About Train
Train is an American rock band which formed in 1994 in San Francisco, California. In the present the band is composed of Patrick Monahan (lead vocalist), Jimmy Stafford (guitar) and
Scott Underwood (drummer).
After the dissolution of his Led Zeppelin cover band, Train vocalist Pat Monahan decided to leave his hometown Erie and in 1993 he came to California. Here is where he met Rob Hotchkiss, the future backing vocals of Train. At that time Hotchkiss played in coffee houses and local clubs and had been the lead singer of the LA band “Apostles”. At first Monahan and Hotchkiss played together as a duo, with Monahan lead voice and Hotchkiss baking vocals and guitar.
After some time they decided to form a full band so they recruited Jimmy Stafford on guitar, Charlie Colin on bass and Scott Underwood on drums, becoming the band named Train in 1994.
The following two years were spent by the band performing in San Francisco, but they did not manage to get signed by a major label.
In 1996 they were refused by Columbia Records. This motivated the band to release a CD independently. They began working on their first studio album and looked for gigs which would make them known to the public. In 1997 they began to tour nationally and open for major bands such as Barenaked Ladies, Cracker and Counting Crows.
Their first album was self financed and had a different song listing than its label one and was produced with a budget of $25000. Their success grew and after hearing the album Columbia records agreed to sign Train under Aware Records.
The band’s success grew, but in 2002, founding Member Rob Hotchkiss decided to leave the band in pursuit of a solo career.
From 2005 to 2009 the band had different problems, but 2009 brought them a new start in the musical career.
