Biography

Formed in 1972 in Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA, John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band hit its commercial peak in 1984 with the number 7 single ‘On The Dark Side’, a key track in the film Eddie And The Cruisers. The soundtrack album, also recorded by the group, was a Top 10 hit in 1983. The band comprised Cafferty (guitar/vocals), Pat Lupo (bass), Gary Gramolini (guitar), Robert Cotoia (keyboards), Michael Antunes (saxophone) and Kenny Jo Silva (drums). Initially called Beaver Brown, they worked at clubs along the eastern US circuit for a decade, building a large following among college-age fans. Their first single, ‘Tender Years’/‘Wild Summer Nights’, was a local radio favourite and sold 10, 000 copies as an independent release in 1980. The offer to write and record the music for Eddie And The Cruisers came the following year, and although the film was a box-office failure, the soundtrack sold 175, 000 copies. The band was then offered a contract with Scotti Brothers Records, resulting in the success of the single. Their first album under their own name, Tough All Over, reached US number 40 in 1985. The group subsequently relied primarily on placing its songs in films, and did so in Rocky IV, Cobra and the inevitable Eddie And The Cruisers II. A second album, Roadhouse, under their own name, failed to chart.