Years active 1974–1985 | Origin Jamaica (1974) | |
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Albums Leave a Light, Fight Fight Fight Genres Pop music, Disco, Dance-pop, Rhythm and blues Similar Ottawan, Boney M, Frank Farian, Baccara, C C Catch | ||
Eruption were a popular disco, R&B and soul band in the 1970s and 1980s. They are best known for their covers of Ann Peebles's "I Can't Stand the Rain" and Neil Sedaka's "One Way Ticket", which were big disco hits in 1978 and 1979, respectively.
Contents
History
The band was formed in 1974 in the United Kingdom as Silent Eruption, and consisted of musicians of African and Caribbean origins. In 1975, they won the Soul Search contest and their first single "Let Me Take You Back in Time" was released. Finding their success quickly drying out, lead singer Lindel Leslie (sometimes referred to as Leslie Johnson) left the group, and the then backing singer Precious Wilson stepped forward to front the band. They went on the road in Germany where Frank Farian, the producer of Boney M., heard about them due to the success of their live shows. Farian signed the group with the Germany-based Hansa Records and the band was the backing band and the support act for Boney M.s first european tour.
After their single "Party, Party", their cover of "I Can't Stand the Rain" was an international hit, reaching #5 in the UK Singles Chart and #18 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Both songs were included in their first album, released in December 1977. It was followed by their second album titled Leave a Light, launched towards the end of 1978. The first single off the album, "Leave a Light", delivered the second single, "One Way Ticket" (a cover of Neil Sedaka's song written by Jack Keller and Hank Hunter), catapulted them to the top of the charts (a UK #9 hit).
In 1979, Eruption and Boney M. were both featured in the 1979 German film Disco Fever. Precious Wilson left the group in the same year to pursue a solo career and was replaced by singer Kim Davis. The group enjoyed their third German top 10 hit with "Go Johnnie Go" from the third album Fight Fight Fight. Shortly after, a tragedy hit when Davis succumbed to a brain hemorrhage, although some sources claim she died in a car accident. The band decided to continue and singer Jane Jochen stepped in. A new recording, a cover of Del Shannon's "Runaway" was released in December 1980, and peaked at #21 in the German charts. After a compilation album in the spring of 1981 and the single release of "You (You Are My Soul)" from Fight Fight Fight, the band signed to Ralph Siegel's Jupiter Records.
By now, without the lead vocals of Precious Wilson, success was drastically diminishing, and the singles from their fourth album Our Way received little notice. In 1983, the drummer Eric Kingsley left Eruption, and Andi Weekes Barbados joined the group to play drums during last two years of the band's activity. In 1985, Eruption disbanded. In 1988, a new version of "I Can't Stand the Rain" was released. In 1994, Farian released the CD Gold – 20 Super Hits which featured seven remixed Eruption titles and 16 tracks from Precious Wilson's solo album. The new version of "One Way Ticket" was released as a single in the same year to promote the compilation. In 1997, Wilson became the legal owner of the trademark Eruption. She continues to tour promoting her solo projects, and also as Eruption with her new group, but none of the band's original members perform in the latest line-ups.
Band members
Compilations
Songs
One Way TicketLeave a Light · 1978
I Can't Stand the RainEruption · 1977
Go Johnny Go1994