The Verve

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Not to be confused with The Verve Pipe.

The Verve

The Verve performing at Madison Square Garden in 2008.

Background information

Origin

Wigan, England

Genres

Alternative rock, neo-psychedelia, Britpop,space rock, dream pop, shoegazing

Years active

19891995, 19971999, 20072009

Labels

EMI, Hut, Virgin, Parlophone, Vernon Yard

Associated acts

Richard Ashcroft, Black Submarine, The Shining, RPA & The United Nations of Sound

Website

www.theverve.co.uk

Past members

Richard Ashcroft Nick McCabe Simon Jones Peter Salisbury Simon Tong

The Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan in 1989 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. The guitarist and keyboard player Simon Tong became a member at a later date. Beginning with a psychedelic sound, by

the mid-1990s the band had released several EPs and three albums. It also endured name and line-up changes, break-ups, health problems, drug abuse and various lawsuits. The band's commercial breakthrough was the 1997 album Urban Hymns, one of the best-selling albums in UK Chart history, and the single "Bitter Sweet Symphony", which became a worldwide hit.[1] In 1998, the band won two Brit Awardswinning Best British Group, appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in March, and in February 1999, "Bitter Sweet Symphony" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.[2][3][4] Soon after this commercial peak, The Verve broke up in April 1999, citing internal conflicts.[5] According to Billboard magazine, "the group's rise was the culmination of a long, arduous journey that began at the dawn of the decade and went on to encompass a major breakup, multiple lawsuits, and an extensive diet of narcotics".[6] During an eight-year split, Ashcroft dismissed talk of a reunion, saying: "You're more likely to get all four Beatles on stage."[5] The band's original line-up reunited in June 2007, embarking on a tour later that year and releasing the album Forth in August 2008, which spawned the hit single "Love is Noise". In 2009, the band broke up for the third time.[7]
Contents
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1 History

o o o o o o o

1.1 Formation and Verve (19891992) 1.2 A Storm in Heaven (19931994) 1.3 A Northern Soul and first break-up (19951996) 1.4 Commercial success and second break-up (19971999) 1.5 Post-breakup activities (20002006) 1.6 Reunion and Forth (20072008) 1.7 The Verve "on holiday" (2009present)

2 Band members

o o o

2.1 Official members 2.2 Live or session members 2.3 Timeline

3 Discography 4 Legacy 5 References 6 External links

History[edit source | editbeta]

Formation and Verve (19891992)[edit source | editbeta]

The founding members of Verve met at Winstanley Sixth Form College, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester. The band's first gig was at a friend's birthday party (Mark Doherty, from Pennyburn) at the Honeysuckle Pub, in Wigan, on 15 August 1990.[8] Most of the band's early material was created through extensive jam sessions.[9] Fronted by singer Richard Ashcroft, the band caused a buzz in early 1991 for its ability to captivate audiences with its musical textures and avant-garde sensibilities. The group was signed by Hut Records in 1991[10] and their first studio releases in 1992, "All in the Mind", "She's a Superstar", and "Gravity Grave" (along with the December 1992 Verve) saw the band become a critical success, making an impression with freeform guitar work by McCabe and unpredictable vocals by Ashcroft. Those first 3 singles reached the first spot in the UK Indie charts, and "She's a Superstar" did enter the UK Top 75 Singles Chart. The band saw some support from these early days in the United States in some music scenes in big cities like New York connected with psychedelic music.

A Storm in Heaven (19931994)[edit source | editbeta]

1993's A Storm in Heaven was the band's full-length debut, produced by record producer John Leckie (of Radiohead, The Stone Roses, XTC and The Fall fame). "Blue" was released as the lead single and again managed to enter in the UK Top 75 at No. 69 and reached No. 2 in the Indie charts. The album was a critical success, but was only a moderate commercial success, reaching No. 27 in the UK album chart that summer.[10] The second single from the al