Surface was an American rhythm and blues and pop music group from the mid 1980s to the early 1990s best known for its #1 pop & R&B hit "The First Time." The three piece soul vocal group formed in the mid-80's by songwriter David Townsend (son of singer/songwriter Ed Townsend (Marvin Gaye "Let's Get It On")), multi-instrumentalist David “Pic” Conley and singer/songwriter/lead vocalist Bernard Jackson. The trio called themselves Surface and began recording their own material, releasing several Post-disco/early-80s-style tracks under the Surface name. They would find moderate success in the UK with their singles "Falling in Love" in 1983 and "When Your Ex Wants You Back" in 1984 (according to the Allmusic, "Falling in Love" also cracked the U.S. R&B chart, peaking at #84). With a sound more reminiscent of Kashif and related early 1980s soul groups, these early singles contrast significantly with the smoother, ballad-style material that would later make the group successful in the States.
The trio then moved to Los Angeles, California, searching for more mainstream success. Its song "Let's Try Again" came to the attention of Larkin Arnold of Columbia Records, who signed the band and released this track as a single in 1986. Their self-titled debut album followed in 1987, featuring two more hit singles: "Happy," which hit #2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, and "Lately," which hit #8.
Its follow-up album, 2nd Wave, was released in 1989 and packed some of the group's biggest hits. "I Missed" reached #3 on the R&B charts, "Closer Than Friends" was the group's first #1 hit, topping the R&B charts for two weeks, and "Can We Spend Some Time" which reached #5 on the R&B charts. The album featured two other #1 R&B hits, "You Are My Everything" which topped the charts for two weeks and the album's biggest hit, "Shower Me With Your Love" which went gold, reached #1 on the R&B charts and #5 on the Billboard Hot 100.