The Romantics

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The Romantics

The Romantics' original lineup consisted of rhythm guitarist/harmonica player/singer Wally Palmar, lead guitarist Mike Skill, bassist Rich Cole, and drummer/singer Jimmy Marinos.
The album yielded the hit "What I Like About You," which reached #49 in the US, #12 in the Netherlands, and #2 in Australia, where the band was especially popular. "What I Like About You" would become much better known later in the 1980s, when its placement in television commercials and other high profile media made it an evergreen power pop anthem.
Mike Skill left the band after the release of its second album, National Breakout, in 1981.
In the late 1980s, the Romantics discovered that their managers had been misappropriating the profits earned by the band from its hit records and live performances. Additionally, the Romantics' best known song (the aforementioned "What I Like About You") had been licensed for use in television commercials without the band's knowledge or approval. Consequently, the Romantics filed a lawsuit against their management in 1987, and the legalities involved prevented the band from recording new music until the mid-1990s.
Former Blondie drummer Clement (Clem) Burke replaced David Petratos as the Romantics' drummer in 1990. For much of the 1990s, the Romantics played obscure performances in small venues, largely forgotten and out of the public spotlight.
The Romantics' fortunes began to rise again in the middle of the 1990s, as the band's success in its lawsuit against its former management freed the band to record again (and ensured that future earnings from the licensing of Romantics songs would go to the band).
The first fruit of the band's new recording activity was the 1993 EP Made In Detroit. Several Romantics greatest hits packages were issued during the 1990s, as was the live album The King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents.