streak of success. His first single, "Glory of Love" (the theme to the movie ''The Karate Kid, Part II''), was a US No. 1 hit in 1986, and achieved similar success throughout the world. It went on to win an ASCAP Award for Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures and a BMI Film & TV Award for Most Performed Song from a Film. It was also nominated for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe in the category of Best Original Song, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Male Artist. His album, ''Solitude/Solitaire,'' released in 1986, was also successful, selling over 1 million copies and producing another No. 1 hit single, "The Next Time I Fall," a duet with Amy Grant, which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. In fact, ''Solitude/Solitaire'' outsold ''Chicago 18'' (#35), the first Chicago album without him.

His third solo album, ''One More Story,'' was released in 1988 and contained the No. 4 hit single "One Good Woman" and "Save Me," the original opening theme for the television show ''Baywatch.''

In 1988 he recorded another duet, this time with Madonna. The song, "Sheherazade" was included on his album.

In 1989, Cetera recorded another duet, this time with Cher, called "After All," which was included on the soundtrack of the movie ''Chances Are.'' It reached #6 on the US charts..

In 1992, his final album on Warner Bros. Records, ''World Falling Down,'' was released. It featured the Adult Contemporary #1 hit, "Restless Heart", as well as two other successful singles: "Even a Fool Can See" and a duet with Chaka Khan, "Feels Like Heaven."

In 1995, Cetera released his first album for River North Records, ''One Clear Voice,'' and featured the hit single, "(I Wanna Take) Forever Tonight," a duet with actress Crystal Bernard. Following the release of the album, Cetera launched his first solo tour—accompanied by his River North labelmate, country singer Ronna Reeves -- lasting into 1996.

1997 brought ''You're the Inspiration: A Collection,'' a collection of all his duets from over the years, along with three re-recorded songs he had written while a member of Chicago, and two brand new recordings.

2001 saw the release of ''Another Perfect World.''

In 2002, Cetera performed a medley of four of his songs at The Concert for World Children's Day, backed by David Foster and an orchestra at Arie Crown Theater in Chicago. Subsequently, this led to his appearance, in 2003, with the Chicago Pops Orchestra on the PBS music program ''Soundstage'', which was broadcast throughout the United States and released on DVD.

From 2003 until the summer of 2007, Cetera performed a very limited number of concerts each year with a 40 piece orchestra, playing re-arrangements of songs from throughout his career, including several from his tenure as a member of Chicago.

In 2004, Cetera released a collection of holiday classics, ''You Just Gotta Love Christmas,'' which featured background and duet vocals by his eldest daughter, Claire.

Cetera has sung "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at Wrigley Field for a Chicago Cubs game at least three times: in 2003; on August 16, 2007, for a game that was televised on WGN-TV; and again on May 2, 2009 on Comcast Sports Net.

In December 2007, Cetera embarked on the ''You Just Gotta Love Christmas'' tour of the United States. It marked his return to a traditional rock band show, his first since 1996, featured songs from his 2004 Christmas album and from throughout his career.

Shortly after Cetera was featured in the cover story of the December 2007 issue of ''Bass Player'' magazine he saw Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas, playing bass guitar on television. Cetera sent his compliments, along with an autographed copy of the issue, to Huckabee, who was at that time a presidential hopeful in the 2008 Republican primaries. Huckabee said, “I was totally awestruck to get a letter from Peter Cetera. …having one of the greatest bass players in my generation give me a compliment is like winning New Hampshire."

Acting credits

Cetera has appeared in two movies: ''Electra Glide in Blue'', filmed in 1973, where he played the character of Bob Zemko; and Sidney Sheldon's ''Memories of Midnight'', a 1991 television movie made for the USA Network, where he played the role of Larry Douglas. He appeared in the 2010 Adult Swim program Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!.

Personal life

In 1982, Cetera married Diane Nini, with whom he had his first daughter. Claire, born in 1983, graduated from the University of Southern California in 2006 and is currently an artist, actor, singer and producer living in Los Angeles. She was previously a competitive snowboarder. This was Cetera's second marriage. An earlier marriage to first wife Janice Chai Ee Peng ended in divorce. Cetera and Nini divorced in 1991.

For a period of time, Cetera was brother-in-law to bandmate Robert Lamm, who had married Diane's sister, Julie. They have since been divorced.

His second daughter, Senna, born in 1997 by an ex-girlfriend, Blythe Weber, who was an A&R; executive for his former records label, River North Records/Platinum Entertainment. Senna lives in Nashville, where in 2006, she starred in the music video for country singer Josh Turner's song, "Would You Go with Me," which was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart.

Cetera has lived in Sun Valley, Idaho, since the mid-1980s, where he routinely participates in numerous sports, including basketball, mountain biking, soccer, ice hockey and motorcycling.

Cetera was mentioned in an advertisement for Heineken beer. A young man at an assisted living home asked one of the residents why he liked Peter Cetera. The older resident replied that he didn't like Cetera, but the ladies did, "and if you like the ladies, then by default, you like Cetera."

Discography

1981 - ''Peter Cetera'' #143 US

1986 - ''Solitude/Solitaire'' #23 US (Platinum), #56 UK

1988 - ''One More Story'' #58 US

1992 - ''World Falling Down'' #163 US

1995 - ''One Clear Voice''

1997 - ''You're the Inspiration: A Collection'' #134 US

2001 - ''Another Perfect World''

2004 - ''You Just Gotta Love Christmas

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions						Album
		! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"
1982	"Livin' in the Limelight"	—	—	—	6	—	—
1983	"Hold Me 'Til the Morning Comes"	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Glory of Love"	1	1	—	—	—	3
"The Next Time I Fall" (with Amy Grant)	1	1	—	—	—	—
	"Big Mistake"	61	—	—	—	—	—
"Only Love Knows Why"	—	24	—	—	—	—
	"One Good Woman"	4	1	—	—	—	—
"Best of Times"	59	22	—	—	—	—
"You Never Listen to Me"	—	—	—	32	—	—
1992	! scope="row"	35	1	—	—	36	—
	"Feels Like Heaven" (with Chaka Khan)	71	5	—	—	—	—
"Even a Fool Can See"	68	3	—	—	—	—
1995	"(I Wanna Take) Forever Tonight" (with Crystal Bernard)	86	22	33	—	—	—
	"One Clear Voice"	—	12	—	—	—	—
"Faithfully"	—	13	—	—	—	—
	"You're the Inspiration"	77	29	—	—	—	—
"Do You Love Me That Much"	—	6	—	—	—	—
1998	"She Doesn't Need Me Anymore"	—	27	—	—	—	—
2001	"Perfect World"	—	21	—	—	—	—
	"You Just Gotta Love Christmas"	—	39	—	—	—	—
"Something That Santa Claus Left Behind"	—	37	—	—	—	—

Featured singles

Year	Single	Artist	Peak chart positions				Album
			! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"	! width="35"
1987	"I Wasn't the One (Who Said Goodbye)"	Agnetha Fältskog	93	13	—	—	align="left"
1989	! scope="row"	Cher	6	1	—	—	align="left"
1997	"Hard to Say I'm Sorry"	Az Yet	8	14	20	7

Movie soundtracks

1986 - ''The Karate Kid, Part II'' - "Glory of Love"

1987 - ''Princess from the Moon'' - "Stay With Me"

1987 - ''Three Men and a Baby'' - "Daddy's Girl"

1989 - ''Chances Are'' - "After All" (with Cher)

1990 - ''Pretty Woman'' - "No Explanation"

Television

1990 - ''Baywatch'' - opening credits (original NBC Season 1 only) "Save Me"

2010 - ''Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!'' - Greene Machine

Notes and references

External links

Peter Cetera official website

Peter Cetera PBS Soundstage show

All songs lyrics

Category:1944 births Category:Living people Category:American male singers Category:American pop singers Category:American rock musicians Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American rock bass guitarists Category:American bass guitarists Category:American musicians of Polish descent Category:Chicago (band) members Category:People from Chicago, Illinois Category:Musicians from Chicago, Illinois

ay:Peter Cetera de:Peter Cetera es:Peter Cetera fr:Peter Cetera id:Peter Cetera it:Peter Cetera nl:Peter Cetera ja:ピーター・セテラ no:Peter Cetera pl:Peter Cetera pt:Peter Cetera fi:Peter Cetera sv:Peter Cetera

name	The Kings
background	group_or_band
origin	Vancouver, BC, Canada
genre	Rock, pop
years active	1977–present
current members	David Diamond Mister Zero Peter Nunn Sonny Keyes Peter Kadar Todd Reynolds
past members	Gary Craig Greg Chritchley Josh Broadbent Marty Cordrey Max Styles Randall Coryell Rich Roxborough Whitey Glan Atilla Turi
notable instruments	}}

The Kings are a Canadian band formed in the 1970s, best known for their 1980 North American hit "This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide".

Recording history

The Kings were formed in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Oakville, Ontario in the late 1970s. The original lineup included David Diamond (bass, lead vocals), Sonny Keyes (keyboards, vocals), Max Styles (drums), and Mister Zero (guitar) with Mister Zero and David Diamond serving as the main songwriters with contributions from Sonny Keyes. The Kings were originally known as WhistleKing and rehearsed, performed club gigs, and wrote a considerable number of songs for more than three years.

In early 1980 the band went into Nimbus 9 Studio in Toronto to record their first album. While recording, renowned producer Bob Ezrin visited the studio, listened to the band, and liked what he heard. Together they created the album ''The Kings Are Here'' featuring the hit "This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide". Two other singles followed and the band began touring extensively with Bob Seger, Jeff Beck, The Beach Boys and Eric Clapton. During 1980, their rising commercial fortunes culminated in an appearance on Dick Clark's ''American Bandstand'', and the closing spot at the major Heatwave festival in August.

''Amazon Beach'', the 1981 follow-up to ''The Kings Are Here'', produced little in the way of sales, and the band was soon dropped from their label Elektra Records. The Kings soldiered on and released the EP "R.S.V.P" and the live album ''Party Live '85'' on their own Dizzy label, while continuing to tour Canada and the US throughout the remainder of the 1980s. Max Styles left the band in approximately 1982.

Comebacks

The late 1980s were a difficult period for The Kings as they lost their drummer and their record label. As it were, the group was on the verge of a major revival as the single "This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide" became a huge radio hit in Chicago getting major play on all of the main rock stations: Classic rock WCKG, Alternative rock WXRT, and Mainstream Rock WLUP, as well as Top 40 powerhouse WLS-AM. The unavailability of the Kings records led Chicago DJ Bob Stroud of WLUP to record his own version of the single with his band Rockestra . Elektra Records unfortunately remained unaware of the burgeoning hit and never reissued the single or album.

The single "Parting Of The Ways" appeared on Bullseye Records compilation ''Unsigned, Sealed and Delivered'' in 1991. This comeback prompted The Kings to return to the studio to record ''Unstoppable'' produced by John Punter, David Diamond and Mister Zero in 1993. ''Unstoppable'' produced several hits in Canada including "Lesson To Learn", "Shoulda Been Me", "Tonight I Got You", "Parting Of The Ways", and the title track "Unstoppable". A phone call in 1999 from Mister Zero to Alan Fletcher at Warner Canada led to the green light needed for Warner to re-issue ''The Kings Are Here..and More'' which allowed fans to get their hit "This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide" on CD, which was fully remastered from the original 2 track tapes by Zero . ''...and More'' also contained a few re-mixed tracks from Unstoppable and two previously unreleased tracks -"If The Stars Come Out Tonight" and "Right To The Top". A remixed and more mature version of "If The Stars Come Out Tonight" appeared on ''Because Of You'' released in 2003. Combined original sales and cd sales have passed the platinum mark in Canada but no certification is allowed because of the bonus tracks on the cd, which are the only way the band makes money from that project.

Throughout the remainder of the 1990s, The Kings continued to tour and play live shows around Toronto, but Sonny Keyes' role with The Kings diminished and only Mister Zero and David Diamond remain as permanent members from the original lineup. Sonny Keyes continued to contribute when called upon by Zero and Diamond.

Drummer Atilla Turi and keyboard players Peter Nunn and Rich Roxborough joined Mister Zero and David Diamond on the 2003 Bullseye Records release "Because Of You" (Josh Broadbent - Diamond's son - was also recruited into The Kings to contribute his vocals). "Because Of You" would be The Kings' strongest effort to date with Harry Hess recording alongside producers Zero and Diamond. A video was made for the title track, "It's Up To You" and "The Fools Are In Love" was re-mixed from the ''Amazon Beach'' release. Sonny Keyes co-wrote "A Way You'll Never Be" with Mister Zero.

A reunion of the original lineup of The Kings occurred in the winter of 2001 with Max Styles and Sonny Keyes joining their old mates for Alan Frew's (Glass Tiger) children benefit concert for Camp Trillium in Toronto. They played the benefit concert again in 2002.

In late 2005 The Kings had a full length reunion concert in Toronto which was filmed for inclusion in the DVD documentary being assembled by Mister Zero. The first part of this film to be seen is the incredible video for ''This Beat Goes On/Switchin' to Glide'', released October 2006, which gets thousands of plays on youtube.

Another focus for The Kings was to put as many songs as possible on iTunes, thus having the catalog available worldwide instantly. The album ''The Kings Anthology One'' is the latest addition, 12 songs from different eras including never before heard epic rockers from Whistleking.

In to 2008, The Kings continue to play live shows across southern Ontario and, from time to time, the northern United States. The Kings are also finishing new songs for their next studio album.

Lineups

The Kings 1977 - 1982 # David Diamond (vocals, bass) # Mister Zero (guitar) # Sonny Keyes (keyboards) # Max Styles (drums)

The Kings 1982 - 1999 # David Diamond (vocals, bass) # Mister Zero (guitar) # Sonny Keyes (keyboards) #Peter Nunn (1994) (keyboards) #Marty Cordrey, Whitey Glan, Gary Craig, Randall Coryell, Greg Chritchley, Atilla Turi (drums) #Josh Broadbent (vocals) The Kings 1999 - 2005 # David Diamond (vocals, bass) # Mister Zero (guitar) # Atilla Turi (drums) # Peter Nunn (keyboards) # Rich Roxborough (keyboards) # Josh Broadbent (vocals)

The Kings 2005–present # David Diamond (vocals, bass) # Mister Zero (guitar) # Atilla Turi (drums) # Peter Nunn (keyboards) # Sonny Keyes (keyboards) # Peter Kadar (keyboards) #Josh Broadbent (vocals) #Todd Reynolds (Drums)

Discography

''The Kings Are Here'' album (Elektra, 1980)

''Amazon Beach'' album (Elektra, 1981)

''R.S.V.P'' [4-Song EP] (Dizzy, 1982)

''Party Live '85'' live album (Dizzy, 1985)

''Parting Of The Ways'' single (1991)

''Unstoppable'' CD (Dizzy, 1993)

''Unstoppable'' [W/This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide added] CD (Griffin, 1995)

''The Kings Are Here..and More'' CD (Warner, 2000)

''The Kings Are Here/Amazon Beach'' (2 on 1 CD, Wounded Bird, 2003)

''Because Of You'' CD (2003)

''Anthology One'' CD (2006)

See also

Canadian rock

Music of Canada

References

External links

Official website

Bullseye Records

The Kings: Anatomy of a One-Hit Wonder DVD review

Category:Canadian rock music groups Category:Musical groups from Vancouver