The Philosopher Kings are a Canadian band. The band was most commercially successful in the late 1990s and have been nominated for five

Juno Awards The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's music industry. The Grammy Awards are the United S ...

, winning one in 1996 for "Best New Group". Most of the band members, current and former, have also had successful careers as songwriters and producers for several artists and performers. Between 1996 and 2016, The Philosopher Kings were among the top 150 best-selling Canadian artists in Canada and among the top 50 best-selling Canadian bands in Canada.

History

The Philosopher Kings formed in 1993. The name of the band is derived from

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

's ''

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

'', in which he outlines the design of an idealistic government, ruled by ''philosopher-kings''. The band released their debut album in Canada in 1994. The album was later released in the United States by Columbia. The group saw minor success in the United States with the single " Charms", which peaked at #36 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Mainstream Top 40 chart in 1996. The band performed across Canada,"Heads Turning"
''Imprint'', University of Waterloo, 1996. and won the award for "Best New Group" at the 1996 Juno Awards. In 1997, the band released their second album, '' Famous, Rich and Beautiful''. The album featured several singles which were hits in Canada, including "I Am the Man", "Hurts to Love You" and " Cry". The album was certified Platinum in Canada in 1998 and is the band's best-selling album. The band was nominated for " Best Group" at the 1999 Juno Awards. In 1999, drummer Craig Hunter was replaced by Denton Whited. The band was inactive from 2000 to 2003 as members pursued different projects. In 2004, all of the band members (minus

Jason Levine Jason Brett Levine, also known as Jay Levine, is a Canadian musician, songwriter and music producer. Jason is the brother of musician/producer Jon Levine. Career In the 1990s, Levine was the bassist for the Juno Award-winning Canadian band The P ...

) reunited and the band released the album ''Castles'' in 2006, with their lead single, "

Castles in the Sand ''Castles in the Sand'' is an album released by country musician David Allan Coe. It was released in 1983 on Columbia. Recording ''Castles in the Sand'' would be a huge comeback for Coe, peaking at #8 on the country albums chart, his highest sho ...

" reaching the top 10 on the Adult Contemporary and Hot Adult Contemporary charts in Canada. After going on hiatus again in the 2010s, the band reunited again in 2016. In 2018, the band released the album ''Return of the Kings''.

Members

Current line-up

Gerald Eaton Gerald Eaton (born November 22, 1971) is a Jamaican-Canadian R&B singer-songwriter and music producer, also known by his stage name Jarvis Church. Career Eaton is the lead singer for the R&B-pop group The Philosopher Kings, which reached its p ...

– vocalist *

James Bryan McCollum James Bryan McCollum, also known as James Bryan, is a Canadian musician, songwriter, and music producer. McCollum is a guitarist for The Philosopher Kings and Prozzäk. Background McCollum was born in Ottawa, Ontario and was raised in St. Cathari ...

– guitarist * Brian West – guitarist *Denton Whited – drummer *

Marc Rogers Marc Rogers is a Canadian acoustic and electric bassist. Career Rogers studied at the University of North Texas College of Music, where he was a member of the One O'Clock Lab Band directed by Neil Slater. He is a member of the band The Philosop ...

– bassist *Matt Giffin – keyboardist

Past members

* Craig Hunter – drummer on ''Philosopher Kings'', ''Famous, Rich and Beautiful'' *

– bassist on ''Philosopher Kings'', ''Famous, Rich and Beautiful'' & ''One Night Stand'' *Jon Levine – keyboardist

Discography

Albums

Singles

Awards

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

– Best New Group

Nominations

Juno nomination – Best R&B/Soul Recording for ''Philosopher Kings'' *

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

Juno nomination – Best R&B/Soul Recording for ''Famous, Rich and Beautiful'' *

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

Juno nominations –

Best Pop Album The Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality vocal pop music albums. Awards in several ...

for ''Famous, Rich and Beautiful''; Best Single for ''Hurts To Love You''; Best Group *

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

Juno nomination – Best R&B/Soul Recording for ''If I Ever Lose This Heaven''

Side projects

Prozzäk Prozzäk (also known as Simon and Milo) are a Canadian virtual pop music duo formed by Jay Levine and James Bryan McCollum in 1998. Their recordings and animated music videos tell the comedic tale of their frontmen, Simon (Levine) and Milo (McC ...

and Lefthook Entertainment –

and Jason Levine *

Jarvis Church Gerald Eaton (born November 22, 1971) is a Jamaican-Canadian R&B singer-songwriter and music producer, also known by his stage name Jarvis Church. Career Eaton is the lead singer for the R&B-pop group The Philosopher Kings, which reached its p ...

– Gerald Eaton *Track and Field – Gerald Eaton and Brian West *solo albums – Jon Levine; James Bryan

References

External links

Philosopher Kings official websiteReturn of the Kings
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Metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...

, November 15, 2005''
Marc Rogers websiteJon Levine Band websiteJames Bryan websiteJames Bryan's Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philosopher Kings, The Canadian contemporary R&B musical groups Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year winners Canadian soul music groups Canadian rhythm and blues music groups Musical groups from Toronto Musical groups established in 1993 1993 establishments in Ontario