In 1993, EYC were “Feelin’ Alright”. In 1994 they wanted to be “Number One”. Can you Express Yourself Clearly?
Express Yourself Clearly (EYC) were a short lived American trio of the early-mid 1990’s who actually achieved their greatest success outside The US, chiefly in Great Britain and Australia. They were Dave Loeffler (b.1970), and Trey Parker and Damon Butler (both born in 1972) who came together in 1992 to take America ‘by storm’. It didn’t quite work out that way as their debut single, “Get Some”, failed to chart when it was released in the Summer of 1993.
Their second single, “Feelin’ Alright”, did, however, make an impression in Australia and the UK, where it reached No.7 and No.16 respectively. Got on its heels at the beginning of 1994 came “The Way You Work It”, which made No.14 in the UK but did less well ‘down under’ and its follow up, “Number One”, did nothing of the sort, just making the top thirty in the UK. The trio gained their most successful, certainly in chart terms, with “Black Book” in mid-1994, which actually made an appearance Stateside, reaching the dizzy heights of No.21 on the US dance chart. The song gave the group their third UK top twenty hit and a No.25 in Australia.
Their self-titled debut album (“Express Yourself Clearly”) was another top twenty success in the UK, eventually gaining a Silver certification for sales of more than 60,000 copies. It failed to do anything in Australia. A fifth and final single from the album, “Once More Chance” just charted on the UK dance chart. Later that year, the trio released a brand new track, “Ooh-Ah-Aa (I Feel It)”, which just scraped inside the UK top 40. “Ooh-Ah-Aa (I Feel It)” was the lead single from their second studio album titled “Put It On”, which was released in 1996, but it went the same way as the only other single released from the album, “In The Beginning” and that was nowhere. After two further singles in 1999, “This Thing Called Love” and “Only A Dream”, both bombed, EYC called it a day. Now that’s expressing yourself clearly!
Prior to joining EYC, Trey Parker had been a child actor, appearing in an episode of Baywatch in 1990. He returned to acting following the groups break up and also splits his time performing on film and TV soundtracks as well. Damon Butler continued in music as a backing singer and dancer for a number of artists including Backstreet Boys and Anastacia. Dave Loeffler has become something of a music mogul, managing and producing bands including boy band Why Don’t We? who have achieved numerous hits in America as well as a top ten album, “8 Letters”, which also made No.25 in the UK. So finally, Loeffler has achieved chart success in The States, more than twenty-five years after his own attempt.
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