Step Ahead (4)

Short-lived 1980's French neo-prog band starting in 1972 with its leader/guitarist [a=Christian Robin (2)] moving to London in order to pursue a career as a musician. He was overlooked by the local players, but still earned money through various occupations, including composing music for ads. By 1979 he returned to Nice, France and worked at Studio Miraval, where he met with amateur guitarist Aldo Gulino. In 1980 a band took shape with the additions of [a=Eric Mathieu] (vocals), [a=Alain Lejeune] (keys), [a=Antoine Ferrera] (bass) and [a=Jean-Yves Dufournier] (drums).

Despite having different musical backgrounds, all musicians loved classical music and Step Ahead put up a demo, which Robin gave to RCA in Paris for promotion. First departures come in 1981, Lejeune, Gulino and Mathieu quit and [a=Gérald Macia] (guitar, ex-[a=Carpe Diem (8)]) joined on, followed by [a=Claudie Truchi] (keys,sister of [a=Carpe Diem]'s [a=Christian Trucchi]) and later Englishman [a=Danny Brown (8)] (vocals), whom Robin convinced to stay in France. RCA financed the band's self-titled [i]debut[/i], recorded in September 1981 and released early in the next year.

By the time the debut album was recorded Truchi, Ferrera and Dufournier had left the band, replaced by the returning Alain Lejeune (keys), Herve Ferrieux (bass) and 17-years old [a=Emmanuel Riquier] (drums). The album was poorly promoted and a 12-inch promo had to be distributed for commercial reasons. Ferrieux was replaced then by [a=Philippe Recht] (bass) and Step Ahead kept playing live and recording in the studio. Three live pieces from a performance at Théatre de Verdure in November 1982 are included in the album's CD reissue by Musea, along with two new pieces, rehearsed by the 1982 line-up.

More line-up changes occured after the spring of 1983, Macia, Recht and Riquier all quit due to the group taking a more commercial direction, with [a=Norbert Lallemand] (guitar), Phillipe Chayeb (bass) and Alain Ruart (drums) replacing them. When Robin met producer [a=Alan Parsons] around the time, hopes for a second work were born, abandoned a bit later, when RCA demanded from Step Ahead to firstly record a single. Robin thought this was a relegation for his band and Step Ahead eventually dissolved in 1984.