R&B and funk had been slow to take off in Australia, but when those genres really started to be embraced locally in the mid-'90s, a four-piece boy band from Melbourne were perfectly placed to become this country's pre-eminent vocal harmony group. All four original members of CDB (Andrew De Silva, Gary and Brad Pinto, and Danny Williams) join us to talk about how they slogged away on a scene that was just starting to take off and how a break providing backing vocals for Peter Andre was crucial in them securing their own record deal with Sony Music. With songs written by Andrew as a teenager, CDB were teamed up with established artists Paul Gray (from Wa Wa Nee) and Rockmelons to shape their sound into something commercial, with hits "Hook Me Up" and "Hey Girl (This Is Our Time)" following. But it was a remake of "Let's Groove" which propelled the group into the big league, with solid sales for debut album Glide With Me as a result. Second album Lifted, which showed a maturing of CDB's material with more songwriting input from other members, didn't perform as well despite featuring stellar tracks like "Good Times" and "Back Then". This was followed by Andrew's cancer diagnosis and departure from the group, and a missed opportunity for the second line-up, resulting in them disbanding. But you can't keep a good vocal group down, with CDB's more recent reunions highlighting the synergy the original four-piece has always had.
Bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/aussie
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