Artist · chart history
Rough Trade
Band Toronto Canada Active 1974–1988 Canadian band
Rough Trade formed in 1974 in Toronto, Canada and was active until 1988. Rough Trade has 3 chart appearances on 1 radio countdown from 1 station on RockLists, spanning 1999. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “High School Confidential”, which appears on 1 list with a best position of #379. The station that charted Rough Trade most often is CFNY 102.1 The Edge (Toronto, ON), with 3 appearances.
Toronto's Rough Trade never met a taboo they didn't want to poke with a stick. At the center stood Carole Pope, singing lead and playing guitar, and Kevan Staples on guitars and keyboards, cooking up a sleek, chilly backdrop for her. Pope liked to take the stage in bondage gear, and the lyrics were every bit as provocative as the wardrobe.
Around them the lineup kept turning over: Rick Gratton, then Bucky Berger, then Jørn Andersen on drums; Terry Wilkins and later Howard Ayee on bass; Michael Fonfara and Patricia Cullen on keyboards. Their records came out on True North, with Avoid Freud in 1980, For Those Who Think Young in 1981 and Shaking the Foundations in 1982.
"High School Confidential" was their hit, a song about lesbian desire that went Top 40 and stands among the first anywhere to be that explicit about it, and "All Touch" and "Crimes of Passion" kept the needle in the red. The band called it a day in 1988.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Rough Trade on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | High School Confidential | 1 | #379 | – | – | |
| 2 | All Touch | 1 | #613 | – | – | |
| 3 | Crimes of Passion | 1 | #920 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 379 | High School Confidential | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) |
| 1999 | 613 | All Touch | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) |
| 1999 | 920 | Crimes of Passion | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) |
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