Artist:Steel Breeze
Song:You Don't Want Me Anymore
Album:The Real '80s
You Don't Want Me Anymore was a top 20 hit in 1982. It was the only big hit for the band Steel Breeze. One of their other songs charted so they are not a one hit wonder. But I think I might be hard pressed to find anyone who remembers them. Steel Breeze was from Sacramento, CA. The band name is from the Pink Floyd song Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Band members were Ric Jacobs on vocals, Ken Goorabian and Wayne Carpenter on guitar, Rod Toner on keyboards, Vinnie Pantaleoni on bass and Barry Lowenthal on drums. Goorabian wrote most of the songs including You Don't Want Me Anymore. Toner first formed a band while in college in the late 70s. Steel Breeze was a more serious attempt than that. They started out playing California and Nevada. They recorded a demo. And they got their big break when veteran producer Kim Fowley (The Runaways) found their demo in a stack he found at a Hollywood nightclub. At the time, he was looking for a band that was similar to Journey. So he went to Sacramento to sign them and got them a deal with RCA Records. Fowley produced their 1982 debut album Steel Breeze and the single You Don't Want Me Anymore reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100. The video for You Don't Want Me Anymore was frequently played on MTV. And in those days, many radio stations refused to play songs that were popular on MTV. So it was probably a bigger hit than its chart position. The album only reached #50 on the Billboard 200 So I think folks watched the video but weren't motivated to buy the album. BTW, this was Kim Fowley's final album of his long career. You can get You Don't Want Me Anymore on this 3CD various artists comp available at a reasonable price. Steel Breeze recorded a second album called Heart on the Line. But as sometimes happens, RCA went through a management shuffle. So the album was shelved and RCA released Steel Breeze. Heart on the Line was released by Toner in 1996. Though Steel Breeze last recorded in 1994, Toner still leads a version of the band in clubs. Gorrabian became a photographer. Lowenthal played for KBC Band which was a Jefferson Starship spinoff. It appears the others quit the music business. Here's the video for You Don't Want Me Anymore by Steel Breeze.
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