| Huey Lewis And The News |
Article Index for Huey |
Articles about Huey Lewis & The News |
Website Links For Huey |
Information AboutHuey Lewis And The News |
|
CAREER History In 1972 , Singer and Harmonica player Huey Lewis and Keyboardist Sean Hopper joined the Bay Area jazz-funk band Clover , who would eventually become the original backing band for Elvis Costello 's first album " My Aim Is True ", before he attracted The Attractions. Clover's main competition in the Bay Area jazz-funk scene had been a band called Soundhole , whose members included Drummer Bill Gibson, Saxophonist / Guitarist Johnny Colla, and Bassist Mario Cipollina (younger brother of John Cipollina ). Like Clover, Soundhole had spent time backing a famous singer, Van Morrison . After getting a singles contract from Phonogram Records in 1979 , Huey Lewis united his former bandmate and three of his former rivals to form "Huey Lewis & the American Express". The group would release a single "Exo-Disco" (a disco version of the theme from the film '' Exodus '') that was largely ignored. In 1980 , the band would woo Guitarist Chris Hayes and move to Chrysalis Records , changing their name to "Huey Lewis & the News". Later in 1980, the band would release their first album, a self-titled LP that was released with little attention and would go largely unnoticed. However, in 1982 , Lewis reunited with former Clover producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange, and the band released ''Picture This''. Shortly thereafter, the album turned gold, fueled by the breakout success of hit single "Do You Believe in Love". Largely because of the single, the album remained on the Billboard charts for 35 weeks and peaked at #13. Several other singles from ''Picture This'' would follow, but with only limited success. Due to record label delays on the release of their third album ''Sports'', Huey Lewis & the News was back to square one in late 1983 , touring small clubs in a bus to promote the record.It initially hit #6 in the U.S.when first released. However, the album slowly became a #1 hit in 1984 and multi-platinum success in 1985 , thanks to the band's frequent touring and a series of clever, funny videos that received heavy MTV airplay. Four singles from the album would reach the Billboard Top Ten: "Heart and Soul", "I Want a New Drug", "The Heart of Rock & Roll", and "If This Is It". Their song " The Power Of Love " was a #1 U.S. hit and featured in the 1985 film '' Back To The Future '', with which they also recorded the theme song "Back In Time". Huey Lewis has a cameo appearance in the film as the teacher who rejects Marty McFly's band's audition for the school's "Battle of the Bands" contest—ironically, the piece the band plays is an instrumental version of "The Power of Love". "The Power of Love" was also nominated for an Academy Award. ''Ghostbusters'' In 1984 , Huey Lewis & the News were contacted by the producers of '' Ghostbusters '' in regards to developing the theme song for the film. The band refused, and Ray Parker Jr. was instead signed to develop the theme. Later that year, the band Sued Parker Jr., citing the similarities between the ''Ghostbusters'' theme song and their earlier hit "I Want a New Drug". According to Huey Lewis and the News, this was especially damaging to them since the ''Ghostbusters'' theme song was so popular, rising to #1 on the charts for three weeks. In 1997 , the band won the case and Parker Jr. was ordered to pay damages. Huey Lewis has stated that his experiences with the producers of ''Ghostbusters'' may have been indirectly responsible for getting his band involved with the movie ''Back to the Future''. On his 2001 '' Behind The Music '' special, Huey Lewis stated: "The offensive part was not so much that Ray Parker Jr. had ripped this song off, it was kind of symbolic of an industry that wants something — they wanted our wave, and they wanted to buy it. ... {Link without Title} t's not for sale. ... In the end, I suppose they were right. I suppose it was for sale, because, basically, they bought it." As a result of this quote, Ray Parker Jr. has filed a suit against Huey Lewis, claiming he had violated the lawsuit's confidentiality agreement and seeking an unspecified amount of compensatory and punitive damages as well as lawyer's fees. The lawsuit is ongoing. Current Huey Lewis & the News continues to tour to this day; however, the lineup has changed significantly since the band's heyday. Mario Cipollina left the band shortly after 1994 's ''Four Chords and Several Years Ago'' album and tour. His replacement since that time has been bassist John Pierce. The Tower Of Power , which served as the band's horn section from the early 80's, also ceased their work with the band in 1994. Hornist s Marvin McFadden, Ron Stallings, and Rob Sudduth have joined the group in their place. In early 2000 , Chris Hayes left "The News" to spend more time with his family, although he worked with the band on the release of their 2001 ''Plan B'' album. Guitarist Stef Burns typically fills Chris' role with the band, although guitarist Tal Morris has also done so occasionally. The most recent album of Huey Lewis & the News is 2005 's ''Live At 25 - The Best Of Live'', a live recording of a December 2004 concert at the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, CA . Despite occasional rumors, there are no current official plans for a new Huey Lewis & the News album. The band has scheduled a summer 2006 US tour with Chicago . "THE NEWS" Old News
New News
DISCOGRAPHY Albums
Hit Singles All told Huey Lewis and the News has scored 19 top ten hits over Billboards Hot 100, Adult Contemporary and Mainstream Rock Charts - only the band's most notable hits appear below:
SEE ALSO
EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|