The Rembrandts
| Company type | Duo |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | Danny Wilde, Phil Solem |
| Headquarters | United States |
| Products | Music albums, singles |
The Rembrandts are a U.S.-based alternative rock duo consisting of Danny Wilde and Phil Solem, who came together in 1989. Prior to forming this group, they collaborated as part of the band Great Buildings in 1981. The Rembrandts gained widespread recognition for their track "I'll Be There for You", famously known as the theme song for the NBC television series Friends.
History
During the 1970s, Wilde was involved with the cult favorite band the Quick and released multiple solo projects throughout the 1980s. Both Wilde and Solem were members of Great Buildings, a power-pop four-piece that issued a single album under CBS in 1981 before disbanding.
In 1989, they established The Rembrandts and recorded their debut self-titled album primarily within Wilde’s home studio. Their initial chart success came with the single "Just the Way It Is, Baby", which climbed to number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990. The album itself reached number 88 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Their follow-up album in 1992, Untitled, produced modest hits such as "Johnny, Have You Seen Her?" and "Chase the Clouds Away". Additionally, the track "Rollin' Down the Hill" was featured in the motion picture Dumb and Dumber.
The song "I'll Be There for You", which served as the theme for Friends, held the top position on the Hot 100 Airplay chart for several weeks and ultimately peaked at number 17 on the U.S. Billboard chart. Internationally, it attained number 3 in the UK charts in 1995 and climbed to number 5 in 1997. The popularity of Friends played a significant role in elevating both the band's profile and their album sales. An earlier version of this song featuring alternate lyrics was included on their album Unreleased Stuff.
In 1997, Solem departed to dedicate his efforts to his band Thrush. Subsequently, Wilde released Spin This in 1998 under the name "Danny Wilde + The Rembrandts". The duo reunited in 2000 and followed up with the album Lost Together in 2001.
In 2005, two editions of Choice Picks were released, containing re-recorded favorites alongside new songs such as "Chasin' Down a Rainbow" and "Don't Give Me Up". Rhino Records issued a comprehensive Greatest Hits collection in 2006 that also incorporated tracks from Great Buildings’ only album, Apart from the Crowd.
The pair came back together once more in 2016 to announce a fresh album release. Their latest work, Via Satellite, was launched in 2019.
Mainstream success
Although "I'll Be There For You" brought them considerable fame, the duo expressed reluctance to be solely identified by a television theme tune. In a 1995 interview, Phil Solem remarked, "We don't want to hang our hats on the theme from a TV show...[w]e've been working too long at our craft for that." That same year, they sought to minimize emphasis on this track’s prominence during MTV News’ "The Year in Rock."
Legacy
In 2014, Rolling Stone placed them at number 20 on its list of greatest two-hit wonders ever. Insider also recognized them among the "Best One-Hit Wonders of All Time."
Members
- Danny Wilde (born June 3, 1956, Houlton, Maine, U.S.) – lead vocals, bass guitar, guitar, harmonica, mandolin, keyboards, percussion instruments
- Phil Solem (born July 1, 1956, Duluth, Minnesota, U.S.) – vocals, guitar, keyboards, banjo, bass guitar
Studio albums
| Album Title | Release Information | Highest Chart Positions | Sales Certifications | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | AUS | AUT | NZ | SWE | UK | |||
| The Rembrandts |
|
88 | 93 | 23 | — | 43 | — | |
| Untitled |
|
— | 158 | — | — | — | — | |
| LP |
|
23 | 133 | — | 25 | — | 14 |
|
| Spin This (with Danny Wilde) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Lost Together |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Via Satellite |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | |
Compilation albums
| Album Title | Release Details |
|---|---|
| Choice Picks |
|
| Greatest Hits |
|
Singles
54 —| Single Title | Release Year | Peak Chart Rankings | Sales Certifications | Source Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 |
US Main. Rock Tracks |
US Main. Pop Songs |
Australia | Canada | France | Germany | Netherlands | Sweden | United Kingdom | ||||
| "Just the Way It Is, Baby" | 1990 | 14 | 13 | — | 26 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 53 | 23 | 77 | 'The Rembrandts' | |
| "Someone" | 1991 | 78 | — | — | 104 | 82 | — | 45 | 57 | — | — | ||
| "Burning Timber" |
36 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||
| "Save Me" |
— |
— | — | — | —
64 |
— | — | ||||||
| 1992 | 54 | 24 | 38 | 172 | 48 | ||||||||
| 'Untitled' | |||||||||||||
|- !scope='row'|"Chase the Clouds Away" | | | | | | | | | | | |- !scope='row'|"Waiting to Be Opened" | | | | | | | | | | |
|- !scope='row'|"I'll Be There for You" |(1995) 17 — 1 3 1 — 77 — — 3 |
- ARIA certification: Platinum
- BPI certification: Platinum
|'LP' |- !scope='row'|"This House Is Not a Home" |(1995) 31 150 82 — — — — — 58 — |
|- !scope='row'|"Don't Hide Your Love" |(1995) — — — — — — — — — |
|- !scope='row'|"Drowning in Your Tears" |(1996) — |
|- !scope='row'|"I'll Be There for You" European re-release |(1997) — — — — — 25 — 20 34 5 |
|- !scope='row'|"Too Late" |(2001) — — — — — — — — — — |}
See also
External links
- American power pop bands
- American jangle pop bands
- Musical groups formed in 1989
- Musical groups disbanded in 1997
- Musical groups reunited in 2000
- Artists signed to East West Records
- Artists signed to Atlantic Records
- Artists signed to Atco Records
- Alternative rock bands from California
- Musical groups disestablished in 1997