Wednesday, November 21, 2012

'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, this life

Huge music success doesn't mean a band will become rich and stay together, which is the case for The Verve.The Verve is an alternative rock band that formed in 1989, at the turn of the decade. However the band didn't get commercial success until 8 years later when their album Urban Hymns broke through, becoming one of the best-selling albums in British history. Their single off the album "Bitter Sweet Symphony" sky-rocketed on the charts, hitting number 12 in the U.S. They won two Brit awards and were nominated for a Grammy. Soon after their international hit, the band broke up, claiming internal conflicts.

So with this big rock ballad, what could go wrong? Well, they were sued. The song uses four bars of the Rolling Stone Classic "The Last Time." The band claims they got permission to use it. The deal was to have a 50/50 split of the money. However, the representative of the Stone's claimed too much of the song was used, and 100 percent royalties were sent to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Not just the music, but also the lyrics were credited to the Rolling Stones. Lead vocalist and writer Richard Ashcroft says the song is the best Rolling Stone hit written in decades. Keith Richards was quoted saying that the business was the lawyer's, and that the verve deserved credit.

After saying they would never reunite, the band got back together in 2007. After releasing an album and going back on tour, the band slit again in 2009. The band says that they will never get back together. The legacy of "Bitter Sweet Symphony" lives on. It was included on soundtracks for movies like Cruel Intentions, and other famous bands and singers, like Oasis, famously covered the songs.

Information courtesy of Wikipedia: Bitter Sweet Symphony
                                                        The Verve

1 comment:

  1. I enjoyed reading your post, but why did they decide to get back together in 2007?

    ReplyDelete