The Pursuit of Happiness (band)
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox musical artist
The Pursuit of Happiness (TPOH) are a Canadian rock and power pop<ref>[[[:Template:BillboardURLbyName]] Billboard Artist Biography recopied from AllMusic]</ref> band best known for their song "I'm an Adult Now".
Beginnings
Led by Edmonton, Alberta, frontman Moe Berg,<ref name=RS>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Pursuit of Happiness were launched in 1985 when he and drummer Dave Gilby moved to Ontario.<ref name=CBC>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They soon met bassist Johnny Sinclair and formed the band, adding sisters Tamara and Natasha Amabile as backing vocalists. Their debut single, "I'm an Adult Now", quickly became a smash hit across Canada in 1986, sparked by a low-budget video (made by Berg's director friend Nelu Ghiran) which made it onto the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The band signed with manager Jeff Rogers (Swell) in 1986. The band did not immediately sign to a record label, but instead released another independent single, "Killed by Love", in 1988. The Amabile sisters left to concentrate on their own band, and were replaced by Kris Abbott (guitar and backing vocals) and Leslie Stanwyck (backing vocals) in early 1988.
Chrysalis Records
In 1988, they signed to Chrysalis Records. Their debut album, Love Junk, was produced by Todd Rundgren and released that year. "I'm an Adult Now" was re-recorded and re-released as a single, making it to the charts a second time. In January 1989 the song peaked at No. 6 on Billboard's alternative songs chart. It was followed by "She's So Young", which became their biggest hit single in Canada and also received radio play in the UK and became a minor hit there, and "Hard To Laugh". The album sold over 100,000 copies in Canada and was certified platinum.<ref name=CBC/>
The band's follow-up album with Rundgren, 1990's One Sided Story, featured the hit singles "New Language" and "Two Girls in One." Although the album did not sell as well as Love Junk it was still a significant hit for the band.
Stanwyck and Sinclair left the band in early 1990, going on to form power pop band Universal Honey. Starting with the Spring 1990 tour for One Sided Story, Brad Barker (bass) and Susan Murumets (backing vocals) joined the lineup. Murumets left the band in 1992 in order to pursue the business side of music, and was replaced by Rachel Oldfield.
Mercury Records, then Iron Music
The band then went through difficulties with Chrysalis, and eventually followed Chrysalis president Mike Bone to Mercury Records in 1992, and released The Downward Road in 1993. Despite some success with the single "Cigarette Dangles" (the video appeared on Beavis and Butt-head), more label troubles ensued, and the band recorded their next two albums for the now-defunct Canadian label Iron Music. Oldfield left the band in 1995, and was replaced by Jennifer Foster, who in turn left the following year and was replaced by Renee Suchy.
Canadian Indies Hall of Fame, reunion shows, recent Canadian tour dates
Although the group never officially disbanded, after 1996 they did not record as a unit until 2005, when they recorded two new tracks for a greatest hits compilation. The most recent lineup has played a few concerts over the last decade, including in a series of shows over the last week of 2005 which ended with a New Year's Eve concert in London, Ontario. In March 2006, they were inducted into the Canadian Indies Hall of Fame.
The band reunited for the Q107 Jingle Ball on 13 December 2014, at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, and at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto on 27 October 2017 as part of the Horseshoe's 70th anniversary series of shows.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Love JunkTemplate:'s release, in September 2018 the band released a deluxe edition, featuring remastered versions of Love JunkTemplate:'s 13 tunes, and a 13 additional unreleased, live, and other rare recordings. To support the deluxe album's release the band played several dates in Canada in late 2018 and in 2019, where they would play Love Junk in its entirety, along with several other favorites. As of 2024 the band continues to play selected festivals, events, and other dates.
Current members
- Moe Berg – lead vocals, lead guitar, songwriting (1985-present)
- Kris Abbott – guitar, backing vocals (1988-present)
- Brad Barker – bass, occasional live backing vocals (1990-present)
- Dave Gilby – drums (1985-present)
- Renee Suchy – backing vocals, live percussion (1996-present)
Former members
- Johnny Sinclair - bass, backing vocals (1985-90)
- Tam Amabile - backing vocals (1985-88)
- Tasha Amabile - backing vocals (1985-88)
- Leslie Stanwyck - backing vocals (1988-90)
- Susan Murumets - backing vocals (touring only, 1990-91)
- Rachel Oldfield - backing vocals (1992-95)
- Jennifer Foster - backing vocals (1995-96)
Timeline
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Colors =
id:lvocals value:red legend:Lead_vocals,_guitar id:bvocals value:pink legend:Backing_vocals id:guitar value:teal legend:Guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums,_percussion id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:bars value:gray(0.95)
BackgroundColors = bars:bars
BarData =
bar:Moe text:Moe Berg bar:Kris text:Kris Abbott bar:Johnny text:Johnny Sinclair bar:Brad text:Brad Barker bar:Dave text:Dave Gilby bar:Tam text:Tam Amabile bar:Tash text:Tash Amabile bar:Leslie text:Leslie Stanwyck bar:Susan text:Susan Murumets bar:Rachel text:Rachel Oldfield bar:Jenn text:Jennifer Foster bar:Renee text:Renee Suchy
PlotData=
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4)
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LineData =
layer:back color:studio at:26/10/1988 at:01/05/1990 at:15/03/1993 at:15/07/1995 at:01/12/1996
</timeline>
Discography
Albums
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN <ref>Peak positions for The Pursuit of Happiness' albums in Canada:
|
AUS <ref>Template:Cite Ryan</ref><ref name="ARIA history pages">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
CitationClass=web
}} N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.</ref> | |||
| 1988 | Love Junk | 28 | 88 |
|
CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
| 1990 | One Sided Story | 18 | 112 |
| |
| 1993 | The Downward Road | 36 | 148 | ||
| 1995 | Where's the Bone | — | 165 | ||
| 1996 | The Wonderful World of The Pursuit of Happiness | — | — | ||
| 2000 | Sex and Food: The Best of TPOH | — | — | ||
| 2005 | When We Ruled: The Best of The Pursuit of Happiness | — | — | ||
Singles
| Release date | Title | Chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | CAN Content (Cancon) |
AUS <ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |
CitationClass=web
}}</ref><ref name="ARIA history pages"/> |
US Main |
US Mod |
Album | |
| September 1986 | "I'm an Adult Now" (original recording) |
35 | 7 | — | — | — | Non-LP singles both later re-recorded for Love Junk |
| February 1988 | "Killed By Love" | — | — | — | — | — | |
| January 1989 | "She's So Young" | 20 | 4 | — | — | — | Love Junk |
| April 1989 | "Beautiful White" | 47 | 9 | — | — | — | |
| November 1989 | "Hard To Laugh" | 55 | — | — | — | — | |
| January 1990 | "I'm an Adult Now" (re-recording) |
— | — | 39 | 22 | 6 | |
| May 1990 | "Two Girls in One" | 30 | — | — | — | — | One Sided Story |
| August 1990 | "New Language" | 42 | — | — | — | — | |
| November 1990 | "Food" | — | 8 | — | — | — | |
| February 1993 | "Cigarette Dangles" | 51 | — | — | — | — | The Downward Road |
| May 1993 | "I'm Ashamed of Myself" | — | 4 | — | — | — | |
| May 1993 | "Pressing Lips" | — | — | — | — | — | |
| July 1995 | "Young And in Love" | 77 | — | — | — | — | Where's the Bone |
| August 1995 | "Gretzky Rocks" | — | — | — | — | — | |
| January 1996 | "Kalendar" | — | — | — | — | — | |
| April 1996 | "I Should Know" | 35 | — | — | — | — | |
| September 1996 | "She's The Devil" | 56 | — | — | — | — | The Wonderful World of The Pursuit of Happiness |
| January 1997 | "Carmalina" | 52 | — | — | — | — | |
| October 2005 | "When Doves Cry" | — | — | — | — | — | When We Ruled: The Best of The Pursuit of Happiness |
Featured on
- Beavis and Butt-Head season 2, episode 7 "Customers Suck" - "Cigarette Dangles" (music video)