Starland Vocal Band
Starland Vocal Band | |
---|---|
Starland Vocal Band, June 1977 | |
Background information | |
Origin | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Genres | Pop, folk rock, country, soft rock |
Years active | 1976–1981 |
Labels | RCA, Windsong Records |
Associated acts | John Denver |
Past members | Bill Danoff Taffy Nivert Jon Carroll Margot Chapman |
Starland Vocal Band was an American pop band, known for "Afternoon Delight", one of the biggest-selling singles of 1976.
Career[edit]
The group began as Fat City, a husband/wife duo of Bill Danoff and Taffy Nivert.[1]
Danoff and Nivert co-wrote the song "I Guess He'd Rather Be in Colorado" and then, with John Denver, "Take Me Home, Country Roads" which became a hit single in 1971 and became the official song of West Virginia in 2014.[2] The duo recorded two albums as Fat City (Reincarnation, Welcome To Fat City), and two more as Bill & Taffy (Pass It On, Aces), all released from 1969 to 1974.[1]
In the mid 1970s, Starland Vocal Band was formed and subsequently signed to Denver's label Windsong Records. Starland Vocal Band also included Jon Carroll (keyboards, guitar, vocals) and Margot Chapman (vocals).[1] Carroll and Chapman also became a couple, marrying in 1978.[3]
The group's debut album was the self-titled Starland Vocal Band and included "Afternoon Delight". The song was a US number one hit[3] and the album also charted. They were nominated for four Grammy Awards in 1977 and won two: Best Arrangement for Voices and Best New Artist, the latter award over the group Boston.[4] The song also reached number 18 in the UK Singles Chart.[5] The follow-up album, Rear View Mirror, did not fare as well, with 13 weeks on the Billboard 200 and a peak of number 104.[6]
The band hosted a variety show, The Starland Vocal Band Show, that ran on CBS for six weeks in the summer of 1977. David Letterman was a writer and regular on the show, which also featured Mark Russell, Jeff Altman, and Proctor and Bergman. April Kelly was a writer for the series.[7]
Unable to match their previous success, the band broke up in 1981. Carroll and Chapman divorced later that year followed by Danoff and Nivert in 1982.[3] All four members went on to pursue solo careers.[8] All four members have remained on friendly terms, and in 1998 the group reunited for a few concerts, often featuring the children of the four original members as additional vocalists. In 2007, they appeared on a 1970s special on the New Jersey Network (NJN), singing "Afternoon Delight".
In 2010, Billboard named "Afternoon Delight" the 20th sexiest song of all time.[9] Due to its success, the song was featured in such films as PCU, Anchorman and Good Will Hunting.[10]
Discography[edit]
Studio albums[edit]
Year | Album details | Peak chart positions |
---|---|---|
US | ||
1976 | Starland Vocal Band
|
20 |
1977 | Rear View Mirror
|
104 |
1978 | Late Nite Radio
|
208 |
1980 | 4 X 4
|
— |
1980 | Christmas at Home
|
— |
A CD compilation album, Afternoon Delight: The Best of the Starland Vocal Band, was released in 1995 by K-tel.[11] Also in 1995, Collectables released Afternoon Delight: A Golden Classics Edition which included all tracks from the first two albums.
Singles[edit]
Year | A/B-side songs | Catalog # (Windsong) |
Peak chart positions | Album | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US | AUS | CAN | CAN AC | ||||
1976 | "Afternoon Delight" / "Starland" | 10588 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 6 | Starland Vocal Band |
"California Day" / "War Surplus Baby" | 10785 | 66 | — | — | 22 | ||
"Hail! Hail! Rock and Roll!" / "Ain't It The Fall" | 10855 | 71 | — | 92 | — | ||
1977 | "Afternoon Delight" / "California Day" | 10943 | — | — | — | — | |
"Liberated Woman" / "Fallin' In A Deep Hole" | 10992 | — | — | — | — | Rear View Mirror | |
"The Light of My Life" / "Prism" | 11067 | — | — | — | 36 | ||
"Mr. Wrong" / Too Long A Journey" | 11168 | — | — | — | 33 | ||
1978 | "Late Nite Radio" / "Please Ms. Newslady" | 11261 | — | — | — | — | Late Nite Radio |
1980 | "Loving You with My Eyes" / "Apartment For Rent" | 11899 | 71 | — | — | 26 | 4 X 4 |
"(Love) Thought I Would Never Find Love" / "Love Stuff" | 12011 | — | — | — | — |
Awards and nominations[edit]
Grammy Awards[edit]
The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. The band won two awards from four nominations.
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1977 | Starland Vocal Band | Best New Artist | Won |
"Afternoon Delight" | Record of the Year | Nominated | |
Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated | ||
Best Arrangement for Voices (duo, group or chorus) | Won |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Fat City - At Least We're Not Invading China". Paste. August 29, 1972.
- ^ "House Concurrent Resolution No. 40". West Virginia Legislature. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ a b c "'Skyrockets in flight/Afternoon delight': The story behind Starland Vocal Band's one big hit". Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "19th Annual GRAMMY Awards (1976)". Grammy.com. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "Afternoon Delight". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ Jeff Benjamin (January 29, 2013). "8 One-Hit Wonders Who Won Best New Artist Grammys". Fuse. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "A look at early David Letterman on the 'Starland Vocal Band Show'". Atom Bash. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "Whatever happened to Grammy's Best New Artists?". CBS News. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "The 50 Sexiest Songs Of All Time Page 4". Billboard.com. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
- ^ Jeffrey Rosenfield (February 7, 2013). "Grammy Winner Taffy Nivert Settles In Safety Harbor". Patch Media. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "Schwann Spectrum". Stereophile. 7 (1): 137. 1995.
External links[edit]
- Starland Vocal Band at AllMusic
- Starland Vocal Band at IMDb
- Starland Vocal Band at IMDb
- Bill Danoff official website
- Jon Carroll official website