Triumph is a Canadian heavy metal band that was popular in the late 1970s through the 1980s. Eight of the band's albums were certified gold or higher, and Triumph was nominated for multiple Juno Awards, including Group of the Year Award in 1979, 1985, 1986 and 1987.
Like their fellow Canadians Rush and Saga, Triumph began building their reputation across North America as a live band, peaking in the early to mid 1980s. The band was formed by Toronto music veterans Gil Moore (drums, vocals) and Mike Levine (bass, keyboards, producer), after meeting guitarist, singer, songwriter Rik Emmett in a manager's office in Toronto in 1975.
Triumph were a Canadian power trio, often compared to fellow Canadians Rush. The band's musical style was hard rock and heavy metal although the band themselves were reluctant to embrace this label. Moore once described Triumph as a cross between Emerson, Lake & Palmer and The Who. Guitarist Emmett's songwriting style showed a progressive rock influence, as well as displaying his classical music influence; each Triumph album included a classical guitar solo piece. Moore also doubled as lead vocalist on many of the band's heavier songs. Bassist, keyboardist Levine was also producer on their early albums.
Triumph's style proved unpopular with rock critics. Rolling Stone reviewers labelled a "faceless band."
Triumph's first record deal was signed with Attic Records in Canada. They later signed with RCA Records in the US covering all areas except Canada. After the RCA deal ended in acrimony, MCA Records picked up the band and re-released all their music to date in 1984. After the shift to MCA, the band began to work with outside producers, and their studio albums became increasingly difficult to replicate onstage. Rather than following the sequencer-laden path taken by Rush to remain a true power trio, Triumph later added Rick Santers, a Toronto guitarist, keyboardist, to support their last three tours.
Triumph's first album (originally self-titled but later renamed "In the Beginning") was extremely rare outside Canada, but their widely released second LP, "Rock & Roll Machine," received some scattered airplay with Gil Moore's cover of Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way". Incidentally, Rik Emmett's name was originally spelled Rick, but he changed it after it was misspelled on their first album as Rik. In mid 1978 Triumph first played in San Antonio, Texas for five dates and then toured across Canada with fellow Canadian rockers Moxy and Trooper; San Antonio remained a popular venue for the trio.
Triumph's third album, "Just a Game," featured a minor US radio hit, "Hold On", which reached the Top 40. Their 1979 album eventually went gold in the US, their first glimmer of stardom.
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