Brad Roberts
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Brad Roberts (born Bradley Kenneth Roberts, on January 10, 1964 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is the lead singer and guitarist for Canadian rockers Crash Test Dummies.
His career began with Bachelor's degree with Honors from University of Winnipeg in 1986. Roberts began his musical career as a house band player for the Blue Note Cafe in Winnipeg under the moniker “Bad Brad Roberts and the St. James Rhythm Pigs". The band gradually evolved into The Crash Test Dummies. While studying at university and working as a bartender for The Spectrum, Brad began writing his own songs and introducing them to the band. After attending a songwriters workshop with Lyle Lovett at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, Brad wrote "Superman's Song".
Demos of Brad's songs began falling into the right hands around Canada,and the quirky bar band who had just begun to write original material found itself face to face with several big-gun recording people and record deal options, which catapulted The Crash Test Dummies into a rushed but never-the-less impressive first album, The Ghosts that Haunt Me. The album introduced this unique, creative band to the rest of the Canadian provinces, selling over 400,000 copies in Canada alone and also garnished a 1991 Juno Award for Group of the Year. With more time and finances to stretch and breathe, Brad set about to writing the band's second album, God Shuffled His Feet. This to date is the band's best selling and most popular album, driving them into the international arena of musical exposure. A masterpiece of philosophical questioning and observation, God Shuffled His Feet has sold over 6 million copies and caused The Crash Test Dummies to be nominated for three Grammy Awards in 1994.
A Worm’s Life was released in 1996, selling over 1 million copies and showcasing a bit of a hard edge sound as the band continued to evolve and grow, producing this album on their own.
1999 introduced a highly creative mix of electronic funk and spontaneous wordplay with Give Yourself A Hand. Brad met Greg Wells at a songwriter's workshop and invited him to co-write and assist in recording this highly polished and very different album inspired by influences and flavours of Brads new home in Harlem, New York City.
Brad found himself in the year 2000 recuperating from a major car accident in Nova Scotia, where he began jamming with the locals and produced from these sessions I Don't Care That You Don't Mind. This was the first album released by the band independent of a major recording label. As they toured internationally on their own legs, Brad described it as "fine as wine" and a great relief to record and tour without the pressure of big record label bosses.
Brad now lives with his wife in SoHo, NYC where he continues to write and record his music. He has had many artistic opportunities to work with other artists such as Joe Jackson, Scotty Hard, Greg Wells, Deltron 3030, and Medeski Martin & Wood.
Puss N Boots was released in October 2003 with a Euro and additional American version. This album brought a more hard edge sound and sexy lyrics. Released on October 12, 2004 the acoustic "Songs of the Unforgiven", recorded at Sacred Heart Church in Duluth, Minnesota and is described by Brad as reflective and 'hymn-like'.
On VH1's I Love the 90s miniseries, Roberts stated that his deep voice is a result of having a third testicle.