| Wilson Phillips | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Pop rock, Adult contemporary |
| Years active | 1989–1993 2004–present |
| Labels | SBK Columbia Sony |
| Website | www.wilsonphillipsmusic.com |
| Members | |
| Chynna Phillips Carnie Wilson Wendy Wilson |
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Wilson Phillips is an American vocal group consisting of Carnie Wilson, Wendy Wilson, and Chynna Phillips.
Their 1990 self-titled debut album sold over 10 million copies worldwide and scored three number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100, making the trio the best-selling female group at the time. In 1990, the group won the Billboard Music Award for Hot 100 Single of the Year for "Hold On", and in addition was nominated for four Grammy Awards and two American Music Awards.[1]
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The Wilson sisters and Phillips grew up together in Southern California in the 1970s and 1980s. The three shared a love of music and songwriting, and developed their own style of vocal harmonies. In 1989, the trio signed with SBK Records.
The group is also known for being the offspring of prominent musicians; the Wilsons are the daughters of Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys, while Phillips' parents are John Phillips and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas.
Wilson Phillips released their debut album, Wilson Phillips, in 1990. Their debut single, "Hold On", hit #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart on June 9, 1990, bumping Madonna's "Vogue" off the top spot. The single was also #1 on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary and became a worldwide hit, peaking at #2 in Australia, #6 in the UK, #7 in Ireland, #10 in Sweden, and at #15 in the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland. The single also won Wilson Phillips the Billboard Music Award for Hot 100 Single of the Year for 1990.
The second and fourth singles from the album also became number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100: "Release Me" (2 weeks) and "You're in Love" (1 week). The singles "Impulsive" and "The Dream Is Still Alive", peaked at #4 and #12, respectively, on the Hot 100.[2]
In 1991, they contributed a cover of "Daniel" to the tribute album Two Rooms: Celebrating the Songs of Elton John & Bernie Taupin. While not released as a single, peaked at #7 in the US Adult Contemporary chart due to strong radio airplay.
In 1992, Wilson Phillips also made history as Billboard declared their debut album the best selling album of all time by an all female group, peaking at #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart, and selling over 5 million copies in the US and over 10 million copies worldwide, which also made Wilson Phillips, at the time, the best selling female group of all time for a single album, breaking the previous record set by The Supremes.
Chynna Phillips and her mother Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and Papas are the only mother/daughter combination to perform on separate songs that reached number one on the Billboard Charts. The Judds, Naomi and Wynnona, did it together on songs but never on separate songs.[3]
In June 1992, Wilson Phillips released their second album, Shadows and Light. The album was deeply personal and adopted a more serious tone, with tracks exploring issues such as child abuse ("Where Are You") and their estrangement from their fathers ("Flesh and Blood", "All the Way From New York"). The first single, "You Won't See Me Cry" peaked at #20 in the US and #18 in the UK, the first time they had a higher-ranking single in the UK than in the US. The album peaked at #4 on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum in the US, and double platinum in Canada.
Shortly after the release of Shadows and Light, Chynna Phillips announced plans for a solo career, and the group decided to disband.
During the next decade, the group went separate ways. In 1993, Wendy and Carnie Wilson released the Christmas holiday themed album, Hey Santa!, a collection of classic holiday themes with an original song (the title track). In 1995, Chynna Phillips released a solo album, Naked and Sacred. The same year, Carnie went on to host her own short-lived syndicated television talk show entitled, Carnie!.[4] In 1997, Carnie and Wendy, along with their father, Brian Wilson released The Wilsons and the single, "Monday Without You".[5]
A Greatest Hits album was released in 2000, although the group did not officially reunite for the release. On March 29, 2001, they reunited to perform the Beach Boys' song "You're So Good to Me" at a tribute show to Brian Wilson held at New York's Radio City Music Hall. Chynna Phillips dedicated the performance to her own father John Phillips who had died a few days earlier.
Wilson Phillips reunited in 2004 to release California, an album of cover songs. A single, "Go Your Own Way," a song originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac, peaked at #13 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. The album debuted at #35 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart with 31,000 copies sold in its first week of release.
In New Zealand, the album was a surprise hit, reaching the top 10 and amassing gold sales after "Go Your Own Way" topped the country's adult contemporary radio chart for several weeks.[6]
In November 2008, Wilson Phillips reunited on stage for two shows in California. The shows were not publicized heavily, but were very well received by the audiences. Songs from a new album to be released in 2010 were performed. These 90-minute shows were the longest the group have ever performed, and featured tracks from throughout their career, as well as some covers of Beach Boys and ABBA classics.
On May 5, 2010, the trio performed to an audience of 350 people at the 79th General Meeting of the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors in San Antonio, Texas.
On August 21, 2010, Wilson Phillips announced their new Christmas album, Christmas in Harmony, which was released on October 12, 2010. The album yielded a single, "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday," a cover of the popular seasonal tune that first was a hit in 1973 for English glam-rock band Wizzard. As of December 31, 2011 this album had sold 71,031 copies in the US according to SoundScan.
The band appeared in a cameo and performed "Hold On" in the 2011 film Bridesmaids.
The group is currently recording a new studio album made up of covers of songs by both The Beach Boys and The Mamas and the Papas. They have also finished shooting their own reality show which will appear on the TV Guide Network in April.
Bandmember Chynna Phillips was a contestant on Season 13 of ABC's Dancing With The Stars, and explained that "Hold On" was written by her and bandmates Carnie and Wendy Wilson about her recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Phillips was eliminated after Week 4.
| Releases | ||
|---|---|---|
| ↙Studio albums | 4 | |
| ↙Compilation albums | 3 | |
| ↙Singles | 12 | |
| ↙No. 1 Singles (Overall) | 3 | |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions[7] | Certifications (sales threshold) |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | UK | NZ | AUS | SWE | AUT | SWI | NOR | CAN | |||
| 1990 | Wilson Phillips
|
2 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 27 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 1 | |
| 1992 | Shadows and Light
|
4 | 6 | 19 | 30 | 20 | 34 | 3 | 18 | 8 | |
| 2004 | California
|
35 | 197 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2010 | Christmas in Harmony
|
135 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||||||
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1998 | The Best of Wilson Phillips
|
| 2000 | Greatest Hits
|
| 2005 | The Best of Wilson Phillips
|
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions[10] | Certifications (sales threshold) |
Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [11] |
US AC | UK | AUS | SWI | CAN | CAN AC | ||||||||
| 1990 | "Hold On" | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 15 | 3 | 1 | Wilson Phillips | |||||
| "Release Me" | 1 | 1 | 36 | 57 | — | 1 | 1 |
|
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| "Impulsive" | 4 | 2 | 42 | — | 30 | 1 | 1 | |||||||
| 1991 | "You're in Love" | 1 | 1 | 29 | — | — | 3 | 1 | ||||||
| "The Dream Is Still Alive" | 12 | 4 | — | — | — | 11 | 4 | |||||||
| "Daniel" | — | 7 | — | — | — | 26 | 7 | Two Rooms | ||||||
| 1992 | "You Won't See Me Cry" | 20 | 4 | 18 | 31 | 11 | 1 | 3 | Shadows and Light | |||||
| "Give It Up" | 30 | 12 | 36 | — | — | 16 | 11 | |||||||
| "Flesh and Blood" | 115 | 17 | — | — | — | 33 | 12 | |||||||
| 2004 | "Go Your Own Way" | — | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | California | |||||
| "Already Gone" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "Get Together" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||||||||||
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US AC | |||
| 2010 | "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" | 22 | Christmas in Harmony |
| "Little Drummer Boy" | 13 | ||
| "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day" | 14 |
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 1990 | Billboard Music Award Win for Hot 100 Single of the Year ("Hold On") |
| 1990 | Grammy Award nomination for Song of the Year ("Hold On") |
| 1990 | Grammy Award nomination for Album of the Year (Wilson Phillips) |
| 1990 | Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist |
| 1990 | Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group ("Hold On") |
| 1990 | American Music Award nomination for Favorite Single - Pop / Rock ("Hold On") |
| 1990 | American Music Award nomination for Favorite New Artist - Pop / Rock |
| 1991 | Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group ("You're in Love") |
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