Pablo Cruise is a pop/rock band currently composed of David Jenkins (guitar and vocals), Cory Lerios (keyboards and vocals), Steve Price (drums) and Larry Antonino (bass and vocals). Formed in 1973, the band released eight studio albums over the next decade, during which time four singles reached the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The group underwent several personnel changes and split up in 1986. The original lineup - Jenkins, Lerios, Price and Bud Cockrell - reunited in 2004.
History
Pablo Cruise began in San Francisco, in 1973, with former members of Stoneground (Cory Lerios on keyboards and vocals, David Jenkins as vocalist and on guitar, and Steve Price on drums) and It's a Beautiful Day (Bud Cockrell on bass and vocals). Initially, there were many fans who were left wondering who Pablo Cruise really was. When asked the question, the band, which is a quartet, would answer, "He's the guy in the middle." When asked what Pablo Cruise meant, the band would say that "Pablo represents an honest, real, down to earth individual; and Cruise depicts his fun loving and easy going attitude towards life."
The band released its first album in 1975, a minor success self-titled Pablo Cruise, and their second album in 1976, titled Lifeline. Their second album achieved slightly higher success than their first but still only managed to chart at No. 139 in the United States.
1977's A Place in the Sun was the turning point in the band's career as they finally entered the mainstream music scene. With hit single "Whatcha Gonna Do?" and the title track "A Place in the Sun", the album peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard charts. Other chart hits followed, including "Love Will Find a Way" and "Don't Want to Live Without It" (both in 1978), "I Want You Tonight" in 1979, and "Cool Love" in 1981.
"Whatcha Gonna Do?" and "Love Will Find a Way" had nearly identical seven-week ascents on the Billboard Hot 100, capping with their #6 peaks, a year to the week apart, from mid-July through August.
Lineup changes
In 1977 Bud Cockrell left to form a duo with his wife and former It's a Beautiful Day bandmate, Patti Santos, and was replaced by Bruce Day. Day had a short tenure and was replaced himself in 1980 by popular session bassist John Pierce. Also in 1980, the band added Angelo Rossi as an additional guitarist.
In early 1981, Price left suddenly and was succeeded by Donny Baldwin, who had played with Elvin Bishop and would move on to Jefferson Starship by the summer of 1982. David Perper was next to take over the drum throne and Angelo Rossi was replaced by Stef Birnbaum (aka Stef Burns) after just one album. In 1983, the group released Out of Our Hands and toured again that year with another new member, Jorge Bermudez on vocals & percussion. Mostly due to the rising popularity of new wave, the album struggled with sales.
By the end of 1984, Pierce, Birnbaum and Bermudez had left.
1985 attempted reunion
In 1985 the four original members reunited hoping to score a new record deal. It was not to be, however, and the group called it quits in 1986.
Jenkins moved on to join country rockers Southern Pacific in 1987, alongside former Doobie Brothers Keith Knudsen and John McFee and Creedence Clearwater Revival bass player Stu Cook. After leaving Southern Pacific in 1989, Jenkins relocated to Hawaii where he was introduced to Hawaiian artist Kapono Beamer and began writing music with him. This eventually led to their album Cruisin' On Hawaiian Time (2006), a collection of songs dedicated to the Hawaiian Islands.
In the meantime, Cory Lerios worked on movie & TV scores, providing the music for the popular 90s show Baywatch, among many others.
1996 partial reunion
Around 1996, Jenkins and Cockrell reunited once again as Pablo Cruise. But Lerios, at the time, was not able to rejoin due to his busy sessions schedule and Price was likewise unavailable, so keyboardist Kincaid Miller and drummer Kevin Wells were brought in. Percussionist James Henry joined in 1999. Second guitarist Ken Emerson and two additional backup singers, Caroline and Renita, were also recruited (briefly in 2002) for added stage attraction. Drummer Billy Johnson temporarily sat in for Wells in 2002.
Former Pablo bassist Bruce Day died June 30, 1999 in Windsor, CA from unknown causes. He was 48.
2004 to present
In June 2004, all four original Pablo members were back together again at Steve Price's wedding. This led to three of the four—Jenkins, Lerios and Price—deciding to reconvene permanently. Cockrell was not involved this time and George Gabriel joined on bass and vocals.
In 2010 Larry Antonino (ex-Air Supply) came in on bass in place of Gabriel, who'd left Pablo Cruise in November 2009.
Bud Cockrell died on March 6, 2010 after complications from diabetes. He was 59.
On November 8, 2011, Pablo Cruise released their very first live album, it's good to be live, on the Red Recording label. The package included both a live CD and DVD. The live performances were taken from concerts performed at the Blue Goose in Loomis, CA on July 9 and 10, 2010. The CD also featured new versions of their songs "A Place in the Sun" (featuring fellow Red Recording artist Katrina) and "Love Will Find a Way" (with Ty Taylor of Vintage Trouble).
The band continues to tour, mainly in and around California.
Band members
Current members
- David Jenkins - guitar, vocals (1973-1986, 1996-present)
- Cory Lerios - keyboards, synthesizers, vocals (1973-1986, 2004-present)
- Larry Antonino - bass, vocals (2010-present)
- Steve Price - drums (1973-1981, 2004-present)
Past members
- Bud Cockrell - bass, vocals (1973-1977, 1985-1986, 1996-2004)
- Bruce Day - bass, vocals (1977-1980)
- John Pierce - bass, vocals (1980-1984)
- Angelo Rossi - guitar, vocals (1981-1982)
- David Perper - drums, percussion (1982-1984)
- Stef Birnbaum - guitar, vocals (1982-1984) (aka Stef Burns)
- Jorge Bermudez - vocals, percussion (1983-1984)
- Kincaid Miller - keyboards (1996-2004)
- Kevin Wells - drums, percussion, backing vocals (1996-2002, 2002-2004)
- James Henry - percussion (1999-2004)
- Billy Johnson - drums, percussion (2002)
- Ken Emerson - guitar, vocals (2002)
- Renita - backup vocals (2002)
- Caroline - backup vocals (2002)
- George Gabriel - bass, vocals (2004-2009)
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Peak positions | Certifications |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | |||||||||
| 1975 | Pablo Cruise
|
174 | |||||||
| 1976 | Lifeline
|
139 | |||||||
| 1977 | A Place in the Sun
|
19 |
|
||||||
| 1978 | Worlds Away
|
6 |
|
||||||
| 1979 | Part of the Game
|
39 |
|
||||||
| 1981 | Reflector
|
34 | |||||||
| 1983 | Out of Our Hands
|
— | |||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Compilation albums
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1988 | Classics Volume 26
|
| 2001 | The Best of Pablo Cruise
|
Live Albums
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 2011 | It's Good to Be Live
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | CAN | Australia | |||||||
| 1975 | "Island Woman" | 105 | — | — | Pablo Cruise | ||||
| "What Does It Take" | — | — | — | ||||||
| 1976 | "I Think It's Finally Over" | — | — | — | Lifeline | ||||
| "Crystal" | — | — | — | ||||||
| 1977 | "Whatcha Gonna Do?" | 6 | 1 | — | A Place In The Sun | ||||
| "A Place In The Sun" | 42 | 36 | — | ||||||
| 1978 | "Never Had A Love" | 87 | 87 | — | |||||
| "Love Will Find A Way" | 6 | 5 | 8 | Worlds Away | |||||
| "Don't Want To Live Without It" | 21 | 10 | 76 | ||||||
| 1979 | "I Go To Rio" | 46 | 39 | — | |||||
| "I Want You Tonight" | 19 | 18 | 43 | Part Of The Game | |||||
| 1981 | "Cool Love" | 13 | — | 91 | Reflector | ||||
| "Slip Away" | 75 | — | — | ||||||
| 1983 | "Will You, Won't You" | 107 | — | — | Out Of Our Hands | ||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
[ Source: Wikipedia ]