April Wine

April Wine's roots date back to December of 1969 when Miles Goodwyn and childhood friends David, Ritchie and Jimmy Henman played the local Halifax bars. The four moved to Montreal not long after with their equipment, a couple of bucks and big dreams. They were signed to MCA in '71 and cut "Fast Train". The reception given the song prompted the label big-wigs to release their first record, self-titled, that same year, which also featured "Drop Your Guns". Produced by Billy Hill, the album showed the promise of something special. Unfortunately, Jimmy Henman didn't see it and left the band. Filling the void on bass shortly thereafter was Jimmy Clench.
ON RECORD was on the shelves less than a year later and spawned the group's first number one hit, "Could've Been A Lady" and a cover of "Bad Side of the Moon", written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin.
Ritchie and David Henman also parted ways from April Wine in '73 during the recording of ELECTRIC JEWELS. Replacing them were Gary Moffet on guitars and Jerry Mercer on drums. The record featured the hits "The Band Has Just Begun", "Just Like That" and "Cat's Claw", and the timeless "Weeping Widow".
'74 saw the group embark on their first national tour and also saw the release of the single "I'm On Fire For You Baby". This 45 is extremely rare as the song was never released on any album except greatest hits packages. By this time April Wine had made a name for themselves for cutting no-nonsense rockers as well as showing incredible melody penning several "I love you the sky is blue" ballads. Later that same year saw the release of the group's first live recording, entitled, coincidentally enough APRIL WINE LIVE. The record captured the sheer power of their stage presence and showed their detractors they were not just a radio pop/love song band and why they were headlining concerts from coast to coast. People don't pay $20 to sold- out shows and sit and be bored, unless you're at a Celine Dion concert, in which case I hear you shell out a hell of a lot more than $20 anyway.
STAND BACK was cut in '75 and was backed by the hits "I Wouldn't Want To Lose Your Love", "Oowatanite" and "Cum Hear The Band". The band's first attempt at self-production, other tracks from the album included "Victim For Your Love" and "Don't Push Me Around", making the album one of their most popular sellers to this day. Clench left the group following the subsequent tour to join BTO and laterLOVERBOY. Steve Lang became the band's third bassist shortly thereafter.
April Wine made history in '76 with THE WHOLE WORLD'S GOING CRAZY. Backed by the power of the title track, the record was the first by a Canadian group to go platinum (one million sales). In retrospect it may have been a bad decision on the part of management to release FOREVER FOR NOW that same year, as it failed to build on the momentum gained by its predecessor, though it did have "Lady Run Lady Hide" as a single. Originally intended as a Myles Goodwyn solo project, the record possessed less of a moderately heavy sound, leaning more to the eclectic personal tastes of Goodwyn.
Brian Greenway joined the band in '77 after the LIVE AT EL MOCAMBO album and instantly showed that more guitars is sometimes better when they released FIRST GLANCE early the next year, the first disc done for their new label, Capitol Records. The "one big happy heavy axe sound" was evidenced by cuts like "Roller" and "Hot On The Wheels of Love" and broke the group out of its restraints, now headlining major events outside the Great White North.
HARDER FASTER came out in '80 and instantly went gold thanks to the driving force of "I Like To Rock" and the cover of Ian Hunter's "21st Century Schizoid Man". Even the power ballad "Tonite" was laced with bridges that grabbed you by the balls. Goodwyn also found time between records to produce TEAZE's ONE NIGHT STAND lp, his first crack at being behind the helm for someone else.
April Wine traveled to England to record THE NATURE OF THE BEAST early the next year. Relentless air-play given to the sappy, tacky and downright annoying if heard too often "Just Between You and Me" pushed the album platinum almost instantly. That God-awful tune was however the band's first number one single in the States. What's that tell you? But it's the sheer presence of the rockers "All Over Town", "Future Tense", "Crash and Burn" and "Tellin Me Lies" that make it most critics' pick as their best work, as well as the better of the two singles, "Sign of the Gypsy Queen". By this time April Wine was headlining major gigs all over Europe as well as here in North America.
The follow up came almost two years later when POWER PLAY was released. Though a good record, it had the misfortune of following a great record. Though not ground-breaking by any means, it showed the band's versatility with the hard-edged "Blood Money" and "Anything You Want" as well as the usual radio sell-outs with "If You See Kay". Also notable was their cover of THE POWDER BLUES BAND's "Doin' It Right".
ANIMAL GRACE came out in '84 and definitely lacked the lustre of previous efforts and pretty much marked the end of the group's run among the top groups from Canada. "This Could Be The Right One" was the only single released from the record.
Though the band actually did their last show in Kelowna in July of '84, Capitol released two April Wine records in '85. ONE FOR THE ROAD contained nothing particularly memorable except the cover of Starship's "Rock Myself To Sleep".
WALKING THROUGH FIRE was the last Wine record and the typical power ballad they'd become known for "Love Has Remembered Me", was the only single. A whole swack of greatest hits packages from Capitol Records as well as a re-release of the earlier hits by Aquarius (In Canada only) came out in the next few years.
Goodwyn and Greenway both put out solo records in '88, Though both were met with moderate critical acceptance, the fire that was April Wine was definitely not there, proving that although Wine was Goodwyn's band, the whole is sometimes greater than the individual parts.
Renewed attention for the group prompted Goodwyn to leave the sunny Bahamas and reform the band with Greenway, Mercer, Clench and newcomer Steve Segal on guitars for a cross-Canada tour in '92, followed by the first new material in eight years with "If You Believe In Me". The song would easily fit onto almost any record they'd done before, typical radio-friendly material.
Their mini-reunion sparked an all-new album in '93 in ATTITUDE. The first single, "Here's Looking At You Kid" was a classic example of the other side of the April Wine coin, a rocker grabbing you by the balls and never letting go. The album showed a definite maturity in the sound, now encorporating some synthesizers and more studio effects than before. Also let out as singles were "That's Love" and "Voice In My Heart" ... incidentally, it's Goodwyn's kid on the cover.
FRIGATE came out the next year and had three singles, "I'm A Man", "Driving With My Eyes Closed" and "If I Was A Stranger". Though not a bad album, interest in keeping the fire burning died again and the group called it quits shortly after the record's release.
It wasn't long however before the public cry beckoned again and the group reformed, less Segal. They can usually be found touring the continent, rocking the house and reminding everyone why they're one of Canada's greatest exports of all time. April Wine has always been a critic's bitch and a fan's fave. Selling out venues worldwide throughout most of their long and storied career, April Wine has proved above all else that critics don't know a thing. Only happy when the group was selling its soul to the devil just for radio play, the know-it-all's have often remarked they couldn't find a niche ... is it rock ... or radio pop? Fork ... or spoon .... either work and they always keep someone happy no matter what they're playing.