Heatwave band biography

Heatwave is an international disco and funk band. The group was formed around Its most popular lineup was Americans Johnnie Wilder, Jr and Keith Wilder for vocals, Englishman Rod Temperton for the keyboards, Jamaican Eric Johns and Briton Roy Carter for guitar.

The group had hit singles, like "Boogie Nights" and "Always and Forever".

The group broke up in However, Heatwave got back together around and resumed releasing R&B music.

In the group released an extended remix of "Boogie Nights".

On 5 October , Temperton's death was announced after what was described by his music publisher as "a brief aggressive battle with cancer". Temperton had died at the age of 66 in London the previous week and his funeral had already taken place. The exact date of his death was not announced.

Keith Wilder (born Keith Edward Wilder on 20 December in Dayton, Ohio) died on 29 October , at the age of

Keyboardist Ernest "Bilbo" Berger died from a cardiac arrest on 1 March , at the age of

References

1. ↑"Heatwave "boogies' in with Rufus, Stargard". The Baltimore Afro-American.
2. ↑"Heatwave ". Discogs. Retrieved Jun 23,
3. ↑"Rod Temperton: Thriller songwriter dies aged 66". BBC. Retrieved October 5,
4. ↑"Heatwave founder Keith Wilder dies". Soul Tracks. Retrieved October 29,
5. ↑"ERNEST "BILBO" BERGER DIES". Soul&Jazz

Heatwave originally comprised of:

Rod Temperton (b. Rodney Lynn Temperton, 9th October , Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England. d. October , United Kingdom. - keyboards)

Johnnie Wilder Jnr. (b. John James Wilder, 3rd July , Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A. d. 17th May , Clayton, Ohio, U.S.A. - congas, lead and backing vocals, percussion)

Keith Wilder (b. Keith Edward Wilder, 20th December , Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A. d. 29th October , U.S.A. - lead vocals)

Eric Johns (b. Eric Johns Rasmussen, Jamaica. - guitars)

jesse whitten

Jesse Whitten (b. Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. d. , Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. - guitarist)

Mario Mantese (b. , Switzerland. - bass guitar)

and

Ernest 'Bilbo' Berger (b. , Czechoslovakia. d. 1st March , London. - drums and percussion)

other members included:

Roy Peter Carter (bass and rhythm guitars and keyboards)

William 'Billy' L. Jones (lead and rhythm guitars)

Derek Bramble (b. , London - bass)

Calvin Duke (keyboards)

Keith D. Harrison (vocals and keyboards)

Peter Krystal (a.k.a. Peter Allatt)

and

J.D. (James Dean) Nicholas (lead and background vocals)

Heatwave were a band formed in the United Kingdom, and were a group unit between and

The group were formed by the Wilder brothers, Johnnie and Keith Wilder (American servicemen based in West Germany), following their discharge from the U.S. Army.

The Wilder brothers sang in clubs and bars with an assortment of bands whilst still enlisted.

After advertising in a music paper, the duo received a response from Cleethorpes, English born songwriter Rod Temperton.

Further members were, subsequently, enlisted to the Heatwave ranks.

These comprised of an American, Eric Johns, a Czech, Ernest Berger, and a Spaniard, Mario Mantese.

Heatwave began touring the London club circuit during the mid's and signed to GTO Records in

barry blue in

They were paired in the studio with GTO house producer/session guitarist Barry Blue and rhythm guitarist Jesse

     It all began in West Germany. Five young men stationed in the U.S. Army came together after work, went to the social clubs to play pool and sing a little harmony. This group was known as ‘The Cashmeres’. The Cashmeres joined with three young female vocalists in the same city and called themselves ‘The Cashmeres and The Black Pearls’, patterning themselves after ‘The Temptations and The Supremes’. As time went on, three of the men left for England and Vietnam and the ladies also departed, leaving Johnnie Wilder and one other group member to form a new four-man vocal group called ‘The Nobelmen’, who picked up a backing band called ‘The Soul Sessions’, an all-German Band that liked to play what they called ‘Soul Music.’

     Faces continued to change within the band and Johnnie ended up being the lead singer of the group that became known as ‘J. Wilder and The Soul Sessions’. After Johnnie’s military tour ended, the group went through many transformations and additions. Johnnie went to an ex-U.S. Air Force friend named Tommy Harris who had a group in West Germany called ‘The Upsetters’. The remaining members of ‘J. Wilder and The Soul Sessions’ combined with ‘The Upsetters’ and became the nucleus of the now famous group known as ‘Heatwave’. Original members were: on bass, Eric ‘funky man’ Joseph, on keyboards, Eric Johns, on guitar, Jessie Whitten, vocalist, Barbara Bell, on drums and vocals, Tommy Harris, and Johnnie. 

     The group derived its name from the days when they were rehearsing in an old run-down building in Germany with a radiator that that kept percolating on the heat year round, thus ‘Heatwave’. Before long, Heatwave was in search of a new female singer and keyboard player. They were introduced to a young lady who sang locally named ‘Poochie’. Around the same time, an accomplished English keyboard player named Rod Temperton was also added. Following that a ne

U.K. based funk band

Heatwave is a funk band formed in London, England in Its most popular line-up featured Americans Johnnie Wilder Jr. and Keith Wilder (vocals) of Dayton, Ohio; Englishmen Rod Temperton (keyboards) and Roy Carter (guitar); Swiss Mario Mantese (bass); Czechoslovak Ernest "Bilbo" Berger (drums); and Jamaican Eric Johns (guitar).

They are known for their singles "Boogie Nights", "The Groove Line", and "Always and Forever".

History

Heatwave's mainstream years –

Founding member Johnnie Wilder was an American serviceman based in West Germany when he first began performing; upon his discharge from the US Army, he stayed in Germany. He sang in nightclubs and taverns with an assortment of bands while still enlisted. By mid-year, he decided to relocate to the United Kingdom and through an ad placed in a local paper he linked up with songwriter/keyboardist Rod Temperton.

Touring the London nightclub circuit billed as Chicago's Heatwave during the mids allowed them to refine their sound, adding a funk groove to disco beats. In search of a fuller sound vocally, Johnnie Wilder called upon his brother Keith Wilder (who was performing in a local band in Dayton, Ohio) to join the band on vocals. The group signed to GTO