How April Wine created her biggest hit

One of April Wine’s most beloved songs was also one of the most difficult songs they ever put to tape.

Think back to the last time you went skating at a roller rink or cranked up the volume just a little to the power ballad “Just Between You and Me,” and realize that you might have heard a different soundtrack depending on the situation.

That’s because, when the song came out, “Just Between You and Me” was April Wine’s third Top 40 hit in the U.S., and she was in the midst of a flurry of radio hits in the early ’80s. An even more notable milestone was the 14th video played when MTV launched in August 1981.

The song was also the first song performed by the Canadian rock group on the fledgling Channel. It peaked at number 21 on the Billboard charts and remains the band’s most popular single in the United States.

read more: 10 classic rock acts that benefited from MTV’s launch

“Sometimes the simplest songs are the most difficult,” guitarist Brian Greenway told UCR of the song, which appeared on the band’s ninth studio album, 1981. The nature of the beast. ”I think it took about four or five hours just to get the drum track just right. ”

Listen to April Wine’s Brian Greenway on the UCR Podcast

How they finally completed “Just Between You and Me”

”[Drummer] jerry [Mercer]I don’t know if he wasn’t in the right state of mind that day, but he’ll get something right, [but then have issues] “I was playing rhythm guitar, but all I had was bass and guide guitar. I wasn’t getting the right feel either, so I eventually gave up.”

“So [April Wine guitarist] Gary [Moffet]”The king of tempo and rhythm playing came in and that track was created,” he recalls. “Then we were able to add guitars and even guide vocals.” [down] And finish it. ”

As Greenway tells it, the impact came a moment later in Los Angeles when the band’s frontman Miles Goodwin laid down more guitars, including a solo. “He just plugged his guitar into the RAT [distortion] pedal, [straight] When connected to a console, you get that unique sound. ”

Listen to April Wine’s “Just Between You and Me.”

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They toured, sharing the stage with fellow Canadian hard rockers Triumph. Greenway says the tour so far has been great. “I knew about Gil.” [Moore] and rick [Emmett] “We’ve been together for years, but I never expected it to be like this in 2026,” he admitted. “I’m really happy they’re together again. It’s good for them. [them to be] I’m doing it. ”

“They’re drawing crowds. I didn’t know they had such a big following in America,” he said. “It’s like a rush, kind of like when we were playing them in the early days.” [days]it’s really nice for them to see that. it is [sign of] I certainly respect that. I’m really happy that not only Triumph but there are people who have been in their seats from the beginning of the show. There is also a lot of goodwill towards the tour. I’m glad to see the tour so far [so] success.

Will April Wine record new music?

The guitarist is about to celebrate his 50th anniversary with April Wine. It’s a milestone that came about in an interesting way that he might not have expected. He was the last remaining man in the group following the departure of Goodwin, who played his last concert with the band in March 2023 due to health issues and passed away in December of the same year.

The vocalist was able to help select his successor, Mark Parent, when he announced his plans to leave the band at the end of 2022. The singer joins a lineup that has been around for over a decade, with bassist Richard Lantier and drummer Roy Nichol completing the current version of the group.

Greenway says he’s very interested in the idea of ​​a new musical chapter with a rejuvenated group of rockers. “I love doing it. The chemistry in this outfit now, right down to the crew, I haven’t felt like the band has been this positive since the late ’70s when things started happening again,” he says.

“The band plans to continue.”

“I’m getting my hopes up. I hope they don’t get crushed again. You know, as can happen in this business, when Miles was here and alive, he owned the name, he owned the band, he was negotiating with the record companies,” Greenway explains. “Now that he’s not here anymore, we can’t go to negotiations because that’s all of his estate and it’s still being worked out.”

”[But the] The plan is to keep the band going, that’s what he wanted. I hope the four of us can get together and write,” he admits. Mark and I are very close. He looks a lot like me sometimes. We were like doing the same thing at the same time. ”

“It’s a little scary on stage, but it’s nice when it happens,” he enthuses. “It’s just a little fairy dust. If we do it, it won’t be for a while. And what comes out, I’d love to hear it, you know? It’s going to sound like April Wine, but it’s going to sound like us.”