the atlantic were formed in January 1976 by bassist Bruce Wilkinson and guitarist Tom Hauck, two students at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. They were joined by drummer Boby Bear and lead guitarist Jeff Lock. To complete the lineup, Wilkinson recruited singer Bobby Marron, a friend from his hometown in New Jersey.

The Atlantics played their first concert in the spring of 1976 at The Rat in Kenmore Square. In May 1976 they opened for the Ramones, who played two nights at The Club in Central Square. The Atlantics made their first trips to New York in the summer of 1976, playing at CBGB and Max’s Kansas City. The band quickly became an important and authentic part of the emerging punk/new wave movement.

The following spring, Ray Fernandes replaced Boby Bear on drums. In the summer of 1977, the Atlantics recorded their first independent 45 on Jukebox Records, “When You’re Young”, written by Bruce Wilkinson, backed by “Where Would I Be Without Your Love”, written by Jeff Lock. A thousand copies were pressed but never released, and the single is now considered a collector’s item. In the spring of 1978, Jeff Lock left the band and was replaced by Fred Pineau of the Bonjour Aviators.

The Atlantics signed to ABC Records that summer, and in December the band recorded their BIG CITY ROCK LP at the Hit Factory in New York. The album was released in March 1979, just after ABC Records was sold to MCA Records. His new label, along with Premier Talent, put the Atlantics on a national tour with Roxy Music, followed by a regional tour of New England. The band performed with the likes of The Ramones, The Cars, Cheap Trick, Boston, Graham Parker, Talking Heads, and many others. Bruce Wilkinson’s single “One Last Night” received regional and international airplay, and the album garnered rave reviews in Rolling Stone.

In the summer of 1979, Paul Caruso joined the group as drummer, and the band returned in 1980 with what would become one of New England’s biggest independent singles, “Lonelyhearts,” written by Tom Hauck. It was the flip side of “Can’t Wait Forever,” a Motown-flavored song by Bruce Wilkinson. “Lonelyhearts” rocketed to the top of the New England radio and dance music charts and stayed for months, and can still be heard on Boston radio stations including WFNX-FM.

Over the next two years, the Atlantic released several more songs on tape to Boston radio stations, including “Pop Shivers”, “Wrong Number”, and “Weekend”. In June 1983, the band played their last show on the Channel in Boston.

Original analog tapes of many of Atlantic’s most popular songs were consigned for storage. In 2006 these tapes were recovered and thirteen tracks were digitally restored for the ATLANTICS CD. These tracks were recorded between 1979 and 1982 in studios in the Boston area and have no overdubs or other alterations. In 2007, the Atlantics released a live set from the Paradise club in Boston. ATLANTICS LIVE was recorded in March 1979 and features many of the same old BIG CITY ROCK songs. Atlantics CDs are available from CDbaby and Newbury Comics.

In October 2011, the Atlantics were honored to include the cover of the single “Lonelyhearts” in a wonderful new book by Matthew Chojnacki: “Put the Needle on the Record”. It’s a collection of more than 250 covers of singles by artists ranging from The Ramones to Pat Benatar and Run-DMC. The versions are accompanied by comments from the artists. The “Lonelyhearts” cover art was designed by Tibor Kalman, who had recently founded M&Co, which became a leading design firm. When the band first met Tibor, he had other ideas; one of them was to cover the sleeve with sandpaper (the rough part on the outside!). The band thought this was a good idea, but it wouldn’t endear them to record retailers or radio stations. The cover concept they chose, rows of tiny photos of the band members, was an instant hit, and thankfully so was the song.

© 2011 Thomas Hauck Communications Services