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Infobox musical artist|name = Donnie Iris|image =|background = solo_singer|Born = birth date and age|1943|2|28 Ellwood City, Pennsylvania , United States |genre = Rock music|Rock Pop rock Power pop |instrument = Guitar |years_active = 1965–present|label = Midwest National, MCA Records|MCA , HME, Seathru, Primary Records Group|associated_acts = The Trivells, Donnie & The Donnelles, The Jaggerz , Wild Cherry (band)|Wild Cherry , Donnie Iris & The Cruisers, Cellarful of Noise , The Innocent (band)|The Innocent |website = http://www.donnieiris.com www.donnieiris.com Donnie Iris (born Dominic Ierace on February 28, 1943) is an United States|American rock musician known for his work with The Jaggerz and Wild Cherry (band)|Wild Cherry during the 1970s, and for his solo albums during the 1980s. He wrote the #2 Billboard (magazine)|Billboard hit " The Rapper " with the Jaggerz, and was a member of Wild Cherry after the group had a #1 hit with " Play That Funky Music ." After releasing five solo albums in the 1980s with many charting singles, Iris continues to release new material and tour in the Ohio River Valley area.
He has released eleven studio albums, one EP, two live albums, and two compilations. He also performed on the first three Jaggerz albums and the third and fourth Wild Cherry albums.
Biography
Early life
Born Dominic Ierace in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania , Iris began singing at weddings at age five, and by eight was performing on local television and entering talent contests. When his voice changed around age 12, he took up the Drum kit|drums but later got back into singing while in college. Donnie learned how to sing from his mother and then from Tony Bennett and Marvin Gaye , and was also a self-taught guitarist , starting at about age 15. http://www.donnieiris.com/donnie/ The Official Home of Donnie Iris and The Cruisers
1960s
While attending Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania , Iris formed a band called The Trivells with two fellow musicians. With the addition of a fourth man, they renamed themselves Donnie and The Donnelles. This band in both incarnations played frat parties. Around 1965, Donnie and The Donnelles merged with members of another band called Gary and The Jewel Tones, forming The Jaggerz (originally The "Jaggers"). http://www.donnieiris.com/donnie/ The Official Home of Donnie Iris and The Cruisers Their first album, Introducing the Jaggerz , was released in 1969. It was the first album to feature Iris.
1970s
Iris first came to national prominence as the lead singer of The Jaggerz, which became famous for its #2 hit " The Rapper ", written by Iris and included on their second album ( We Went to Different Schools Together , 1970). The group released one more album, Come Again (The Jaggerz album)|Come Again , but it failed to produce any more hits. After The Jaggerz broke up in 1976, Iris toured with Wild Cherry (band)|Wild Cherry , whose 1976 hit " Play That Funky Music " had made them a hot property into the end of the decade. He recorded two albums with Wild Cherry, I Love My Music in 1978 and Only the Wild Survive in 1979. It was during this period that he became acquainted with his future partner Mark Avsec , now playing keyboards for Wild Cherry. Unfortunately, Wild Cherry was unable to duplicate their previous success and disbanded by the end of the decade. Becoming good friends, Donnie and Mark decided to form a project together and the two began writing songs. Their first release saw the disco-influenced single "Bring on the Eighties" backed by the cover song " Because of You (1940 song)|Because of You " in 1979, however it failed to garner attention. Iris and Avsec decided to go in a harder direction for their next release and returned to the studio with guitarist Marty Lee Hoenes , bassist Albritton McClain and drummer Kevin Valentine , who at the time was in the band Jonah Koslen|Breathless with Avsec, to record his first full length album. This line-up would remain the same for the next five years.
1980s
Iris' first album, Back on the Streets (Donnie Iris album)|Back on the Streets , was released in July 1980 on the small Cleveland, Ohio -based Midwest Records. http://www.parallel-time.com/rappback.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles With the track " Ah& #33; Leah! " receiving airplay in Boston, Cleveland and Pittsburgh, MCA Records took notice and quickly signed Iris to a five album deal and re-released the album nationally in October. The first single "Ah& #33; Leah!" peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1981 and became one of the most frequently played Album-oriented rock|AOR tracks of the year, and the album reached #57 on the Billboard 200 . In addition, the band launched a national tour to promote the album and its follow-up during the summer of 1981.Allmusic|class=artist|id=p4557/charts-awards|pure_url=yes allmusic ((( Donnie Iris > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))
The follow-up album, King Cool , credited to Donnie Iris and the Cruisers, was released in August 1981 and garnered the band more Album-oriented rock|AOR success, with " Love Is Like a Rock " reaching #9 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks|Top Tracks chart. In addition, he gained the nickname King Cool from this album in the later part of his career. However, the album itself charted less successfully, at #84. After the long tour promoting their two previous albums, the band continued songwriting and in the fall of 1982 released The High and the Mighty (album)|The High and the Mighty . The album contained the single " Tough World ", but only charted at #180, marking a decline in his success, but the band still was determined to release new material.
Their next album one year later, Fortune 410 , contained the hit single " Do You Compute? ", which was used by their label MCA Records|MCA and the computer company Atari to form a cross media marketing|cross-marketing promotion. Because the promotional partnership was secured prior to release of the album, it was possible to use the Atari 1200 XL Home Computer in poster photography, as well as in the video clip for "Do You Compute? ", which aired on MTV . The title of the album is a reference to the trademark glasses Iris wears, Fortune 410 s. http://www.parallel-time.com/avsecint.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles The combination of marketing and the promotion for its hit single allowed the album to chart higher than its predecessor. The next album, No Muss...No Fuss , continued the trend two years later in 1985, by charting at #115 with the single " Injured in the Game of Love ". Both of these albums were more critically acclaimed than The High and the Mighty .
In 1985, just prior to the release of No Muss...No Fuss , the band began to split into different directions. Drummer Kevin Valentine and bassist Albritton McClain left to join a new group, The Innocent (band)|The Innocent , whose members included future Nine Inch Nails main man Trent Reznor . That same year, keyboardist Mark Avsec , also a longtime friend of Iris, released a solo project under the moniker Cellarful of Noise . Even after releasing the eponymous debut album that same year, however, the two maintained that Donnie Iris and the Cruisers was still their main focus, and that they wanted to continue to release new albums with the band and its new line-up. http://www.parallel-time.com/cellscene.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles The band returned to the studio in 1986 and recorded a new album titled Cruise Control , however, a lawsuit with the band's former label MCA resulted in the shelving of that album pending the resolution of that lawsuit. It still not been released as of 2007 although some material is thought to have been released on subsequent releases. Since the band seemed to have hit a road block, Iris partnered with Avsec on the second Cellarful of Noise album, Magnificent Obsession , which was released in 1988.
1990s
Donnie Iris and the Cruisers returned to the studio in 1992 to release their first album containing new material since 1985. Titled Out of the Blue (Donnie Iris album)|Out of the Blue , the album was a compilation album containing older hits and new material. It failed to have any impact on the charts, however. Still, the band toured throughout the rest of the year around Pennsylvania and Ohio , and attracted newer and younger fans from the area. http://www.parallel-time.com/irisappeal.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles The band released another album the following year, Footsoldier in the Moonlight . At this point, the band underwent yet another line-up change as bassist Scott Alan and drummer Tommy Rich departed the group, and were replaced by Scott Williamson and Steve McConnell respectively.
In the summer of 1994, original members Albritton McClain and Kevin Valentine temporarily reunited with Iris, Avsec and Hoenes to record the first album of all new material by the original line-up in nearly 10 years. During recording, the band performed one reunion show together at Conneaut Lake . The album Poletown (album)|Poletown was released in 1997 and was notable for its shift in style to a mature blues influenced sound.Who|date=September 2007 In 1998, the band released their first live album. A collection of tracks played at Nick's Fat City, a popular Pittsburgh nightclub, '' Live& #33; At Nick's Fat City was the first to feature bass guitarist Paul Goll who had been touring with the band since 1995 along with drummer Tommy Rich. 1999 saw the release of an Iris collaborative project entitled Together Alone (Donnie Iris album)|Together Alone . After Alone'', which featured a softer side of Iris's vocals, the band took a break from releasing new material but continued to perform regularly through the decade.
2000s
The first true compilation album by the band was released in 2001, The Best of Donnie Iris . In 2004, the band celebrated its 25th anniversary with a new album, 25 Years (album)|25 Years , and performed live at the Chevrolet Amphitheatre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for 4,000 people. This concert was known for featuring a four drummer lineup of current and previous drummers for the band; Kevin Valentine , Tommy Rich, Brice Foster and Mark Avsec 's daughter Danna Avsec, who was the guest drummer. http://donnieiris.com/donnie/ The Official Home of Donnie Iris and The Cruisers Since then, the band has used a three drummer line-up for several concerts.
The band's 2006 album, Ellwood City (album)|Ellwood City , is a tribute to Iris' hometown, Ellwood City, Pennsylvania . http://www.parallel-time.com/rptdna.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles June 17, 2006 was recognized throughout Lawrence County, Pennsylvania as Donnie Iris Day by Ellwood City Executive Council President Glenn Jones and Mayor Roy P. Meehan.
In recent years, Iris received special commendations and awards from United States Congresswoman Melissa Hart (politician)|Melissa Hart and Pennsylvania state representative Frank LaGrotta.
Now a grandfather, Iris is still making music, and has unreleased material he hopes to make available. He currently works for a mortgage company in Wexford, PA. http://www.parallel-time.com/liferock.htm The Unofficial Donnie Iris Site - Articles
Over the course of 2008-2009, King Cool Light was developed, after Mark Avsec had realized that "King Cool" sounded like the name of a refreshing beer. He later approached Iris and Marty Lee Hoenes, who both immediately liked the idea, giving birth to King Cool Limited. http://www.kingcool.com/beer.html King Cool Light - The Beer King Cool Light was unveiled on November 20, 2009, at Club Diesel in Pittsburgh during the band's 30th anniversary concert. Every case was sold out, but 25 more cases were brought in, which were also sold out. http://www.kingcool.com/home.html King Cool Light - Home
The band's first extended play|EP , '' You Can't Really Miss Me If I Never Go Away , was released in 2008. It was followed in 2009 with their second live album, Ah& #33; Live!
2010s
In an interview with Cleveland Scene , Mark Avsec announced that the band's next project would be a Christmas album. http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/cruiser/Content? oid=1831220 Cleveland Scene - February 3, 2010 Ah& #33; Leluiah! was released on November 18, 2010.Donnie Iris and the Cruisers' Twitter Page King Cool Light (Donnie's beer) was released in Ohio in July. Donnie says "Youngstown is really good to me, they buy the beer, and come to the concerts. I'm glad I've had this experience."
Back on the Streets (Donnie Iris album)|Back on the Streets (1980) #57 US
King Cool (1981) #84 US
The High and the Mighty (album)|The High and the Mighty (1982) #180 US
Fortune 410 (1983) #127 US
No Muss...No Fuss (1985) #115 US
Out of the Blue (Donnie Iris album)|Out of the Blue (1992)
Footsoldier in the Moonlight (1993)
Poletown (album)|Poletown (1997)
'' Live& #33; At Nick's Fat City (1998)
Together Alone (Donnie Iris album)|Together Alone (1999)
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Donnie Iris (2001)
25 Years (album)|25 Years (2004)
Ellwood City (album)|Ellwood City (2006)
'' You Can't Really Miss Me If I Never Go Away (2008, EP)
Ah& #33; Live! (2009)
Ah& #33; Leluiah! (2010)
Singles
Year
Single
Peak positions
U.S.
U.S. Mainstream Rock
1981
" Ah& #33; Leah! "
29
19
" I Can't Hear You (song)
-
47
" Sweet Merilee "
80
31
1982
" Love Is Like a Rock "
37
9
" My Girl (Donnie Iris song)
25
-
" Tough World "
57
26
" The High and the Mighty (Donnie Iris song)
-
39
1983
" Do You Compute? "
64
20
1985
" Injured in the Game of Love "
91
28
Song covers
Since the 1990s, Iris has done cover version s of various songs by various artists. The songs below are organized by which Donnie Iris and The Cruisers album they first appeared on.
http://www.myspace.com/donnieiriskingcool Official MySpace
http://www.facebook.com/donnieiris? v=wall Official Facebook
http://twitter.com/donnieiris Official Twitter
Donnie Iris The Jaggerz Wild Cherry (band) Persondata | NAME =Iris, Donnie | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH =February 28, 1943 | PLACE OF BIRTH = | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Iris, Donnie Category:1943 births Category:Living people Category:People from Ellwood City, Pennsylvania Category:American rock singers Category:Musicians from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Category:Donnie Iris and the Cruisers members Category:Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania alumni Category:Wild Cherry (band) members
fi:Donnie Iris
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