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| Domenic Troiano |
| Born: 1946 Died: 5-25-2005 ....of cancer. |
| Domenic Troiano was born in Mondugno, Italy in 1946. At the age of three his family relocated to Toronto, Canada in search of a better life. Growing up in a hearty Italian family surrounded by French Canadian influences left young Domenic feeling like an outsider. When he picked up his first guitar at the age of 15 he found his best friend and his life's calling. By the age of 17 he had taught himself to play chords from music books and by studying the works of his musical idols. His career began after finishing high school when he joined Ronnie Lane & The Disciples, a local bar band. After less than a year with The Disciples, he joined a group, The Rogues, that later called themselves the 5 Rogues and, finally, from 1966 through 1969, Mandala. The group had some minor Canandian hits with "Opportunity" (1967) and "Love-itis" (1968). Despite Mandala's popularity, vocalist George Oliver left the group in 1967 for a solo career. His replacement was Roy Kenner, an old friend of Domenic's. Some of Mandala's members, Troiano, Kenner, and drummer Whitey Glan decided to split and form a new group. They recruited bassist Prakash John and moved to Arizona to formed the band Bush in 1970. As Bush they released one self-titled album, that garnered little attention and produced no hits. By 1972 Bush had disbanded and Troiano and Kenner joined Jim Fox and Dale Peters in the James Gang Band. Domenic replaced guitarist Joe Walsh. While a member of the James Gang Band, Domenic released his first solo album in 1972. The self-titled Mercury Records release was recorded in Los Angeles. It featured a variety of musical styles, none of which seemed to capture the record buying public's attention. Later in 1972, Domenic began working on his next solo album. "Tricky," also recorded for Mercury, was released in early 1973. It too failed to produce any hits. Soon after his contract with Mercury was cancelled and Domenic left the James Gang Band. He was replaced by Tommy Bolin. Domenic put his stab at a solo career on hold and in 1974 joined the Guess Who (another Canadian band) as Randy Bachman's replacement. Bachman had left to form Bachman-Turner Overdrive and would eventually marry disco diva Denise McCann ("Tattoo Man"). After over two years with Guess Who, Domenic was itching to try his hand again at a solo career. He left Guess Who and formed the Domenic Troiano Band in 1976. They quickly landed a contract with Capitol Records. The first album for the new label was 1977's "Burnin' At The Stake." The album had smooth jazz, icey rock and hot pop influences and garnered rave reviews. The next year Domenic and his band released "Joke's On Me." The album brought the group even closer to pop success and confirmed Capitol's trust in the marketability of the Domenic Troiano Band. By 1979 disco was inescapable and every rock act had a disco tune on their current albums. Domenic seized this opportunity and for the group's third and final album, "Fret Fever," he added a catchy little pop/disco number. "We All Need Love" quickly shot up the club charts, thanks to a 12" remix, and became his one and only pop hit. The song, released as simply by Troiano, highlighted his electrifying guitar work with a stunning vocal plea. The song remains one disco's one-hit wonders. But as the song peaked, disco was already on it's way off the charts and Domenic would not have a chance at another pop or disco hit. With the Capitol Records contract over he disbanded the group. In search of a new sound and direction he formed the Black Market with Bob Wilson and Paul DeLong in 1980. They released "Changing Of The Guard" in 1981. And despite it's overall quality and effervescent sound it failed to find it's market. The now-married Troiano decided to call it quits with fronting a band after the failure of Black Market. Instead he chose to take his talents in a new direction. In 1984 he began writing themes and incidental music for television. His successes included music for the CBS series "Night Heat," "Diamonds" and "Hot Shots." He also began doing studio session work for other artists such as Diana Ross, Joe Cocker, Donald Fagen, David Clayton-Thomas and Etta James. He also took to producing, beginning with his wife Shawne Jackson. He followed that by producing Moe Koffman, Kilowatt as well as David Gibson and John Rutledge. By 1996 he was considered one of Canada's premier guitarists and the evidence was when he was inducted in to Canada's Music Hall Of Fame that year. But the happiness was over shadowed by his diagnosis of prostate cancer. Surviving for nearly a decade the 59 year old genuis succumbed to the disease in 2005. He earned his place here in The DiscoMuseum for one of my all-time favorite songs of 1979. Domenic is sadly missed by friends and family and countless fans, both here and in his beloved Canada. |
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