As CDB's regular spokesman and all-round charmer, Gary Pinto, observes: 'When we first started about eight years ago, there was only rock and it was so hard to play R&B to people. It was very difficult to become accepted but now it's diversified so much with the club scene, with people going out more and more to nightclubs and bars and whatever and hearing different kinds of music ... a kid could like Pearl Jam and at the same time they could like Boyz II Men. It's so broad in scope.'

When CDB's first album, "Glide With Me", debuted in 1995, it out charted every other major rock and pop artist -- Madonna, the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. "Glide With Me" went on to produce four hit singles, achieve platinum status and even made Top 5 in France. Mounting respect for CDB's talent, locally and within the international music community, was never more apparent than last December when in the space of one month the guys supported Boyz II Men on their Australian tour and performed alongside Eric Burdon and Thelma Houston in The British Rock Symphony. Julian Lennon was so impressed with CDB when they did a couple of shows with him during his 1998 Oz tour, that he offered to help them get a UK release for their latest album, "Lifted".

Perhaps one of the main reasons CDB has been so successful in taking R&B into the mainstream locally, however, is that they have established an Australian signature for the sound rather than simply emulating overseas acts. R&B CDB style, for example, is more about upbeat rhythms, infectious grooves and getting sweaty, than the mellow, stripped back, sparse sounds of American groups. Ironically, the fact that CDB has broadened the appeal of R&B may have cost them airplay with radio stations that cultivate an 'alternative' image.

Says Gary: 'At any given time if you don't suit the radio station's playlist, then you don't get on. That's the hard thing, especially when you put so much time into writing material, getting it to sound right, getting it sounding the way you want it to. It's a game of chance there.'

One station, that rarely if ever plays CDB is national government-funded broadcaster Triple J -- a station with a mandate to support local talent. Of Triple J Gary says: 'Perhaps they think we're too commercial for them. I really don't know ... When we first released our stuff it was so hard to get on the radio. Triple J were apparently gonna play our stuff but when we started getting on the radio they turned off. We never heard our songs on Triple J, so its Catch 22. What do you do? You just keep on writing music that you enjoy and you feel is good and it will get out there hopefully. If it is God's will it will get out there.'

CDB's latest effort, "Lifted", offers more of their good vibes sound. It was re-released late last year, complete with new artwork and a new video, following the departure of Andrew De Silva for a solo career. Original members Gary Pinto, his brother Brad and Danny Williams have been joined by their friend, Jude Nicholas, who has previously worked with Peter Andre and East 17.

"Lifted" -- largely produced by the Rock Melons who also worked on the group's first album -- has all of CDB's recent hit singles: "Let It Whip" (a Dazz Band cover), "Good Times", "Back Then" and their latest single "So Badd". Despite the change in lineup, CDB have, if anything, refined their vocal tightness and smooth harmonies, which Gary says has a lot more to do with their close friendship than hours of practise. "We practise, together -- not as much as we should -- but a fair bit. We pray a lot together, I guess. I think the main thing is that we're friends and we can hang out together. We're always doing things together. It's more of a friendship rather than a business association. When you have a friendship you blend and you jell together, you click together you know what each other is thinking before it's thought. So a lot of things, especially with the blend, and things like that, happen because of the friendship.'

CDB are already working on their next album which Gary says will be all live instruments and focus on the vocals. 'More the singer-song, rather than the song tagging itself,' he says. 'Like Donny Hathaway, to be able to sing a song rather than the song dictating what you have to sing. That's the way we're writing at the moment.'

In the mean time, CDB have put down a cover of the Temptations/Diana Ross song "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" for R&B/soul national treasure Renee Geyer. The track, which also features Paul Kelly's band, will appear on her new album and may be released as a single. 'It's an old school sound, done with a full orchestra', says Gary. 'It sounds fantastic!'

"Lifted" and its current single "So Badd" are out now through Sony. Renee Geyer's new album featuring "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" was released on 1 March through Mushroom.