Singer/guitarist
Steve DeMarchi and lead vocalist
Freddy Curci, both former members of the deceased Canadian band
Sheriff, pulled together during the mid-'80s to write and record over four dozen demo songs. In 1988, guitarist
Roger Fisher, bassist
Steve Fossen, and drummer
Michael Derosier, all former members of the hit group
Heart, joined up with
Curci and
DeMarchi to form a new, short-lived rock band called
Alias.
In 1990,
Alias released its first album, a self-titled debut recorded under the Capitol Records label. The polished album went gold in the U.S. and platinum in Canada, while several tracks enjoyed radio airplay in both countries. The power ballad "More Than Words Can Say" proved to be the band's biggest hit, climbing to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 while also doing well in adult contemporary and mainstream rock formats. A tour followed (including a stint as the opening act for
REO Speedwagon), but
Alias fell apart not long after the album's release, with the former
Heart musicians leaving en masse. Rumors of a reunion circulated for some time but never came to fruition.
–
Charlotte Dillon, Rovi