Breakfast Club was an
American dance-pop group. Their biggest hit single was "Right On Track," which went to #7 on the
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Band history
The group was formed in
New York in the late 1970s, and went through several line-ups including one in which
Madonna was the
drummer. By the early 1980s, the band included Madonna, Angie Smit on
bass, and the Gilroy brothers, Dan and Ed, both on
guitar (Dan sang
lead vocals as well). Dan Gilroy was also briefly Madonna's boyfriend, and he eventually allowed her to sing some lead vocals. Madonna ultimately left to form a new band Emmy, but the remaining members soldiered on. By the mid 1980s, the band consisted of the Gilroys (with Dan now concentrating exclusively on
vocals, while Ed provided all
guitars), Gary Burke (bass), Paul Kauk (
keyboards), and
Stephen Bray (
drums). Both
Bray and Burke had previously been Madonna's bandmates in Emmy. Bray had also dated Madonna for a while, and reportedly, Madonna had initially suggested him as her replacement in Breakfast Club. They signed with
Ze Records and released their eponymous
album in 1987, which spawned the U.S.
Top Ten hit "Right On Track." Later,
Randy Jackson (bass) and E. Doctor Smith (
The Drummstick) (
percussion) joined the band.
A second album was recorded but never released. Their last single was a
cover version of
The Beatles' song "
Drive My Car", used in the
film,
License to Drive. Shortly afterwards the band broke-up. Bray later co-wrote several big hits with, and for, Madonna. They were nominated in the category of Best New Artist at the
Grammy Awards in 1988, losing out to
Jody Watley. Many of their
music videos, including "Right on Track," were filmed by Jeff Stein,
director of
The Who documentary,
The Kids are Alright.
Dan Gilroy later went on to star in
Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme as Gordon Goose.
Discography
Studio albums
- 1987 - The Breakfast Club
Singles
- 1987 - "Kiss and Tell" (#48 U.S.)
- 1987 - "Never Be the Same"
- 1987 - "Right on Track" (#7 U.S., #54 UK
- 1988 - "Expressway to Your Heart"
