Cutting Crew (GB)

About

Also known as: The Cutting Crew

Few debut singles have had quite the impact of "(I Just) Died in Your Arms", the 1986 smash that sent Cutting Crew straight to number one in the United States and made Virgin Records' first proper US chart topper. The London band, built around vocalist Nick Van Eede and guitarist Kevin MacMichael, followed it up with a second US Top 10 hit in "I've Been in Love Before" and picked up a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist along the way. Their debut album Broadcast captured a polished, melodic rock sound that connected across multiple formats and markets worldwide. Things got harder from there. The second album The Scattering struggled commercially despite a solid run on the US Adult Contemporary chart, and lineup changes eventually whittled the band down to just Van Eede and MacMichael for the third record Compus Mentus. After a long hiatus through the 1990s, Van Eede brought Cutting Crew back in the 2000s with a rebuilt lineup, keeping the name alive for a fanbase that never quite let go of those signature 1980s pop rock hooks.