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Hotel (band)
Encyclopedia
The band Hotel was a power pop
group formed in Birmingham, Alabama
in 1973 and disbanded in 1982. They had a strong regional following and were loaded top to bottom with highly talented musicians.
Hotel was a popular favorite on the southeastern United States Rock-n-Roll club scene and played in all the best and largest clubs, as well as fronting concerts for many national acts who toured through the area in the mid-to-late 1970s. Their original songs were highly laced with pop hooks & heavy vocal harmonies, sometimes 6-part. Their sound was relative to power pop
groups such as The Rascals
and Raspberries
but with a more-polished sound & much-higher musicianship; they routinely peppered their sets with tunes that showed off their musical prowess by covering difficult-to-play songs note-for-note by acts such as Steely Dan. Phillips' lead vocal also gave the group an identifiable trademark that combined a good range with exceptional quality.
Hot 100 it was very popular in its regional area where the band toured constantly and built a solid following.
In 1979, they signed with MCA Records and released their debut album. Simply entitled "Hotel", the album was a collection of power-pop tunes. MCA released the songs "You've Got Another Thing Coming" which reached #54, becoming the band's highest charting single, and "Hold On To The Night", penned by Phillips and prolific 1960s songwriter Barry Mann
(co-writer of "On Broadway", "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" and many more).
It appeared that by 1980, with popular music moving away from Power pop
, not to mention Progressive rock
, Punk
& Disco
, these elements would eventually meld themselves into New Wave
, which combined elements of all these styles using a combination synthesizer and guitar-based sound. Although Rock
purists saw it as a soulless & fleeting style, it became nevertheless a new marketable formula for pop radio success at that time. This style was first captured by acts such as Elvis Costello
, The Cars
& Blondie
in the late `1970s, and was the norm for pop-rock artists by the 1980s who were weren't hardcore enough to slip into the Post punk genre or the few true rock artists who followed Van Halen into hair band pop metal
a few years later.
Seeing this change in the music environment taking place, Hotel began work on their second album, "Half-Moon Silver", which was released by MCA in 1980. This 2nd album contained strong Power pop
tunes and was quite a bit edgier than the debut album, it lacked proper promotion and sold even less than the debut album, which led MCA to drop the act. The group stayed together as the perennial star of the club circuit, and disbanded in 1982.
which won the highly acclaimed "MTV
Basement Tapes" competition in 1986. Split The Dark eventually disbanded in 1988.
Notably, one of the final members of Split The Dark was guitarist/vocalist Damon Johnson, who later formed the rock group Brother Cane
, which had some national success in the 1990s with 3 albums, including their biggest hit "I Lie In The Bed I Make".
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
group formed in Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
in 1973 and disbanded in 1982. They had a strong regional following and were loaded top to bottom with highly talented musicians.
Early history
After various personnel changes marked their early formative years, the group solidified their lineup in 1976 with original members Marc Phillips on lead vocals/piano and Tommy Calton on guitar/vocals. Rounding out the most-popular formation of this group were Lee Bargeron on keyboards/acoustic guitar/vocals, Mike Reid on guitar/vocals, George Creasman on bass/vocals, and Michael Cadenhead on drums/vocals, which is the lineup that recorded their 2 MCA studio albums.Hotel was a popular favorite on the southeastern United States Rock-n-Roll club scene and played in all the best and largest clubs, as well as fronting concerts for many national acts who toured through the area in the mid-to-late 1970s. Their original songs were highly laced with pop hooks & heavy vocal harmonies, sometimes 6-part. Their sound was relative to power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
groups such as The Rascals
The Rascals
The Rascals were an American blue-eyed soul group initially active during the years 1965–72. The band released numerous top ten singles in North America during the mid- and late-1960s, including the U.S. #1 hits "Good Lovin'" , "Groovin'" , and "People Got to Be Free"...
and Raspberries
Raspberries (band)
Raspberries is an American power pop/pop rock band from Cleveland, Ohio. They had a run of success in the early 1970s music scene with their crisp pop sound, which Allmusic later described as featuring "exquisitely crafted melodies and achingly gorgeous harmonies." The members were known for their...
but with a more-polished sound & much-higher musicianship; they routinely peppered their sets with tunes that showed off their musical prowess by covering difficult-to-play songs note-for-note by acts such as Steely Dan. Phillips' lead vocal also gave the group an identifiable trademark that combined a good range with exceptional quality.
Recordings
In 1978, Hotel released a single for Mercury Records, "You'll Love Again." It reached #71 on the BillboardBillboard (magazine)
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...
Hot 100 it was very popular in its regional area where the band toured constantly and built a solid following.
In 1979, they signed with MCA Records and released their debut album. Simply entitled "Hotel", the album was a collection of power-pop tunes. MCA released the songs "You've Got Another Thing Coming" which reached #54, becoming the band's highest charting single, and "Hold On To The Night", penned by Phillips and prolific 1960s songwriter Barry Mann
Barry Mann
Barry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
(co-writer of "On Broadway", "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" and many more).
It appeared that by 1980, with popular music moving away from Power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
, not to mention Progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, Punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
& Disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
, these elements would eventually meld themselves into 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...
, which combined elements of all these styles using a combination synthesizer and guitar-based sound. Although Rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
purists saw it as a soulless & fleeting style, it became nevertheless a new marketable formula for pop radio success at that time. This style was first captured by acts such as Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
& Blondie
Blondie (band)
Blondie is an American rock band, founded by singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the early American New Wave and punk scenes of the mid-1970s...
in the late `1970s, and was the norm for pop-rock artists by the 1980s who were weren't hardcore enough to slip into the Post punk genre or the few true rock artists who followed Van Halen into hair band pop metal
Glam metal
Glam metal is a subgenre of hard rock and heavy metal that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene...
a few years later.
Seeing this change in the music environment taking place, Hotel began work on their second album, "Half-Moon Silver", which was released by MCA in 1980. This 2nd album contained strong Power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
tunes and was quite a bit edgier than the debut album, it lacked proper promotion and sold even less than the debut album, which led MCA to drop the act. The group stayed together as the perennial star of the club circuit, and disbanded in 1982.
Later Formations
Founding members Marc Phillips & Tommy Calton promptly created the aptly named "Calton-Phillips Group", later changing the name to "Split The Dark". This latter formation created a videoVideo
Video is the technology of electronically capturing, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing scenes in motion.- History :...
which won the highly acclaimed "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....
Basement Tapes" competition in 1986. Split The Dark eventually disbanded in 1988.
Notably, one of the final members of Split The Dark was guitarist/vocalist Damon Johnson, who later formed the rock group Brother Cane
Brother Cane
Brother Cane was an American hard rock band that released three albums in the 1990s. The band was formed in 1990 by singer/guitarist Damon Johnson and bassist Glenn Maxey. Joined by guitarist Roman Glick and drummer Scott Collier, Brother Cane released their self-titled debut album in 1993...
, which had some national success in the 1990s with 3 albums, including their biggest hit "I Lie In The Bed I Make".