Matchbox Twenty
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- The title of this article is incorrect because of technical limitations. The correct title is matchbox twenty.
matchbox twenty (originally Matchbox 20) is an alternative rock band from Orlando, Florida. The members of the band are Rob Thomas, vocals; Brian Yale, bass; Paul Doucette, drums; (formerly) Adam Gaynor, rhythm guitar; and Kyle Cook, lead guitar. Thomas, Yale and Doucette had played the band Tabitha's Secret in Orlando, Florida before splitting apart to form Matchbox 20 with Gaynor and Cook.
They released their first album, Yourself or Someone Like You in 1996. While their first single, "Long Day," was a rock radio-only smash, the album soon spun off several Top 40 hit singles throughout 1997 and 1998, including "Push," "3AM," "Real World," and "Back 2 Good." The album eventually went on to sell over 12 million copies in the US alone, earning diamond status.
Before recording their next album, Rob Thomas wrote a song for Carlos Santana's comeback album, Supernatural, on which he sang vocals. The song, "Smooth," became the album's lead single and a gigantic smash hit in 1999, and Thomas would earn several Grammys for writing it.
In 2000, Matchbox 20 renamed themselves "matchbox twenty" and released their second album, Mad Season. The video for their first single, "Bent," made fun of singer Thomas' heightened profile by showing the other band members mug and beat him mercilessly. "Bent," as well as "If You're Gone" and "Mad Season," also became huge hits for the band.
For their third album, the other band members demanded equal songwriting credit. Sharing the songwriting duties proved to be a good idea, as the band once again had a greatly successful album, [[More Than You Think You Are|]] that was omnipresent on radio for more than a year and a half with several hit singles including "Disease," "Bright Lights," and "Unwell," which topped the charts for 20 weeks in 2003.
In May 2004, the band released a concert DVD, Show: A Night in the Life of Matchbox Twenty, featuring 20 songs, including 13 of their singles (all except "Last Beautiful Girl").
In February 2005, rhythm guitarist Adam Gaynor officially left the group, which had been on hiatus to allow other members to pursue side projects. Rob Thomas has then had some solo releases, including the US Billboard 200 #1 album, Something To Be, and the top ten hit, "Lonely No More".
Hit Singles (in chronological order)
- Long Day (1997) #8 (Rock)
- Push (1997) US: #4; #4 (Rock); UK (1998): 38
- 3 A.M. (1998) US: #3; #2 (Rock)
- Real World (1998) US: #9; #17 (Rock)
- Back 2 Good (1999) US: #15
- Bent (2000) US: #1 (1 week); #26 (Rock)
- Mad Season (2001) #3 (Hot AC)
- If You're Gone (2000) US: #4
- Last Beautiful Girl (2001)
- Disease (2002) US: #26
- Unwell (2003) US: #5; #1 (Hot AC)
- Bright Lights (2003) US: #23; #2 (Hot AC)
Discography
- Yourself or Someone Like You (1996) US: #5 (12x Platinum) (WW: 20 million)
- Mad Season (2000) US: #3 (4x Platinum); UK: #31 (WW: 10 million)
- More Than You Think You Are (2002) US: #6 (2x Platinum); UK: #31 (WW: 7 million)
- EP (2003) US: #43 (200,000)
External links
- Official site (http://www.matchboxtwenty.com/)
- Fan site (http://www.matchbox20-fans.com/)fr:Matchbox 20