The Front (Canadian band)

The Front
Origin Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Years active 1980 (1980)–1984 (1984)
Labels Duke Street Records
Past members Joel Feeney
Tim Thorney
Paul Henderson
Lisa Dal Bello

The Front was a Canadian band, based in Toronto, that released two well-received albums and several singles in the early 1980s, the most notable single of which is "The Haunting (Jimmy Loves Mary-Ann)." The band is also notable as being the first recording band of Joel Feeney and Tim Thorney.

History

The Front was initially formed as a studio band and continued as such, never performing live. Band members also spent much time performing television and radio jingles.[1] The band was formed around singer Paul Henderson and vocalist-keyboardist Tim Thorney, with guitarist and vocalist Joel Feeney as a third member. Singer Lisa Dal Bello was an important factor in the formation of The Front. Thorney came to The Front with previous experience as a songwriter and backing vocalist. With Dal Bello, Thorney co-wrote seven of the ten songs on her Drastic Measures album (1981). Paul Henderson was a recording engineer for that same album.

Frequent backing musicians for The Front included Garry Nichol on guitar and Paul Hannah on drums. Nichol had also played on and co-written for Dal Bello's Drastic Measures album. Noted guitarist Domenic Troiano contributed to The Front's second album, Underworld, as did flautist Moe Koffman.[2] The principal songwriters were Thorney and Feeney.

The band's first single, "The Haunting (Jimmy Loves Mary-Ann)" became their most popular song, much sought after in later years, particularly after the band's record company, Duke Street Records, ceased operations in 1994.[3] The band released two albums: Gina's At A Party (1983) and Underworld (1984) before breaking up. Other single releases included "Your Street" and "Underworld".[4]

Following the breakup of The Front, Thorney, Feeney and Henderson continued in music. Thorney achieved great success continuing to write jingles and as a record producer of various artists, including Alanis Morissette. He also developed a modest solo career and became a co-owner of a recording studio.[5] Feeney became a country music artist, initially as "Joel Feeney and The Western Front", with his most successful period being in the mid-1990s. Feeney also developed a career as an award-winning songwriter and record producer.[6] All were studio backing vocalists on well-known albums by others.[7] Despite being the principal vocalist in The Front, Henderson did not develop a later solo career.

Notwithstanding that the band's material is now owned by the Universal Music Group, following the demise of Duke Street Records,[8] neither of The Front's albums has been the subject of CD release.

Control of the band's name appears to have been lost, in that bands using the name "The Front" appeared in both Canada and the United States in later years.[9]

Discography

  • 1983 Gina's At A Party (Duke Street)
  • 1984 Underworld (Duke Street)

References

Citations
  1. ↑ Comments of Paul Hannah, March 23, 2006 at discussion forum on "The Haunting"; www.onehitwondercentral.com. Hannah was the drummer for The Front.
  2. ↑ Domenic Troiano music credits; www.troianomusic.com.
  3. ↑ See Discussion of "The Haunting"; www.onehitwondercentral.com. See also Duke Street Records.
  4. ↑ About Joel Feeney Productions; www.myspace.com.
  5. ↑ See Tim Thorney.
  6. ↑ See Joel Feeney.
  7. ↑ For example, Feeney and Henderson appeared as backing vocalists on the 1987 Triumph album, Surveillance.
  8. ↑ See Duke Street Records.
  9. ↑ See, for example, The Front MySpace Page, in relation to a Vancouver-based band, formed in 2002, with no association to the original Front. See also The-Front(SOS on iTunes!) Myspace Page in relation to a U.S. band called The Front.
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