Song:If You Could Only See
Album:A Casual Affair: The Best Of Tonic
The 1997 single If You Could Only See was the only big hit for the post grunge band Tonic. They went on hiatus after recording three albums. But they have reunited and are back touring and recording. Lead singer and songwriter Emerson Hart and guitarist Jeff Russo were friends growing up in New Jersey. They reconnected as adults in Los Angeles in 1993. They formed a band with bassist Dan Rothchild and drummer Kevin Shepherd. They wanted to call themselves Radio Flyer but the name was taken so they settled on Tonic. They played gigs around Los Angeles before signing with A&M Records in 1995. By this time A&M was owned by PolyGram. Their debut album Lemon Parade was released in 1996 produced by Jack Joseph Puig. Puig was a recording engineer who usually worked in Christian music. If You Could Only See was the third single and it reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lemon Parade was certified Platinum. Apparently If You Could Only See was the most played song on rock radio in 1997. Hart says the song was aimed at his family who did not approve of a relationship he was in at the time. Tonic toured to support the album. Rothchild and Sheppard left in Dec. 1996. Dan Lavery replaced Rothchild and drummers were hired for touring. After recording a few songs for movie soundtracks, Tonic released their second album Sugar in 1999 which they self produced. By this time, Universal had bought PolyGram and Tonic was moved to Polydor. Management changes are usually bad news for artists and the album didn't sell. For the 2002 album Head On Straight, Tonic recorded in Nashville with veteran producer Bob Rock. It didn't help. The album didn't sell. Tonic went on hiatus in 2004. This budget comp was released in 2009. Hart released a solo album in 2007. Russo's new band Low Stars released an album in 2007. Lavery joined The Fray. Tonic reformed in 2008. And after touring, they released an album in 2010. They continue to tour and they released an acoustic version of Lemon Parade in 2016 which they funded through PledgeMusic. So they are still around but I don't expect any more hit singles. Here's the video for If You Could Only See by Tonic.
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