Stereophonics
Stereophonics are a Welsh rock band formed in 1992 in the village of Cwmaman in the Cynon Valley, Wales. The band consists of Kelly Jones (lead vocals, lead guitar, keyboards), Richard Jones (no relation to Kelly; bass guitar, harmonica, backing vocals), Adam Zindani (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Jamie Morrison (drums, percussion) and touring member Tony Kirkham (keyboards). The group previously included Stuart Cable (1992–2003) and then Javier Weyler (2004–2012) on drums. Stereophonics have released twelve studio albums, including eight UK number one albums. A successful compilation album, Decade in the Sun, was released in November 2008 and charted at number two on the UK Album Chart.
This article is about the Welsh rock band. For information about the audio production technique, see Stereophonic sound.
Stereophonics
Described as "classic UK rock delivered with whiskey vocals",[7] the band have been summarised as possessing a sound akin to the genres of alternative rock and "British traditional rock".[8] Stereophonics' debut album, Word Gets Around, was released in August 1997 and charted at number six in the UK, aided by the singles "Local Boy in the Photograph", "More Life in a Tramps Vest" and "A Thousand Trees". The band reached mainstream success with the release of Performance and Cocktails (and its promotional singles "The Bartender and the Thief", "Just Looking" and "Pick a Part That's New") in 1999 and have achieved a total of ten top-ten singles as well as one number one: "Dakota" (2005). Having sold around 10 million copies worldwide by 2016,[9][10] Stereophonics are one of the most successful Welsh rock acts. Upon their release of Pull the Pin, they achieved five consecutive UK number one albums.
The band have also been praised for their live performances, which have landed them headlining slots at many of the UK and Ireland's most high-profile music festivals, including Reading and Leeds in 2000, Glastonbury in 2002, V Festival in 2002, the Isle of Wight in 2004 and 2009, Oxegen in 2010, Tramlines Festival and TRNSMT in 2018, and Latitude in 2019. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.
History[edit]
Formation and early years (1986–1991)[edit]
Kelly Jones and Stuart Cable lived on the same street[11] in the Welsh village of Cwmaman.[12] Jones heard Cable played drums so asked if he wanted to jam together.[13] After some time practising in Jones' dad's garage, Nicholas Geake joined in on guitar. Later,[b] Jones invited Paul Rosser and Chris Davies to play on bass guitar and keyboards, respectively.[14] Cable recalls he was the one who suggested that Jones be the singer, as his dad was a singer back in the sixties who supported Roy Orbison.[14] In 1986 the band recorded a demo under the name "Zephyr". When Jones went on holiday the band played a gig without him, which resulted in Jones leaving the band and Jones and Cable going their separate ways.[11] Jones, Rosser and Davies formed their own R&B band called "Silent Runner" while Cable joined a glam-rock band named "King Catwalk" on drums.[15]
A few years later,[b] Cable got sacked from the band. A few weeks after, Cable waved to Jones from a bus, and Jones, who was standing at a bus stop, waved back.[16] It was the first contact they had since Zephyr had broken up. Two weeks later, Jones and Cable started speaking again.[17] They agreed to give the band another go, but Cable only wanted to play their own songs. Jones agreed.[17] The duo invited Mark Everett to play for them on bass guitar and Jones then started writing his own songs.[18]
Everett went on holiday for two weeks but Jones and Cable wanted to continue rehearsing, so Jones invited long-time friend Richard Jones to fill in for Everett.[18] Stunned by Richard's appearance and bass playing, Cable convinced Kelly to keep him instead of Everett.[18] The band decided they needed another member to play lead guitar. Simon Collier was the first guitarist brought in, but didn't stay in the band; he did, however, become Kelly's guitar technician.[19] The band tried hiring two other guitarists, another Richard Jones and Glenn Hyde.[20] Neither stayed for long. Hyde did however play harmonica on "Rooftop" for the band's 2001 album Just Enough Education to Perform.[20] After Hyde left, the band stuck as a three-piece act.[20]
Name change and V2 Records (1992–1996)[edit]
Kelly, Richard and Cable began writing and performing music in working men's clubs together in 1992 as a band known as "Tragic Love Company", a name inspired by their favourite bands (the Tragically Hip, Mother Love Bone and Bad Company).[21] After Tragic Love Company supported Smalltown Heroes in the Borderline Club, London, they met Marshall Bird and Steve Bush who were interested in producing for the band. The band agreed and recorded a demo for "A Thousand Trees".[22]
Wayne Coleman organised a series of concerts throughout South Wales after receiving a demo from the band. Wayne liked it a lot but hated the band name and told them they wouldn't be performing unless they changed it.[23] After Cable read the manufacturer name of a gramophone, "Falcon Stereophonic", he told Kelly and the band agreed to change their name to "the Stereophonics".[24] In March 1996, the band played a gig at their local Coliseum Theatre, Aberdare with Catatonia along with local bands Krazy Keyboards (later to become Dylan Thorn), and the Pocket Devils.[24] When the band finished their slot, John Brand approached them and he became their manager.[25] Brand managed to get over 35 record companies in the UK interested in signing the Stereophonics.[26] In May 1996, they signed with V2,[27] the first artists to be signed to newly formed record label. Upon signing, they dropped "the" from their name and simply became "Stereophonics".
Debut album and ascent to fame (1997–2000)[edit]
In August 1997, the band released their first studio album, Word Gets Around, which reached number six in the UK charts, from which five singles were released. The debut single, released 25 November 1996, was "Looks Like Chaplin".[28] Afterwards, the band embarked on a successful world tour.
Other projects[edit]
On 9 October 2007, a retrospective DVD was released in the United States, Rewind: The First 10 Years. The DVD is a double disc with a runtime of nearly four hours. Much of this footage was recorded around the time that the You Gotta Go There to Come Back album was being recorded. This is because a similar band history DVD was listed for release shortly after that album but was never released, due to the departure of Stuart Cable. This explains Jones' hairstyle (circa 2003/2004) in the interview footage and the appearance of Stuart and the rest of the band freely talking about their togetherness and solidarity as the original three members. The original footage was updated by adding further footage to the end, bringing it up to date with the band's fifth album. Stuart does not appear on any of the extra footage. Availability coincides with the US re-release of the Language.Sex.Violence.Other? DVD, and the worldwide digital debut of their latest studio album, Pull the Pin.
In 2007, Jones released a solo album, titled Only the Names Have Been Changed, while recording the band's sixth studio album, Pull the Pin. The album contains ten tracks (all named after women) and features minimal instrumentation. The album also includes the song "Jayne", a previously unreleased Stereophonics track featured on the live album Live from Dakota and the Rewind DVD.
Stereophonics also performed the original opening theme tune for the TV series Long Way Round. The song's lyrics were slightly altered for the follow-up series, Long Way Down and Long Way Up.