The Jets (Minnesota band)

The Jets are a family band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, which is comprised of various siblings who specialize in pop, R&B and dance music.

The Band

The original band consisted of the eight oldest children of Maikeli "Mike" and Vaké Wolfgramm:

LeRoy (born Jul 19,1965) - electric guitar
Eddie (born Aug 14,1966) - tenor saxophone, percussion
Eugene (born Sept 24,1967) - vocals, conga, alto saxophone
Haini (born Jan 25, 1968) - bass guitar
Rudy (born Mar 1,1969) - drums
Kathi (born Sept 6,1970) - keyboards, percussion
Elizabeth (born Aug 19,1972) - vocals, keyboards
Moana (born Oct 13, 1973) - vocals, keyboards

Mike and Vaké, who have 17 children in total, are originally from the South Pacific island kingdom of Tonga. The family is of Tongan and German ancestry.

Hits

The original members of The Jets had a number of Hot 100 hits in the mid- to late-1980s, including five Top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart: "Crush On You", "You Got It All", "Cross My Broken Heart", "Rocket 2 U", and "Make It Real". "Sendin' All My Love", which peaked at #88 on the Hot 100, reached #1 on the Billboard dance chart; "You Got It All" and "Make It Real", both ballads featuring lead vocals by Elizabeth Wolfgramm, were #1 hits on the Billboard adult contemporary chart. The band was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1988 for the song "Rocket 2 U".

Other Projects

In 1988, Eugene Wolfgramm (under the alias "Gene Hunt") and Joe Pasquale formed the duo Boys Club on the MCA Records label. ("I Remember Holding You," Hot 100 #8). Eugene later reunited for the album The Best of The Jets (1990), but he and other siblings (Eddie, Elizabeth, Kathi) eventually left the band in succession. The band also performed the theme song for the 1989 Disney cartoon series Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, and were featured in the soundtrack for Beverly Hills Cop 2 (1987) ("Cross My Broken Heart") and The Karate Kid Part III ("Under Any Moon"). In 2007, Kathi, Elizabeth and Moana, along with sisters Jennifer and Hinalei release a gospel themed album called My Sisters.

Sporting Event Performances

They performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the seventh game of the 1987 World Series, held in their hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The band also performed at both the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea and the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Rupert Holmes

Their 1986 hit "You Got It All" was written and composed by Rupert Holmes, famous for his hit "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" and for his Tony Award-winning musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Holmes also penned a few other songs for The Jets but none were as successful as their first collaboration.

Appreciation

American pop singer Britney Spears recorded a cover version of "You Got It All" which appears on international editions of her 2000 hit album "Oops!...I Did It Again". Also, musical artists Arnee Hidalgo, Pinay and MYMP have covered the same song. Pop singer Aaron Carter covered their song "Crush On You" on his first album, which became a Top 10 single in Australia, Germany and the United Kingdom in 1997. Singer Nayobe recorded a version of the song "Make It Real" which became a hit in Latin America.

Lineup & Music Changes

Throughout the 1990s, the band introduced other members of the family to the band and turned more toward religious music, increasing their following among fellow Mormons. The current lineup includes founding member Haini, and younger siblings Donnie, Natalia, Kelela, and Tiare. Though The Jets rarely perform, some members are still busy in the music business. With the older sisters' group "My Sisters", to Haini's group "I'Kona", to the younger sibilings' (Mika, Donnie, Kelela, and Tiare) called "Against The Season", the family continues to find the love of music in all forms.

Discography

Albums

The Jets (1985) MCA #19 US - RIAA Platinum
Christmas With The Jets (1986) MCA
Magic (1987) MCA #35 US - RIAA Platinum
Believe (1989) MCA #107 US - RIAA Gold
The Best of The Jets (1990) MCA
Love People (1995) Liberty Park
Love Will Lead The Way (1997) Shadow Mountain
Then & Now (1998) KTEL
20th Century Masters - Millennium Collection (2001) UME
All Their Best (2003) KTEL
Versatility (All digital release) (2006) UME
Greatest Hits Live (2007) SONY

Singles

Year	Title	US Pop	US Dance	US R&B	US AC
1985	"Curiosity"	-	21	8	-
1986	"Crush On You"	3	4	4	-
1987	"Private Number"	47	-	28	-
1987	"You Got It All"	3	-	2	1
1987	"Cross My Broken Heart"	7	8	11	-
1987	"I Do You"	20	-	19	-
1988	"Rocket 2 U"	6	3	5	-
1988	"Make It Real"	4	-	24	1
1988	"Sendin' All My Love"	88	1	72	-
1988	"Anytime"	-	-	98	-
1989	"You Better Dance"	59	28	73	-
1989	"The Same Love"	87	-	-	15
1989	"Somebody To Love Me"	-	-	89	35
1990	"Special Kinda Love"	-	-	83	-

External links

[1] CrushOnTheJets.com - fansite