The Verve Pipe is an American rock band from West Michigan. It was formed in 1992 by Brian Vander Ark, Brian Stout and Donny Brown.
History
In November 1992, working with producer/engineer Jonathan Frazer, they released their first album, I've Suffered a Head Injury. The original 10-song version of the CD is no longer available. A seven-song version, without the original recording of "The Freshmen", was later released as an EP. The band, known for its energetic live performances, built strong followings during its early years, especially in the college towns of Kalamazoo and East Lansing.
In the fall of 1993, the band released a second album, Pop Smear, again working with Frazer, which helped them gain a devoted following in their native state of Michigan and their eventual signing with RCA Records in 1995. A.J. Dunning replaced Stout on guitar for the recording of Pop Smear and remained in the band for their three RCA records. This album featured the popular tracks "Spoonful of Sugar" and "Victoria".
The Verve Pipe is the self-titled album by Michigan rock band the Verve Pipe, released on July 27, 1999. The band's second release for RCA Records, the album followed the platinum-selling Villains and its mammoth single, "The Freshmen". The band worked with Soundgarden producer Michael Beinhorn and created a generally dark, sonically textured grunge-pop album. The lead single "Hero" received sporadic airplay on alternative rock radio and its video was in rotation on MTV2 in late summer 1999.
Throughout the album, primary songwriter and singer Brian Vander Ark comments on the fleeting nature of fame with tracks such as "Supergig" and "Headlines". The song "The F Word" serves as a bittersweet response to the band's success with "The Freshmen".
The album's cover features a diagram for frog dissection, with the song titles used as references to various body parts.
Radio and touring
The Verve Pipe mounted a major nationwide tour in support of The Verve Pipe and lead single "Hero", headlining mid-size venues and playing numerous radio festivals throughout 1999 and into 2000. With the Nu metal stylings of Limp Bizkit and Korn dominating rock radio airwaves, "Hero" failed to connect with a mass audience. The band responded by releasing the album's sonically heaviest track, "Television", as a follow-up single. With no music video and little radio support, "Television" sputtered out quickly, along with record sales.
The Verve were an English rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. The guitarist and keyboard player Simon Tong became a member at a later date.
Beginning with a psychedelic sound, by the mid-1990s the band had released several EPs and three albums. It also endured name and line-up changes, break-ups, health problems, drug abuse and various lawsuits. The band's commercial breakthrough was the 1997 album Urban Hymns, one of the best-selling albums in UK Chart history. The album features the hit singles "Bitter Sweet Symphony", "The Drugs Don't Work" and "Lucky Man". In 1998, the band won two Brit Awards—winning Best British Group, appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in March, and in February 1999, "Bitter Sweet Symphony" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.
Soon after their commercial peak, The Verve broke up in April 1999, citing internal conflicts. According to Billboard magazine, "the group's rise was the culmination of a long, arduous journey that began at the dawn of the decade and went on to encompass a major breakup, multiple lawsuits, and an extensive diet of narcotics". During an eight-year split, Ashcroft dismissed talk of a reunion, saying: "You're more likely to get all four Beatles on stage." The band's original line-up reunited in June 2007, embarking on a tour later that year and releasing the album Forth in August 2008, which spawned the hit single "Love Is Noise". Amid revived tensions, the band broke up for the second time in 2009.
A freshman is a first-year student.
Freshman or Freshmen (or The Freshman or The Freshmen) may also refer to:
Film and television
Music
See also
"The Freshmen" is a song by American alternative rock group The Verve Pipe. The song was first featured, in acoustic style, on their 1992 album I've Suffered a Head Injury. It was recorded a second time and released on the band's 1996 album Villains. Later that year, the band recorded the song again, this time with producer Jack Joseph Puig, for release as a single. The single was released on January 27, 1997. Subsequent pressings of Villains replaced the original album version with the single version. "The Freshmen" peaked at number 5 in the United States.
Background and content
According to the FAQ on "Verve Pipings", guitarist and lead singer Brian Vander Ark wrote the song in 1991 about the guilt he felt from his ex-girlfriend committing suicide.However, according to an external interview site, Vander Ark revealed that the suicide was a poetic license; the real incident which inspired the song was when his pregnant girlfriend had an abortion.
Charts and certifications
The Freshmen were among the most popular Irish showbands of the 1960s and 1970s. They specialised in recreating the complex vocal harmonies of international acts such as The Beach Boys and The 5th Dimension. They had nine top 20 hit singles in Ireland, including a reworking of The Rivingtons' song "Papa Oom Mow Mow", featuring the deep voice of lead singer, Derek Dean.
Formation
The Freshmen were formed in 1962 in Northern Ireland. The initial line-up changed over the nearly two decades of the band's existence as members came and went. Apart from Derek Dean, members included keyboard player, saxophonist, and singer, Billy Brown, who also arranged their trademark vocal harmonies, Damien McElroy (guitar), Torry McGahey (bass), Maurice Henry (saxophone), Sean Mahon (trumpet/trombone), and David McKnight (drums).
The Freshmen supported The Beach Boys on their 1967 Irish tour. At the Belfast gig was a young Rory Gallagher, who later recalled (in conversation with journalist, John Waters) the impression both acts made on him:
Podcasts:
The Verve Pipe
ALBUMS
- Overboard released: 2014
- Are We There Yet? released: 2013
- A Family Album released: 2009
- Platinum & Gold Collection released: 2004
- Underneath released: 2001
- The Verve Pipe released: 1999
- Villains released: 1996
- I've Suffered a Head Injury released: 1996
- Pop Smear released: 1993
- 2007-12-22: The Intersection, Grand Rapids, MI, USA released:
- 85 on 31 released:
85 on 31
- Villains (remix)
- Drive You Wild (album version)
- Photograph (demo)
- Penny Is Poison (live)
- Cup of Tea (acoustic)
- Ominous Man (album version)
- Blue Beret (studio)
- Reverend Girl (album version)
- The Freshmen (acoustic)
- Spoonful of Sugar (live)
- Victoria (live)
- Strawberry Fields Forever (live)
- Villains (live)
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The Freshmen
by: Verve PipeWhen I was young I knew everything
And she a punk who rarely ever took advice
Now I'm guilt stricken, sobbing with my head on the floor
Stop a baby's breath and a shoe full of rice
I can't be held responsible
'Cause she was touching her face
I won't be held responsible
She fell in love in the first place
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and we'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe we'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen
My best friend took a week's vacation to forget her
His girl took a week's worth of valium and slept
And now he's guilt stricken sobbing with his head on the floor
Thinks about her now and how he never really wept he says
I can't be held responsible
'Cause she was touching her face
I won't be held responsible
She fell in love in the first place
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and we'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe we'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen
We've tried to wash our hands of all of this
We never talk of our lacking relationships
And how we're guilt stricken sobbing with our heads on the floor
We fell through the ice when we tried not to slip, we'd say
I can't be held responsible
'Cause she was touching her face
And I won't be held responsible
She fell in love in the first place
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and we'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe we'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen
For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and we'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe we'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen
We were merely freshmen
We were only freshmen