Max Webster

Max Webster
Origin	Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Rock, hard rock, progressive rock
Years active	1973–1982
Labels	Anthem, Mercury, Capitol, Taurus
Website	www.maxwebster.ca
Members
Kim Mitchell Terry Watkinson Dave Myles Gary McCracken
Past members
Paul Kersey Mike Tilka Jim Chevalier

Max Webster was a Canadian rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s.

Career

The band was formed in 1973 in Toronto, Ontario and originally consisted of guitarist and vocalist Kim Mitchell, keyboardist Terry Watkinson, bassist Mike Tilka and drummer Paul Kersey. Mitchell and Pye Dubois would write the majority of their material, with Mitchell writing the music and Dubois writing lyrics. During his tenure with the band, Watkinson also wrote a significant amount of material, typically one to three songs per album.

Kersey left the band after their 1976 self-titled debut album, to be replaced by Gary McCracken. After recording and touring for their second album, High Class in Borrowed Shoes (1977), Tilka would follow suit and leave the band, being replaced by Dave Myles. Myles had previously played with Mitchell in a series of pre-Max Webster bands, all based in Mitchell's and Myles' hometown of Sarnia, Ontario.

Max Webster's third album, Mutiny Up My Sleeve (1978), was produced by the band and Terry Brown in collaboration with their ex-bassist Mike Tilka (who was now concentrating on a production career), and featured the Mitchell/Watkinson/McCracken/Myles line-up. This line-up would last through their fourth album, A Million Vacations, and a subsequent live album, Live Magnetic Air, both of which were issued in 1979.

Though their albums had become FM radio staples in Canada, A Million Vacations was the first Max Webster album to generate hit singles that cracked the Canadian top 100. The group's first hit was "Let Go The Line", which was written and sung by Terry Watkinson and peaked at #41 on the Canadian charts. Follow-up single "A Million Vacations" was written by McCracken/Dubois, sung by McCracken, and peaked at #80 in Canada. The album's third and final single, "Paradise Skies" was a Mitchell/Dubois composition sung by Mitchell, and was a minor hit in both Canada (#21) and the UK Singles Chart (#43).^[1]

With some international recognition having come their way, Max Webster then toured Europe to fairly large crowds in 1979. However, career momentum was stalled when the band's label refused to finance a follow-up tour. By the time the band returned to Europe more than a year later, their single was off the charts, and the tour had to be cancelled due to poor ticket sales.

Prior to the recording of the band's fifth and final studio album, Universal Juveniles (1980), Watkinson exited. This left Max Webster a trio of Mitchell, McCracken and Myles (and left Mitchell as the band's sole original member). Universal Juveniles was recorded with the assistance of various session musicians; the song "Battle Scar" was recorded live with all three members of Rush playing alongside Max Webster.

Myles left the band almost immediately after the album was recorded. Max Webster toured for a little while longer with a revised 'caretaker' line-up before Kim Mitchell decided to dissolve the band at the end of 1981 for a solo career.

Legacy and reunions

Max Webster were close friends of fellow Canadian musicians Rush. In a 1979 interview Geddy Lee commented that he enjoyed their music, and both bands frequently toured together during the 1970s. Rush would write and record the song "I Think I'm Going Bald" in honor of Mitchell.

The band was successful in Canada, with hits such as "A Million Vacations," "Let Go The Line" and "Paradise Skies", although they never made it big outside of Canada. "Paradise Skies" was a minor UK hit, reaching number 43 on the singles chart there. In addition, they appeared on Top of the Pops in 1979 playing to a pre-recorded track which was recorded at Abbey Road studios. Kim Mitchell's subsequent solo career, however, reached a much broader audience and he achieved popularity beyond Canada during the 1980s.

Among the highlights of the band's career were their New Year's Eve shows at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. Geddy Lee of Rush joined the band onstage to sing & play his Rickenbacker bass guitar for "Battle Scar" on December 31, 1980 when the band headlined the show.

The band reunited in 1990 for a gig at the Toronto Music Awards, featuring the Mitchell/Watkinson/Tilka/McCracken line-up. Max Webster then continued to play shows on occasional basis throughout the 1990s, with bassist Peter Fredette joining the band in place of Tilka.

Max Webster later reunited for the Q107 30th Anniversary Concert and Live Radio Special on Thursday, May 24, 2007 at The Docks in Toronto. A one-off gig, the band played a set of their hits ("Oh War!," "The Party," "Waterline," "Let Go The Line," "Toronto Tontos," "Diamonds Diamonds," "High Class In Borrowed Shoes," "A Million Vacations," "In Context Of The Moon," "Paradise Skies," Charmonium," and "Battle Scar," with "Hangover" as an encore) and featured the classic Max Webster lineup from the High Class in Borrowed Shoes era of Kim Mitchell, Terry Watkinson, Mike Tilka and Gary McCracken (who sang "A Million Vacations" with drummer Robert Sibony on drums for the tune). Longtime Kim Mitchell bandmate Peter Fredette joined the band onstage to sing Geddy Lee's part on "Battle Scar."

Kim Mitchell currently hosts the weekday afternoon drive slot (2pm-6pm) on Q107 (107.1) in Toronto.

Discography

• Max Webster (1976) (Released in the U.S. on Mercury/Polygram as "Hangover," in 1977)
• High Class in Borrowed Shoes (1977)
• Mutiny Up My Sleeve (1978)
• A Million Vacations (1979)
• Live Magnetic Air (1979)
• Universal Juveniles (1980)
• Diamonds Diamonds (1981)
• The Best of Max Webster (1989)

References

1. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 356. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 

External links

• Max Webster