Italian dance music ensemble Black Box was well-known in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Currently, the ensemble consists of DJ Daniele Davoli, clarinet instructor Valerio Semplici with a background in classical music, keyboardist and electronic artist Mirko Limoni, and soprano Celestine Walcott-Gordon. In 1989, Katrin Quinol, a French fashion model, joined the band Black Box and was named the group’s official face.
She appeared on the covers of their single and album releases as well as in music videos, including the smash “Ride on Time,” which had the greatest sales in the UK that year. It was discovered the following year that Quinol was lip-syncing and had not actually performed on the recording.
The majority of the songs on the band’s debut album, Dreamland, were performed by uncredited American singer Martha Wash.
Why is it called Ride on Time?
Black Box, an Italian dance band, is the author of the song “Ride on Time.” It was included on Black Box’s debut album, Dreamland, as a single in July 1989.
“Ride on Time” was an attempt, according to The Black Box member Daniele Davioli, to make a dance track with the force of a rock song.
The original version made use of an unauthorized vocal sample from Loleatta Holloway’s 1980 single “Love Sensation.”
Following legal action by the copyright holders, the song was re-released with new vocals by Heather Small, who later achieved prominence as the lead singer of M People.
Black Box engaged the model Katrin Quinol to imitate the vocals for appearances on television.
Discomagic Records published “Ride on Time” in Italy. The DJs Paul Oakenfold and Danny Rampling helped make it popular in the UK after it was released by Deconstruction.
It became the bestselling single in the UK in 1989 and spent six weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart.
It also peaked at the top of the charts in Iceland and Ireland and made it into the top 10 in a number of other European nations.
“Ride on Time” has been listed among the top house songs by reviewers, and the Guardian called it one of the greatest UK number ones in 2020.
