Morphine (band)
Morphine was an American rock band formed by Mark Sandman, Dana Colley, and Jerome Deupree in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1989. Drummer Billy Conway replaced Deupree as the band's live drummer in 1991. Deupree recorded the album Cure For Pain, with the exception of the title track which was recorded by Conway, before being permanently replaced by Conway in 1993. Both drummers appeared together during a 15 date US tour in March of 1999. After five successful albums and extensive touring, they disbanded after lead vocalist Sandman died of a heart attack onstage in Palestrina, Italy, on July 3, 1999. Founding members have reformed into the band Vapors of Morphine, maintaining much of the original style and sound.
Morphine
1989–1999
Twinemen, Orchestra Morphine, Bourbon Princess, Vapors of Morphine
The band used an idiosyncratic set of instruments and combined blues and jazz elements with more traditional rock arrangements, which gave it an unusual and original sound. The instruments mainly consisted of baritone saxophone (played by Colley), two-string bass (played by Sandman), and drums. Sandman sang distinctively in a "deep, laid-back croon",[1] and his songwriting featured a prominent beat influence. The band themselves coined the label "low rock" to describe their music, which involved "a minimalist, low-end sound that could have easily become a gimmick: a 'power trio' not built around the sound of an electric guitar. Instead, Morphine expanded its offbeat vocabulary on each album."[2]
The band enjoyed positive critical appraisal, but met with mixed results commercially. In the United States the band was embraced and promoted by the indie rock community, including public and college radio stations and MTV's 120 Minutes, which the band once guest-hosted, but received little support from commercial rock radio and other music television programs. This limited their mainstream exposure and support in their home country, while internationally they enjoyed high-profile success, especially in Belgium, Russia, Portugal, France and Australia.
History[edit]
Formation, independent years (1989–1996)[edit]
Morphine was formed in 1989 by bassist and vocalist Mark Sandman, a member of the bluesy alternative rock band Treat Her Right, saxophonist Dana Colley, a former member of the local Boston group Three Colors, and drummer Jerome Deupree, who had played with Sandman in the Hypnosonics. Sandman, a prolific musician who frequently experimented with home-made instruments, played a single-stringed bass guitar of his own devising with a slide, although he later added a second string. Deupree briefly left the group for health reasons in 1991 and was temporarily replaced by Treat Her Right drummer Billy Conway.[3] These years found the group building a strong local audience and touring occasionally.
With Deupree returning, they recorded their debut album, Good, for the Boston-based Accurate/Distortion label in 1991.[3] The album received positive reviews and increased the band's audience. The band subsequently signed to Rykodisc, who re-released Good under its own imprint.[4]
Cure for Pain, 1993's followup,[3] increased the band's audience outside of New England, and singles like "Thursday" and "Buena" picked up some college radio play. During the recording of Cure for Pain, Deupree was again replaced by Conway, although Deupree still played most of the percussion work on the album. After the album was completed, the band toured the United States, Europe, Japan and Australia.
In 1994, five songs from the album were prominently featured on the soundtrack of the film Spanking the Monkey. The band returned to the studio in 1995 and produced Yes.[3] The album featured the single "Honey White," the music video for which appeared on the MTV animated series Beavis and Butt-head, as had "Thursday". It also included "I Had My Chance," which was featured on the soundtrack for the film Get Shorty.
DreamWorks Records years (1997–1999)[edit]
After two years of touring, Morphine signed with DreamWorks Records, who released their major label debut, Like Swimming, in 1997.[4] It was a critical success, but did not break the band into the domestic mainstream as had been hoped. DreamWorks released a music video for the single "Early to Bed"; directed by Jamie Caliri and released in March 1997, the nightmarish yet humorous video became an instant favorite among fans and was later nominated for a Grammy award. The band also released B-Sides and Otherwise, a collection of B-sides and live recordings, on Rykodisc this same year.
In the following time, Deupree once again began performing live and in the studio with the band, making the group a four-piece. The band's final studio album, The Night, was completed in early 1999.
On July 3, 1999, Sandman collapsed on the stage of the Nel Nome del Rock festival at the Giardini del Principe in Palestrina, Italy, outside of Rome.[4] He was soon pronounced dead of a heart attack and Morphine immediately disbanded. The Night was released in 2000. Posthumous Morphine releases followed shortly thereafter, including Bootleg Detroit, an "official live bootleg", and The Best of Morphine: 1992–1995, both on Rykodisc.