Ocean Colour Scene
Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1989.[2][3] They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 singles to date.
This article is about the band. For their self-titled debut album, see Ocean Colour Scene (album).
Ocean Colour Scene
Birmingham, England
1989–present
- Fontana
- Island
- Sanctuary
- Moseley Shoals
- Cooking Vinyl
- Live Here Now
- Simon Fowler
- Steve Cradock
- Oscar Harrison
- Raymond Meade
- Damon Minchella
- Dan Sealey
- Andy Bennett
2024-2025 tour dates: 21 concerts.
History[edit]
Early days (1990–1995)[edit]
Ocean Colour Scene were formed from two other bands disbanding; The Boys (Steve Cradock) and Fanatics (Simon Fowler, Damon Minchella, Oscar Harrison). Fanatics had released an EP titled Suburban Love Songs.[4] The name was decided upon when the band went through books in a library looking for words they liked.[5] OCS signed to !Phffftt Records in 1990.[6]
Their first single, "Sway", was released in September 1990 during the indie era.[4] When their record label was swallowed up by larger company Phonogram their eponymous début album was remixed, against the band's wishes, to fit in with the Baggy/indie-dance musical trend of the time. The album was largely deemed a failure.[6] Being in dispute with their label, the band were forced back onto unemployment benefits, with no real direction and being only able to write new music with no outlet for it.
In 1993, the start of the turnaround occurred. Paul Weller invited the band to support him on some dates of his tour. On the back of these performances, Weller invited guitarist Steve Cradock to play on one of his singles, and vocalist Simon Fowler to sing on his album, Wild Wood.[6] Cradock was asked to play live with Weller on his tour, and the money Cradock made allowed the band to keep paying rent for a studio.[5]
Britpop fame (1995–2000)[edit]
The band recorded a demo that was sent to various industry figures. After hearing this tape, Noel Gallagher invited the band to play with Oasis on their 1995 tour. This support slot brought OCS to the attention of more record labels, and eventually in late 1995, the band signed with MCA Records.[6]
With the explosion of the Britpop scene, OCS's music became nationally and internationally known. Their second album Moseley Shoals was released to mixed-to-positive reviews, containing four hit singles and reached No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart.[4] They also played at one of the concerts at Knebworth House supporting Oasis in August 1996.
Marchin' Already, the follow-up to Moseley Shoals, went to No. 1 in the UK Albums Chart,[4] displacing Oasis' Be Here Now at the top of the charts in 1997. In 1998 they headlined their own arena tour in support of Marchin' Already and played three sold out nights at Stirling Castle, Scotland.
One from the Modern was released in 1999, and peaked in the UK Albums Chart at No. 4. The record spawned three top 40 singles, "Profit in Peace", "So Low" and "July".[4]
A Greatest Hits album, Songs for the Front Row, was released in 2001.[7]
Collaborative work[edit]
Most band members have supported and collaborated with other artists during the group's existence. Simon Fowler, along with members of Echo & the Bunnymen, Space and The Spice Girls, was part of the supergroup England United who recorded the official song for the England national football team's World Cup campaign in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. "((How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World" reached number 9 in the UK Singles Chart. Steve Cradock plays regularly with Paul Weller,[11][12] as well as with Amy MacDonald.[13]
During their peak (around the time of the Moseley Shoals release) OCS also regularly performed on stage with Noel and Liam Gallagher of Oasis, with whom they were on tour at the time. One particular performance of note with the Gallaghers was a rendition of The Beatles' "Day Tripper", which was included as a live B-side to "The Circle". The song was also included on the B-side compilation album, B-sides, Seasides and Freerides. Noel Gallagher previewed an advance copy of the song during an interview on BBC Radio 1 with DJ Jo Whiley. The interview mainly focused on Oasis's then forthcoming gig in the grounds of Knebworth House, where Ocean Colour Scene were one of the supporting acts. Over 2.6 million people applied for tickets for the shows, making it the most in-demand concert in UK history.[14] There was a combined audience of over 250,000 people.
At a 2011 gig at the University of East Anglia, Ocean Colour Scene were joined on stage by former footballer Dion Dublin, an amateur percussionist, who accompanied them on The Dube, an instrument he invented.[15][16]