Editing Pat Travers (section)

===Rise to popularity===
During 1977, Travers added a second guitarist to his band, changed drummers twice including using [[Clive Edwards]], and by the time ''[[Heat in the Street]]'' was released in 1978 had put together the '''Pat Travers Band'''.<ref name="Larkin"/> This grouping featured Travers on vocals and guitar, [[Pat Thrall]] on guitar, Cowling on bass, and [[Tommy Aldridge]] on drums and percussion.<ref name="Larkin"/> The band toured heavily, also supporting [[Rush (band)|Rush]] on their ''Drive til You Die'' tour in support of ''[[A Farewell to Kings]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Popoff|first=Martin|title=Contents Under Pressure: 30 Years of Rush at Home and Away|publisher=ECW|year=2004|page=[https://archive.org/details/contentsunderpre0000popo/page/62 62]|url=https://archive.org/details/contentsunderpre0000popo|url-access=registration|isbn=978-1-55022-678-2}}</ref>

The guitar Travers most often appeared with on stage and on album covers in the band's early years was a 1964/65 model double cutaway, double [[humbucker]] pick-up Gibson Melody Maker. The band's next release was a live album entitled ''[[Live! Go for What You Know]]'', which charted in the Top 40 in the United States and included the tune "Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights)" (originally recorded by [[Little Walter]], credited to Stan Lewis), which climbed even higher on the charts, entering the Top 20. "[[Snortin' Whiskey]]" was a major American radio hit from 1980's ''[[Crash and Burn (Pat Travers Band album)|Crash and Burn]]''.

After an appearance before 35,000 people at the [[Reading Music Festival]] in England, both Thrall and Aldridge announced they were leaving the band to pursue other projects.<ref name="Larkin"/> Travers and Cowling teamed up with drummer [[Sandy Gennaro]] and released ''[[Radio Active (Pat Travers album)|Radio Active]]''<ref name="Larkin"/> that same year. A co-headlining tour with [[Rainbow (rock band)|Rainbow]] followed, and the two bands performed in major arenas across North America. Although the tour was Travers' most successful road outing, the ''Radio Active'' album barely made it into the Top 40, reaching only number 37.<ref name="Pat Travers Allmusic Album ''Radioactive'' review">{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/r51416/charts-awards|title=Billboard records reviews for Pat Travers' album, ''Radioactive''|year=2012|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=March 14, 2012}}</ref>

It was very different from Travers' previous work, with more emphasis on keyboards than heavy guitars. Disappointed with the lack of sales, [[Polydor Records|Polydor]] dropped Travers from their roster, and he in turn sued the record company on grounds that he was under contract with them to record more material. He won the lawsuit, and was able to release ''Black Pearl'' in 1982.

This release also featured more mainstream music rather than the hard-driving rock Travers had recorded earlier, and included the hit single "I La La La Love You", featured prominently on mainstream Top 40 and album oriented rock stations, and in the 1983 film ''[[Valley Girl (1983 film)|Valley Girl]]''. ''Hot Shot'' was Travers' last major label release of original music, and was a return to a harder-edge style of rock than his previous two albums had been. One of Travers' best-recorded projects, it went basically unnoticed and is best remembered for the single "Killer". It was during this time that Travers also released ''Just Another Killer Day'', a 30-minute home video featuring music from ''Hot Shot'' that was a [[Science fiction|sci-fi]] type short story about sexy alien women searching for information on music here on earth. In 1984, Travers was again supporting Rush. [[Alex Lifeson]] is one of Travers' many admirers.<ref>{{cite book| last = Popoff| first = Martin| title = Contents Under Pressure: 30 Years of Rush at Home and Away | publisher = ECW| year = 2004 | page = [https://archive.org/details/contentsunderpre0000popo/page/116 116]| url = https://archive.org/details/contentsunderpre0000popo| url-access = registration| isbn  = 978-1-55022-678-2}}</ref>

Before the release of ''Hot Shot'', longtime bassist Cowling left the band, and Travers would work with several different bassists including Cliff Jordan and Donni Hughes until Cowling's return in 1989. [[Jerry Riggs]], who had joined the Pat Travers Band in 1983, helped Travers create a guitar team that fans considered difficult to rival.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Larkin |first1=Colin |title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Heavy Rock |publisher=Virgin Books |isbn=0-7535-0257-7 |page=370 |edition=1999 |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encyclopedia_of_Popular_Music}}</ref> After ''Hot Shot''{{'}}s release in 1984, [[Polydor]] made plans to issue a greatest hits package, and then ended their relationship with Travers.

The latter half of the 1980s were quite gruelling for Travers. Having entered the decade at the top of the music game, he found himself in 1986 without a record contract and being forced to earn a living once again playing nightclubs and touring constantly. By 1990, he had gained a deal with a small European label and released ''School of Hard Knocks''.<ref name="Larkin"/> The project was completely ignored by radio. A full-length concert video, ''Boom Boom – Live at the Diamond Club 1990,'' was shot in Toronto, to be released on CD as ''Boom Boom'' next year, but Travers was still not able to return to the success he had ten years earlier, working only on indie labels, as with Lemon Recordings.