| The first single was the string laden epic Bitter Sweet Symphony, which became the defining song of summer '97. It entered the charts at number 2 and stayed around for tree months. A sell out tour to coincide with the release was postponed due to illness and rescheduled for August. The shows were unforgettable - a true release of energy and passion which ended in a magnificent headlining appearance at the Reading festival. The Verve's first number 1 single The Drugs Don't Work was released in September 1st '97. It paved the way for Urban Hymns, one of the fastest selling British albums of all-time. A third single, Lucky Man was released in November, reaching number 7, following a sold out US tour. What can you say - Richard? "1997? - Fucking outrageous." It looked like The Verve would have continued with success in '98, after a triumphant UK tour and announced details of a huge homecoming gig in Wigan. This was a great spectacle for every fan of The Verve. The set was made up of mostly songs from Urban Hymns, except for the songs Stormy Clouds and History. It included a massive version of Bittersweet Symphony that clocked over 10 minutes. It ended with a storming version of Come On that was filled with everything The Verve could. In the aftermath of all this success, there were some problems. And then after months of speculation, in April '99, The Verve confirmed that they had actually split. It was the result of different things. One such factor was Nick McCabe deciding not to finish the summer dates of The Verve's US and European tour in '98. From this point things were getting unsettling, and a mixture of different circumstances led to the agreed split. "The decision to split did not come without a great deal of stress to me personally," said Richard, "I have always given everything to the band and would have continued to do so if circumstances had not made it impossible." Richard Ashcroft then started working on his debut solo album, Alone With Everyone, and is currently working on his second solo album (due out October '02). Peter Salisbury helped on Alone With Everyone, and it is currently unknown if anything else is planned for him, or whether he is on Ashcroft's second album. Simon Jones and Simon Tong have recently announced on XFM that they will be creating a new band and are currently working on new material. Nick McCabe moved to Southern Spain, and then worked on a single for a band (can't remember who!). It is also unknown if any other projects are in the pipeline. |