Corey Hart
Encyclopedia
Corey Mitchell Hart is a Canadian musician, best known for such hit singles "Sunglasses at Night
" and "Never Surrender
". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard
Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over the course of his nearly 30 years in the music industry. Nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1984, Hart is also a multiple Juno award nominee and winner in Canada . He has also been honored by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN).
, Spain
, Mexico City
and Key Biscayne, Florida as a young boy. He became fluent in three languages (English, Spanish and French) due to his upbringing in these locations. Hart's parents separated (and later divorced) when he was 10 years old and he returned to Montreal with his mother, Mina and older brother Robbie. He shared an especially close relationship with his mother, to whom Hart's first album was dedicated. Hart's lack of contact and intimacy with his father pained the artist throughout his life and colored many of his compositions, such as the 1998 song "Reconcile."
Hart's first experience as a performing artist came at age 11, when he sang "Ben (song)
" for Tom Jones in Miami. He also recorded songs with Paul Anka in Las Vegas. In 1980 Hart represented Canada in the World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo (along with singer Dan Hill
), marking his first public performance of original material. Hart also met Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Christopher Cross
at the competition. Back in Canada, Hart reached out to Billy Joel
who was on tour in Montreal. Joel's backup band contacted him and Hart ended up recording several demos with them in Long Island, New York. Hart worked with other notable Canadian studio musicians before finally signing to a major label, Aquarius Records (Canada), at the age of 20. Several songs on his first album, such as "The World is Fire," reflect the many rejections and tribulations Hart encountered along the path to getting a recording contract.
"Sunglasses At Night
Hart's debut album, First Offense
,was recorded at Revolution Recording Studios in Manchester, England in the spring of 1982. It was produced by Jon Astley
(The Who
) and Phil Chapman. Released in 1983, First Offense featured the US Billboard
Top 10 hit song "Sunglasses at Night" (#7) and Top 20 follow-up single "It Ain't Enough" (#17). The album went platinum in the United States and quadruple platinum in Canada. First Offense initially received a modest response upon its Canadian release. It was only after garnering US success in the summer of 1984 that he became a superstar in his native Canada, a source of some consternation for Hart.
First Offense also featured legendary guitarist Eric Clapton
on the record's closing track, "Jenny Fey."
The video for "Sunglasses At Night
" (directed by Rob Quartly) which featured a futuristic, Orwellian society suggestive of other notable 1980s pop culture references and images such as "Miami Vice
" and The Terminator
helped propel the popularity of the track and led to Hart being instantly recognized worldwide.
Hart toured the United States and Canada extensively in 1984 and 1985, first as a supporting act for Culture Club
, April Wine
, Thomas Dolby
, Hall & Oates
and Rick Springfield
, then later as a headline performer.
"Never Surrender
Hart's second album was Boy in the Box
, released in June 1985, which reached Diamond status in Canada (one million copies sold) by February 1986. It was only the second album by a Canadian artist ever to do so. The album featured the hit single "Never Surrender
" which spent nine consecutive weeks at number #1 in Canada and peaked at #3 on the US Billboard Top 40. "Never Surrender" was the #2 song in the year-end Canadian charts in 1985, finishing second only to the Northern Lights charity single "Tears Are Not Enough
" in which Hart had also participated alongside veteran Canadian artists like Gordon Lightfoot
, Neil Young
, Joni Mitchell
and 1980s chart rival Bryan Adams
. "Never Surrender" was also honored at the Juno Awards of 1985
with the award for Best Single. Subsequent singles all charted in the Canadian and US Top 40 ("Boy in the Box," "Everything in My Heart" and "Eurasian Eyes"). In the US, Boy in the Box peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and went platinum.
As in 1984, 1985 saw Hart touring extensively in North America and Japan in support of Boy in the Box. By the end of the year he was filling stadium-sized arenas like the Exhibition Stadium
in Toronto
, the Budokan
in Tokyo
, the Boston
Orpheum
and the Forum
in Montreal
. His frequent media appearances on such popular TV programs as "Good Rockin' Tonite
" (Canada), "Friday Night Videos
" and MTV
(US), and "Music Life" (Japan), along with promotional tours in Europe and Australasia, garnered Hart an audience of enthusiastic supporters and at one point he was receiving over 15,000 pieces of fan mail per day.
Fields of Fire
, Hart's third album release, came out in fall 1986 and promptly went double platinum in Canada and achieved gold status in the US. It featured the US Top 20 hit single "I Am By Your Side," as well as the Canadian #1 single "Can't Help Falling in Love
", originally performed by Elvis Presley
. This was the first recorded cover version of a song Hart had released to date. The song was also a top 10 hit in the Philippines
and Japan. Critics generally agreed that Fields of Fire displayed a new, more mature direction in Hart's songwriting.
As in previous years Hart launched a world tour in support of the record. He performed sold-out concerts in Japan and made numerous promotional appearances in Europe from fall 1986 through mid-1987. However, Hart's tour had to be halted prematurely in July 1987 after the then 25-year-old singer collapsed backstage from exhaustion after a concert in Canada. The nearly four-year cycle of constant touring and recording had caught up with Hart, forcing him into a period of rest and recuperation.
Young Man Running
What ensued was a return to songwriting that resulted in the singer's fourth album release, Young Man Running
. Featuring the US Top 40 hit "In Your Soul" (which reached #2 in Canada), Young Man Running marked a new direction for Hart's songwriting and musicianship. With notable backing musicians like Ruby Turner
and largely produced by Hart himself, the album reflected a new level of maturity and ability.
Famed photographer Herb Ritts
shot the cover and other photographs for the album. The video for "In Your Soul" featured location footage in New Mexico
and Moab, Utah
and was directed by Meiert Avis
(U2
, Bruce Springsteen
). 1988 saw Hart touring extensively in Japan and the Philippines
, as well as Canada's East Coast and in Quebec where he pleased the audience by speaking mostly in French. Hart again sold out the Tokyo
Nippon Budokan as well as arenas in other Japanese cities and the Ultra, a 13,000 seat venue outside Manila
.
Early 1989 saw Hart return to songwriting in preparation for what would be his final album with EMI America, Bang!
. Recorded in Los Angeles
, the release debuted in early 1990 to positive reviews and renewed attention from media outlets like MTV.
Bang!
shipped platinum in Canada and hit the Japanese Top 20 just two weeks into its release. The first single, "A Little Love," hit the US Top 40 in early 1990 and featured another trademark video by Meiert Avis. Bang!
also reunited Hart with Ruby Turner and featured legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff
(John Cougar Mellencamp) on drums and percussion. Despite the success of the first single (a Top 10 hit in Canada) and widespread critical acclaim, Bang!
suffered from internal struggles at EMI and management turmoil. Hart was released from his contract with the company in August 1990. EMI later released a collection of Hart's singles on a compilation album, Singles (Corey Hart album)
in 1991.
Sire Records
co-founder Seymour Stein
approached Hart at this juncture and eventually signed him to Sire shortly thereafter. What followed was Hart's sole album for the label, Attitude & Virtue
, released in 1992. A Top 40 success in Canada, the album featured several notable guest musicians including Jane Siberry, Duff McKagan
of Guns 'N Roses, Terence Trent D'Arby and the return of Ruby Turner. Hart fell silent after the album's success faltered, and he entered a period of self-imposed isolation from writing and touring ("Jane Hawtin
Live," 1997). He released just one single, a cover of Edith Piaf
's "Hymn to Love," in 1994.
Julie Masse
Hart presented an award at the Juno Awards of 1993
in Toronto with Julie Masse
, a nominee who was rising quickly in the Canadian music scene thanks to her two platinum selling albums in Quebec, Julie Masse and À Contre Jour. Upon seeing them together, Masse's manager suggested that Hart work with her on a new English language album; what followed was the seminal collaboration of their respective careers and later, their personal lives. Hart co-produced and wrote five songs for Masse's gold-selling Circle of One, which was released in Canada in 1994 and marked the first time Hart had written and produced songs for an artist other than himself. This also led to their relationship as husband and wife and parents to four children, daughters India (DOB 07/08/1995), Dante (DOB 12/23/1997) and River (DOB 11/18/1999), and son Rain (DOB 01/19/2004). [ref: Dernier heure (Quebec), Jan. 17, 1998) Hart was previously married to photographer/graphic designer Erika Gagnon from 1990 to 1994, and Masse to cinematographer Sylvain Brault from 1993-1994.
Following his work with Masse, Hart found himself inspired by his newfound partner and parenthood. He signed a new contract with Sony Music Canada and in 1996 released a self titled CD Corey Hart
, which led to a career revival. The album was co-produced by Humberto Gatica
and contained some of Hart's most introspective work, spurred by his personal life changes. Sparked by the success of "Black Cloud Rain" which reached #2 on the Canadian Top 40, Corey Hart
went platinum in Canada and reestablished Hart as a fixture in the Canadian music industry. The video for "Black Cloud Rain" was directed by Javier, an up-and-coming young Mexican filmmaker. He toured across the country for the first time since the cancelled 1987 Fields of Fire tour, and subsequent singles from the album ("Tell Me," "Third of June" and "Someone") all reached the Canadian Top 40.
In 1997 fellow Canadian Celine Dion
released her Let's Talk About Love
album, which featured the theme from the film Titanic (1997 film)
, "My Heart Will Go On
." Also on the album were two songs written and co-produced by Hart: the Canadian Top 40 hit "Miles to Go (Before I Sleep)
" and "Where Is the Love." As documented in Dion's concert DVD Au cœur du stade (video), Dion's team reached out to Hart based on his recent success in Canada and asked if he would write and produce for the songstress. Hart also collaborated with Dion again on "Prayer," from her 2002 CD A New Day Has Come
. Later in 1999 Hart performed live in the US for the first time since the late 1980s as Dion's special guest in places such as St. Louis, Missouri
and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
In 1998 Hart released a second album on Sony, Jade (Corey Hart album)
, featuring a duet with partner Masse on the Jean-Jacques Goldman
song "Là-bas (song)
". The lead-off single "So Visible (Easy to Miss)" and follow-up release "Break the Chain" both charted in the Canadian Top 40, and Hart once again toured Canada in support of the album. After enjoying a comeback in Canada in the late 1990s, Hart again came to a personal crossroads.
At the end of the millenium Hart once again fell largely silent as he and Masse married and relocated to Nassau, Bahamas
to focus on raising their young family. He returned to Montreal in late 2002 for a two-night stand of concerts with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra
, performing songs from Corey Hart
and Jade (Corey Hart album)
as well as older hits to the accompaniment of the MSO.
of Sire Records
reconnected with Hart. He offered the artist a boutique label with Sire/Warner Music Canada, Siena Records. The label, formed in 2003, went through several years of development while Hart pursued a suitable debut artist. He collaborated sporadically on individual songs with select Quebec artists like Garou and Wilfred LeBouthillier in the mid-2000s, and performed with others including Meggie Lagacé on Quebec television However his breakthrough came when an associate sent him a demo MP3 by little-known performer Marie-Christine Depestre. The singer, a Montreal native of Haitian descent, became Siena's first official signing.
In May 2011 Marie-Christine released her debut CD, Walk in Beauty, in Canada on Hart's label. Hart executive produced the album and wrote the bulk of the CD's songs Walk In Beauty features a cameo performance by music legend Stevie Wonder
on the cover track "Keep on Runnin'" as well as a modern reworking of Hart's own "Sunglasses at Night," reborn as "Girl In Shades" for Marie-Christine. Hart had refrained from granting interpolation rights to the song for over 25 years, despite requests by notable artists like Sean P. Diddy Combs and Nelly Furtado
. The CD also features original compositions by Marie-Christine and its debut single, "Totally Random," became a hit in her native Quebec during the summer of 2011. A second single, "Silence," will be released in January 2012 to Canadian radio. Marie-Christine performs regularly on the Montreal club scene and at provincial music festivals in support of the CD. Hart engaged the media on a short promotional tour of major Canadian markets in May 2011.
page to reach his audience. Spurred by popular demand, his Web site was again redesigned and relaunched again in October 2011 and currently features rare photos, live performance video of two previously unreleased songs (including Hart's 2011 version of "Ben (song)
" and blog posts from Hart himself. He continues to interact with fans on his Facebook page and has conducted interviews via video based on questions submitted online.
Also in Fall 2011 he and wife Julie Masse Hart offered the following limited edition merchandise exclusively online:
Hart is also participating in the charity event Movember Canada in November 2011.
Corey Hart will celebrate his 50th birthday - and the 30th anniversary of his debut in the music industry - in 2012.
Sunglasses at Night
"Sunglasses at Night" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his debut album, 1983's First Offense, and became a hit single in the United States, rising to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1984...
" and "Never Surrender
Never Surrender (song)
"Never Surrender" is a power ballad and hit song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his second album, 1985's Boy in the Box...
". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard
Billboard
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over the course of his nearly 30 years in the music industry. Nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1984, Hart is also a multiple Juno award nominee and winner in Canada . He has also been honored by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN).
Early Life
Hart was born in Montreal, Quebec on May 31, 1962. He grew up in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
and Key Biscayne, Florida as a young boy. He became fluent in three languages (English, Spanish and French) due to his upbringing in these locations. Hart's parents separated (and later divorced) when he was 10 years old and he returned to Montreal with his mother, Mina and older brother Robbie. He shared an especially close relationship with his mother, to whom Hart's first album was dedicated. Hart's lack of contact and intimacy with his father pained the artist throughout his life and colored many of his compositions, such as the 1998 song "Reconcile."
Hart's first experience as a performing artist came at age 11, when he sang "Ben (song)
Ben (song)
"Ben" is a song written by Don Black and composed by Walter Scharf for the 1972 film of the same name . It was performed in the film by Lee Montgomery and by Michael Jackson over the closing credits. Jackson's single, recorded for the Motown label in 1972, spent one week at the top of the U.S. pop...
" for Tom Jones in Miami. He also recorded songs with Paul Anka in Las Vegas. In 1980 Hart represented Canada in the World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo (along with singer Dan Hill
Dan Hill
Daniel Grafton "Dan" Hill IV is a Canadian pop singer and songwriter. He had two major hits with his songs, "Sometimes When We Touch" and "Can't We Try," a duet with Vonda Shepard.-Early life and career:...
), marking his first public performance of original material. Hart also met Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Christopher Cross
Christopher Cross
Christopher Cross is an American singer-songwriter from San Antonio, Texas. His debut album earned him five Grammys. He is perhaps best known for his Top Ten hit songs, "Sailing", "Ride Like the Wind", and "Arthur's Theme ", the last of which he performed for the film Arthur starring Dudley Moore...
at the competition. Back in Canada, Hart reached out to Billy Joel
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
who was on tour in Montreal. Joel's backup band contacted him and Hart ended up recording several demos with them in Long Island, New York. Hart worked with other notable Canadian studio musicians before finally signing to a major label, Aquarius Records (Canada), at the age of 20. Several songs on his first album, such as "The World is Fire," reflect the many rejections and tribulations Hart encountered along the path to getting a recording contract.
"Sunglasses At NightSunglasses at Night"Sunglasses at Night" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his debut album, 1983's First Offense, and became a hit single in the United States, rising to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1984...
" and First OffenseFirst OffenseFirst Offense is the debut album by Corey Hart, released in 1983. It featured the hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and the ballad "It Ain't Enough"...
Hart's debut album, First OffenseFirst Offense
First Offense is the debut album by Corey Hart, released in 1983. It featured the hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and the ballad "It Ain't Enough"...
,was recorded at Revolution Recording Studios in Manchester, England in the spring of 1982. It was produced by Jon Astley
Jon Astley
Jon Astley is a British record producer who also recorded and released two albums as a singer-songwriter in the late 1980s. His most commercially successful song was "Jane's Getting Serious", later popularized by a Heinz ketchup television commercial starring a pre-Friends cast member Matt...
(The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
) and Phil Chapman. Released in 1983, First Offense featured the US Billboard
Billboard
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Top 10 hit song "Sunglasses at Night" (#7) and Top 20 follow-up single "It Ain't Enough" (#17). The album went platinum in the United States and quadruple platinum in Canada. First Offense initially received a modest response upon its Canadian release. It was only after garnering US success in the summer of 1984 that he became a superstar in his native Canada, a source of some consternation for Hart.
“It was slow going in Canada when my album was first released. It had sold around 12,000 copies. I remember sitting dolefully in the Capitol offices in Toronto with Deane Cameron (then the head of A&R at Capitol Canada) and him making an urgent phone call to EMI in Los Angeles. He was pushing and pleading for a rep of the US label to come see me perform live. At that time, the Canadian industry needed US validation before really giving the homegrown domestic talent their full enthusiastic support. It was frustrating for many Canadian artists who couldn’t land a deal south of the border."
First Offense also featured legendary guitarist Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
on the record's closing track, "Jenny Fey."
"Jon (Astley, producer) felt there was one song Eric Clapton would really like. So just out of the blue he sent him the song, and lo and behold Eric Clapton was on the phone saying he wanted to play on it and asking how I would mind if he did. I didn't. Eric was the classic gentleman. Here I was, this Canadian kid in England with big-time producers doing my first album and Clapton tells me, 'It's such a pretty song, so easy to play. The type of thing I'd write myself'."
The video for "Sunglasses At Night
Sunglasses at Night
"Sunglasses at Night" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his debut album, 1983's First Offense, and became a hit single in the United States, rising to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1984...
" (directed by Rob Quartly) which featured a futuristic, Orwellian society suggestive of other notable 1980s pop culture references and images such as "Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
" and The Terminator
The Terminator
The Terminator is a 1984 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, co-written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr., and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. The film was produced by Hemdale Film Corporation and distributed by Orion Pictures, and filmed in Los...
helped propel the popularity of the track and led to Hart being instantly recognized worldwide.
"In retrospect, I was totally unprepared for the fan adulation. I really couldn’t go out anywhere without being mobbed or chased by my fans. The transformation from unknown artist to rock star was surreal and overwhelming. The power of video certainly played a key role. It was the same for many artists of that decade like Cyndi LauperCyndi LauperCynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album...
, MadonnaMadonna (entertainer)Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
and George MichaelGeorge MichaelGeorge Michael is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer who rose to fame in the 1980s when he formed the pop duo Wham! with his school friend, Andrew Ridgeley...
to name but a few."
Hart toured the United States and Canada extensively in 1984 and 1985, first as a supporting act for Culture Club
Culture Club
Culture Club are a British rock band who were part of the 1980s New Romantic movement. The original band consisted of Boy George , Mikey Craig , Roy Hay and Jon Moss...
, April Wine
April Wine
April Wine is a Canadian rock band formed in 1969. According to the band, they chose the name 'April Wine' simply because members thought the two words sounded good together...
, Thomas Dolby
Thomas Dolby
Thomas Dolby is an English musician and producer. Best known for his 1982 hit "She Blinded Me with Science", and 1984 single "Hyperactive!", he has also worked extensively in production and as a session musician.-Early life:Dolby was born in London, England, contrary to information in early 1980s...
, Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates are an American musical duo composed of Daryl Hall and John Oates. They achieved their greatest fame in the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s. Both sing and play instruments. They specialized in a fusion of rock and roll and rhythm and blues styles, which they dubbed "rock and soul."...
and Rick Springfield
Rick Springfield
Rick Springfield is an Australian-born singer-songwriter, musician, and actor. He was a member of pop rock group Zoot from 1969 to 1971 and then started his solo career with his début single "Speak to the Sky" reaching the top 10 in Australia. In mid-1972, he relocated to the United States...
, then later as a headline performer.
"Never SurrenderNever Surrender (song)"Never Surrender" is a power ballad and hit song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his second album, 1985's Boy in the Box...
" and Boy in the BoxBoy in the Box (album)Boy in the Box is the second album by Corey Hart, released in 1985. It generated four charted singles. The song "Never Surrender" won a Juno Award in 1985 for "Single of the Year" and reached #3 on the U.S...
Hart's second album was Boy in the BoxBoy in the Box (album)
Boy in the Box is the second album by Corey Hart, released in 1985. It generated four charted singles. The song "Never Surrender" won a Juno Award in 1985 for "Single of the Year" and reached #3 on the U.S...
, released in June 1985, which reached Diamond status in Canada (one million copies sold) by February 1986. It was only the second album by a Canadian artist ever to do so. The album featured the hit single "Never Surrender
Never Surrender (song)
"Never Surrender" is a power ballad and hit song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his second album, 1985's Boy in the Box...
" which spent nine consecutive weeks at number #1 in Canada and peaked at #3 on the US Billboard Top 40. "Never Surrender" was the #2 song in the year-end Canadian charts in 1985, finishing second only to the Northern Lights charity single "Tears Are Not Enough
Tears Are Not Enough
"Tears Are Not Enough" is a 1985 charity single recorded by a supergroup of Canadian artists, under the name Northern Lights, to raise funds for relief of the 1984–1985 famine in Ethiopia...
" in which Hart had also participated alongside veteran Canadian artists like Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music, and has been credited for helping define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s...
, Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
, Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
and 1980s chart rival Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
. "Never Surrender" was also honored at the Juno Awards of 1985
Juno Awards of 1985
The Juno Awards of 1985, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 4 November 1985 in Toronto. The ceremony was hosted by Andrea Martin and Martin Short at the Harbour Castle Hilton Hotel....
with the award for Best Single. Subsequent singles all charted in the Canadian and US Top 40 ("Boy in the Box," "Everything in My Heart" and "Eurasian Eyes"). In the US, Boy in the Box peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and went platinum.
As in 1984, 1985 saw Hart touring extensively in North America and Japan in support of Boy in the Box. By the end of the year he was filling stadium-sized arenas like the Exhibition Stadium
Exhibition Stadium
Canadian National Exhibition Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, that formerly stood on the Exhibition Place grounds, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada....
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, the Budokan
Nippon Budokan
The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena in central Tokyo, Japan.This is the location where many "Live at the Budokan" albums were recorded...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, the Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
Orpheum
Orpheum Theatre (Boston, Massachusetts)
The Orpheum Theatre is a music venue located at 1 Hamilton Place in Boston, Massachusetts. One of the oldest theaters in the United States, it was built in 1852 and was originally known as the Boston Music Hall, the original home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The concert hall was converted for...
and the Forum
Montreal Forum
The Montreal Forum was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by Sporting News, it was home of the National Hockey League's Montreal Maroons from 1924 to 1938 and the Montreal Canadiens from 1926 to 1996...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. His frequent media appearances on such popular TV programs as "Good Rockin' Tonite
Good Rockin' Tonite
Good Rockin' Tonite was a Canadian television series, which aired on CBC Television from the early 1980s to 1993. The program, similar to the American Friday Night Videos, played popular music videos...
" (Canada), "Friday Night Videos
Friday Night Videos
Friday Night Videos is an American music video show broadcast on the NBC television network from July 29, 1983 to December 30, 2000, and was the network's attempt to capitalize on the emerging popularity of music videos as seen on MTV...
" and MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
(US), and "Music Life" (Japan), along with promotional tours in Europe and Australasia, garnered Hart an audience of enthusiastic supporters and at one point he was receiving over 15,000 pieces of fan mail per day.
Fields of Fire
Fields of Fire (album)
Fields of Fire is the third album by Corey Hart, released in 1986. It generated five charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart, except as noted.#"I Am By Your Side" - 4:35#"Dancin' With My Mirror" - 4:16#"Take My Heart" - 4:21...
, Hart's third album release, came out in fall 1986 and promptly went double platinum in Canada and achieved gold status in the US. It featured the US Top 20 hit single "I Am By Your Side," as well as the Canadian #1 single "Can't Help Falling in Love
Can't Help Falling in Love
"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a pop song originally recorded by American singer Elvis Presley and published by Gladys Music, Elvis Presley's publishing company. It was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss. The melody was based on "Plaisir d'Amour" but with a different...
", originally performed by Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
. This was the first recorded cover version of a song Hart had released to date. The song was also a top 10 hit in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Japan. Critics generally agreed that Fields of Fire displayed a new, more mature direction in Hart's songwriting.
"With his third album, this young Canadian exhibits a growing maturity...He's come a long way from singing about wearing 'Sunglasses At Night'." (Boston Globe, September 1986)
As in previous years Hart launched a world tour in support of the record. He performed sold-out concerts in Japan and made numerous promotional appearances in Europe from fall 1986 through mid-1987. However, Hart's tour had to be halted prematurely in July 1987 after the then 25-year-old singer collapsed backstage from exhaustion after a concert in Canada. The nearly four-year cycle of constant touring and recording had caught up with Hart, forcing him into a period of rest and recuperation.
Young Man RunningYoung Man RunningYoung Man Running is the fourth album by Corey Hart, released in 1988. It charted in the U.S., reaching #126, and generated the hit single, "In Your Soul", which reached #38.- Track listing :All songs written by Corey Hart....
, Bang!Bang!Bang! is a wild west-themed card game similar to a spaghetti western designed by Emiliano Sciarra and released by Italian publisher daVinci Editrice in 2002...
and Attitude & VirtueAttitude & VirtueAttitude & Virtue is the seventh album by Corey Hart, released in 1992. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Back in the Hand" - 4:15#"Love and Money" - 4:09#"Baby When I Call Your Name" - 4:03...
What ensued was a return to songwriting that resulted in the singer's fourth album release, Young Man RunningYoung Man Running
Young Man Running is the fourth album by Corey Hart, released in 1988. It charted in the U.S., reaching #126, and generated the hit single, "In Your Soul", which reached #38.- Track listing :All songs written by Corey Hart....
. Featuring the US Top 40 hit "In Your Soul" (which reached #2 in Canada), Young Man Running marked a new direction for Hart's songwriting and musicianship. With notable backing musicians like Ruby Turner
Ruby Turner
Ruby Turner is a British R&B and soul singer, songwriter and actress. In 1967, she relocated with her family to Handsworth, Birmingham, England when she was nine years old...
and largely produced by Hart himself, the album reflected a new level of maturity and ability.
"His lyrics have always been serious-minded, but this time Hart's clever, obtuse artiness has given way to passages where he's actually speaking from the heart and intelligently too." (James Muretich, Calgary Herald, 1988)
Famed photographer Herb Ritts
Herb Ritts
Herbert "Herb" Ritts was an American fashion photographer who concentrated on black-and-white photography and portraits, often in the style of classical Greek sculpture.-Early life and career:...
shot the cover and other photographs for the album. The video for "In Your Soul" featured location footage in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
and Moab, Utah
Moab, Utah
Moab is a city in Grand County, in eastern Utah, in the western United States. The population was 4,779 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat and largest city in Grand County. Moab hosts a large number of tourists every year, mostly visitors to the nearby Arches and Canyonlands National Parks...
and was directed by Meiert Avis
Meiert Avis
Meiert Avis is an Irish music video and commercial director. Avis has directed videos for artists such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Avril Lavigne, Jennifer Lopez, New Found Glory and Josh Groban amongst many others....
(U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
). 1988 saw Hart touring extensively in Japan and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, as well as Canada's East Coast and in Quebec where he pleased the audience by speaking mostly in French. Hart again sold out the Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
Nippon Budokan as well as arenas in other Japanese cities and the Ultra, a 13,000 seat venue outside Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
.
Early 1989 saw Hart return to songwriting in preparation for what would be his final album with EMI America, Bang!
Bang!
Bang! is a wild west-themed card game similar to a spaghetti western designed by Emiliano Sciarra and released by Italian publisher daVinci Editrice in 2002...
. Recorded in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, the release debuted in early 1990 to positive reviews and renewed attention from media outlets like MTV.
"Hart continues to come into his own and develop his talent and this sturdy helping of pop/rock with a soulful edge is proof. Great multi-format potential." (Billboard, 1990)
Bang!
Bang!
Bang! is a wild west-themed card game similar to a spaghetti western designed by Emiliano Sciarra and released by Italian publisher daVinci Editrice in 2002...
shipped platinum in Canada and hit the Japanese Top 20 just two weeks into its release. The first single, "A Little Love," hit the US Top 40 in early 1990 and featured another trademark video by Meiert Avis. Bang!
Bang!
Bang! is a wild west-themed card game similar to a spaghetti western designed by Emiliano Sciarra and released by Italian publisher daVinci Editrice in 2002...
also reunited Hart with Ruby Turner and featured legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff
Kenny Aronoff
Kenny Aronoff is an American drummer. He has played drums for many musicians, including John Mellencamp, Bob Seger, Belinda Carlisle, Elton John, John Fogerty, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Meat Loaf, The BoDeans, Gregg Alexander, The Smashing Pumpkins, Tony Iommi, Jon Bon Jovi, Vasco Rossi, Cinderella and...
(John Cougar Mellencamp) on drums and percussion. Despite the success of the first single (a Top 10 hit in Canada) and widespread critical acclaim, Bang!
Bang!
Bang! is a wild west-themed card game similar to a spaghetti western designed by Emiliano Sciarra and released by Italian publisher daVinci Editrice in 2002...
suffered from internal struggles at EMI and management turmoil. Hart was released from his contract with the company in August 1990. EMI later released a collection of Hart's singles on a compilation album, Singles (Corey Hart album)
Singles (Corey Hart album)
Singles is the sixth album by Corey Hart, released in 1991. This compilation album contains fifteen tracks, two of which were not released as singles, but are otherwise included...
in 1991.
Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
co-founder Seymour Stein
Seymour Stein
Seymour Stein is an entrepreneur in the music industry who has been a part of the business since getting his first job as a clerk for Billboard magazine in 1958. Stein is a vice president of Warner Bros...
approached Hart at this juncture and eventually signed him to Sire shortly thereafter. What followed was Hart's sole album for the label, Attitude & Virtue
Attitude & Virtue
Attitude & Virtue is the seventh album by Corey Hart, released in 1992. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Back in the Hand" - 4:15#"Love and Money" - 4:09#"Baby When I Call Your Name" - 4:03...
, released in 1992. A Top 40 success in Canada, the album featured several notable guest musicians including Jane Siberry, Duff McKagan
Duff McKagan
Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan is an American musician and writer. He is best known for his twelve-year tenure as the bassist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s...
of Guns 'N Roses, Terence Trent D'Arby and the return of Ruby Turner. Hart fell silent after the album's success faltered, and he entered a period of self-imposed isolation from writing and touring ("Jane Hawtin
Jane Hawtin
Jane Hawtin is a Canadian television and radio personality. She has hosted programs on CBC Radio One, CFRB and Q107, including Metro Morning, Here and Now, As It Happens and the daily television talk show Jane Hawtin Live...
Live," 1997). He released just one single, a cover of Edith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
's "Hymn to Love," in 1994.
Julie MasseJulie MasseJulie Masse is a Canadian pop singer.-Biography:Masse released her self-titled debut album in 1990, a French language album that made her a star in Quebec and France, with the singles "C'est Zéro", "Billy", "Sans t'oublier" and "Prends bien garde"...
, Corey HartCorey HartCorey Mitchell Hart is a Canadian musician, best known for such hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and "Never Surrender". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over...
, Celine DionCeline DionCéline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
and Jade (Corey Hart album)Jade (Corey Hart album)Jade is the ninth album by Corey Hart, released in 1998. It generated three singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Let It Fly"#"Without You"#"You & I"#"Break the Chain"#"La-Bas"#"So Visible "#"Jade"#"Reconcile"...
Hart presented an award at the Juno Awards of 1993Juno Awards of 1993
The Juno Awards of 1993, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 21 March 1993 in Toronto at a ceremony in the O'Keefe Centre. Celine Dion was the host for the ceremonies, which were broadcast on CBC Television at 8 pm Toronto time...
in Toronto with Julie Masse
Julie Masse
Julie Masse is a Canadian pop singer.-Biography:Masse released her self-titled debut album in 1990, a French language album that made her a star in Quebec and France, with the singles "C'est Zéro", "Billy", "Sans t'oublier" and "Prends bien garde"...
, a nominee who was rising quickly in the Canadian music scene thanks to her two platinum selling albums in Quebec, Julie Masse and À Contre Jour. Upon seeing them together, Masse's manager suggested that Hart work with her on a new English language album; what followed was the seminal collaboration of their respective careers and later, their personal lives. Hart co-produced and wrote five songs for Masse's gold-selling Circle of One, which was released in Canada in 1994 and marked the first time Hart had written and produced songs for an artist other than himself. This also led to their relationship as husband and wife and parents to four children, daughters India (DOB 07/08/1995), Dante (DOB 12/23/1997) and River (DOB 11/18/1999), and son Rain (DOB 01/19/2004). [ref: Dernier heure (Quebec), Jan. 17, 1998) Hart was previously married to photographer/graphic designer Erika Gagnon from 1990 to 1994, and Masse to cinematographer Sylvain Brault from 1993-1994.
Following his work with Masse, Hart found himself inspired by his newfound partner and parenthood. He signed a new contract with Sony Music Canada and in 1996 released a self titled CD Corey Hart
Corey Hart
Corey Mitchell Hart is a Canadian musician, best known for such hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and "Never Surrender". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over...
, which led to a career revival. The album was co-produced by Humberto Gatica
Humberto Gatica
Humberto Gatica is a Chilean-born American record producer, music mixer, audio engineer anda long-time collaborator with producer David Foster....
and contained some of Hart's most introspective work, spurred by his personal life changes. Sparked by the success of "Black Cloud Rain" which reached #2 on the Canadian Top 40, Corey Hart
Corey Hart
Corey Mitchell Hart is a Canadian musician, best known for such hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and "Never Surrender". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over...
went platinum in Canada and reestablished Hart as a fixture in the Canadian music industry. The video for "Black Cloud Rain" was directed by Javier, an up-and-coming young Mexican filmmaker. He toured across the country for the first time since the cancelled 1987 Fields of Fire tour, and subsequent singles from the album ("Tell Me," "Third of June" and "Someone") all reached the Canadian Top 40.
In 1997 fellow Canadian Celine Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
released her Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 18, 1997. It is her fifth English-language album and twenty-third in total. Let's Talk About Love remains one of the best-selling albums in history with over 31 million copies sold worldwide...
album, which featured the theme from the film Titanic (1997 film)
Titanic (1997 film)
Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. A fictionalized account of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater and Billy Zane as Rose's fiancé, Cal...
, "My Heart Will Go On
My Heart Will Go On
"My Heart Will Go On" is the theme song/love theme of the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic. With music by James Horner, lyrics by Will Jennings, and production by Simon Franglen, James Horner and Walter Afanasieff ,, it was recorded by Céline Dion...
." Also on the album were two songs written and co-produced by Hart: the Canadian Top 40 hit "Miles to Go (Before I Sleep)
Miles to Go (Before I Sleep)
"Miles to Go " is a promotional single from Céline Dion's album Let's Talk About Love. It was released on September 28, 1998 in Canada only.-Single information:...
" and "Where Is the Love." As documented in Dion's concert DVD Au cœur du stade (video), Dion's team reached out to Hart based on his recent success in Canada and asked if he would write and produce for the songstress. Hart also collaborated with Dion again on "Prayer," from her 2002 CD A New Day Has Come
A New Day Has Come
A New Day Has Come is Celine Dion's 18th studio album which marked her return after two-year hiatus to have a child. It was released on March 22, 2002. A New Day Has Come is Dion's 9th English album and 29th in total...
. Later in 1999 Hart performed live in the US for the first time since the late 1980s as Dion's special guest in places such as St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
In 1998 Hart released a second album on Sony, Jade (Corey Hart album)
Jade (Corey Hart album)
Jade is the ninth album by Corey Hart, released in 1998. It generated three singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Let It Fly"#"Without You"#"You & I"#"Break the Chain"#"La-Bas"#"So Visible "#"Jade"#"Reconcile"...
, featuring a duet with partner Masse on the Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman is a Grammy Awards-winning French singer-songwriter. He is hugely popular in the French-speaking world, and since 2003 was the second-highest-grossing French living pop singer, after Johnny Hallyday.- Biography :...
song "Là-bas (song)
Là-bas (song)
"Là-bas" is a 1987 song recorded as a duet by the French singer Jean-Jacques Goldman and the British-born artist Sirima. It was the second single from Goldman's 1987 album Entre gris clair et gris foncé...
". The lead-off single "So Visible (Easy to Miss)" and follow-up release "Break the Chain" both charted in the Canadian Top 40, and Hart once again toured Canada in support of the album. After enjoying a comeback in Canada in the late 1990s, Hart again came to a personal crossroads.
"All I had ever wanted or known since I was a boy was to be creating music. But I couldn’t continue to record or tour if I aspired to be a 24/7 father to our children. The two worlds simply collide."
At the end of the millenium Hart once again fell largely silent as he and Masse married and relocated to Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
to focus on raising their young family. He returned to Montreal in late 2002 for a two-night stand of concerts with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Orchestre symphonique de Montréal is a symphony orchestra based in Montréal, Québec, Canada, with Montréal's Place des Arts as its home.-History:...
, performing songs from Corey Hart
Corey Hart
Corey Mitchell Hart is a Canadian musician, best known for such hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and "Never Surrender". He has sold over 15 million records worldwide and scored nine consecutive US Billboard Top 40 hits. In Canada Hart has amassed 29 Top 40 hits, including 11 in the Top 10, over...
and Jade (Corey Hart album)
Jade (Corey Hart album)
Jade is the ninth album by Corey Hart, released in 1998. It generated three singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Let It Fly"#"Without You"#"You & I"#"Break the Chain"#"La-Bas"#"So Visible "#"Jade"#"Reconcile"...
as well as older hits to the accompaniment of the MSO.
Siena Records and Walk in Beauty
In 2002 Seymour SteinSeymour Stein
Seymour Stein is an entrepreneur in the music industry who has been a part of the business since getting his first job as a clerk for Billboard magazine in 1958. Stein is a vice president of Warner Bros...
of Sire Records
Sire Records
Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...
reconnected with Hart. He offered the artist a boutique label with Sire/Warner Music Canada, Siena Records. The label, formed in 2003, went through several years of development while Hart pursued a suitable debut artist. He collaborated sporadically on individual songs with select Quebec artists like Garou and Wilfred LeBouthillier in the mid-2000s, and performed with others including Meggie Lagacé on Quebec television However his breakthrough came when an associate sent him a demo MP3 by little-known performer Marie-Christine Depestre. The singer, a Montreal native of Haitian descent, became Siena's first official signing.
In May 2011 Marie-Christine released her debut CD, Walk in Beauty, in Canada on Hart's label. Hart executive produced the album and wrote the bulk of the CD's songs Walk In Beauty features a cameo performance by music legend Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
on the cover track "Keep on Runnin'" as well as a modern reworking of Hart's own "Sunglasses at Night," reborn as "Girl In Shades" for Marie-Christine. Hart had refrained from granting interpolation rights to the song for over 25 years, despite requests by notable artists like Sean P. Diddy Combs and Nelly Furtado
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.Furtado first gained fame with her debut album, Whoa, Nelly!, and its single "I'm Like a Bird", which won a 2001 Juno Award for Single of the Year and a 2002 Grammy...
. The CD also features original compositions by Marie-Christine and its debut single, "Totally Random," became a hit in her native Quebec during the summer of 2011. A second single, "Silence," will be released in January 2012 to Canadian radio. Marie-Christine performs regularly on the Montreal club scene and at provincial music festivals in support of the CD. Hart engaged the media on a short promotional tour of major Canadian markets in May 2011.
Relaunch and Renewal Online
In mid-2011 Hart established a new online presence with the relaunch of the www.CoreyHart.com Web site. Hart also created an official FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
page to reach his audience. Spurred by popular demand, his Web site was again redesigned and relaunched again in October 2011 and currently features rare photos, live performance video of two previously unreleased songs (including Hart's 2011 version of "Ben (song)
Ben (song)
"Ben" is a song written by Don Black and composed by Walter Scharf for the 1972 film of the same name . It was performed in the film by Lee Montgomery and by Michael Jackson over the closing credits. Jackson's single, recorded for the Motown label in 1972, spent one week at the top of the U.S. pop...
" and blog posts from Hart himself. He continues to interact with fans on his Facebook page and has conducted interviews via video based on questions submitted online.
Also in Fall 2011 he and wife Julie Masse Hart offered the following limited edition merchandise exclusively online:
- Custom designed, handcrafted jewelry by Julie Masse Hart
- Four original handpainted drawings by Corey Hart, with net proceeds donated to Project Medishare for Haiti
- New t-shirts and sweatshirts
- Six previously unreleased songs: "Sail Away," "Eternally," "She's So Good," "Open Up Your Heart," "Ciao Bella" and "Good Good Lovin"
- Marie-Christine's Walk in Beauty CD and MP3 download
Hart is also participating in the charity event Movember Canada in November 2011.
Future Plans
Hart has said he intends to keep his Web site updated with new offerings and video interviews as his schedule allows. Currently Hart's Facebook page has over 3,000 'likes.' He has also indicated the possibility of a tour or new music in the future. However Hart maintains his primary focus of being a hands-on, full time father. He and his wife now split their time between the Bahamas and Barcelona, Spain where his three daughters attend a prestigious tennis academy.Corey Hart will celebrate his 50th birthday - and the 30th anniversary of his debut in the music industry - in 2012.
Trivia
- Hart was briefly considered for the role of Marty McFlyMarty McFlyMartin Seamus "Marty" McFly, Sr. is the protagonist in the Back to the Future film trilogy, and is portrayed by actor Michael J. Fox. Marty was also the protagonist in the animated series where he was voiced by David Kaufman...
in the 1985 film Back to the FutureBack to the FutureBack to the Future is a 1985 American science-fiction adventure film. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, produced by Steven Spielberg, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson. The film tells the story of...
. Producer Steven SpielbergSteven SpielbergSteven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
sent Hart a copy of the script with an invitation for a screen test Fellow Canadian Michael J. FoxMichael J. FoxMichael J. Fox, OC is a Canadian American actor, author, producer, activist and voice-over artist. With a film and television career spanning from the late 1970s, Fox's roles have included Marty McFly from the Back to the Future trilogy ; Alex P...
eventually starred in the hit film.
- At the height of his mid-1980s success Hart was approached to record several songs for popular films of the era. He declined, preferring to write and record his own material. Among the songs Hart rejected were "Danger Zone" from the soundtrack to the 1986 film Top GunTop GunTop Gun may refer to:* Top Gun is a 1986 film starring Tom Cruise.**Top Gun , soundtrack to the movie**Top Gun , a number of games based on the movie...
. A rare exception was the song "Hold On," written for the soundtrack to 1987's Beverly Hills Cop 2. Hart's 1985 single "Eurasian Eyes" (from Boy in the Box) was featured in the film 9 1/2 Weeks and the final track from Fields of Fire, "Blind Faith," was featured in the Jan. 16, 1987 episode of "Miami ViceMiami ViceMiami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
" entitled "Down for the Count, Pt. 2."
- In 2002, Hart re-recorded "Sunglasses At Night," which was remixed by engineers Tiga and Zyntherius. Released to club DJs that year, it became an instant smash on the international dance music charts.
- Also in 2002 "Sunglasses at Night" was featured in the award-winning video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice CityGrand Theft Auto: Vice CityGrand Theft Auto: Vice City is a 2002 open world action computer and video game developed by British games developer Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the second 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise and sixth original title overall...
. The game went on to sell over 15 million units, making it the fourth highest selling video game ever made for Sony PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
.
- In 2010 "Sunglasses at Night" was featured in a Miller Lite Beer commercial (in US markets only) shown during NFL season.
- In 2011, contestant Georgia MurrayGeorgia MurrayGeorgia Murray is a Canadian singer-songwriter whose 2009 song entitled "We'll Never Know" was plagiarized by composer Bahnus to create the song "Swing" for Korean pop star Lee Hyori. "Swing" became the number one song in Korea on April 4, 2010...
performed "Sunglasses at Night" on an episode of CBC's "Cover Me Canada", with a brief appearence by Hart in support of her efforts. (Murray survived the night's elimination round but was subsequently voted off.)
Singles
| Title | Date | CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Sunglasses at Night Sunglasses at Night "Sunglasses at Night" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his debut album, 1983's First Offense, and became a hit single in the United States, rising to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1984... " |
1984 | 24 | 7 | First Offense First Offense First Offense is the debut album by Corey Hart, released in 1983. It featured the hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and the ballad "It Ain't Enough"... |
| "It Ain't Enough" | 1984 | 74 | 17 | |
| "She Got the Radio" | 1984 | 40 | — | |
| "Lamp at Midnite" | 1985 | 38 | — | |
| "Never Surrender Never Surrender (song) "Never Surrender" is a power ballad and hit song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his second album, 1985's Boy in the Box... " |
1985 | 1 | 3 | Boy in the Box Boy in the Box (album) Boy in the Box is the second album by Corey Hart, released in 1985. It generated four charted singles. The song "Never Surrender" won a Juno Award in 1985 for "Single of the Year" and reached #3 on the U.S... |
| "Boy in the Box" | 1985 | 7 | 26 | |
| "Everything in My Heart" | 1985 | 1 | 30 | |
| "Eurasian Eyes" | 1986 | 29 | — | |
| "I Am By Your Side" | 1986 | 6 | 18 | Fields of Fire Fields of Fire (album) Fields of Fire is the third album by Corey Hart, released in 1986. It generated five charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart, except as noted.#"I Am By Your Side" - 4:35#"Dancin' With My Mirror" - 4:16#"Take My Heart" - 4:21... |
| "Can't Help Falling in Love" | 1986 | 1 | 24 | |
| "Angry Young Man" | 1986 | 29 | — | |
| "Dancin' With My Mirror" | 1987 | 16 | 88 | |
| "Take My Heart" | 1987 | 23 | — | |
| "In Your Soul" | 1988 | 2 | 38 | Young Man Running Young Man Running Young Man Running is the fourth album by Corey Hart, released in 1988. It charted in the U.S., reaching #126, and generated the hit single, "In Your Soul", which reached #38.- Track listing :All songs written by Corey Hart.... |
| "Spot You in a Coalmine" | 1989 | 29 | — | |
| "Truth Will Set You Free" | 1989 | 39 | — | |
| "Still in Love" | 1989 | — | — | |
| "A Little Love" | 1990 | 9 | 37 | Bang! Bang! (Corey Hart album) Bang! is the fifth album by Corey Hart, released in 1990. It was his last album to chart in the U.S., reaching #134, and generated just one hit single, "A Little Love", which reached #37... |
| "Bang! (Starting Over)" | 1990 | 30 | — | |
| "Rain on Me" | 1990 | 72 | — | |
| "92 Days of Rain" | 1992 | 26 | — | Attitude & Virtue Attitude & Virtue Attitude & Virtue is the seventh album by Corey Hart, released in 1992. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Back in the Hand" - 4:15#"Love and Money" - 4:09#"Baby When I Call Your Name" - 4:03... |
| "Baby When I Call Your Name" | 1992 | 14 | — | |
| "Always" | 1992 | 30 | — | |
| "I Want (Cool Cool Love)" | 1993 | 24 | — | |
| "Black Cloud Rain" | 1996 | 2 | — | Corey Hart Corey Hart (album) Corey Hart is the eighth album by Corey Hart, released in 1996. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart, except as noted.#"Black Cloud Rain" - 4:22#"Someone" - 4:36#"Love Hurts" - 4:19... |
| "Tell Me" | 1996 | 14 | — | |
| "Third of June" | 1996 | 17 | — | |
| "Someone" | 1996 | 36 | — | |
| "So Visible (Easy to Miss)" | 1998 | 22 | — | Jade Jade (Corey Hart album) Jade is the ninth album by Corey Hart, released in 1998. It generated three singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Let It Fly"#"Without You"#"You & I"#"Break the Chain"#"La-Bas"#"So Visible "#"Jade"#"Reconcile"... |
| "Break the Chain" | 1998 | 38 | — | |
| "La-Bas" | 1998 | — | — |
Albums
| Year | Album | CAN Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
U.S. Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
CRIA Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... |
RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | First Offense First Offense First Offense is the debut album by Corey Hart, released in 1983. It featured the hit singles "Sunglasses at Night" and the ballad "It Ain't Enough"... |
6 | 31 | 3× Platinum (300,000) | Gold (500,000) |
| 1985 | Boy in the Box Boy in the Box (album) Boy in the Box is the second album by Corey Hart, released in 1985. It generated four charted singles. The song "Never Surrender" won a Juno Award in 1985 for "Single of the Year" and reached #3 on the U.S... |
1 | 20 | Diamond (1,000,000+) | Platinum |
| 1986 | Fields of Fire Fields of Fire (album) Fields of Fire is the third album by Corey Hart, released in 1986. It generated five charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart, except as noted.#"I Am By Your Side" - 4:35#"Dancin' With My Mirror" - 4:16#"Take My Heart" - 4:21... |
5 | 63 | 2× Platinum (200,000) | Gold |
| 1988 | Young Man Running Young Man Running Young Man Running is the fourth album by Corey Hart, released in 1988. It charted in the U.S., reaching #126, and generated the hit single, "In Your Soul", which reached #38.- Track listing :All songs written by Corey Hart.... |
12 | 121 | Platinum (100,000) | |
| 1990 | Bang! Bang! (Corey Hart album) Bang! is the fifth album by Corey Hart, released in 1990. It was his last album to chart in the U.S., reaching #134, and generated just one hit single, "A Little Love", which reached #37... |
24 | 134 | ||
| 1991 | Singles Singles (Corey Hart album) Singles is the sixth album by Corey Hart, released in 1991. This compilation album contains fifteen tracks, two of which were not released as singles, but are otherwise included... |
54 | — | ||
| 1992 | Attitude & Virtue Attitude & Virtue Attitude & Virtue is the seventh album by Corey Hart, released in 1992. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Back in the Hand" - 4:15#"Love and Money" - 4:09#"Baby When I Call Your Name" - 4:03... |
41 | — | ||
| 1996 | Corey Hart Corey Hart (album) Corey Hart is the eighth album by Corey Hart, released in 1996. It generated four charted singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart, except as noted.#"Black Cloud Rain" - 4:22#"Someone" - 4:36#"Love Hurts" - 4:19... |
38 | — | Platinum (100,000) | |
| 1998 | Jade Jade (Corey Hart album) Jade is the ninth album by Corey Hart, released in 1998. It generated three singles.-Track listing:All songs written by Corey Hart.#"Let It Fly"#"Without You"#"You & I"#"Break the Chain"#"La-Bas"#"So Visible "#"Jade"#"Reconcile"... |
46 | — | ||
Music videos
| Year | Title | Location | Director |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | "Sunglasses at Night Sunglasses at Night "Sunglasses at Night" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his debut album, 1983's First Offense, and became a hit single in the United States, rising to #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1984... " |
Toronto | Rob Quartly |
| 1984 | "It Ain't Enough" | ||
| 1985 | "Never Surrender Never Surrender (song) "Never Surrender" is a power ballad and hit song recorded by Canadian singer Corey Hart. It was the first single to be released off his second album, 1985's Boy in the Box... " |
||
| "Boy in the Box" | London | Michael Oblowitz | |
| "Everything in My Heart" | Boston | Rob Quartly | |
| 1986 | "Eurasian Eyes" | Toronto | |
| "I Am By Your Side" | Alberta | Michael Oblowitz | |
| "Can't Help Falling in Love" | London | Rob Quartly | |
| "Dancin' With My Mirror" | Toronto | ||
| "Take My Heart" | Eastern Townships | Suzanne Rostock | |
| "Angry Young Man" | Rome | Rob Quartly | |
| 1987 | "2 Good 2 Be Enough" | New Orleans | Suzanne Rostock |
| 1988 | "In Your Soul" | New Mexico & Los Angeles | Meiert Avis |
| "Still in Love" | Montreal | Corey Hart | |
| 1990 | "Bang! (Starting Over)" | Los Angeles | Meiert Avis |
| "A Little Love" | |||
| 1992 | "92 Days of Rain" | Toronto | Rob Quartly |
| "Baby When I Call Your Name" | Los Angeles | Leta Warner | |
| 1994 | "Hymn to Love" | Paris | Meiert Avis |
| 1996 | "Black Cloud Rain" | Mexico City | Javier |
| 1997 | "Tell Me" | Toronto | |
| "Third of June" | Montreal | Lynne Charlevoix | |
| 1998 | "La-Bas" (with Julie Masse) | Mexico City | Javier |
| "So Visible (Easy to Miss)" | |||
| 1999 | "Break the Chain" | Toronto | Tryan George |