Wednesday was a
pop vocal
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production i ...
group
A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together.
Groups of people
* Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity
* Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...
from
Oshawa
Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the G ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. They scored a
hit single
A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...
on the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1974 with their
cover
Cover or covers may refer to:
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* Another name for a lid
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** Back cover copy, part of co ...
of the
song
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...
"
Last Kiss
"Last Kiss" is a song released by Wayne Cochran in 1961 on the Gala label. It failed to do well on the charts. Cochran subsequently re-recorded his song for the King label in 1963. It was revived by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, who took ...
", which peaked at #34. That same year, they were nominated for the Canadian
Juno Award
The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...
for Most Promising Group. The
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
reached #2 in Canada and #1 on the Canadian Billboard 100. A follow-up single, a remake of "
Teen Angel", was their final chart single in America. The parent album, entitled ''Last Kiss'', was released on
Ampex Records
Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name AMPEX is a portmanteau, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence.AbramsoThe History ...
in Canada,
Sussex Records
Sussex Records, Inc. was a Los Angeles-based record label, founded by music executive and businessman Clarence Avant, that existed from 1969 through 1975.
History
Sussex Records was launched in December 1969 by Avant, who had previously set up a ...
in the U.S., and
A&M Records
A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...
throughout the rest of the world.
The group continued with success in Canada, before and after changing their name to Wenzday in 1976. They scored their second biggest hit with an
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...
cover, "
Loving You Baby". It reached #6 in Canada.
The band reunited briefly in 2003 and 2017 for a few successful concerts. Paul Andrew Smith went on to record several solo albums - ''A Stranger in My Own World'', ''Above the Stars'', ''AGO'', ''Masks and Mummeries'', ''Time'', ''The Power of Schnoz'' on Moondog Records under Black Violet Project.
On December 20, 2022, drummer Randy Begg died of a heart attack at his home.
Members
*Mike O'Neil - guitar, banjo, vocals
*Paul Andrew Smith - guitar, keyboards, vocals
*John (Jose) Dufek - bass, harmonica
*Randy Begg - drums, vocals (died 2022)
*Jeremy Thornton - keyboards, vocals
Discography
Albums
*1974 - ''Last Kiss'' - Ampex AC-10152
**Side 1: "Last Kiss" - "Teen Angel" - "Roses Are Red" - "Tell Laura I Love Her" - "Gloria" Side 2: "What's on My Mind" - "Ride" - "Taking Me Home" - "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long" - "Good Time Girl"
*1976 - ''Loving You Baby'' - Skyline SKY 10160
**Side 1: "Thinking of You" - "Doin' the Best That I Can" - "Loving You Baby" - "Fly Away" - "Send a Little Love" Side 2: "Could You Refuse Her" - "Don't Let It Get You Down" - "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" - "Melody Moon" - "I'm Coming Home" - "The Show Will Never End"
*1977 - ''Nearly Made It'' (as Wenzday) - Skyline SKY 10164-V
**Side 1: "Ride Me" - "Now You're a Lady" - "Fancy Pants" - "Through Your Head" - "Ruby Baby" Side 2: "Dream Queen" - "I Was Built for Comfort" - "Honey" - "I Nearly Made It"
*2003 - "The Singles" - Moondog Records EMC 0403
** "Hang On Girl" - "Last Kiss" - Teen Angel" - "Roses Are Red" - "Fly Away" - "She's a Woman" - "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" - "Loving You Baby" - "Doin' The Best That I Can" - "Ruby Baby" - "Fancy Pants" - " Ride Me" - "Now Your a Lady" - "Sheila" - "Eleanor"
*2003 - "Limited Edition" Moondog Records EMC 0402
** "Last Kiss" - "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" - "Doin' the Best That I Can" - "Fly Away" - "Loving You Baby" - "Ride Me" - "Now Your a Lady" - "Dream Queen" - "I'm Comin' Home" - "Sheila" - "Eleanor"
*2004 - "The Singles" - A collection of single releases including all charted material.
*2017 - "Afterlight" - A best of compilation
Singles
*1971 - "Hang On Girl" / "Velvet Colours" - Ampex AC-1304
*1973 - "
Last Kiss
"Last Kiss" is a song released by Wayne Cochran in 1961 on the Gala label. It failed to do well on the charts. Cochran subsequently re-recorded his song for the King label in 1963. It was revived by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, who took ...
" / "Without You" - Ampex AC-1325
">AN #2, US #34, AUS #68*1974 - "
Teen Angel" / "Taking Me Home" - Ampex AC-1355
AN #15, US #79*1974 - "
Roses Are Red" / "Ride" - Ampex AC-1362
AN #43*1974 - "Fly Away" / "Good Time Girl" - Ampex AC-1365
AN #21*1975 - "
She's a Woman
"She's a Woman" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on a non-album single in November 1964 as the B-side to "I Feel Fine", except in North Amer ...
" / "Good Time Girl" - Ampex AC-1370
*1975 - "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" / "What's on My Mind" - Skyline SKY 001X
AN #49*1975 - "
Loving You Baby" / "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long" - Skyline SKY 003X
AN #6ref>
*1976 - "Doing the Best That I Can" / "Could You Refuse Her" - Skyline SKY 006X
AN #52as Wenzday:
*1976 - "
Ruby Baby" / "Melody Moon" - Skyline SKY 011X
AN #36*1977 - "Fancy Pants" / "Through Your Head" - Skyline SKY 012X
*1977 - "Ride Me" / "Nearly Made It" - Skyline SKY 014X
AN #47*1977 - "Now You're a Lady" / "Dream Queen" - Skyline SKY 016X
*1981 - "
Eleanor
Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It is the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages.
The name was introd ...
" / "Sheila"
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wednesday (band)
1971 establishments in Ontario
1981 disestablishments in Ontario
Canadian pop music groups
Musical groups established in 1971
Musical groups disestablished in 1981
Musical groups from Oshawa
Cover bands
Celebration (record label) artists