The Big Hit April Wine Struggled to Finish

One of April Wine’s most beloved songs was also one of the most difficult ones they ever put to tape.

As you think back to every time you went skating at the roller rink or turned the volume up just a little bit louder on their power ballad, “Just Between You and Me,” realize that you might have had a different soundtrack, due to the circumstances.

Which would have been a shame, because when it came out, “Just Between You and Me” became April Wine’s third Top 40 hit in the United States, arriving in the midst of a blitz of successful tracks at radio in the early ’80s. An additional milestone of note — it was the 14th video played when MTV launched in August of 1981.

It was also the first song by a Canadian rock group played on the fledgeling channel. Peaking at No. 21 on the Billboard charts, it remains the band’s most popular single in the U.S.

READ MORE: 10 Classic Rock Acts That Benefited From MTV’s Launch

“The simplest songs can be the hardest to do,” guitarist Brian Greenway tells UCR now regarding the track, which appeared on the band’s ninth studio album, 1981’s The Nature of the Beast. “Just getting the drum track just right, it must have been about four or five hours.”

Listen to Brian Greenway of April Wine on the ‘UCR Podcast’

How They Finally Finished ‘Just Between You and Me’

“[Drummer] Jerry [Mercer], I don’t know if he wasn’t in the right frame of mind that day, but he’d get something right, [but then have issues] with something else,” he explains. “I was playing rhythm guitar — and there was just a guide guitar with bass. I finally gave up, because I wasn’t getting the right feel with it either.”

“So [April Wine guitarist] Gary [Moffet], the king of tempo and rhythm playing, came in and they got that track,” he recalls. “Then, we could proceed to put guitars and more guide vocals [down] and then finish it up.”

The icing, as Greenway shares, came at the moment when the band’s frontman, Myles Goodwyn, put down more guitars, including the solo, later in Los Angeles. “He just plugged his guitar into a RAT [distortion] pedal, [straight] into the console to get that unique sound.”

Listen to April Wine’s ‘Just Between You and Me’

What’s April Wine Doing in 2026?

They’re out on the road sharing the stage with fellow Canadian hard rockers Triumph. Greenway says that the tour has been incredible so far. “I knew Gil [Moore] and Rik [Emmett] from years ago, but I never thought we’d be doing this in 2026,” he admits. “I’m really happy they got back together. It’s good for them for [them to be] doing it.”

“They’re drawing the crowds. I never knew that they had such a big following in the U.S.,” he shares. “It’s kind of like Rush, the same way we were playing with back them in the early [days], I’m really happy to see that for them. It’s a [sign of] respect for sure. People are in their seats from the beginning of the show to see us as well as Triumph, so I’m really happy about that. There’s a lot of goodwill towards the tour. It’s nice to see a tour that’s been [so] successful.

Will April Wine Record New Music?

The guitarist is nearing his 50th year with April Wine. It’s a milestone that comes in an interesting way he might not have expected. He’s the last man standing with the group, following the departure of Goodwyn, who played his final concert with the band in March of 2023 due to health issues and died that same year in December.

The vocalist was able to help select his replacement, Marc Parent, in late 2022 at the time that he announced his plans to leave. The singer joined a lineup that has been in place for more than a decade, with bassist Richard Lanthier and drummer Roy Nichol rounding out the current version of the group.

Greenway says he’s very keen on the idea of adding a new musical chapter with the rejuvenated rockers. “I sure love to do it. The chemistry in this outfit now, even down to the crew, I haven’t felt this way about the band being so positive since the late 70s, when we were starting to happen again,” he says.

‘The Plans are for the Band to Keep Going’

“I’m getting my hopes up. I hope they’re not dashed again. You know, it can happen in this business, but when Myles was here and alive, he owned the name, he owned the band and he would negotiate the record companies,” Greenway explains. “Now he’s not here anymore, so that’s all his estate and it’s still being settled, so we can’t go out and get a deal.”

“[But the] plans are for the band to keep going, that’s what he wanted. I hope that we can get together, the four of us, and write,” he admits. “Because there’s a chemistry again, like I said. Marc and I get along great. He’s a lot like me at times. We’d sort of do the same things at the same times.”

“It’s kind of scary on stage, but it’s neat that happens, you know,” he enthuses. “It’s just the little fairy dust. If we do, it won’t be for a while. And what comes out, I’d love to hear that, you know? It’s gonna sound like April Wine, but it’s gonna sound like us.”