Taste (Australian band)
| Company type | Rock band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1970 (as Cloud Nine) |
| Founder | Ken Murdoch, Michael Tortoni |
| Headquarters | Australia |
Key people | Ken Murdoch, Michael Tortoni, Joey Amenta, Virgil Donati |
| Products | Music albums and singles |
Taste was a 1970s Australian rock group initially known as Cloud Nine. The ensemble featured Ken Murdoch on guitars, vocals, and keyboards, Michael Tortoni handling bass duties, Joey Amenta on guitar, and Virgil Donati playing drums.
In 1975, the band adopted the name Taste and went on to produce two studio albums that both secured positions within the top 20 of the Australian music charts.
1970–1975: Cloud Nine
While still attending high school in 1970, Ken Murdoch and Michael Tortoni established Cloud Nine. Their first single, "Say Goodbye," was released in 1973 under Warner Records, with production by Ian Molly Meldrum. The following year saw the addition of Virgil Donati on drums and Tony Farrimond as vocalist, coinciding with a contract signing with RCA.
Cloud Nine launched the album We're Just Good Friends… So Rock On alongside singles such as "Summertime Blues" and "Take My Hand." In 1975, Joey Amenta replaced Farrimond as vocalist, and the group rebranded itself as Taste. By the end of that year, they secured a deal with Bootleg Records.
1976–1979: Taste
Taste debuted in June 1976 with the single "Tickle Your Fancy" / "Rock 'n' Roll Superstar," which climbed to number 18 on Australian charts. Their first album, also titled Tickle Your Fancy, was released in July and reached number 19. The track "Boys Will Be Boys" became their highest-charting single, peaking at number 14 in January 1977. Following singles "A Little Romance" and "Rebecca" were released before their sophomore album Knights of Love came out in September 1977.
2005–present
The band reunited in the mid-2000s and produced the album Rock is Dead. With Damian Corniola joining the lineup, they subsequently released Life On Earth. In 2020, Taste put out the EP Brothers Vol 1, featuring the song "We All Stand Up," which received airplay on over 136 radio stations, along with the single "2020s Gone," reaching number six in Madrid.
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Highest chart position |
|---|---|---|
| AUS | ||
| We're Just Good Friends… So Rock On (as Cloud Nine) |
|
- |
| Tickle Your Fancy |
|
18 |
| Knights of Love |
|
18 |
| Rock is Dead |
|
- |
| Life On Earth |
|
- |
Compilations
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| The Best of Taste |
|
Extended plays
| Title | Information |
|---|---|
| Brothers Vol 1 |
|
Singles
| Year | Song title | Highest chart position |
Associated album |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released under the name Cloud Nine | |||
| 1973 | "Say Goodbye" | — | |
| 1975 | "Summertime Blues" | — | We're Just Good Friends… So Rock On |
| "Hi There" | — | ||
| Released under the name Taste | |||
| 1976 | "Tickle Your Fancy" | 49 | Tickle Your Fancy |
| "Degenerate Fool" / "Lone Rager" | — | ||
| "Boys Will Be Boys" | 33 | Knights of Love | |
| 1977 | "A Little Romance" | 53 | |
| "Rebecca" | 92 | ||
| 2016 | "I Am God" | — | Life on Earth |
| 2017 | "Is It Just a Dream" | — | |
| 2019 | "Remedy" | — | |
| 2020 | "(We All) Stand Up" | — | Brothers Vol. 1 |
| "2020's Gone" | — | ||