Country Pop Bites: Emerson Drive – June 16

Did you know that on this day in Country Music History in 2007 Emerson Drive scored its first #1 single on the Billboard country chart with "Moments"?

It’s true! Check out the video!

Here are 5 little known truths about Emerson Drive.

• The band consists of 5 Canadian men: Brad Mates, Danick Dupelle, Dale Wallace, Mike Melancon and David Pichette.
• Emerson Drive was formed under the name of 12 Gauge in February 1995 when Brad Mates entered a talent contest at his local high school in Grande Prairie, Alberta. In 1996, the group entered a local "Battle of the Bands" contest and won the opportunity to write and record an EP titled Open Season.
• As the band had been finding success in Canada, they decided to move to Nashville, Tennessee for an American record deal. When attempting to gain a record contract in Nashville, the group was forced to change their name due to an American rap group already owning the name 12 Gauge. The band settled on Emerson Drive, which was named for the Emerson Trail that crosses Western Alberta and joins the Alaskan Highway.
• Patrick Bourque, formerly the band's bass guitarist, resigned from the band in August 2007 for an unknown reason. On September 26, of that same year, he was found dead in his Montreal, Quebec home. At the time, the cause of death was not released by police and was eventually determined to be a suicide.
• The band has a lot of former members including: Pat Allingham - fiddle (1995-2003), Hartman - keyboards (1995-2003), Jeff Loberg - bass (1995-2002), Dan Binns - guitars (1995-1998), David Switzer - guitars (1995-1998), Barre - drums (1995-1998), Kuzemchuk - drums (1998), Dan Bauman - guitars (1998), Patrick Bourque - bass (2002-2007; died 2007).