Ocean Color Scene
Ocean Color Scene (often abbreviated to OCS), a British pop - rock band from Birmingham , their greatest successes in the Britpop had the 1990 era in the second half.
Band history
In the 1980s, singer Simon Fowler and bassist Damon Minchella were members of the rock band Fanatics . Drummer Oscar Harrison first played at Echo Base and then joined the Fanatics. After the end of the band, the three formed Ocean Color Scene together with Steve Cradock in 1989 . Pianist and guitarist Cradock previously played with a band called The Boys and met the other three at a Stone Roses concert . Musically they were based on this band and they were then assigned to the Madchester scene.
The four musicians came under the independent label ! Phfft and released their first singles a year later. They received anticipatory reviews and with Yesterday Today they had a hit in the UK charts in 1991. Before they could release their debut album, however, their label was taken over by the larger Fontana label. Under the new leadership, their album was revised several times, including with the help of well-known producers such as Jimmy Miller and Tim Palmer , but when it finally came out in 1992 it turned out to be a flop. It took the band four years to recover from the failure. They had to buy their way out of the unproductive collaboration with Fontana and were then left with debt. At the same time, however, they received support from Paul Weller , who brought them in 1993 as the opening act for a performance and temporarily took the musicians into his accompanying band. Cradock also played on Weller's album Wild Wood . The following year they were hired by Noel Gallagher from Oasis as a backing band for their first major tour. Ocean Color Scene benefited from the success and the emerging Britpop movement as well as the advertising by Gallagher, which kept them talking, and in 1995 they signed a new record deal with MCA .
It took them a year to complete a second album: With Moseley Shoals they had their big breakthrough in 1996. The album debuted at number 2 on the UK album charts and sold over a million copies, which earned them triple platinum . Three songs on the album made it into the top 10 of the single charts.
The album Marchin 'Already followed in the following year , with which they were able to build on their success. It was number one on the LP charts and spawned three other top 10 hits. In 1998 they went on a sold out tour of the UK. Despite the great success at home, they were unable to gain a foothold abroad. The fourth album by the band One from the Modern gave them the only chart position in Germany at position 92. Paul Weller and his drummer Steve White and Brian Travers from UB40 played on the album . It reached number 4 in the UK in 1999. Another sold-out UK tour followed two years later and another top 10 album, Mechanical Wonder .
In 2003, Damon Minchella left Ocean Color Scene after an argument . He then played for Paul Weller for a long time and started his own projects. Stone Roses bassist Gary Mounfield replaced him on the 2003 tour, then Dan Sealey was added as bassist and Andy Bennett as another guitarist. But the other members also started various projects and Steve Cradock released a solo album in 2010 with the title The Kundalini Target , but everyone stayed loyal to the band. Ocean Color Scene continued to release albums regularly throughout the 2000s , but the band's popularity continued to decline. In 2007 they had their last single hit with I Told You So. Her albums continued to hit the charts, but were only moderately successful there. The band's tenth studio album, Painting , reached number 49 on the UK charts in February 2013.
Band members
- Stephen Cradock (born August 22, 1969); Electric guitar and background vocals
- Simon Fowler (born May 25, 1965); Vocals and acoustic guitar
- Oscar Harrison (born April 15, 1965); Drums and backing vocals
- Dan Sealey (born April 8, 1977); Bass (from 2003)
- Andy Bennett, guitar (from 2003)
Former member
- Damon Minchella (born June 1, 1969); Bass (until 2003)
Discography
Albums
year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE | UK | |||
1996 | Moseley Shoals | - |
UK2 × 3
(73 weeks)UK |
|
Ocean Color Scene | - |
UK54
silver
(2 weeks)UK |
originally published in 1992,
re- released in 1996 |
|
1997 | B-Sides, Seasides & Freerides | - |
UK4th
gold
(14 weeks)UK |
compilation
|
Marchin 'Already | - |
UK1
platinum
(37 weeks)UK |
||
1999 | One from the modern |
DE92 (1 week) DE |
UK4th
gold
(11 weeks)UK |
|
2001 | Mechanical Wonder | - |
UK7th
silver
(4 weeks)UK |
|
Songs from the Front Row - The Best Of | - |
UK16
gold
(4 weeks)UK |
compilation
|
|
2003 | North Atlantic Drift | - |
UK14th
silver
(3 weeks)UK |
|
Anthology | - |
UK75 (1 week) UK |
compilation
|
|
2005 | A Hyperactive Workout for the Flying Squad | - |
UK30 (3 weeks) UK |
|
2006 | Live Acoustic at the Jam House | - |
UK73 (1 week) UK |
Live album
|
2007 | On the Leyline | - |
UK37 (1 week) UK |
|
2010 | Saturday | - |
UK35 (1 week) UK |
|
2013 | Painting | - |
UK49 (1 week) UK |
More albums
- Live on the Riverboat (Simin & Oscar) (2002)
- OCS Live: One for the Road (2004)
- Live at Birmingham Academy 17th Dec 2006 (2006)
- Ocean Color Scene - The BBC Sessions (2007)
Singles
year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
UK | |||
1992 | Yesterday Today |
UK49 (1 week) UK |
|
1996 | The Riverboat Song Moseley Shoals |
UK15th
silver
(5 weeks)UK |
|
You've Got It Bad Moseley Shoals |
UK7 (4 weeks) UK |
||
The Day We Caught the Train Moseley Shoals |
UK4th
gold
(11 weeks)UK |
||
The Circle Moseley Shoals |
UK6 (6 weeks) UK |
||
1997 | Hundred Mile High City Marchin 'Already |
UK4th
silver
(7 weeks)UK |
|
Travelers Tune Marchin 'Already |
UK5 (5 weeks) UK |
||
Better Day Marchin 'Already |
UK9 (5 weeks) UK |
||
1998 | It's a Beautiful Thing Marchin 'Already |
UK12 (4 weeks) UK |
|
1999 | Profit in Peace One from the Modern |
UK13 (5 weeks) UK |
|
So low one from the modern |
UK34 (2 weeks) UK |
||
2000 | July / I Am the News One from the Modern |
UK31 (2 weeks) UK |
|
2001 | Up on the Down Side Mechanical Wonder |
UK19 (3 weeks) UK |
|
Mechanical Wonder Mechanical Wonder |
UK49 (1 week) UK |
||
Crazy Lowdown Ways Songs for the Frontrow |
UK64 (1 week) UK |
||
2003 | I Just Need Myself North Atlantic Drift |
UK13 (3 weeks) UK |
|
Make the Deal North Atlantic Drift |
UK35 (2 weeks) UK |
||
2004 | Golden Gate Bridge North Atlantic Drift |
UK40 (3 weeks) UK |
|
2005 | Free My Name A Hyperactive Workout for the Flying Squad |
UK23 (2 weeks) UK |
|
This Day Should Last Forever A Hyperactive Workout for the Flying Squad |
UK53 (1 week) UK |
||
2007 | I told you so on the leyline |
UK34 (1 week) UK |
More singles
- One of Those Days (1990)
- Sway (1990)
- Giving It All Away (1992)
- I Just Got Over You (2007)
- Go to Sea (2007)
- Margic Carpet Days (2010)
- Saturday (2010)
swell
- ↑ Certified Awards - BPI (database search)
- ^ Ocean Color Scene: 'Painting' video premiere , Rolling Stone, February 1, 2013
- ↑ Review The Kundalini Target , Mathias Scheicher, hhv.de-mag, October 17, 2010
- ↑ a b Chart sources: DE UK
Web links
- Official Homepage (English)
- Ocean Color Scene (English)
- Entry in the Birmingham Music Archive (English)
- Ocean Color Scene at laut.de
- Ocean Color Scene at Allmusic (English)