The Forgotten Pop Supergroup That Scored A No. 1 Hit Before Imploding

In November 1989, a brand new but familiar-sounding rock band went to No. 1 on the Hot 100 with the power ballad "When I See You Smile." While it might be considered an '80s rock song so corny our ears are still burning from embarrassment, it was nevertheless the most popular song in the country for two weeks. That made for an objectively explosive start for Bad English, but the supergroup wouldn't last long before its famous members abruptly went their separate ways and the band itself faded into obscurity.

Bad English enjoyed three big hits, although each performed a bit worse than the last: "When I See You Smile" topped the chart, "Price of Love" went Top 5, and "Possession" got up to No. 21. All the hits derived from Bad English's million-selling self-titled 1989 LP; the prophetically titled 1991 follow-up "Backlash" produced a few singles, but none that could squeeze into the Top 40. That second Bad English album was also its last one. Perhaps they could've perhaps ranked among the best supergroups in history had they stuck it out for a bit longer.

Prolific ballad and movie love song composer Diane Warren intended "When I See You Smile" for Sheriff, a band possibly reforming after its six-year-old single "When I'm With You" surprisingly hit No. 1 in 1989. Sheriff singer Freddie Curci had started another band, Alias, and he wanted to push his own rock ballad, "More Than Words Can Say." Losing first dibs on the song, the right to record it fell to John Waite.

Waite, who'd once fronted the Babys before starting a successful pop career ("Missing You" was a chart-topping smash in 1984), longed for the band environment. So, he reconnected with guitarist Jonathan Cain, his bandmate from the Babys. After recruiting Babys bassist Ricky Phillips, guitarist Neal Schon — whom Cain had played with in Journey — joined up, as did journeyman drummer Deen Castronovo. Bad English was formed, and after cutting and completing seven tracks they really liked, they agreed to record "When I See You Smile."

The real reason this band broke up? Personal hostilities between Bad English founders Waite and Cain dating back to their Babys days, reignited. "He was always leaving early and coming late. He was a very difficult person to get on with. And in the end, I just said, 'F*** it,'" Waite said of his relationship with Cain to XS Rock in 2021. A lack of decent material was also a factor. "We'd gone back in too soon," Waite said of "Backlash." "We haven't written any songs that worked."