M People

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

M People
M People, V Festival 2014, Chelmsford
M People, V Festival 2014, Chelmsford
Background information
OriginManchester, England
Genres
Years active1990–1999; 2006–present
LabelsDeconstruction (1990–1997)
M People Records (1997–1998)
Members

M People (stylised as MPeople) is an English dance music band that formed in 1990 and achieved success throughout most of the 1990s.[2] The name M People is taken from the first letter of the first name of band member Mike Pickering,[3] who formed the group. In December 2016, Billboard magazine ranked them as the 83rd most successful dance act of all time.[4] M People have sold over 11 million records worldwide [5]

Career

Formation

Pickering had been a member of

records
without scoring any major success.

Northern Soul and breakthrough

Their first release came in the form of "

Someday" and "Excited
", followed by a re-release and repackaging of the album.

Elegant Slumming and success

1993 started with the re-released and

UK Singles Chart
.

Bizarre Fruit II and awards

In 1994 and 1995, M People won the

BRIT Award for Best British Dance Act, the latter as a result of the release of Bizarre Fruit.[7] The first single from that album was "Sight for Sore Eyes" which climbed to number 6, helping the album to enter the UK Albums Chart and peak at No. 4 and stay in the Top 10 for four months into the following year. The second single from the album was "Open Your Heart", which became their seventh consecutive Top Ten hit in two years and at the Brit Awards '95 they collaborated with Sting on his track "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free". Their third single "Search for the Hero" was later used in the TV advertising campaign for the Peugeot 406. The song got to number 9 in the chart
.

In 1995, the band embarked on their first world tour entitled the Come Again Tour and two more singles were lifted from a re-issued album:

The Small Faces 1967 single, which charted at number 11, although the choice of the latter song to cover drew negative comments from the media.[7]

In the United States, their biggest success was on the

number one
.

After touring and promotion of Bizarre Fruit II for 18 months the band took a break in 1996. The album, having been released in November 1995, did not leave the chart until April 1997, becoming one of the biggest selling albums of the decade. They made some outdoor live UK performances called the Summer M Parties in June 1996, at

Euro 1996
football championships.

Return and Fresco

In March 1997, lead singer

BBC 2 show, performing album tracks "Never Mind Love", "Angel St" and Small also performed, solo, the million-selling charity single that she appeared on, "Perfect Day
".

Fresco also bore the single, "Fantasy Island" (number 33) and went on a fifteen-date UK Tour supporting the album to rave reviews. The final single lifted off the album was "Angel St" which got to number 8 and earned them their tenth Top 10 chart hit in March 1998, making the band one of the most consistent hit-makers of the 1990s on both sales and airplay.

The Best of M People

During the middle of 1998, the band prepared for their fifth album, a

Doobie Brothers classic: "What a Fool Believes
". The album went on to sell 1.75 million, peaked at number 2 and was certified 3× platinum. Of the three new tracks, "Testify" and "Dreaming" were released as singles. "Testify" got to number 12 in October 1998 and "Dreaming" got to number 13 in February 1999, their eighteenth and final single to date.

After the release of The Best of M People, the band took an extended hiatus. Heather Small recorded a successful solo album:

Ultimate Collection and released in 2005 led the band to embark on a short promotional tour of the UK. Small continued to pursue a solo career releasing her second solo album Close to a Miracle
in 2006.

M People toured once again in 2007 as part of the

BBC1's Strictly Come Dancing
in the UK.

In 2012, as part of a series of Summer Concerts in

James Morrison and the Gipsy Kings. M People performed a 60-minute set on Wednesday 4 July supported by Chic featuring Nile Rodgers
.

2013 Greatest Hits Tour

In April 2013, it was announced that the band would undertake an extensive fourteen date Greatest Hits Tour in October to mark 20 years since the release of the

Mercury Music Prize-winning album Elegant Slumming
. This was the band's first UK Tour since 2005's Ultimate Collection Tour, although Pickering did not take part.

2020 box set

In 2019, it was announced that a box set of the M People catalogue was scheduled to be released. The box set, titled Renaissance, was released in March 2020 and included all five of the group's albums, as well as a large selection of bonus remixes and two DVDs that presented the group's music videos and live performances from the Come Again tour. Also included was a book with notes from the band, rare photos and a handwritten copy of the lyrics to "Search for the Hero".

Members

  • Heather Small (born 20 January 1965, London)[2] – vocals (1990–present)
  • Mike Pickering (born 24 February 1958, Manchester)[2] – keyboards, programming (1990–present)
  • Paul Heard (born 5 October 1960, London)[2] – keyboards, programming (1990–present)
  • Shovell (born Andrew Lovell, 11 February 1969, South East London)[2] – percussion (1992–present)

Session saxophonist Snake Davis provided saxophone for the band on songs such as "Moving on Up" and "Search for the Hero".

Discography

Main article: M People discography

Awards

Brit Awards

The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1994 M People British Dance Act Won
British Producer Nominated
British Group Nominated
1995 Nominated
British Dance Act Won
1996 Nominated

Ivor Novello Awards

The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) and were first introduced in 1955.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1994 "Moving On Up" Best Contemporary Song Nominated

Mercury Prize

The Mercury Prize is an annual music prize awarded for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1994 Elegant Slumming Mercury Prize Won

[6]

NME Awards

The NME Awards are annual music awards show founded by the music magazine NME.[13]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1996[14] M People Best Dance Act Nominated

Silver Clef Awards

The Silver Clef Award are an annual UK music awards lunch which has been running since 1976. M People has received one award.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1999 M People Silver Clef Award Won

See also

  • List of number-one dance hits (United States)
  • List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart

References

  1. ^ Bush, John. "M People Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  2. ^
    ISBN 1-84195-017-3
    .
  3. ^ Schofield, Jonathan. "Music Capital – History of Manchester Pop". Manchester.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2007. Retrieved 14 February 2008.
  4. ^ "Greatest of All Time Top Dance Club Artists : Page 1". Billboard.com. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  5. ^ "M People | the Official Website". Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  6. ^
    ISBN 0-7535-0252-6
    .
  7. ^
    ISBN 1-85227-745-9
    .
  8. ^ "M People - Don't Look Any Further (Original Version)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  9. ^ [1] Archived 23 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "M People in the forests 2007". eFestivals.co.uk. 13 June 2007. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  11. ^ "Summer music and beer festival in Sussex". Chichester RAJF. 25 January 2014. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  12. ^ "The M People & Heather Small Fansite". M People. Archived from the original on 8 December 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  13. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (22 August 2015). "5 Seconds of Summer Celebrates Winning 'Worst Band' Award". Billboard. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
  14. ^ "Rocklist.net...NME Lists readers Pop Poll Results..." Rocklistmusic.co.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2019.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=M_People&oldid=1206850332"