About Me
The Kings were formed in Vancouver, British Columbia and Oakville, Ontario, Canada. Original members were David Diamond, lead vocals, bass guitar and songwriter, Sonny Keyes, vocals, keyboards and songwriter, Max Styles, drums, and Mister Zero, guitar and songwriter. The Kings were originally known as WhistleKing and rehearsed, did club gigs and wrote lots of songs for more than three years before going into Nimbus 9 Studio in Toronto to record their first album. While recording, world famous producer Bob (Pink Floyd) Ezrin dropped by to visit and checked the band out and liked what he heard. He agreed to mix the tracks The Kings had recorded but soon discovered that the whole thing needed to be re-done. He approached Elektra Records in Los Angeles with The Kings' tapes and the unknown band was signed to a world-wide deal.The Kings did re-record the songs and the project was released as 'The Kings Are Here'. The first single, 'Switchin' To Glide', was put out and did get noticed but the tune was really two songs in one and the band insisted they be released together. So when the segue 'This Beat Goes On/Switchin' To Glide' was released radio really picked up on it. Even at over five minutes in length, the songs caught on all over the USA and Canada and stayed on the Billboard Hot 100 for over six months. It was named one of the Top 100 U.S. Radio Programmers Picks of the Decade by Album Network Magazine and The Kings were named most promising group by Cashbox Magazine. An amazing apperance on Dick Clark's 'American Bandstand' helped spread the word as well. The album 'The Kings Are Here' went gold in Canada, and since it was re-released on cd as 'The Kings Are Here and More', combined sales have passed platinum status. The second Ezrin produced Elektra effort 'Amazon Beach' did not fare as well and the band left the label and signed with Capitol Canada which released 'RSVP' which contains the holiday classic 'This Christmas' which gets lots of airplay every yuletide season. The next studio project was called Unstoppable and the title track reached the top 10 in Canada.Always a great live band, The Kings have logged upwards of 2000 shows across North America. As of 2008, there is lots of great things going on for The Kings. Through a deal with Bullseye Records they have put out a new studio album entitled 'Because of You' which Diamond and Zero regard as their best. The band also has a live album called 'Party Live in '85' which is the original band in all its raunchy glory and is a must have for fans. One current project has been getting as many songs as possible on iTunes and other legal download sites. 'Are Here and More', 'Because of You', 'Party Live in '85', 'Amazon Beach', 'Unstoppable', 'This Christmas' are all available and so is the long awaited 'Anthology One' which contains 12 super rare songs from the early days of the band. All told, that is over 50 songs for under a buck each!Perhaps the most exciting news is that there is finally a video for The Kings massive hit 'This Beat Goes On/Switchin' to Glide'. This is the video that Kings fans have been waiting for, edited from more than 40 sources spanning over 20 years, The Kings are shown in their best light, that of a powerhouse live act. Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHRfyG48yn4
This video is part of a larger dvd project entitled 'Anatomy of a One-Hit Wonder: The Kings-Switchin' to Glide' which contains all the videos the band has made, live concert footage old and new, interviews with the original guys and more. The Kings' website is a fan favorite as well, where you can find out more than you ever wanted to: www.thekingsarehere.com. You can order merch, get on the mailing list and find out about upcoming shows. Check it out and have fun!
