Black Box (band)

Black Box is an Italian house music group popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The members of the group included a trio made up of a club DJ (Daniele Davoli), a classically trained clarinet teacher (Valerio Semplici), and a keyboard and electronic music "wiz" (Mirko Limoni). The group created an image for Black Box using French fashion model Katrin Quinol on their album and single cover art as the supposed lead singer in all their music videos.[1] However, the vision of their success radically changed when it was revealed that Quinol was lip-syncing to the group's actual recorded vocalist Martha Wash, who sang the majority of the songs on the group's debut album Dreamland.

Black Box
Also known as	Groove Groove Melody, Starlight, Mixmaster
Origin	Italy
Genres	Italo house, house, eurodance
Years active	1988–present
Labels	RCA, Out, Groove Groove Melody
Associated acts	Martha Wash, Loleatta Holloway
Website	blackboxhouse.eu
Members	Celestine Walcott-Gordon Daniele Davoli Valerio Semplici Mirko Limoni
Past members	Katrin Quinol Charvoni Woodson

History

1988–1989: Early beginnings

Daniele Davoli, Valerio Semplici, and Mirko Limoni formed a production team called Starlight (often credited as Starlight Invention Group).[2] The group's first single was a dance single called "Numero Uno", released in 1988. The song was often credited by their other alias, Groove Groove Melody. "Numero Uno" peaked at number nine on the UK Singles chart.[3] In early 1989, they produced a single called "Vocalizado" for Italian singer Robby Magno. In mid-1989, the group released the maxi-single "Airport 89" under the name Wood Allen. The single peaked at number 99 on the UK Singles chart.[4]

1989–1992: Dreamland

Martha Wash (pictured), uncredited female singer of "Everybody Everybody" and five additional songs.

Main article: Dreamland (Black Box album)

In 1989, the group changed their name to Black Box and began working on their first album. They added French Caribbean model Katrin Quinol to the lineup as the group's image who would go on to lip sync their songs in music videos and on televised performances.[5] In July 1989, Black Box released their single "Ride on Time". The song became an international hit, peaking at number one in three countries, including the UK, where it became UK's best-selling single of 1989, selling over 1.5 million copies worldwide.[6] In November 1989, they released the single "Grand Piano" under the alias Mixmaster. The song peaked at number nine on the UK Singles chart.[7] In December 1989, they released the follow-up single "I Don't Know Anybody Else". The song became an international top-ten hit and gave the group their first number-one song on Billboard's Dance chart.[1][8] In March 1990, they released their third single, "Everybody Everybody". Like its predecessors, the song also became an international hit and earned the group their second number one on the Dance chart.[8] The song has become Black Box's highest charting single to date.

In May 1990, they released their debut album Dreamland. Despite its moderate performance on the charts, the album became certified gold in the United Kingdom and United States [9][10] and peaked at number one in the Australian chart. In late 1990, the album's fourth single, "Fantasy", a cover of the 1978 hit by Earth, Wind & Fire, peaked at number five on the UK Singles chart and became certified silver in the United Kingdom.[11]

In February 1991, "Strike It Up" was released as the album's fifth single. The song became another international top-ten hit for the group and earned them their third number-one single on the Dance chart. The album's final singles "Open Your Eyes" and "Hold On" performed moderately well on the charts. In the same year, Black Box released a re-issue of "Ride on Time" called "Bright on Time". Quinol, who did not contribute vocally or musically to the group's music, left Black Box in late 1991 after the band became the subject of a media backlash involving lip-syncing scandals and lawsuits.

1993–1999: Positive Vibration and lineup changes

In 1993, Black Box added American singer Charvoni Woodson to the lineup. They released the single "Rockin' to the Music", which performed poorly on the charts. In 1995, Black Box released their second album, Positive Vibration, which failed to chart or rise to the same level of success as their previous record. The album spawned the singles "Not Anyone" and "A Positive Vibration", both of which fared well on the charts. In 1997, the album was re-issued with three additional singles: "I Got the Vibration", "Native New Yorker", and "Fall Into My Love".

In April 1998, Black Box released a compilation album, Strike It Up: The Best of Black Box. In June 1998, they released another compilation, Hits & Mixes. In 1999, a maxi single of remixes for "Bright on Time" was exclusively released in France.

2003–present

Woodson continued touring and performing as the lead vocalist of the group periodically until 2015. That year, Celestine Walcott-Gordon began performing live as the new lead vocalist. In 2018, the group released the single "Everyone Will Follow", featuring vocals by Walcott-Gordon.

Lip-syncing scandals and lawsuits

In 1990, American singer Loleatta Holloway and American producer Dan Hartman sued Black Box for copyright infringement and unauthorized sampling of Holloway's song "Love Sensation".[12] "Ride on Time" sampled Holloway's song "Love Sensation", which was produced and written by Hartman. Neither Holloway nor Hartman were consulted for permission to sample the song, and Black Box failed to credit Holloway's vocals in the song. Additionally, Black Box had used Quinol to lip-sync Holloway's vocals in the music video for "Ride on Time", which led the public to believe Quinol was the actual singer. After a lengthy court case, it was ruled in favor of Holloway and Hartman. Both received an undisclosed out-of-court settlement.[12] As a result, Black Box re-issued their single "Ride on Time", removing Holloway's vocals and featuring newly recorded vocals by English singer Heather Small. The group still retained the original version on their re-issued album Dreamland and added Holloway's name as the featured vocalist on "Ride on Time" as well as giving Hartman songwriting credits. Black Box would later issue another new version of the song called "Bright on Time" in 1991.

In September 1990, American singer Martha Wash sued Black Box and RCA Records for commercial appropriation after she became aware of the lip-sync scandal perpetrated by the group.[13] During the recording session of their album Dreamland in 1989, Wash was recruited as a session singer to simply demo songs produced by Black Box. Unbeknownst to her, Black Box retained Wash's vocals on a total of six songs, including "Everybody Everybody", "Open Your Eyes", "Hold On", "I Don't Know Anybody Else", "Strike It Up", and "Fantasy" on the album Dreamland. Despite Wash's contributions to the songs, Black Box never credited her for her vocals and instead used Quinol to lip-sync Wash's vocals during music videos, televised performances, and concert performances. RCA settled the case out of court in December 1990, agreeing to pay Wash a "substantial" financial fee.[14] The company also signed her to an eight-album recording contract and financed her national tour.[14] Wash's lawsuit also resulted in federal legislation making vocal credit mandatory for all albums and music videos.[15]

Discography

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions										Certifications (sales threshold)
		AUS [16]	CAN [17]	FRA [18]	GER [19]	NZ [20]	NOR [21]	SWE [22]	SWI [23]	UK [24]	US [25]
Dreamland	Released: 8 May 1990 Label: RCA Formats: CD, LP, cassette	1	18	35	36	4	8	15	9	14	56	ARIA: Platinum[26] BPI: Gold[9] MC: 2× Platinum[27] RIAA: Gold[10]
Positive Vibration	Released: 23 August 1995 Label: Clubstitute Formats: CD	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Compilation albums

Title	Album details
Strike It Up: The Best of Black Box	Released: 14 April 1998 Label: BMG Formats: CD, cassette
Hits & Mixes	Released: 30 June 1998 Label: BMG Formats: CD
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Remix albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		NLD [28]
Remixland	Released: 1990 Label: Polydor Formats: CD, LP, cassette	58
Mixed Up!	Released: 12 November 1991 Label: RCA Formats: CD, LP, cassette	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Singles

Title	Year	Peak chart positions										Certifications	Album
		ITA [29]	AUS [16]	BEL (FLA) [30]	FRA [31]	GER [19]	NZ [20]	SWE [22]	UK [24]	US [25]	US Dance [25]
"Numero Uno"[lower-alpha 1]	1988	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	9	—	—		Non-album single
"Airport 89"[lower-alpha 2]	1989	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	99	—	—
"Megamix" (featuring Lelewel)		—	—	—	15	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Ride on Time" (featuring Loleatta Holloway)		19	2	7	3	5	2	2	1	—	39	ARIA: Platinum[32] BPI: Platinum[6] GLF: Gold[33] SNEP: Silver[34]	Dreamland
"Grand Piano"[lower-alpha 3]		—	—	—	—	12	—	—	9	—	—		Non-album single
"I Don't Know Anybody Else" (featuring Martha Wash)		22	6	—	9	12	25	8	4	23	1	ARIA: Gold[32]	Dreamland
"Everybody Everybody" (featuring Martha Wash)	1990	—	35	39	11	41	—	—	16	8	1
"Fantasy" (featuring Martha Wash)		—	3	—	21	16	—	—	5	—	—	ARIA: Gold[32] BPI: Silver[11]
"The Total Mix"		—	24	—	—	—	39	—	12	—	—		Remixland
"Megamix"	1991	—	—	—	34	33	—	—	—	—	—
"Bright on Time"		—	—	48	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Strike It Up" (featuring Martha Wash)		—	20	13	26	26	29	—	16	8	1		Dreamland
"Open Your Eyes" (featuring Martha Wash)		17	60	—	45	44	—	32	48	—	—
"Hold On" (featuring Martha Wash)	1992	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Rockin' to the Music"	1993	—	103	—	—	—	—	14	39	—	—		Positive Vibration
"Not Anyone"	1995	—	151	—	—	—	—	—	31	—	—
"A Positive Vibration"		18	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"I Got the Vibration"	1996	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	21	—	—
"Native New Yorker"	1997	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	46	—	—
"Fall Into My Love"		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Bright on Time ('99 Mix)"	1999	—	—	—	77	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
"Ride on Time (2003 Mix)"	2003	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Everybody Everybody 2007"	2007	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Ride on Time (20th Anniversary Mix)"	2009	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Everyone Will Follow"	2018	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes the single failed to chart or was not released

Notes

1. Released under the alias Starlight.
2. Released under the alias Wood Allen.
3. Released under the alias Mixmaster.

See also

• List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2009). Top Pop Singles 1955-2008 (12th ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 97. ISBN 0-89820-180-2.
2. "Starlight Discography". Discogs.com.
3. Starlight > full Official Chart History. Official Charts. Retrieved on July 7, 2019
4. Wood Allen > full Official Chart History. Official Charts. Retrieved on July 7, 2019
5. Earls, John (13 September 2019)."Lawsuits! Miming! An M-Person! Rave-pop glory! 30 years on, the inside story of Black Box’s ’80s mega-hit ‘Ride On Time’" NME. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
6. Award BPI for "Ride on Time" by Black Box. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved on July 8, 2019
7. Mixmaster > full Official Chart History. Official Charts. Retrieved on July 7, 2019
8. Black Box | Billboard Chart History. Billboard. Retrieved on February 1, 2019
9. Award BPI for "Dreamland" by Black Box. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved on July 8, 2019
10. "US Certifications > Black Box". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
11. Award BPI for "Fantasy" by Black Box. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved on July 8, 2019
12. Loleatta Holloway: Much-sampled disco diva who sued Black Box over their worldwide hit Ride on Time. Independent UK. Retrieved on July 7, 2019
13. Lawsuits Seek Truth in Music Labeling. The New York Times. Retrieved on January 28, 2019
14. "Read Her Lips : R&B Singer Says Hot Dance Hit Is Lip-Synced – Los Angeles Times". articles.latimes.com. 1991. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
15. Valentine's Disco Party At Playhouse Welcomes 'Weather Girl' Martha Wash Archived 2019-07-09 at the Wayback Machine. New Town Bee. Retrieved on January 28, 2019
16. Australian (ARIA) chart peaks:
    • Top 50 peaks: "australian-charts.com > Discography Black Box". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
    • Top 100 peaks: Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
    • Peaks for 'Rockin' To the Music' and 'Not Anyone': Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 2015-06-05. imgur.com. Archived from the original on 2015-06-05. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
17. "CAN Charts > Black Box". RPM. Archived from the original on 2013-05-25. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
18. "FRA Charts Search > Black Box". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 2012-06-22. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
19. "GER Charts > Black Box". Media Control Charts. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
20. "NZ Charts > Black Box". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
21. "NOR Charts > Black Box". VG-lista. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
22. "SWE Charts > Black Box". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
23. "SWI Charts > Black Box". Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
24. "UK Charts > Black Box". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
25. "US Charts > Black Box". Billboard. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
26. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
27. Gold/Platinum - Music Canada > Black Box. Music Canada. Retrieved on July 8, 2019
28. "NL Charts > Black Box". MegaCharts. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
29. "ITA Charts > Black Box". hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 2014-04-14.
30. "ITA Charts > Black Box". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2014-04-14.
31. "FRA Charts > Black Box". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
32. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
33. Cached page of Sweden Certified Gold and Platinum records between the years of 1987-1998. Wayback Machine. Retrieved on July 9, 2019
34. "Les Singles en Argent" (in French). InfoDisc. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2014.

External links

• Official website
• Official Facebook Page
• YouTube Channel