The Beginning
Many moons ago, Jean and Jerry Corr were given a grand piano as a wedding present by Jerry's father. Jerry used play this grand piano as a child, little did Jean and Jerry know that this same Grand piano was going to change the face of the popular music - forever.
Jean and Jerry Corr began their lives togheter in the small town of Dundalk, Ireland just 30 miles away from Dublin. They were a musical couple who traveled around Ireland filling the pubs with their renditions of old favorites. After then were married it wasn't long before the first of their four children was born.
James Steven Corr (otherwise know to us all the master himself Jim) came to life in July 31st 1964 and started playing the grand piano at the tender age of four. Jim furthered his musical skills by his next door neighbor teaching him to play the guitar at the age of 9. By that time that Jim was joined by the first of his three little sisters. Sharon Corr was born on March 24th 1970 and started to play that same old piano around about the age of 4 as influenced by watching her parents play in pubs. Sharon started taking Violin lessons at the age of 7 from a local priest, only missing one lesson her whole life. Jean and Jerry Corr intended for the violin lessons to be for Caroline who was then aged 3, but she was more interested that the local priest had ginger color hair so Sharon decided to take up the violin lesson. Caroline Corr came into the world on March 17th 1973 and got her teeth into playing the piano round about the age of four. Caroline started to play the drums quite late at the age of 18 when she was taught by a former boyfriend. Within a year of Caroline being born came the youngest of the Corr family. Andrea Jane Corr was born may 17th 1974 who also successfully tried her hand on the piano when she was a toddler.
The Corrs get a Record deal
The eighties came and the Corr children gazed at their mother and father belting out old favorites in their band call sound affair as they were preparing themselves onto the international stage. While the girls were in their teens listening to 80 teen idols especially Andrea who had big crushes on Nick Kershaw and Prince. Jim however, was tour with his first band for a while in Germany but Jim's main dream was to get the family band together. And the wheels started to get rolling in 1990 when the four of them played together for the first time as The Corrs for an aducation for Alan Parker's move the Commitments which became to be a worldwide box office success. All four members got miner parts; Andrea got to say a few lines especially the phrase "go and shite" quite a few times.
But The Corrs aduation caught the attention of musical director of the movie John Hughes when signed the band up and became their manger. Within a year he got The Corrs a publishing deal with polygram. The band got a regular slot playing at the waterfront club in Dublin but it wasn't until 1994 when The Corrs got a record deal. Jean Kennedy Smith saw the band played and was overwhelmed by their performance that she flew the band to American to play to get attention from record companies. The Corrs first got the attention of Jason Flom, head of lava records which is a subsidiary label for Atlantic records who passed the word onto David Foster, who is on paper the best producer around with no less than 12 Grammies to his name and produced hit songs for Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston to name but a few. David Foster was unable to get a meeting with the band as he was locked in a studio with Michael Jackson recording his 1995 History album. So on their last day in America, The Corrs manage to get th
emselves in the recording studio and played a redaction of runaway and love to love you and David Foster signed the on the spot to Atlantic records.
The 1990's-2000
September 1995 was the release of the Corrs debut album "forgiven not forgotten", produced by Foster and Jim Corr. The first single to be taken off the album was runaway which was a hit all over the world especially in their native Ireland, Australia and Spain. The album sold 2 million copies worldwide within a year while the right time, love to love you and the album's title track was big successes as singles. The corrs toured and showed the world their breath-taking performance, which got them many fans. However, the Corrs and their first album made little impact in the UK, even tough they were supported by radio station radio 2 and music channel VH1, but all that was about to change.
In October 1997, the band released what was to be their breakthrough album "Talk on Corners". Within a week of release the album went straight in at #7 on the UK album chart, only to fall out of the top forty within weeks. The first three singles off the album only when I sleep, I never loved you anyway and the original version of what ca I do fail to reach the UK singles chart while they were all huge hits across other parts of the world, something had to be done. John Hughes got the BBC to broadcast the bands St Patrick's day gig at the Royal Albert Hall in London which was classed as a sell-out three weeks after tickets were on sale. The show was televised on BBC1 late on St Patrick's day 1998, only about half a million people saw it but it made a huge impact to the fab fours success. Within day of the gig being broadcast, talk on Corners when back in the UK album charts top twenty at #13. Then rob Dickens who was then head of Warner brothers music heard a dance remix of The corrs version of Fleetwood Mac'
s dreams who they recorded for a tribute. Rob Dickens decided for it to be a single and was released in May 1998. In its first week of release, dreams entered the UK singles chart at #6, their first singles chat position in the UK after getting huge radio and TV airplay. And just a few weeks after, Talk on corners hit the top of the album chart and going to number one no fewer than nine time in the UK. It became the biggest selling album of 1998, out selling the likes of George Michael and Madonna to name but a few. And the rest they say is history. A further three top ten hit singles followed in the space of nine months, a sell out 38 date UK arena tour, a Brit. award, a Grammy nomination, several Irish music awards.
Recently they've released an MTV unplugged album, which has hit double platinum in the UK and a third studio to hit the record shops round about June 2000. Andrea being voted the third sexist women in pop music behind Louise and Britney Spears and beating off the likes of Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez.
So there you have all you need to know about the greatest band to ever exist on planet earth.
