Breakfast Club (band)

American pop group

For other uses of "Breakfast Club", see Breakfast Club (disambiguation).

Breakfast Club

Background information
Origin| New York City, U.S.
Genres|

* New wave[1]
* synth-pop

Years active|

* 1979 (1979)–1988 (1988)
* 2023–present

Labels|

* ZE
* MCA

Past members|

* Dan Gilroy
* Ed Gilroy
* Gary Burke
* Stephen Bray
* Paul Kauk
* Hannah Watkins
* Megan Watkins
* Alex Potts
* Austin Phillips
* Randy Jackson
* Madonna
* E. Doctor Smith
* Angie Smit

Breakfast Club is an American musical group. Their biggest hit single was "Right on Track" (1987), which peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song was remixed for a commercial release in a 12" version for dance and club play by John "Jellybean" Benitez and became a top 10 hit on the Billboard Magazine Hot Dance Club Play chart. After 35 years of absence, in 2022 the band reformed and released a new single called "Could We Not Stop Dancing?" followed by "Fantasy Street" in December 2023.

## History

[edit]

The group was formed in New York City in 1979 and went through several line-ups, including one in which future pop star Madonna was the drummer. In 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).[2] 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 and the Emmys.[3]

In the mid-1980s, the band consisted of the Gilroys (with Dan exclusively on vocals, while Ed provided all guitars), Gary Burke (bass), and Stephen Bray (drums). Both Bray and Burke previously had been Madonna's bandmates in Emmy and the Emmys.[3][4]

The group signed with ZE Records, first issuing the non-charting single "Rico Mambo" in 1984. They later released an eponymous album in 1987 on MCA Records, which spawned the US hit "Right on Track". A majority of their music videos, including "Right on Track", were filmed by Jeff Stein, director of the Who documentary The Kids Are Alright. They were nominated in the category of Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards in 1988.[5] Sometime after the first album, Randy Jackson (bass) joined the band, though original bassist Burke also remained in the line-up.[6]

The band's last single was a cover version of the Beatles song "Drive My Car" for the 1988 feature film License to Drive.[7] A second album was recorded circa 1988, but was rejected by MCA and was not issued at the time. Shortly afterwards the band broke up.

Bray co-wrote several big hits with Madonna in the 1980s. Dan Gilroy later starred in Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme (1990) and Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle (1994).

In 2008, The Daily Beast published a previously unreleased tape of the Breakfast Club. The tape included pillow talk between Dan Gilroy and Madonna, as well as several previously unheard songs such as "Tell the Truth", which she says is the first song she ever wrote.[8]

On April 5, 2016, Breakfast Club released a new EP, Percolate, which features songs from the group's unreleased second album. It was the group's first release of new material in almost three decades.[9]

## Madonna and the Breakfast Club

[edit]

In 2019, the docudrama film Madonna and the Breakfast Club was released on digital and on-demand platforms.[10] Directed by Guy Guido and starring Jamie Auld as Madonna, the film explores Madonna's struggling pre-fame years in New York with the Breakfast Club leading up to her first solo record deal.[11]

## Discography

[edit]

### Studio albums

[edit]

Title  | Details  | Peak chart positions

|
|

[12] | AUS
[13]
Breakfast Club |

* Released: 1987
* Label: MCA
* Format: LP, CD

| 43  | 26

### EPs

[edit]

* 2016 – Percolate

### Singles

[edit]

Title  | Year  | Peak chart positions

|
|

[14] | US Dance
[14] | AUS
[13] | NZ | Can  | UK
[15]
"Rico Mambo"  | 1984  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
"Right on Track"  | 1987  | 7  | 7  | 4  | 30  | 19  | 54
"Kiss and Tell"  | 48  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
"Rico Mambo" (new version)  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
"Never Be the Same"  | —  | 8  | —  | —  | —  | 91
"Expressway to Your Heart"  | 1988  | —  | 30  | —  | —  | —  | —
"Drive My Car"  | —  | —  | —  | 20  | —  | —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Morton, Andrew (2001). Madonna. Macmillan. p. 86\. ISBN 9780312287863.
2. ^ Walters, Barry (June 1, 1987). "The Breakfast Club: The Breakfast Club". Spin. SPIN Media LLC. p. 34. Retrieved April 8, 2017 – via Google Books.
3. ^ a b Cross, Mary (2007). Madonna: A Biography. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 21\. ISBN 978-0-313-33811-3.
4. ^ "Breakfast Club - Biography, Albums, Streaming Links". AllMusic. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
5. ^ "GRAMMY Rewind: 30th Annual GRAMMY Awards". grammy.com. January 24, 2012. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
6. ^ "The Breakfast Club". Stereo Review. CBS Magazines. January 1, 1987. p. 90. Retrieved April 8, 2017 – via Google Books.
7. ^ Castile, Meredith (2015). Driver's License. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 74\. ISBN 9781628925647. Retrieved April 8, 2017 – via Google Books.
8. ^ Morton, Andrew (October 20, 2008). "The Lost Madonna Tapes". The Daily Beast. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
9. ^ "Percolate - EP by Breakfast Club". apple.com. April 5, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
10. ^ "'Madonna and the Breakfast Club' Trailer: Like A Doppelgänger". Nonfics. March 15, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
11. ^ "Early Years Documentary 'Madonna and the Breakfast Club' First Trailer | FirstShowing.net". www.firstshowing.net. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
12. ^ "The Breakfast Club". Billboard.
13. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 45\. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
14. ^ a b "Breakfast Club - Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
15. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 77\. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.

## External links

[edit]

* Breakfast Club at AllMusic

* v
* t
* e

Madonna

* Albums
* Songs
* Singles
* Unreleased
* Concerts
* Videos
* Films
* Books
* Fashion brands
* Awards
* Achievements
* Cultural impact

Studio albums|

* Madonna
* Like a Virgin
* True Blue
* Like a Prayer
* Erotica
* Bedtime Stories
* Ray of Light
* Music
* American Life
* Confessions on a Dance Floor
* Hard Candy
* MDNA
* Rebel Heart
* Madame X

Soundtrack albums|

* Vision Quest
* Who's That Girl
* I'm Breathless
* Evita
* The Next Best Thing
* Deadpool & Wolverine EP

Live albums|

* I'm Going to Tell You a Secret
* The Confessions Tour
* Sticky & Sweet Tour
* MDNA World Tour
* Rebel Heart Tour
* Madame X: Music from the Theater Xperience

Remix albums|

* You Can Dance
* Remixed & Revisited
* Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones
* Veronica Electronica

Compilation albums|

* The Immaculate Collection
* Something to Remember
* GHV2
* Celebration

Limited releases|

* Like a Virgin & Other Big Hits!
* The Complete Studio Albums (1983–2008)

Video releases|

* Madonna Live: The Virgin Tour
* Ciao Italia: Live from Italy
* The Immaculate Collection
* Blond Ambition World Tour Live
* The Girlie Show: Live Down Under
* The Video Collection 93:99
* Drowned World Tour 2001
* The Confessions Tour
* Celebration
* Sticky & Sweet Tour
* MDNA World Tour
* Rebel Heart Tour

Concerts and tours|

* The Virgin Tour
* Who's That Girl World Tour
* Blond Ambition World Tour
* The Girlie Show
* Drowned World Tour
* Re-Invention World Tour
* Confessions Tour
* Sticky & Sweet Tour
* The MDNA Tour
* Rebel Heart Tour
* Tears of a Clown
* Madame X Tour
* The Celebration Tour

Films directed|

* Filth and Wisdom
* W.E.
* secretprojectrevolution

Documentaries|

* Truth or Dare
* I'm Going to Tell You a Secret
* I Am Because We Are
* Madame X

Television|

* 1994 Late Show with David Letterman appearance
* Super Bowl XLVI halftime show

Books authored|

* Sex
* The English Roses
* Mr. Peabody's Apples
* Yakov and the Seven Thieves
* The Adventures of Abdi
* Lotsa de Casha

Companies and brands|

* Maverick
* Ray of Light Foundation
* Raising Malawi
* Hard Candy Fitness
* Truth or Dare by Madonna

Works about Madonna|

* Cover versions
* Tribute albums
* Madonna by Alisha Chinai
* Through the Wilderness
* Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna
* A Panel of Experts
* "Like a Surgeon"
* Medusa: Dare to Be Truthful
* Madonna: Innocence Lost
* "If Madonna Calls"
* Madonna: An Intimate Biography
* Madonna (book)
* "Do It with Madonna"
* "She's Madonna"
* Madonna: Like an Icon
* Life with My Sister Madonna
* "The Power of Madonna"
* Strike a Pose
* Madonnaland
* Holidays (musical)

Impact and legacy|

* Academic studies
* Bibliography
* Scholarly articles
* Business
* Contemporary arts
* Echiniscus madonnae
* Fandom
* Fashion
* Feminism
* Gay icon
* Impersonator
* Madonna (nickname)
* Madonna wannabe
* Media
* Philanthropy
* Radio 1 controversy
* Religion
* Sexuality

Related articles|

* Breakfast Club
* Christopher Ciccone
* Lourdes Leon
* Sean Penn
* Pre-Madonna
* Guy Ritchie

* Category

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data

Artists|

* MusicBrainz
* Grammy Awards

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