The Choirboys (band)
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The Choirboys are an Australian hard rock band from Sydney. They are best known for their track "Run to Paradise", a #1 hit in Australia in 1987 and 1988.
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1980s success
The Choirboys started on the Northern Beaches area of Sydney in 1979. The original members of the band were Mark Gable on vocals, Ian Hulme on bass, Lindsay Tebbutt on drums, and Brad Carr on guitar. They started jamming and writing songs, and playing together in venues around Sydney.
In 1983, George Young (formerly of The Easybeats, and older brother of Angus and Malcolm Young of AC/DC) heard a demo from the Choirboys. He recorded their self-titled debut album with his partner Harry Vanda of the famous Vanda & Young production team at the same studio where the early AC/DC and Rose Tattoo albums were recorded.
The first single, "Never Gonna Die," reached #21 in the Australian single charts in 1983. Australian TV musical personality Ian "Molly" Meldrum said the album was "destined to become an Aussie classic." Cold Chisel invited the Choirboys to support them on their "Last Stand", their last tour for 15 years.
The Choirboys returned to the live scene in 1986, opening for Deep Purple on their tour. Brad Carr left the group to be replaced by Brett Williams. They returned to the studio to produce their second album Big Bad Noise with producer Peter Blyton. The first single "Run to Paradise" reached the top of the charts in late 1987 and continued in the charts in early 1988. Big Bad Noise went double platinum in Australia with singles "Boys Will Be Boys" and "Struggle Town" also reaching the top 10 of the singles charts.
Career 1990-today
The Choirboys recorded Midnight Sun, the follow up to Big Bad Noise in Los Angeles with producer Marc Tanner in 1991. While it generated two top 40 hits in "Empire" and "Rendezvous," Midnight Sun didn't achieve the same level of success as its predecessor.
The band recorded its next album Yo-Yo in Germany during 1996, with Richard Lara (formerly of the Screaming Jets) on guitar and Barton Price (formerly of The Models) on drums. The band supported Cheap Trick on their Australian tour in the same year.
The Choirboys recorded the Evolver album in 2002 and 2003 in between going on an extensive tour of Australia and New Zealand. Former Icehouse drummer Paul Wheeler joined the band replacing Price. The Evolver album was released in 2004.
The band returned to the Australian singles charts in Australia in July 2004 when dance producer Nick Skitz asked Gable to sing "Run to Paradise" on a dance reworking. The song, billed as "Nick Skitz vs. the Choirboys" debuted in the top 20 of the Australian singles charts.
Band Members
As of 2004, the Choirboys consisted of:
- Mark Gable - vocals and guitar;
- Ian Hulme - bass and vocals; and
- Paul Wheeler - drums and vocals.
Other musicians who have been members of the Choirboys include Lindsay Tebbutt, Brad Carr, Brett Williams, Richard Lara and Barton Price
Discography
- Choirboys (1983)
- Big Bad Noise (1987)
- Midnight Sun (1991)
- Dead Drunk Live Hangovers (1991 - live)
- Decade 1983-1993 (1993 best of)
- Dancin on the Grave of Rock n' Roll (1996)
- Yo-Yo (1996)
- Evolver (2004)
External link
- The Choirboys web site (http://www.choirboys.net/pages/cbhome1.htm/)