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Meet the b'ys from Newfoundland
Great Big Sea are:
Alan Doyle
(Guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, vocals)
Bob Hallett (Fiddle, mandola,
bouzouki, concertina, tin whistle, button accordion, vocals)
Séan McCann (bodhràn,
guitar, tin whistle, shakers, vocals)
Kris MacFarlane
Murray Foster
Darrell Power
Visit the official Great Big Sea website. While you're there, check out the Online Kitchen Party (OKP), the official webboard where you can meet all sorts of GBS fans from around the world!
Great Big Sea
Great Big Sea (GBS) was founded in Newfoundland, Canada in 1991. Members of
the band included: Alan Doyle, Séan McCann, Darrell Power and Bob Hallett. GBS's
musical inspiration comes from the seafaring songs passed down by their ancestors
which are successfully blended with their own original compositions. Although
there is no single word to describe the unique sound of Great Big Sea, their
music is an energetic combination of Celtic rock and sing-along folk, while
remaining unmistakably traditional Newfoundland. The band has since released
eight studio albums, including many great songs they've written on own. In 1992,
they released a self-titled and self-produced
album which was re-released by Warner Entertainment Association in 1993. The
band first released the CD under the label of the Newfoundland Republican Army
- originally the name of a short-lived traditional music/political group formed
by Séan and Bob during their student years at Memorial University, the two decided
to retain the name as the label of their partnership. The fog horn sound at
the beginning of the album was recorded at Fort Amherst. Séan, Alan and Pat
Janes climbed out on the rocks one morning to record the waves, and persuaded
the lighthouse keeper to sound the horn a couple of times. The band first performed
live as a group March 11, 1993.
"Don't try to categorize the type of music we play," Darrell has said. "The best compliment for us is after a show for someone to come up and say: 'What a great show - what kind of music is it?'" The influences are so diverse that putting a label on their unique sound is virtually impossible.
On October 11, 1995, Great Big Sea released their second album, Up. It was a great success and includes the songs Mari-Mac and Run Runaway. It made Platinum (100,000 copies sold) in Canada by July 1996. The band wanted to capture the feeling of their live shows, thus the title. For their first titled CD, the b'ys wanted something catchy and easy to remember. Goin Up was a possible candidate, but they envisioned themselves doing photo shoots in elevators. Following the release of Up, GBS went on tour for nearly 18 months. Great Big Sea is famous for their live shows. "We approach all audiences the same - that this audience could be won over. We really enjoy playing live ... the audience will appreciate it whether were in Saskatoon or Zimbabwe", commented Bob in an interview. Up was first released outside of Canada in Poland, a full year before anywhere else in Europe. In 1997, GBS signed with Cooking Vinyl (a U.K. based record company for Europe) and Up was released in Europe in July.
Their third album is called, Play, which was released on May 20, 1997 and went platinum in only three months, then doubled to over 200,000 copies sold by February of 1998. In 1998, Great Big Sea re-released the song Lukey on an album called Fire In The Kitchen, which was produced by Paddy Moloney of Ireland's The Chieftains. They joined Great Big Sea on the album and in the video. (Lukey was nominated for Video of The Year at the East Coast Music Awards - at which it won - and at the Junos.)
Also in 1998, to furthur promote the band outside of Canada, Great Big Sea released Rant and Roar on June 2 in the USA. Rant and Roar is a compilation of recordings from both Up and Play (which were previously unreleased in the US), and was supported by an aggressive and very successful tour throughout the United States.
Turn was released on June 22, 1999 and went platinum in only one month. This album was produced by Steve Berlin of Los Lobos and Tragically Hip fame and includes seven GBS-penned original songs and Trois Navires De Blé, a traditional French tune from Newfoundland. To celebrate the release of Turn, Great Big Sea performed a live Intimate & Interactive (I&I) on Much More Music (MMM) on June 21st, 1999. This was MMM's first ever live I&I. Also, the first single from this album, Consequence Free, hit #1 on Country Music Television (CMT) in Canada.
On September 3, 2000, the b'ys released their first live album titled Road Rage which was recorded totally live on Great Big Sea's Turn tour of Canada between October 14 and December 31, 1999. The album includes the very best of their tour including two new songs, Everything Shines and Hangin Johnny, not recorded on any of their previous albums. In 2001, after having won the Entertainer of the Year award for five consecutive years at the East Coast Music Awards , the b'ys pulled themselves out of the running to allow other musicians achieve the recognition they deserve.
Trying to further gain ground in the pop market GBS released their next next album, Sea Of No Cares (SoNC) - which features a video for the title track which the b'ys shot in Cozumel, Mexico! - on February 19, 2002 in Canada and February 26, 2002 in the USA. Sea Of No Cares entered the charts at #1 and was certified Gold in just three weeks!
GBS followed up the release of SoNC with a huge tour of both Canada and the United States. Because the album was a little more upbeat than previous albums, there was a need to add "an extra pair of hands onstage". Hence the addition of drummer, Kris MacFarlane. GBS joined The Young Dubliners and Seven Nations on the very successful Uprooted Tour of the US and then travelled north where they completed their "biggest Canadian tour yet, including over 60 shows!" with fellow Newfoundland group, Crush. This tour also marks the beginning of Alan's From The Road Journal at the official site where he keeps a blog of his time away from home. Clearest Indication, which featured fellow Newfoundland actor Allan Hawco, marked Kris' video debut with Great Big Sea.
In January 2003 - after 10 long years on the road supporting Great Big Sea - Darrell decided that raising a family and being in a band away from home so often were too much - read the press release for more info. "It was an amicable decision and the right one for me at this time," he says. A replacement bass player was to be hired for live appearances. This temporary replacement turned out to be Murray Foster of Moxy Früvous fame. Way To Go Murray is a site dedicated to Murray that you should check out if you want to get to know him better.
In November 2003, Great Big Sea released their much anticipated Great Big DVD from a concert that was taped in Ottawa, Ontario on September 22, 2001. The DVD included concert footage, home movies, all their music videos available at the time, and 3 karaoke versions.
After Power announced his departure, the band went through a very tough year, having lost three friends in a short period of time to cancer. The b'ys decided to take a break from being Great Big Sea and spend time at home with their families. During this time, the b'ys kept busy with other projects. Alan produced Barry Canning's second album and Bob was busy with bands Brother's In Stereo and Banshee.
Armed with too many original songs to ignore, the by's also recorded their seventh studio album, Something Beautiful, which was released on February 24, 2004 in Canada and March 9th, 2004 in the USA. This was the first studio album the band had done as a five piece, including the drums right up front rather than adding them later. Alan Doyle has said, "we let the songs be what they wanted to be". After about 6 months off the road, the b'ys began touring again in the spring with another tour of the United States. Kris MacFarlane was back with the band on drums and helping out on percussion wherever he could. Murray Foster also rejoined the band stage Darrell.
This album marked Bob's solo singing debut with a self-penned celtic punk-styled hockey themed Helmethead which is sure to be a hit at the rinks. Love also made its way onto the album after being performed as Séan's solo encore song since he wrote it after 9/11 as well as Alan's Lucky Me which he co-wrote with Gordie Sampson. The first single from this album, When I Am King, was shot by the b'ys in Las Vegas, USA and marked Murray's video debut with Great Big Sea.
After a very upbeat album of mostly original material, the b'ys decided to put together an all-traditional album of Newfoundland songs. On October 11, 2005 in Canada, October 25, 2005 in th USA, The Hard And The Easy (TH&TE) was released.
Bob (the band's multi-instrumentalist) said it best when he desribed GBS and their music as "a really aggressive folk band that marries traditional Celtic music with modern rhythms. A lot of this music has four or five hundred years of history behind it so when you marry that to modern ideas, you've got something that's already a proven product."
For individual bios of the b'ys, click on the picture below:
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| Bob Hallett | Séan McCann | Alan Doyle | Darrel Power |
Kris has been touring with Great Big Sea since the release of Sea Of No Cares. Because the album is a little more upbeat than previous albums, there was a need to add a drummer to the set. "To accommodate the additional sounds, we needed to get an extra pair of hands onstage," Alan has said.
"He's a great cat to play with," Séan adds, "And it takes a lot of pressure off me and Alan. We can focus more on singing and less on the rhythm."
Long before he joined GBS, Kris was fast becoming the drummer's
drummer in Atlantic Canada. Growing up in a musical family in Westville, Nova
Scotia, music was his career choice since he can remember. He comes by it honestly;
his Dad played in rock and roll bands throughout his childhood, and his brother
Scott is a bass player who is currently with Crush.
Besides learning the rudiments of the rock drum kit, Kris also mastered the
guitar, bass and keyboards, instruments he occasionally plays in GBS. Settled
by Scots, Pictou County is a hotbed for pipe bands, and growing up Kris spent
many days learning the discipline required to play in their drum lines. He put
these skills to good use on Beat
The Drum on the Something
Beautiful album.
Kris honed his skills playing onstage and in the studio with acts such as Lennie
Gallant, Kilt, Dave Gunning and the Paperboys. One of his most educational gigs
was as the original drummer in the musical "Dream A Little Dream: the nearly
true story of the Mamas and the Papas" starring original Mamas & Papas singer
Denny Doherty. Kris played drums throughout the play's original six runs, which
has since moved onto Broadway.
Never satisfied with his drums until they look and sound perfect, Kris plays
a custom made Ayotte drum kit, along with Paiste Cymbals and Remo Heads. Though
he abandoned his university studies when GBS came calling, he hopes to return
to school when time allows. In the meantime, he has put his weekends and evenings
to good use, qualifying as a Soccer Canada certified coach. During the summer
and fall he spends his off-time coaching youth teams.
You can visit Kris' website, which he maintains himself, here.
You can also send him an e-mail,
I'm sure he'd like to hear from you.
Murray Foster was born on June 29 in Thornhill, Ontario in
the suburban ring north of Toronto. Murray came to join Great Big Sea in early
2003 after original bassist Darrell Power left the band to focus on his family.
Murray was to many a surprise choice to replace Darrell. Unlike his new bandmates,
he did not grow up surrounded by ancient songs and traditional music. On the
other hand, his strong bass skills and powerful baritone voice made him one
of a handful of players who could anchor the fourth part of GBS's equation.
A good ear for vocal harmonies, and a steady back-beat have made him invaluable.
Though he is new to many GBS fans, Murray's musical resume is already full.
For almost ten years he toured with the band Moxy Früvous, which he helped found
when he was in college. The band enjoyed great success in both Canada and the
US, and made several best-selling albums. A serious student of jazz, Murray
is adept at the stand-up bass. When GBS is not touring, he is also a member
of alt-country heroes the Jayne Waynes.
Like many a boy who grew up in the TO region, Murray is an avid fan of the Maple
Leafs, though he devotes much of his sports time to his passion for European
soccer. And he does share one other important GBS qualification with Sean, Alan
and Bob – a Bachelor of Arts in English. Way
To Go Murray is a site dedicated to Murray that you should check out if
you want to get to know him better.
As you may have noticed, it is somewhat of a coincidence that
the members of Great Big Sea have their birthdays within a four day period (May
20 - 23). They also all attended Memorial University in St John's, Newfoundland
(although not at the same time).
| Contact Great Big Sea: | Send the b'ys e-mail here. (To avoid being filtered as spam, be sure your subject line starts with "GBS Fanmail:" (no quotation marks - you can add whatever you like after this) | |
| Snail Mail: | Great Big Sea P.O. Box 152 Station C St. John's, NF Canada A1C 5J2 |
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This picture can be found on the back of their first CD. From left to right are a very young Bob Hallett, Alan Doyle, Darrell Power, Séan McCann. Check out some more recent promotional pictures of the b'ys here.
Go here for some other GBS related sites.
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