John Waite

For the South African cricketer, see John Waite (cricketer).

John Waite

John Waite (born John Charles Waite, 4 July 1952, Lancaster, Lancashire, England) is a rock singer. He was the lead vocalist for the bands The Babys and Bad English. As a solo artist, he scored a #1 hit in the United States with "Missing You" in 1984.

Biography

Waite first came to attention as the lead singer and bassist of The Babys, a British group which had moderate chart success and a solid following for their concert tours. Over the course of five years, the Babys produced five albums ending with the final album On the Edge in October 1980, after which the group broke up.

Waite subsequently launched his solo career with his 1982 debut album Ignition, which produced the hit single "Change", written by Holly Knight and later included on the Vision Quest soundtrack.

His next album, No Brakes, resulted in international attention due to the hit single "Missing You" which went to No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Two more singles followed, including "Tears" which was a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts.

The next album Mask of Smiles followed in 1985, and another single "If Anybody Had a Heart" was released from the soundtrack of the 1986 film About Last Night..., starring Demi Moore. In 1987, "Rover's Return" was released with the single "These Times Are Hard For Lovers". Waite would have another soundtrack appearance in 1990 from Days of Thunder with "Deal for Life", written by Martin Page and Bernie Taupin.

In 1988, Waite joined former Babys bandmates Jonathan Cain and Ricky Phillips along with Neal Schon from Journey and drummer Deen Castronovo, to form the supergroup Bad English. In 1989, the Bad English ballad "When I See You Smile" (penned by Diane Warren) became a number one song in the United States. Bad English would release two albums before tensions amongst the members led to the band's dissolution by 1992.

Waite returned to solo work and since 1995 has produced five solo albums including his latest album Downtown... Journey of a Heart. He still tours, including in 2003 with Ringo Starr's All Starr Band, and as an opening act for Journey in 2005.

In 2006, "Missing You" was released as a duet with Alison Krauss and reached the Top 40 on the Country Charts in the United States. Waite appeared with Krauss on the Tonight Show on February 5, 2007 to perform "Missing You."

A longtime resident of New York City, Waite currently resides in California.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album	Chart Positions		Label
		US	UK
1982	Ignition	68		Chrysalis
1984	No Brakes	10	64	EMI America
1985	Mask of Smiles	36
1987	Rovers Return	77
1995	Temple Bar	35		Imago
1997	When You Were Mine	187		Mercury
2001	Figure in a Landscape	96		One Way
2004	The Hard Way			No Brakes
2007	Downtown: Journey of a Heart			Rounder

Compilation and specialty albums

Year	Album	Label
1992	The Essential John Waite	Chrysalis
2001	Live & Rare Tracks	One Way

Singles

Year	Single	Chart Positions						Album
		US Hot 100	US Main Rock	US AC	US Dance	US Country	UK
1982	"Change"		16					Ignition
1984	"Missing You"	1	12	7	27		9	No Brakes
	"Tears"	37	8
1985	"Restless Heart"	59	28
	"Change" (re-issue)	54						Vision Quest (soundtrack)
	"Every Step of the Way"	25	4					Mask of Smiles
	"Welcome to Paradise"	85
1986	"If Anybody Had a Heart"	76	24					About Last Night (soundtrack)
1987	"These Time Are Hard for Lovers"	53	6					Rover's Return
	"Don't Lose Any Sleep"	81
1988	"Rover's Return"
1995	"How Did I Get By Without You?"	89		20				Temple Bar
2001	"Fly"			27				Figure in a Landscape
2005	"New York City Girl"			23				The Hard Way
2006	"Missing You" (re-recording w/ Alison Krauss)[A]					34		Downtown: Journey of a Heart

Notes

• A^ The duet of "Missing You" is also available on Krauss' A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection album.

See also

• The Babys
• Bad English

External links

• Discography at allmusic.com