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Maurizio Bassi (born 1960) is an Italian music composer and musician. He is best known as the singer of Baltimora along with Naimy Hackett and Jimmy McShane.
Not much is documented about Bassi other than he had released two solo singles/EPs in both 1974 (Mau Bassi* / Vittorio Inzaina - Perchè Solo Noi / Welcome To Costa Smeralda (7")) and 1981 (Arrivederci / Di Tutto Un Pop). He gained worldwide recognition with his Italian-based project, Baltimora. He formed it with both Naimy Hackett and Jimmy McShane.
Notable singles by the band include: "Tarzan Boy", "Woody Boogie", "Living in the Background" and "Key Key Karimba" The most successful of the singles was "Tarzan Boy". The band split in 1987; however in 1993, Bassi re-recorded and released "Tarzan Boy" as a remix. This remix bounced back into the Billboard Hot 100 chart in March 1993, climbing to No. 51, at the time of its appearance in a Listerine commercial. The song was also featured in the films Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993), Beverly Hills Ninja (1997) and was then referenced in A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014).
Bassi is said to have been the actual singer of the band but chose McShane to lip sync all the lyrics in the videos. [1]
McShane died from an AIDS-related illness in 1995 [2] and Bassi has made no singles or contributions since.
Bronski Beat were a British synth-pop band formed in 1983 in London, England. The initial lineup, which recorded the majority of their hits, consisted of Jimmy Somerville (vocals), Steve Bronski and Larry Steinbachek. Simon Davolls contributed backing vocals to many songs.
James William Somerville is a Scottish pop singer and songwriter from Glasgow, Scotland. He sang in the 1980s with the synth-pop groups Bronski Beat and the Communards, and has also had a solo career. He is known in particular for his powerful and soulful countertenor/falsetto singing voice. Many of his songs, such as "Smalltown Boy", contain political commentary on gay-related issues.
Nicholas David Kershaw is an English singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He came to prominence in 1984 as a solo artist. He released eight singles that entered the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart during the decade, including "Wouldn't It Be Good", "Dancing Girls", "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", "Human Racing", "The Riddle", "Wide Boy", "Don Quixote", and "When a Heart Beats". His 62 weeks on the UK Singles Chart through 1984 and 1985 beat all other solo artists. Kershaw appeared at the multi-venue benefit concert Live Aid in 1985 and has also penned a number of hits for other artists, including a UK No. 1 single in 1991 for Chesney Hawkes, "The One and Only".
Baltimora was an Italian music project from Milan, active from 1984 to 1987. They are best known for their 1985 single "Tarzan Boy" and are often considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom and the United States. In other European countries, including their native Italy, Baltimora scored a follow-up hit "Woody Boogie" the same year.
James Harry McShane was a Northern Irish singer who held both British and Italian citizenship. He achieved recognition as the lead singer of the Italian new wave band Baltimora, most notably with their 1985 hit song "Tarzan Boy".
"Tarzan Boy" is the debut single by Italian-based act Baltimora. The song was written by Maurizio Bassi and Naimy Hackett, and released in 1985 as the lead single from Baltimora's debut album Living in the Background. The song was remixed and re-released in 1993, and has been covered by several artists throughout the years.
"MacArthur Park" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb that was recorded first in 1967 by Irish actor and singer Richard Harris. Harris's version peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number four on the UK Singles Chart. "MacArthur Park" was subsequently covered by numerous artists, including a 1970 Grammy-winning version by country singer Waylon Jennings and a number one Billboard Hot 100 disco version by Donna Summer in 1978. Webb won the 1969 Grammy Award for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) for the Harris version.
"Nasty Girl" is a song recorded by American group Destiny's Child for their third studio album Survivor (2001). Written by Maurizio Bassi, Naimy Hackett, and its producers Beyoncé Knowles and Anthony Dent, it features a distinct vocal interpolation of Salt-n-Pepa's "Push It" (1987) and Baltimora's "Tarzan Boy" (1985). The song was released as the fourth and final single from Survivor outside North America on March 4, 2002, by Columbia Records.
"Smalltown Boy" is the debut single by the British synth-pop band Bronski Beat, released in May 1984 by London Recordings. It was included on their debut album, The Age of Consent (1984). The lyrics describe a young man who is forced to leave home. "Smalltown Boy" is a gay anthem and is associated with the rise of British gay culture in the 1980s. The music video was directed by Bernard Rose and filmed in East London. In 2022, Rolling Stone named it the 163rd-greatest dance song.
"Paninaro" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, originally a B-side to the 1986 single "Suburbia". In 1995, a re-recording titled "Paninaro '95" was released to a wider market, to promote the duo's B-side compilation album Alternative, though only the original version was included on the compilation.
Modern Romance is a British pop music band that found popularity in the early 1980s. Formed in 1980 by previous members of an earlier group, the Leyton Buzzards, the band achieved a string of UK chart hits before the original group broke up in 1985. Andy Kyriacou reformed the band in 1999 who continue to perform the group's music.
Tight Fit are an English pop group who had several hits in the early 1980s, including a UK No.1 for three weeks with their cover version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" in 1982.
Living in the Background is the debut studio album by Italian-based act Baltimora, released in the United States in April 1985 by EMI-Manhattan Records and in Europe on 4 September 1985 by EMI.
Survivor in Love is the second and final album by Italy-based act Baltimora. The album, released in 1987, was only issued in select countries, such as Italy, Germany, UK, Japan, and Mexico. It was later re-released in 2003 on CD to many more countries, including the United States and Canada due to the current dance/pop uprise in recent years, as well as for Baltimora fans who had not received the original LP in their home countries. The reason the album was not released in certain countries in 1987 was due to the poor sales of the singles on the group's previous album, Living in the Background.
"Living in the Background" is the title track and third single from Baltimora's debut album of the same name, and second released single in total. The song reached number 87 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. There was no video made for this single.
"Woody Boogie" is an Italo disco song recorded and released by Italy-based act Baltimora. Released in 1985, it was the group's second single from their debut album Living in the Background, where it appears as the fourth track. Two promotional videos were created for the single. The song notably features a synthesizer replaying cartoon character Woody Woodpecker’s signature laugh, which is incorporated into the chorus as well as other parts of the song.
"Juke Box Boy" is an Italo disco song recorded by the Italian act Baltimora and released as the group's only single in 1986. The song itself did not appear on any original studio album although it was included on the 1986 Canadian edition of the band's first album Living in the Background and on the album's 1993 re-issue as a bonus track. The single had a promotional video created.
"Key Key Karimba" is a song by Italo disco act Baltimora, released in 1987 as the lead single from their second and final studio album Survivor in Love. The song was written and produced by Maurizio Bassi.
Alessandro Andrea Casillo is an Italian singer, launched by the talent show Io Canto. In 2012 he won the Sixty-second edition of the Sanremo Music Festival in the Youth category, with the song È vero .
The Singles Collection 1984/1990 is a compilation album covering Scottish pop singer Jimmy Somerville's career in the bands Bronski Beat, The Communards and as a solo artist. It was released in 1990. In Italy, the album was marketed under the alternate title, 1984/1990 Greatest Hits.
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