New England (band)

Last updated
New England
Origin Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres
Years active1978 (1978)–1982, 2002, 2005-present
Members
  • John Fannon
  • Hirsh Gardner
  • Jimmy Waldo
  • Gary Shea
Website newenglandrocks.com

New England is an American rock band, who were best known in the US for their first single, "Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya", which received heavy radio exposure on Album-oriented rock (AOR) stations and reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1979. [1] The follow-up "Hello, Hello, Hello" also received some airplay. New England described their sound as "power-melodic-orchestrated-song-oriented rock" [2]

Contents

Career

John Fannon, Jimmy Waldo, Gary Shea and Hirsh Gardner formed the band in the Boston area. [3] They were discovered by Kiss manager Bill Aucoin. [3] Paul Stanley helped the band record and produce their self-titled debut album, along with producer Mike Stone, known for his work with Queen and Asia among many others. The group went on tour in support of Kiss, [3] but New England slid between the cracks of other Aucoin projects. The group's success stalled when their record label Infinity Records failed and was absorbed by its parent company, MCA Records in 1980.

The group moved to Elektra Records for their second album, Explorer Suite. [3] That album garnered little commercial notice. The title track was released as a single, with management at their label Elektra hoping for interest in an unconventional extended pop song, similar to what they had witnessed a few years earlier for their labelmates Queen with the song "Bohemian Rhapsody". However, the songs "Living In The Eighties" and "Conversation" received more airplay than did the intended single.

Todd Rundgren's production on the slightly harder-rocking third album, Walking Wild, did not improve sales.

After the release of the third album, John Fannon left the group. [4] The remaining three members then began working with Vinnie Vincent, changed the name of the band to Warrior, and recorded a series of demos in 1982. [5] The project dissolved when Vinnie Vincent subsequently joined Kiss later that year. Shortly thereafter, Gary Shea and Jimmy Waldo joined the band Alcatrazz. [3] These demo recordings were eventually released on CD in 2017. [6]

After the break-up, all of the members remained in the music industry. In late 2002, New England reunited to record "More Than You'll Ever Know", a song from the Hirsh Gardner solo album entitled Wasteland For Broken Hearts. It marked the first time the group recorded together in 20 years. In recent years, the band has reunited for a few live shows in the Boston area. Shea and Waldo made guest appearances at various musical instrument conventions such as the NAMM Show in places like Anaheim, California.

The US reissue label Renaissance Records released a CD version of the first album. GB Records released the other two albums on CD, plus a live album and an album of early recording studio/studio sound recordings and reproduction/recordings made before the debut album. In 2009, Wounded Bird Records reissued Explorer Suite and Walking Wild on CD.

In 2017, Hirsh Gardner founded the "Hirsh Gardner Project" and release their debut album titled My Brain Needs a Holiday. In the summer of 2020, The Hirsh Gardner Project broke up

In 2023, Hirsh Gardner was inducted into the New England Music Hall of Fame in Arlington Massachusetts.

Reunion

While occasionally doing single reunion shows for charity, in May 2014 John Fannon discussed New England having new studio work and a possible full tour for 2015 during his solo appearance on the Concert TV series, On Stage with Mantis. A new single was released by the band in April 2015 titled "I Know There's Something Here" along with the b-side being a re-record of "Conversation" a song taken from the band's second album Explorer Suite.

EuroHouse covers

"Get it Up" hit No. 1 on Billboard's Spain charts in July, 1995 and remained a top 10 hit into October, thanks to a EuroHouse cover by the group Sensity World. [7] [8] Sensity World was based in Valencia, Spain, with vocalist Aina Martínez Tejedor and producer Víctor Javier Grafia Gavin. [9]

The song was featured in over 70 different EuroHouse releases (the "Ibiza Mix 95" compilation alone sold over 300,000 units in Spain during 1995, as documented by both Promusicae and Billboard magazine.) [10] [11] [12] DJ Sammy remixed a "Maxi" for the German, Belgium, and Holland markets. [13] "Get it Up" had over 8 million views on YouTube as of October, 2022. [14] And Sensity World still was performing this song in concert to large audiences in 2020. [15] [16]

Other groups also made EuroHouse covers. For example, in 2021, Soraya (Arnelas) released an updated version of "Get it Up" featuring Julian Poker in Spain. [17] [18] In the 2010s, Lorena Gomez released several versions of the song, featuring Carlos Gallardo, in Italy, Germany, and Spain. [19] [20] [21] [22]

Discography

YearAlbum Billboard Top 200
1979 New England 50
1980Explorer Suite
1981Walking Wild176

Singles

DateTitle US
May 1979"Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya"40
September 1979"Hello, Hello, Hello" / "Encore"69
1979"P.U.N.K" / "Shoot"
1980"DDT" / "Elevator"
April 2015"I Know There's Something There"

Covers - EuroHouse [7]

DateTitleCover GroupBillboard Spain
1995"Get It Up"Sensity World1

Promotional releases

Compilations

New England (Self Titled Limited Edition Vinyl) (2020)

EuroHouse releases (Sensity World) [23]

EuroHouse releases by other artists [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]

Personnel

Related Research Articles

<i>Waiting for the Sun</i> 1968 studio album by the Doors

Waiting for the Sun is the third studio album by the American rock band the Doors, released by Elektra Records on July 3, 1968. The album's 11 tracks were recorded between late 1967 and May 1968 mostly at TTG Studios in Los Angeles. It became the band's only number one album, topping the Billboard 200 for four weeks, while also including their second US number one single, "Hello, I Love You". The first single released off the record was "The Unknown Soldier", which peaked at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also became the band's first hit album in the UK, where it reached number 16.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reverence (song)</span> 1992 single by the Jesus and Mary Chain

"Reverence" is a song by Scottish alternative rock group the Jesus and Mary Chain, released as the first single from the group's fourth studio album, Honey's Dead (1992). It was released by Blanco y Negro Records on 3 February 1992, reaching number 10 on the UK Single Chart and number 21 in Ireland. BBC TV banned the song from airing due to the lyrics "I want to die just like Jesus Christ / I want to die just like J-F-K", but it was not banned from BBC Radio One.

<i>Strip-mine</i> (album) 1988 studio album by James

Strip-mine is the second studio album by English rock band James. It was released on 26 September 1988, through Sire and Blanco y Negro Records. After minimal touring and lack of success for their debut studio album Stutter (1986), the label was apprehensive about letting them record another album. Sessions for it were held in early 1987 at Rockfield Studios with Hugh Jones producing the majority of the album, except for "Are You Ready", which produced by Steve Power and Steve Lovell. After the recording, the release was delayed a number of times, until it was eventually remixed early the following year at London's Battery Studios. Described as a folk-pop album, the songs on Strip-mine tackled the topics of misinformation, addiction, and human mortality.

Kym Sims is an American singer whose biggest success came outside her home market, most notably the Scandinavian countries and the United Kingdom. Sims began her career as an advertising jingle singer before breaking through into the dance music market. Following a battle with alcohol addiction, Sims returned to the Billboard Dance Charts reaching #6 with "Turn It Up" in 2017.

<i>Greatest Hits</i> (The Doors album) 1980 greatest hits album by the Doors

Greatest Hits is a compilation album by American rock band the Doors, released in 1980. The album, along with the film Apocalypse Now, released the previous year, created for the band an entirely new audience of the generation that did not grow up with the Doors. The album went on to become one of the highest-selling compilations of all time, with combined CD and vinyl sales of 5,000,000 in the United States alone.

Pedro Marín is a Spanish pop singer.

<i>New England</i> (New England album) 1979 studio album by New England

New England is the debut album by the American rock band New England. The album was also issued on CD in 1998 by the US re-issue label Renaissance Records. The CD contains an un-marked bonus track, a different extended mix of "Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strange Glue</span> 1998 single by Catatonia

"Strange Glue" is a song by Welsh rock group Catatonia. Written by guitarist Owen Powell, it was the band's fourth single to be released from International Velvet and charted at No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart. As a solo artist, lead singer Cerys Matthews later sang "Strange Glue" merged with the song "Galway Shawl" in concert.

Noemí Carrión Pérez, is a Spanish singer, dancer, and actress, known also as Naymi and Noemí. Her work encompasses studio recording, songwriting, live performance, and television presenting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Far Gone and Out</span> 1992 single by the Jesus and Mary Chain

"Far Gone and Out" is a song by Scottish alternative rock group the Jesus and Mary Chain, released as the second single from their fourth studio album, Honey's Dead (1992). It was released by Blanco y Negro Records in March 1992 and reached number 23 on the UK Single Chart. "Far Gone and Out" also peaked at number 88 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart in May 1992.

Nacho Chapado is a DJ and music producer born in Barcelona, Spain in 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Number One (Alexia song)</span> 1996 single by Alexia

"Number One" is a song by Italian singer Alexia, released as the third single from her debut album, Fan Club (1997). Co-written by Alexia, it was her third successive top 5 hit on the Italian singles chart. In both Finland and Spain, it peaked within the top 5. A set of Spanish versions were released, although these were not specifically for the Spanish market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alejandro de Pinedo</span> Musical artist

Alejandro Gil Pinedo, better known as Alejandro de Pinedo is a Spanish musician, composer, author, music producer, chill-out music artist and CEO of the record company AGP Music. His music is heard in more than 170 countries and there are more than 200 record productions in which he has participated in one or another way. He has 31 gold and platinum records so far, and his works are played millions of times on all digital platforms globally.

<i>Líderes</i> 2012 studio album by Wisin & Yandel

Líderes is the eighth studio album by Puerto Rican reggaeton duo Wisin & Yandel. The album was released on July 3, 2012. The album features collaborations of artist like Chris Brown, T-Pain, Jennifer Lopez, O’Neill, Franco "El Gorila" and Alberto Stylee, Timbaland. The album's track listing was confirmed by Universal on June 11, 2012. The album is a mixture of Latin pop, dance-pop, hip-hop, and reggaeton, and won the Lo Nuestro Award for Urban Album of the Year. It also the Billboard Latin Music Award for Latin Rhythm Album of the Year in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Fall</span> Musical artist

Michael Fall, is a Belgian DJ, producer, and remixer from Moerbeke-Waas, Belgium. Michael Fall is currently signed on different record labels worldwide. In the past, he signed deals with major labels such as Universal Music Group, CNR Records in Belgium & ZYX Music records in Germany. He released many songs that have charted in Belgian and foreign charts. He ended his publishing contract with BMC Universal in November 2012 and signed a new publishing contract in November 2012 at the Dutch independent music publisher Strengholt Music Group until 2018. In 2013 he released his debut album called 'Turn on your radio' and was listed in the official Belgium album charts. Michael is the owner of MFrecords based in Belgium and he owns a record store in Zelzate. In 2014 he received a golden award for his debut album. On 31 July 2015, he released his second album called 'Ain't nothing but a party'. On August 28, 2020 Michael's single 'Winter' reached 1 million Spotify Streams. In April 2021 he released a new album on Zyx Music called 'Million Years'

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie Grace</span> American singer and actress (born 1995)

Leslie Grace Martínez is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. For her work as a singer, she has received three Latin Grammy Award nominations. She starred as Nina Rosario in Jon M. Chu's film adaptation In the Heights (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Otero</span> Musical artist

David Otero is a Spanish singer, guitarist and composer. He was a member of the pop rock band El Canto del Loco (1994–2010).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Runaway (Deee-Lite song)</span> 1992 single by Deee-Lite

"Runaway" is a song recorded, written and produced by New York City-based group Deee-Lite, released on May 28, 1992 by Elektra Records as the lead single from their second studio album, Infinity Within (1992). It is the group's fourth single to top the US Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. In Europe, the song was a top-10 hit in Greece and a top-20 hit in Finland, as well as peaking at number nine on the UK Dance Singles Chart and number 12 on the European Dance Radio Chart. The music video for "Runaway" was directed by American filmmaker and artist Gus Van Sant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dead from the Waist Down</span> 1999 single by Catatonia

"Dead from the Waist Down" is a song by Welsh rock band Catatonia, taken from their third studio album, Equally Cursed and Blessed. It was written by Mark Roberts with Catatonia and produced by the band and TommyD. Released on 29 March 1999, the song reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart and was the band's only song to chart in New Zealand, where it peaked at number 44.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Londinium (song)</span> 1999 single by Catatonia

"Londinium" is a song by Welsh band Catatonia from their third studio album, Equally Cursed and Blessed (1999). It was written by Mark Roberts with Catatonia and produced by TommyD and the band. Released on 12 July 1999, the song reached number 20 on the UK Singles Chart.

References

  1. Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 610.
  2. Kaminski, Adam. "New England, Old Sound". Soundofboston.com. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 248. ISBN   0-85112-656-1.
  4. "Review: "Warrior featuring Vinnie Vincent, Jimmy Waldo, Gary Shea & Hirsh Gardner: II" - Sea of Tranquility - The Web Destination for Progressive Music!". Seaoftranquility.org. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  5. "Kiss Related Recordings; Interview - Hirsh Gardner - NEW ENGLAND - WARRIOR - VINNIE VINCENT (August 15,2017)". Kiss-related-recordings.nl. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  6. "Warrior Featuring Vinnie Vincent – Warrior (2017, CD)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  7. 1 2 Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 1995-08-26.
  8. Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 1995-10-07.
  9. Museo Dance on Facebook Watch , retrieved 2020-03-10
  10. Llewellyn, Howell (1995-10-28). "Spanish Indie Targets GSA, Max Music Opens Office in Germany". Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 51.
  11. "Sensity World". Discogs. Retrieved 2021-01-21.
  12. "Anexo:Álbumes más vendidos en España", Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre (in Spanish), 2020-12-27, retrieved 2021-01-22
  13. "Featuring Vuelven los 90: Biografía y entrevista con Victor Grafia - Sensity World on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. time stamp ~31:00. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
  14. "YouTube watch statistics for single "Sensity World Get it Up"". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  15. "Love The 90s Concert - Valencia 2019". YouTube. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  16. "Love The 90s Concert - Valencia 2019 (close view)". YouTube. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  17. 1 2 Soraya + Julian Poker - GET IT UP , retrieved 2022-10-05
  18. 1 2 "Soraya y Julian Poker versionan el clásico noventero 'Get It Up' | Popelera" (in Spanish). 2021-04-19. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  19. 1 2 "Discografía". Lorena Gomez. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  20. 1 2 "Lorena Gomez". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
  21. 1 2 Various - Ahora 011 , retrieved 2022-10-05
  22. Various - Anual 2011 (El Album Dance Del Año) , retrieved 2022-10-05
  23. "Sensity World". Discogs. Retrieved 2022-10-05.