swingbeat trio from Oakland, California, was formed by brothers Dwayne (b. 14 February 1963, Oakland, California, USA; lead vocals, guitar) and Raphael Wiggins (b. 14 May 1966, Oakland, California, USA; lead vocals/bass), and their cousin Timothy Christian (b. 10 December 1965, Oakland, California, USA; drums). They arrived with "Little Walter' in 1988, a US R&B number 1 hit, which combined the best traditions of soul with new-age rap. The trio remained at their most successful when moving, unceremoniously, from tight, gospel-tinged harmonics to assured, laconic hip-hop, as on 1990"s hit, "It Never Rains In Southern California". Despite their high profile (notably as support on Janet Jackson's 1993 US tour), they still retained a sense of propriety and musical history. Christian played for his church when at home, while Raphael made his public debut at age seven playing bass with his father's semi-professional blues band. Their name (pronounced "Tony' on each of the three occurrences) was taken from a character they invented when they went out shopping to buy vintage clothing. After four albums of high-quality, modern R&B the trio split-up to concentrate on solo projects. Dwayne Wiggins was the first member to release a solo album with March 2000"s Motown Records debut, Eyes Never Lie. His brother, going under the name of Raphael Saadiq, teamed up with DJ Ali Shaheed Muhammad (ex-A Tribe Called Quest) and Dawn Robinson (ex-En Vogue) in the R&B "supergroup" Lucy Pearl, before also embarking on a solo career."> finetune artist: Tony! Toni! Tone!
Tony! Toni! Tone!
This swingbeat trio from Oakland, California, was formed by brothers Dwayne (b. 14 February 1963, Oakland, California, USA; lead vocals, guitar) and Raphael Wiggins (b. 14 May 1966, Oakland, California, USA; lead vocals/bass), and their cousin Timothy Christian (b. 10 December 1965, Oakland, California, USA; drums). They arrived with "Little Walter' in 1988, a US R&B number 1 hit, which combined the best traditions of soul with new-age rap. The trio remained at their most successful when moving, unceremoniously, from tight, gospel-tinged harmonics to assured, laconic hip-hop, as on 1990"s hit, "It Never Rains In Southern California". Despite their high profile (notably as support on Janet Jackson's 1993 US tour), they still retained a sense of propriety and musical history. Christian played for his church when at home, while Raphael made his public debut at age seven playing bass with his father's semi-professional blues band. Their name (pronounced "Tony' on each of the three occurrences) was taken from a character they invented when they went out shopping to buy vintage clothing. After four albums of high-quality, modern R&B the trio split-up to concentrate on solo projects. Dwayne Wiggins was the first member to release a solo album with March 2000"s Motown Records debut, Eyes Never Lie. His brother, going under the name of Raphael Saadiq, teamed up with DJ Ali Shaheed Muhammad (ex-A Tribe Called Quest) and Dawn Robinson (ex-En Vogue) in the R&B "supergroup" Lucy Pearl, before also embarking on a solo career.

Listen to Tony! Toni! Tone! at Finetune.

Albums
Top Tracks
  • Anniversary
  • (Lay Your Head On My) Pillow
  • It Never Rains (In Southern California)
  • Whatever You Want
  • Feels Good
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Comments
  • VALlewellyn on 2007-11-21 12:10:22.680:
    Holy smokes and Gee Whiz....one of the most beautiful, "send you right there..." songs of the last decade. The Tony's were and are one of the greatest bands ever!
  • Kpunky89 on 2007-10-10 16:59:39.763:
    They are one of the greatest groups ever
  • VALlewellyn on 2007-09-21 20:33:01.560:
    they are the soundtrak of my life!
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