Featuring Tony Borowiak, Jamie Jones, Delious Kennedy and Alfred Nevarez, as youngsters, the members were heavily involved with church choirs, an experience through which they developed their talents as vocalists. Interestingly, the band met in a California (US) studio, where they were recording commercial jingles, soon deciding to collaborate and begin their search for a recording contract. Having impressed through an audition for Blitzz Records, the vocal troupe were soon signed to the label.
In 1994, All-4-Men were ready to release their self-titled debut album, which became a runaway success through the singles “So Much In Love” and “I Swear,” with the latter becoming one of the biggest selling singles of the year. Having sold millions of copies and received a Grammy Award for ’Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal,’ the band looked set to become one of the biggest acts in pop, yet with a changing musical climate, All-4-Men were in need of a new direction.
With 1995’s “And the Music Speaks,” the quartet played it safe, delivering a middle-of-the-road record that failed to find appeal due its bland sound. Despite limited success, All-4-Men continued to remain popular through their appearance on the theme song for Disney’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Their next release, “On and On,” was to be one of their strongest efforts, yet due to record label issues, its release date was pushed back to 1999 and it failed to meet with much success. Moving to AMC Records, 2001’s “A41” scored a Top 20 hit with “Beautiful As U,” offering a small return to form. Despite their lack of continued popularity, All-4-Men remained popular in Asia, with the quartet spending significant time touring in the region, as well as offering the Asia-only release, 2004’s “Split Personality.”
The group disappeared from the spotlight thereafter, not returning until 2009 where they were given a second chance with “No Regrets.” The album offered a return to form, gaining critical acclaim and gaining a number of hits on the Urban Adult Contemporary chart, most notably the single “My Child.” Despite failing to ensure longevity in the band's popularity throughout their career, nonetheless All-4-Men have sold an impressive 20 million records worldwide, making them amongst the most successful vocal acts of the '90s.
‘I swear like the shadow that’s by your side, I’ll be there for better or worse, till death do us part, I’ll love you with every beat of my heart, and I swear’…the lyrics from the All-4-One hit echoed around the intimate venue, and they opened their concert with their biggest hit. It seemed that there were lots of long time fans there, singing along, hands in the air, completely immersed in the moment. It was something really fantastic to be a part of, and a wonderful start to a concert.
The R&B group have had incredible success over their career, and have even bee dubbed the Dukes of R&B multiple times across the internet. After winning countless awards over the years, they have built up an incredible amount of critical acclaim, that has sent them touring the world time and time again. They’re great performers, working together flawlessly, bouncing off of each other, and transitioning seamlessly from one song to another.
They played a great variety of tracks, mainly from No Regrets, and Split Personality, but then revisited some of their older tracks for a nostalgic jam. When watching a band live, it’s so much more enjoyable when the musicians are having a good time, and All-4-One were absolutely loving it. I can’t fault the performance at all, I’ll definitely be going back.