Honeymoon Suite - Wake Me Up When The Sun Goes Down (CD) (UK Import)

Honeymoon Suite are a Canadian Hard Rock/AOR band, based out of Niagara Falls, Ontario that formed in 1982. The band's name was a nod to the fact that Niagara Falls is the unofficial honeymoon capital.

The band was originally formed in 1982 by lead vocalist and guitarist Johnnie Dee (of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada), guitarist Derry Grehan (of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada) and original drummer Mike Lengyell, formerly with the Diodes. They soon signed with WEA Canada after they released their song "New Girl Now", which won them an unsigned band contest put on by Toronto radio station Q107.

Dee and Grehan recruited Ray Coburn on keyboards, Gary Lalonde (formerly with Rose and Toronto) on bass, and Dave Betts (replacing Lengyell) on drums.

In 1984, they released their self-titled debut album, which led to four big hits in Canada: "New Girl Now", "Burning In Love", "Wave Babies", and "Stay In the Light". The song "New Girl Now" was the only single to reach the top-50 in the United States.

Their follow up album, The Big Prize, produced by Bruce Fairbairn, was equally successful in Canada, with four more hits: "Feel It Again", "What Does It Take", "Bad Attitude", and "All Along You Knew". Their song "Feel It Again" managed to reach the Top 40 in the US, but "What Does It Take" only reached no. 52, even buoyed by its inclusion on the soundtrack for the John Cusack film One Crazy Summer. In 1989, "Bad Attitude" was featured in the series finale of Miami Vice, played during a driving segment that mirrored one from the series' pilot episode.

In 1986, founding keyboardist Ray Coburn temporarily left the band, replaced by Rob Preuss of Burlington, Ontario-based Spoons.

Also during 1986 the band produced a track for the Charlie Sheen film The Wraith - "Those Were the Days".

In the spring of 1987, the band produced a track for the Mel Gibson film Lethal Weapon - "Lethal Weapon".

In the winter of 1987, the band started work on their third album in L.A. Unfortunately, Johnnie Dee was hit by a car at L.A.X. airport, breaking his leg in several places, and required surgery to insert a ten inch pin to help the leg heal properly. While recovering in hospital, Doobie Brothers' Michael McDonald was brought in to help out with the recording sessions; he wrote lyrics and sang back up on "Long Way Back", a forthcoming track for their next album.

In 1988, their third album was finally released: Racing After Midnight, produced by Ted Templeman of Van Halen fame. That album made the top 10 in Canada, but was not successful in the US. Singles included "Love Changes Everything", "Looking Out for Number One", "Cold Look" (European only) and "It's Over Now".

In 1989, the band released their first greatest hits compilation, The Singles, which included the new single "Still Loving You". Coburn rejoined the band in time to embark on "The Singles" tour, which would turn out to be the last tour featuring the band's original line-up until 2007.

Source: Discogs