#24: Bust the TV by the Pumps
City: Halifax, NS
Radio Station: CJCH
Peak Month: May 1980
Peak Position in Halifax ~ #8
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Bust The TV”
The Pumps is a hard rock/AOR band from Winnipeg (MB) that was formed in 1978. Taking their name from a random pick in a Winnipeg phone book, The Pumps centred around friends Chris Burke-Gaffney on vocals and bass, lead guitarist Lou Petrovich, and drummer Terry Norman Taylor. Within a few months, Brent Diamond joined on keyboards. They released an album in 1980 titled Gotta Move.
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#25: Sign Of The Times by Mens Room
City: Halifax, NS
Radio Station: CJCH
Peak Month: June-July 1983
Peak Position in Halifax ~ #7
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Sign Of The Times”
Lyrics: “Sign Of The Times”
Mens Room was a studio project featuring three well-known Canadian singers. Charity Brown, a Kitchener native who had success in Canada with the group Rain. Charity Brown’s biggest hit was “Take Me In Your Arms” from 1975. Cherrill Rae was half of the successful British-Canadian duo The Raes with her husband Robbie, who released three albums, had a hit television variety show in Canada from 1978 to 1980. Caren Cole was a classical musician and rock singer from Toronto who would later have a Hi-NRG hit with “I Need A Lover Tonight”.
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#27: My Heart Stood Still by Bernadette Carroll
City: Halifax, NS
Radio Station: CHNS
Peak Month: December 1962
Peak Position in Halifax ~ #5
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “My Heart Stood Still”
Lyrics: “My Heart Stood Still”
Bernadette Dalia was born in 1944 in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Bernadette’s first performance was at the age of seven, given a role in an elementary school play. Soon after her family moved to Linden, New Jersey, she became a bit of a reckless teenager. She’d sneak out late at night to go to local recording studios with her friends. In 1959, she joined with sisters Barbara Allbut, Jiggs Allbut and, Lynda Malzone to form a group called The Starlets. Their first recording, on the Astro label, was “PS I Love You.” The single was a Top 30 hit on WMCA in New York City in 1960. Bernadette graduated from Linden High School in in Linden, New Jersey, in 1962. After The Starlets disbanded, Bernadette made her first solo recording for the Julia label, “My Heart Stood Still.”
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#28: Wot by Captain Sensible
City: Halifax, NS
Radio Station: CJCH
Peak Month: March-April 1983
Peak Position in Halifax ~ #9
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Wot”
Lyrics: “Wot”
Raymond Ian Burns was born in 1954 in London, UK. In 1974 he joined the port-punk band Johnny Moped which included Chrissy Hynde. In 1976 he formed punk band The Damned. He was with The Damned on their first five albums from 1976 (Damned Damned Damned) to 1982 (Strawberries). Burns adopted his stage name Captain Sensible ironically because he described himself as a “debauched maniac” who had fun “regardless of the consequences. His first solo release, “Jet Boy, Jet Girl”, was a Top 40 hit in the Netherlands in 1978. He recorded the single while The Damned was on a break.
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#29: Mr. Special by the Allan Sisters
City: Halifax, NS
Radio Station: CHNS
Peak Month: December 1964-January 1965
Peak Position in Halifax ~ #10
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Mr. Special”
The Allan Sisters were from Edmonton, Alberta. Jackie started singing at the age of 7, and Coralie took up singing soon after. The sisters were billed in Edmonton as the Allan Sisters. They were part of a group named the Four Tops, years before the Motown group of the same name began making hit records. RPM magazine describes the transition they made from Edmonton to Ontario. “The girls left their home in Edmonton to give show business a whirl in Upper Canada. They were part of a group called the Four Tops, but after many disappointments the group broke up and the Two Tops left and became the successful Allan Sisters.” RPM details how the sisters were discovered in talent scout Art Snider, who was also the music director for the CBC variety show Country Hoedown.
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