Front

Kansas City rockers the Front first got together in the late '80s, and were led by vocalist Michael Franano and his keyboardist brother Bobby Franano. The pair hooked up with guitarist Mike Greene, Randy Jordan on bass, and Shane Miller on drums. The five musicians were soon signed to CBS Records and in 1989 they released their self-titled debut album. It took a little while, but in 1990 the single "Fire" became a minor radio and MTV hit and the band seemed to be on their way. The vocal style and mysterious persona of Franano was certainly the group's main selling point. The fact that the singer was so unashamedly aping Jim Morrison (with a touch of Michael Hutchence and Ian Astbury) didn't seem to hurt the group's image at first, however, there was no second single to build on "Fire" and the Front was eventually dropped by CBS before they had a chance to really define themselves. Perhaps the band became viewed as a knock-off or novelty within the company. Whatever the cause, it is odd that the group seemed to receive no opportunity to build on the success of "Fire." After leaving CBS, Franano and company changed their name to Bakers Pink and did manage to release a record for Epic under the new moniker in 1993. Franano also released an independent solo album under the name of Michael Moon in 1998.