Berlin (band)
Berlin is an American new wave/synth-pop band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. The band gained commercial success in the 1980s with singles including "The Metro", "Sex (I'm a ...)", "No More Words" and the chart-topping "Take My Breath Away" from the 1986 film Top Gun, which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. The group disbanded right after reaching global success.[1] The best-known lineup consisted of singer Terri Nunn, bass guitarist and vocalist John Crawford, keyboardist David Diamond, guitarist Ric Olsen, keyboardist Matt Reid, and drummer Rob Brill.
Berlin
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- 1978–1987
- 1997–present
- Terri Nunn
- John Crawford
- David Diamond
- Dave Schulz
- Carlton Bost
- Ric "Rocc" Roccapriore
- Paloma Estevez
- Chris Olivas
- Joseph Diforte
- Mitchell Sigman
- Rob Brill
- Rod Learned
- Virginia Macolino
- Jo Julian
- Ric Olsen
- Dan Van Patten
- Matt Reid
- Chris Ruiz-Velasco
- Roger O'Donnell
- Toni Childs
History[edit]
Early years[edit]
The genesis of Berlin was the rock band the Toys, formed in 1976 in Orange County, California, by John Crawford (bass guitar), Dan Van Patten (drums), Chris Ruiz-Velasco (guitar), and Tyson A. Cobb (vocals).[2][3] After a few shows, the band changed its name to Berlin and stayed together for about three years but ultimately regrouped, discharging Cobb as lead singer. After a brief time when Toni Childs was lead singer, Terri Nunn joined the band after answering an ad through the Musicians Contact Service in Hollywood in 1979.[4] Despite its name, Berlin did not have any known major connections with the sometime capital of Germany; the name was chosen to make them seem European and exotic. Terri Nunn explained in a 2003 interview, "...Berlin started that way [electronic], and in a sense helped to bring that to America. 'Cause when we started, it was going on in Europe, but it wasn't really happening here yet."[5] The band was inspired by the keyboard-oriented groups Kraftwerk, Devo, Sparks and The Screamers.
The band's first single, "A Matter of Time", was released in 1979 on Renegade Records[6] and they appeared on television for the first time on the short-lived Hollywood Heartbeat, hosted by former Fleetwood Mac guitarist, Bob Welch.[7] Nunn left the group later that year to pursue an acting career, forcing the band to find a replacement, Virginia Macolino. The band released the 1980 album Information,[8][9] with Macolino as lead vocalist, but the band struggled to sign with a mainstream label without Nunn. As band manager, Perry Watts-Russell explained, "Unfortunately, the record labels that had shown interest in December 1979, when Terri was the singer, were no longer keen to sign the band. So, by later that year, Berlin had effectively broken up, and John had formed and was the lead singer in another group, Fahrenheit, with Dan Van Patten. But he had some songs that he thought were better suited to Terri's voice, and he asked me if I thought she might be interested in singing them. We asked and she was."[2]
Eventual success[edit]
Nunn rejoined the band as singer in 1980, and they signed to independent label Enigma Records on which they released a double A-sided single, "Tell Me Why" / "The Metro". The single was intended as a one-off, since Crawford was by then focusing on his new band Fahrenheit and regarded Berlin as a "just for fun" side project.[10] However, the single was a success, helping to finance the EP album, Pleasure Victim, which was recorded on a $2,900 budget.[10] The EP included their first significant hit: the controversial synth-driven "Sex (I'm a ...)" (1982), which was banned by some radio stations due to its graphic lyrics. The song was intentionally written and composed to get airplay on Los Angeles area radio station KROQ, which specialized in playing music that was not heard on other stations, and of which members of the group were fans.[11] Due to the attention brought on by the single, wider release offers were made by larger record labels for Pleasure Victim.[10] Geffen Records' offer was accepted and the label re-released Pleasure Victim worldwide in early 1983. The label also re-released "The Metro", which then became another hit. By this point, the band consisted of core members Nunn, Crawford, and long-time keyboardist/guitarist David Diamond, augmented by guitarist Ric Olsen, keyboardist Matt Reid, and a series of drummers. Van Patten still contributed heavily to Pleasure Victim but was ultimately replaced by Rod Learned, who performed on Pleasure Victim's opening track and later appeared with the band during their performance at the 1983 US Festival.[12] Learned's tenure in the band proved short-lived, and by the following year, new drummer Rob Brill had joined the group in his place.
In 1984, the band released their next album, Love Life, and the single "No More Words", whose subsequent video saw Terri Nunn and bandmates re-enact a Bonnie and Clyde-style car chase and shoot-out, became their first top-40 hit. "Take My Breath Away" (for the movie Top Gun soundtrack), co-written and produced by Giorgio Moroder, became their best-selling single in 1986 and a huge international hit, but also their last big hit.
