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Bad English

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This article is about the band. For other uses, seeBroken English (disambiguation)andBad English (disambiguation).
Bad English
Bad English, clockwise L-to-R: Neal Schon, Deen Castronovo, Ricky Phillips, Jonathan Cain, and John Waite
Bad English, clockwise L-to-R: Neal Schon, Deen Castronovo, Ricky Phillips, Jonathan Cain, and John Waite
Background information
OriginLos Angeles,California,U.S.
Genres
Years active1987–1991
LabelsEpic
Spinoff of
Past membersJohn Waite
Neal Schon
Jonathan Cain
Ricky Phillips
Deen Castronovo

Bad Englishwas an American/Britishhard rocksupergroupformed in 1987. It reunitedJourneykeyboardistJonathan Cainwith singerJohn Waiteand bassistRicky Phillips,his former bandmates inthe Babys,along with Journey guitaristNeal Schonand drummerDeen Castronovo.The band is known for their hit single "When I See You Smile",which peaked at number 1 on theBillboardHot 100in November 1989.[4]

History

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The members decided on a name for the band while playingpool.John Waite missed a shot and Jonathan Cain made a comment on how bad his "english"was (referring to the spin a player puts on thecue ball), and the band decided to use the phrase.[5]

Jonathan Cain and guitarist Neal Schon, members of the successful rock bandJourney,formed Bad English with Waite after Journey disbanded.[6]They were joined by Ricky Phillips, who had played bass forthe Babyson two albums with Waite and Cain, and drummer Deen Castronovo.

First album

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The band's first album,Bad English,was a big seller. It contained three top-40 hit singles: the number one hit "When I See You Smile",the top 10 hit"Price of Love",and" Possession ".

The album's first single, however, was "Forget Me Not". It stalled outside the top 40 at number 45, but the single peaked at number 2 on theMainstream Rockchart. The second single, "When I See You Smile", was their biggest hit, peaking at number 1 on the Hot 100. The song is also notable for being one of only two songs (the other being "Don't Walk Away" ) to be entirely written by an outside writer without help from at least one member of the band.[7]"Best of What I Got" was released as a promotional single toRock Radio,where the tune cracked the top 10.[8]

From March to June 1990, the band toured across the US withWhitesnakein support of the album.[9]

Second album

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The band's second album,Backlash,came and went without any fanfare. The only single, "Straight to Your Heart", missed the top 40, peaking at number 42. Ricky Phillips writes on his website that the group had parted company before the second album had been mixed. Both Phillips and guitarist Neal Schon expressed frustration with the "pop"side of the band's music and wanted a harder edge.
In the end, it proved to be the band's undoing as everyone left to pursue other projects.

Breakup

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In later interviews, Waite revealed that although he loved playing to stadium-sized audiences, he was uncomfortable with thecorporate rockimage that he felt the band had presented. He returned to working as a solo artist. Schon and Castronovo joined the fledgling rock bandHardlinein 1991; however, both would leave the group not long after the release of its debut album, with Schon pursuing other projects and Castronovo joiningOzzy Osbourne's band. In the mid-1990s, Schon rejoined Cain, who had released two solo albums in the interim, in a reformed Journey. Castronovo also joined Journey in 1998, eventually leaving in 2015. He later became a member ofthe Dead DaisiesandRevolution Saintsbefore returning to Journey in 2021. Meanwhile, Phillips returned to session work, recording with artists such asCoverdale/Page,Bobby KimballandEddie Moneybefore joiningStyxin the early 2000s.

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"Best of What I Got", from the band's first album, is featured during the credits to the 1989 movieTango & CashstarringSylvester StalloneandKurt Russell.[10]

Band members

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Discography

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Studio albums

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Year Album details Peak chart positions Certifications
(sales threshold)
US
[11] 		AUS
[12][13] 		CAN
[14] 		SWE
[15] 		SWI
[16] 		UK
[17]
1989 Bad English 21 12 34 39 — 74
1991 Backlash
  • Release date: August 1991
  • Label: Epic Records
 72 159 34 21 30 64
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Compilation albums

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Year Album details
1995 Greatest Hits

Singles

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Year Single Peak chart positions Certifications
(sales threshold) 		Album
US
[4] 		US AC
[20] 		US Main
[8] 		AUS
[21][22][13] 		UK
[17] 		NL
[23]
1989 "Forget Me Not" 45 — 2 — — — Bad English
"When I See You Smile" 1 11 10 4 61 —
"Price of Love" 5 38 30 44 80 —
"Best of What I Got" — — 9 — — —
1990 "Heaven Is a 4 Letter Word" 66 — 12 124 — —
"Possession" 21 42 — — — —
"Don't Walk Away" — — — — 110 —
1991 "Straight to Your Heart" 42 — 9 116 — 41 Backlash
"Time Stood Still" — — — — — 19
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or not released to that country

References

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  1. ^"Bad English | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links".AllMusic.RetrievedOctober 31,2019.
  2. ^Everley, Dave (July 17, 2017)."Bad English - Bad English album review".Louder.RetrievedJuly 30,2023.
  3. ^Popoff, Martin (August 15, 2014).The big book of hair metal: the illustrated oral history of heavy metal's debauched decade.Minneapolis, MN. pp. 171, 209.ISBN978-0-7603-4546-7.OCLC858901054.RetrievedMarch 10,2021.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^ab"Hot 100".Billboard.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  5. ^"Rock Band Name Origins at WHAT'S IN A NAME".thinkquest.org.Archived fromthe originalon August 31, 2006.
  6. ^"A Rousing Reception for Bad English".Daily News of Los Angeles.January 29, 1990 – via newsbank.com.
  7. ^Giles, Jeff (June 26, 2015)."How Journey and The Babys Alumni Rose and Fell in Bad English".Ultimate Classic Rock.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  8. ^ab"Mainstream Rock".Billboard.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  9. ^"Life Story of John Waite – Bad English".johnwaite.com.July 4, 2008. Archived fromthe originalon July 4, 2008.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  10. ^Tango & Cash (1989) – IMDb,retrievedMarch 16,2021
  11. ^"Billboard 200".Billboard.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  12. ^"australian-charts.com – Australian charts portal".australian-charts.com. Archived fromthe originalon October 11, 2012.RetrievedJanuary 23,2010.
  13. ^ab"Bubbling Down Under Week Commencing October 14, 1991".Bubbling Down Under.RetrievedOctober 14,2022.
  14. ^"Results – RPM – Library and Archives Canada: Top Albums/CDs".RPM.Archived fromthe originalon October 17, 2012.RetrievedAugust 11,2010.
  15. ^"swedishcharts.com – Swedish charts portal".swedishcharts.com. Archived fromthe originalon October 24, 2012.RetrievedJanuary 23,2010.
  16. ^"hitparade.ch – Swiss charts portal".hitparde.ch. Archived fromthe originalon November 10, 2012.RetrievedJanuary 23,2010.
  17. ^ab"Bad English – Full Official Chart History".Official Charts Company.RetrievedJanuary 20,2016.
  18. ^ab"Gold & Platinum".RIAA.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  19. ^"Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA): Gold & Platinum".Music Canada.Archived fromthe originalon July 21, 2013.RetrievedJuly 21,2013.
  20. ^"Adult Contemporary".Billboard.RetrievedMarch 16,2021.
  21. ^"australian-charts.com – Australian charts portal".australian-charts.com. Archived fromthe originalon October 16, 2012.RetrievedDecember 5,2010.
  22. ^"Week commencing 11 June 1990".bubblingdownunder.June 11, 2021.RetrievedJune 11,2021.
  23. ^"dutchcharts.nl – Dutch charts portal".Hung Medien. Archived fromthe originalon October 25, 2012.RetrievedFebruary 24,2011.
  24. ^"1990 ARIA Singles Chart".ARIA.RetrievedAugust 13,2020.
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