The Box (band)
Encyclopedia
The Box is a Canadian
New Wave
group from Montreal
. Founded in 1981, they achieved commercial success in Canada, recording four charting albums and 10 charting singles between 1984 and 1990. The group broke up in 1992, but a new lineup of the band was founded in 2002. This iteration of the group has released two further albums.
. He recruited guitar
ist Guy Florent and bass
ist Jean-Pierre Brie for the band, who were originally known as Checkpoint Charlie before settling on the name The Box.
The band's first single attracted the attention of Montreal radio station CKOI-FM
, leading to a deal with Alert Records
. Also that year, Pisapia's brother Guy joined the band on keyboards.
Their debut album, The Box, was released in 1984 and produced the hit singles "Must I Always Remember" and "Walk Away". Drummer
Sylvain Coutu joined the band for its supporting tour, but was replaced by Pierre Taillefer before the band's next album. Florent also left the band, and was replaced by Claude Thibeault.
In 1985, The Box released All The Time, All The Time, All The Time. That album, which included backing vocals by Sass Jordan
and Marie Carmen
, produced the hit singles "My Dreams of You" and the band's most famous song, "L'Affaire Dumoutier (Say to Me)". The band won the 1985 Félix Award
for group of the year, and were nominated for the Juno Award
for most promising group.
1987's Closer Together was the band's most commercially successful album. Featuring the hit singles "Ordinary People", "Closer Together" and "Crying Out Loud for Love", the album was certified platinum. Backing vocals on the album were provided by Jordan and Martine St. Clair
.
After touring for more than eighteen months, the band took six months off to recover before returning with 1990's The Pleasure and the Pain. That album was a commercial disappointment, and The Box disbanded in 1992 after releasing the greatest hits
compilation A Decade of Box Music. (A subsequent hits compilation, Always in Touch With You, was issued in 2003.)
Pisapia released a solo album, John of Mark, in 1995. He subsequently revived The Box with a new lineup in 2002. This version of The Box had a decidedly more prog-rock orientation that the original incarnation of the band.
In 2005 the band released Black Dog There, its first new album in fifteen years. This was followed up by the 2009 album D'Apres Le Horla De Maupassant, the first Box album sung entirely in French.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
group from 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...
. Founded in 1981, they achieved commercial success in Canada, recording four charting albums and 10 charting singles between 1984 and 1990. The group broke up in 1992, but a new lineup of the band was founded in 2002. This iteration of the group has released two further albums.
Biography
The band was formed in 1981 by Jean-Marc Pisapia, an early member of Men Without HatsMen Without Hats
Men Without Hats is a Canadian New Wave group from Montreal, Quebec. Their music was characterized by the distinctive baritone voice of their lead singer Ivan Doroschuk as well as their elaborate use of synthesizers and electronic processing...
. He recruited guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist Guy Florent and bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
ist Jean-Pierre Brie for the band, who were originally known as Checkpoint Charlie before settling on the name The Box.
The band's first single attracted the attention of Montreal radio station CKOI-FM
CKOI-FM
CKOI-FM is a French-language Canadian radio station located in Montreal, Quebec.Owned and operated by Cogeco, it broadcasts on 96.9 MHz from the roof of the CIBC Tower in Downtown Montreal with an effective radiated power of 307,000 watts using an omnidirectional antenna...
, leading to a deal with Alert Records
Alert Records
Alert Records is a Canadian independent record label based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.- External links :* * *...
. Also that year, Pisapia's brother Guy joined the band on keyboards.
Their debut album, The Box, was released in 1984 and produced the hit singles "Must I Always Remember" and "Walk Away". Drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
Sylvain Coutu joined the band for its supporting tour, but was replaced by Pierre Taillefer before the band's next album. Florent also left the band, and was replaced by Claude Thibeault.
In 1985, The Box released All The Time, All The Time, All The Time. That album, which included backing vocals by Sass Jordan
Sass Jordan
Sarah "Sass" Jordan is a Canadian, Juno Award winning, rock singer/songwriter who grew up in Montreal.- Biography :...
and Marie Carmen
Marie Carmen
Marie Carmen is the stage name of Marie-Carmen Aubut , a Canadian pop singer and musical theatre actor....
, produced the hit singles "My Dreams of You" and the band's most famous song, "L'Affaire Dumoutier (Say to Me)". The band won the 1985 Félix Award
Félix Award
The Félix Award is a music award, given on an annual basis to artists in the Canadian province of Quebec.The first Félix awards were presented on September 23, 1979, by the Association du disque, de l'industrie du spectacle québécois...
for group of the year, and were nominated for the Juno Award
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
for most promising group.
1987's Closer Together was the band's most commercially successful album. Featuring the hit singles "Ordinary People", "Closer Together" and "Crying Out Loud for Love", the album was certified platinum. Backing vocals on the album were provided by Jordan and Martine St. Clair
Martine St. Clair
Martine St. Clair is a Canadian singer from the province of Quebec. She has released numerous albums in a career that has spanned over two decades....
.
After touring for more than eighteen months, the band took six months off to recover before returning with 1990's The Pleasure and the Pain. That album was a commercial disappointment, and The Box disbanded in 1992 after releasing the greatest hits
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
compilation A Decade of Box Music. (A subsequent hits compilation, Always in Touch With You, was issued in 2003.)
Pisapia released a solo album, John of Mark, in 1995. He subsequently revived The Box with a new lineup in 2002. This version of The Box had a decidedly more prog-rock orientation that the original incarnation of the band.
In 2005 the band released Black Dog There, its first new album in fifteen years. This was followed up by the 2009 album D'Apres Le Horla De Maupassant, the first Box album sung entirely in French.
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.... |
|||||||||
| 1984 | "Walk Away" | 48 | The Box | ||||||
| "Must I Always Remember" | 82 | ||||||||
| "Dancing on the Grave" | — | ||||||||
| 1985 | "With All This Cash" | — | All the Time, All the Time, All the Time | ||||||
| "L'Affaire Dumoutier (Say to Me)" | 21 | ||||||||
| 1986 | "My Dreams of You" | 51 | |||||||
| 1987 | "Closer Together" | 13 | Closer Together | ||||||
| "Ordinary People" | 16 | ||||||||
| "Crying Out Loud for Love" | 40 | ||||||||
| 1988 | "I'm Back" | — | |||||||
| 1990 | "Carry On" | 12 | The Pleasure and the Pain | ||||||
| "Temptation" | 39 | ||||||||
| "Inside My Heart" | 20 | ||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Original studio albums
| Release date | Title | Chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... RPM Album charts |
||
| May 1984 | The Box | #95 |
| January 1986 | All the Time, All the Time, All the Time | #73 |
| March 1987 | Closer Together | #25 |
| March 1990 | The Pleasure and the Pain | #31 |
| March 2005 | Black Dog There | - |
| November 2009 | D'Apres Le Horla De Maupassant | - |
Compilation albums
- A Decade of Box Music (1992)
- Always in Touch with You: The Best of the Box (2003)
External links
- The Box official website
- JAM! Canadian Music Encyclopedia - The Box