5/5: John Waite from The Babys and Bad English

John Waite will be at SPACE in Evanston on Thursday, May 5, at 8 p.m. John has been a rock star for years thanks to his many hit songs covering many decades. He's the voice of two groups, but his biggest success is as a solo artist. "John Waite: The Wooden Heart Acoustic Tour, featuring The Axemen: Tim Hogan and Mark Ricciardi. An Intimate Evening of Songs, Stories and Q&A" is the name of this tour.

John was formerly with the groups The Babys and Bad English, but he's best known for his #1 solo single "Missing You" in 1984. John first tasted success in 1977 when the song "Isn't It Time" became the first hit single for the The Babys, followed by their second hit single "Every Time I Think Of You" in 1979. By 1980 The Babys had two hit singles: "Back On My Feet Again" and "Midnight Rendezvous" – both from the classic "Union Jacks" album. The Babys called it quits after their next album "On The Edge" and John became a solo artist. In 1984, John had the #1 song "Missing You" but the lure of being in a group again led him to "Bad English" in 1988.

Bad English consisted of John Waite, Ricky Phillips from The Babys and later Styx, Jonathan Cain from The Babys & Journey, Neal Schon from Journey & Santana, plus Deen Castronovo who later joined Journey. In 1989, Bad English took the songs "When I See You Smile" to #1 and "Price Of Love" to #5.

Bad English disbanded in 1991 and John returned to his solo career. His solo hits since then include: "Ain't No Sunshine" - "Downtown" (written with Glen Burtnik from Styx) - "How Did I Get By Without You" - "If You Ever Get Lonely" - "In Dreams" - "NYC Girl" (written with Glen Burtnik) - "Rough & Tumble" - "The Hard Way" - "When You Were Mine" and the acoustic version of "Missing You" has been a hit, along with a duet version performed with Alison Krauss.

All three phases of his career – Babys, Bad English & solo – appear on "The Complete John Waite, Vol. 1: Falling Backwards" greatest hits album.

"John Waite: The Wooden Heart Acoustic Tour, featuring The Axemen: Tim Hogan and Mark Ricciardi. An Intimate Evening of Songs, Stories and Q&A" (with special guest Anna Rose) will be at SPACE in Evanston on Thursday, May 5, at 8 p.m. (Doors open at 7.)

www.johnwaiteworldwide.com
http://annarosemusic.com
http://evanstonspace.com