Pretty Poison

Vocalist Jade Starling teamed up with keyboardist Whey Cooler in 1981 to launch Pretty Poison, a band based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Across subsequent recordings the lineup incorporated guitarist Lou Franco, drummer Bobby Corea—who was also Cooler’s younger brother—and percussionist David “Kaya” Pryor. The group’s first single, “Gimme Gimme Your Autograph,” issued that same year, delivered spiky new wave, yet Pretty Poison soon shifted toward a darker, synthesizer-heavy approach on the Tuxedomoon cover “No Tears” and the track “Expiration” before embracing freestyle-inspired club music. In 1984 “Nightime” climbed to number 14 on Billboard’s dance chart. Their follow-up single, “Catch Me I’m Falling,” did not surface until 1987, at which point it reached the top of the dance chart and entered the Top Ten on the Hot 100 after appearing on the soundtrack to Hiding Out. The band’s debut album, Catch Me I’m Falling, arrived on Virgin in 1988 and included a remixed version of “Nighttime.” Pretty Poison’s second full-length effort, the house-oriented Euphoria, followed in 1998. Starling maintained an active performing schedule and issued her debut solo album, Captive, in 2014.