The Supergroup with the potential to put paid to all other supergroups, BAD ENGLISH featured the former JOURNEY duo of guitarist NEAL SCHON and keyboard player JONATHON CAIN who were joined by Cain's former BABYS colleagues, English born vocalist JOHN WAITE and bassist Ricky Phillips. Filling the drum stool came ex-WILD DOGS, DR. MASTERMIND and CACOPHONY man Dean Castronovo.

BAD ENGLISH came together in 1989 as Waite and Phillips reunited following Waite's successful American solo career. Keyboard player Jonathan Cain was recruited after a stint in MICHAEL BOLTON's touring band, whilst Schon had earlier released a new solo album and brought Dean Castronovo with him.

The self-titled, debut album was produced by Richie Zito and was a supreme showcase for the writing talents of Waite, Cain and Phillips and the guitar prowess of Schon. However, the band would score an American number one hit single with the ballad 'When I See You Smile', a song written by the emerging talents of professional songwriter Diane Warren.

The band's first shows were in Japan with JEFF BECK and followed these up with a stateside tour of small theatres and large clubs. The group wasted no time in returning to the confines of a recording studio in order to put a sophomore effort together, this time with Ron Nevison producing.

The resulting album, 'Backlash', marked a heavier approach, but even as 1991 drew to a close it became clear BAD ENGLISH had effectively split. John Waite revealed to the press that it was "all down to ego really, but I can't sing stuff I don't think is right. The buck stops with me".

Where the first BAD ENGLISH album had sounded like a glorified extension of Waite's previous solo career, the second album was more of a band album. Waite expressed his concern that Ron Nevison had taken over the project to the point where he was picking the songs for the album and not the band themselves.

The singer hooked up with Dutch guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, a veteran of VANDENBERG and WHITESNAKE, in November of 1991. Although the project was booked to debut on the European 'Countdown' TV programme in January of 1992 the collaboration faltered and stalled. Meantime, Phillips began working with Vandenberg's former employer DAVID COVERDALE in COVERDALE/PAGE, whilst Cain began work on a solo album.

The duo of Schon and Castronovo teamed up with Schon's brothers in law, Johnny and Joey Gioeli, in BRUNETTE. Changing the band name to HARDLINE, Schon and co signed to MCA Records and released the critically acclaimed album 'Double Eclipse', touring in Britain opening for EXTREME.

The HARDLINE project was a relatively short-lived affair, Schon eventually teaming up with his former JOURNEY cohorts for a long awaited reunion. In 1998 Schon enrolled Dean Castronovo in the ranks of JOURNEY in order to replace Steve Smith. Ricky Phillips would be back in the news during September of 2003, announced as the newest member of veteran AORsters STYX.