Autograph was an American glam metal band from Los Angeles, California. Bes… Read Full Bio ↴Autograph was an American glam metal band from Los Angeles, California. Best known for their 1984 hit "Turn up the Radio" (with a music video that was a regular staple on MTV) and initially active from 1983 to 1989, the band was reformed during 2002-2005 by their founder Steve Plunkett and released albums in 2003. In late 2013, original members Steve Lynch, Randy Rand, and Keni Richards restarted the band.

Autograph formed in 1983 with vocalist/guitarist Steve Plunkett joining up with guitarist Steve Lynch, bassist Randy Rand, keyboard player Steven Isham, and drummer Keni Richards. The band seemed to have it all: a fine commercial hard rock debut in 1984's 'Sign in Please', good looks, and great hair. Still, it wasn't enough, and by the time they released the following year's disappointing 'That's the Stuff' the 80s rock audience had moved on. Their 1987 single "Loud and Clear" got a bit of attention, thanks to Ozzy Osbourne's cameo in their video, but it all arrived too late to save the band, which split up in 1989. A posthumous collection of outtakes called 'Missing Pieces' was released about a decade later.

Despite scoring a massive MTV hit with their very first single, "Turn Up the Radio", which continues to be a classic rock staple, Autograph's songs got lost in the shuffle of the thriving Los Angeles pop metal scene. Still, interest in their first big hit continues, with the song featured in a variety of places such as the popular 'Grand Theft Auto: Vice City' video game. In 2003, Steve Plunkett put out a reunion album of sorts: an all-new material album entitled 'Buzz', which retained their 80s sound. They've also released the odds and sods album 'More Missing Pieces'.

Reunion (2013–present)
In late 2013, original members Steve Lynch, Randy Rand, and Keni Richards got back together for a reunion. Due to Plunkett not being interested in doing the reunion, they have replaced him with Jailhouse, Agent X, Flood, 1RKO, solo artist singer/songwriter/guitarist Simon Daniels.

Since 2014, by which time Richards had been replaced by Mark Wieland on drums, the band has played the Monsters of Rock Cruise, M3 Rock Festival, The Moondance Jam, The Halfway Jam, Firefest UK, Rockin the Rivers, The Iowa State Fair along with other festivals, theaters and worldwide touring.

On January 15, 2015, they released their first single, "You Are Us, We Are You," on iTunes. On April 21, they released their 2nd single, "I Lost My Mind in America," which made the Top 10 download of the charts. In July, the band was featured in USA Today NEWS after playing the famous Halfway Jam Rock Festival. On September 23, the band released their 3rd single "Every Generation" and is featured as track of the week on Classic Rock Magazine. On January 7, 2016, the new 5 song EP 'Louder', with 4 original new singles and a live version of "Turn up the Radio", was released and is available on the official website.

On January 10, 2017, the band completed the recordings for the new full album which was released as 'Get Off Your Ass' on OCTOBER 6 after signing with EMP Label Group owned by David Ellefson.
On April 8, 2017, Keni Richards died at the age of 60.

On July 24, 2019, Steve Lynch decided to move on to other projects so the band added a new guitarist on August 27, 2019. Jimi Bell previously played in the House of Lords and Maxx Explosion. Bell appeared in the 1986 film, Light Of Day, where he was both a performer in the movie and played on the soundtrack album. He is an official endorsee of GHS Strings, Marshall Amps (Europe), Ovation Guitars, Roberts Guitars, Viper Guitars, Charvel Guitars and PVX Guitars.

Autograph‘s long-time bassist Randy Rand passed away in April 2022. Rand was in Autograph from 1983 to 1989 and again from 2013 onwards. He was the lone remaining original member in the band. Three of the five original Autograph band members have now passed away with Rand in 2022, keyboardist Steven Isham in 2008 and drummer Keni Richards in 2017.

Friday
Autograph Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Friday evening on the boulevard
All the boys hoping
That they'll met
All the girls
Standing on the street
Friday evening when
The lights come on
Everyone's in their Sunday best

Putting their purchase to the test

Friday evening on the boulevard
You can forget about the day
And you can be anyone to play
Friday evening when
The lights come on
Everyone gets their hopes up high
Reaching for the pie up in the sky

I can't wait til Friday evening
I can't wait til Friday
When the hope they live on
Becomes so bright (oh so bright)
I'll drink a toast to every Friday
(I'll drink a toast, yeah)
Friday night, whoaaoh Friday night

Friday evening on the boulevard
Everyone's wearing their disguise
Hiding the truth
That's in their eyes
Friday evening on the boulevard
When the lights come on
That's when the drink
Begins to flow
That's when the truth
Begins to show

I can't wait til Friday evening
I can't wait til Friday
When the hopes they live on
(Ba-ba-ba) Becomes (oh) so bright
I'll drink a toast to every Friday
(I'll drink a toast, yeah)
Friday night, whoaaoh Friday night
Aaaahhh

Friday [whispered]
I'm a good boy
Friday [whispered]
When the night gets hot
Friday [whispered]
On the boulevard, yeah
Friday [whispered]
I'm gonna take my shot

Whoaaoh
Friday evening on the boulevard
(Friday on the boulevard)
Friday evening on the boulevard
(Friday on the boulevard, yeah)
Friday evening on the boulevard
Whoaaoh, I'm gonna take my shot

Friday evening on the boulevard
When the night, when the night
When the night gets hot-ot-ot
Friday evening on the boulevard
Whoa

Friday evening (yeah)
On the boulevard

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Autograph's song "Friday" paint a picture of a bustling and exciting Friday evening on the boulevard. The boys are hoping to meet the girls, and everyone is dressed up in their Sunday best, putting their purchases to the test. As the lights come on, everyone's hopes get higher, reaching for that proverbial pie up in the sky. The lyrics also touch upon the idea of hiding the truth behind the facade of the different characters people portray on the boulevard, but ultimately, when the drink flows, the truth comes out, and people take their shot at having a good time.

The song seems to be an ode to the excitement and vivacity of Friday evenings, a time when people can forget about the stresses of the week and focus on having fun. The lyrics depict an almost romanticized version of Friday evenings, where anything is possible, and people can be whoever they want to be. The repetition of the phrase "I can't wait til Friday evening" serves to reinforce the idea of anticipation and builds up the excitement for the listener.

Interestingly, the repeated whisper of the word "Friday" throughout the song creates a sense of intrigue and almost secrecy, as if Friday has a special and mysterious significance that is reserved for the initiated. Overall, Autograph's "Friday" captures the essence of the anticipation and excitement of a Friday night out, where anything can happen.

Line by Line Meaning

Friday evening on the boulevard
The start of the weekend on the street where people dress their best and put their purchases to the test

All the boys hoping
Boys waiting for an opportunity to meet someone

That they'll met
They hope to meet someone special

All the girls
Girls standing on the street

Standing on the street
Girls waiting for someone to approach them

Friday evening when the lights come on
When the sun goes down and the streetlights turn on

Everyone's in their Sunday best
Everyone is dressed nicely and looking their best

Putting their purchase to the test
Wanting to show off their new purchases

You can forget about the day
You can leave the day behind and start fresh

And you can be anyone to play
You can be whoever you want to be

Everyone gets their hopes up high
Everyone is optimistic about the night

Reaching for the pie up in the sky
Everyone is striving for something bigger and better than what they currently have

I can't wait til Friday evening
Excitement for the start of the weekend

When the hope they live on becomes so bright (oh so bright)
The hope for a positive experience during the weekend becomes extremely high

I'll drink a toast to every Friday (I'll drink a toast, yeah)
Celebration of Fridays and the start of the weekend

Everyone's wearing their disguise
People are hiding their true selves with their outfit and persona

Hiding the truth that's in their eyes
People are not being honest about their true emotions

When the lights come on, that's when the drink begins to flow
When night falls, people start to drink and party

That's when the truth begins to show
Alcohol makes people more honest and revealing about their emotions and feelings

I'm a good boy
Commenting on being well-behaved during the week

When the night gets hot
When things start to get wild and exciting

On the boulevard, yeah
Specifically on this street, where people come to party

I'm gonna take my shot
I'm going to put myself out there and try to have a good time

When the night gets hot-ot-ot
Repeating the idea that when things get exciting and wild

Friday evening on the boulevard
The start of the weekend on the street where people dress their best and put their purchases to the test

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MICHAEL ANTOINE CROOMS, JERRY DUPLESSIS, DEONGELO HOLMES, ERIC JACKSON, WYCLEF JEAN

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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