Baltimora was an Italian music project active in the 1980s and featuring Jimmy McShane (May 23, 1957 - March 29, 1995), a Northern Irish dancer, singer, and songwriter. It is often considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom and the United States due to the success it experienced with its 1985 hit "Tarzan Boy" compared to its other singles. In other European countries, including Italy, Baltimora enjoyed more success. Despite McShane being the focus, the songs were mostly written and sung...
Baltimora was an Italian music project active in the 1980s and featuring Jimmy McShane (May 23, 1957 - March 29, 1995), a Northern Irish dancer, singer, and songwriter. It is often considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom and the United States due to the success it experienced with its 1985 hit "Tarzan Boy" compared to its other singles. In other European countries, including Italy, Baltimora enjoyed more success.
Despite McShane being the focus, the songs were mostly written and sung by Italian vocalist Maurizio Bassi, although controversy exists (as in many 'studio'-based groups) over McShane's level of co-singing and co-songwriting. The songs are considered a key example of the "italo disco" sound.
Baltimora first appeared during the summer of 1985, sweeping over Europe before finding release in the United States via EMI. The time it took for EMI to finally break "Tarzan Boy" in America resulted in the song earning a six month stay on the Hot 100, ultimately peaking at #13 in the early spring of 1986. His first album, 'Living in the Background', arrived some time later. The group, despite successful touring and frequent dance club plays, quickly fell off of the radar.
However, "Tarzan Boy" made a second run up the Hot 100 in the spring of 1993, climbing to #51 thanks to its appearance in the movie 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III'. No such resurgence occurred when the song appeared again in a movie a few years later in the 1997 Chris Farley comedy 'Beverly Hills Ninja'. "Tarzan Boy" did catch the attention of millions again in a Listerine commercial, which featured the song playing (minus the lead vocals) while a computer-animated bottle of blue minty mouthwash swung around on vines in a colorful digital jungle.
Jimmy McShane died on March 29, 1995 as a result of AIDS complications. Maurizio Bassi remained involved in the music industry, although finding mainstream success elusive. His son, Matteo Bassi, is also a musician. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
