22 years after the original release of the song, The Verve’s Richard Ashcroft has finally received publishing credit and songwriting rights for “Bitter Sweet Symphony” (which, apparently, is.
The Verve discography | |
---|---|
The Verve performing at Madison Square Garden, New York City in 2008 | |
Studio albums | 4 |
Compilation albums | 2 |
Video albums | 2 |
Music videos | 15 |
EPs | 3 |
Singles | 14 |
Promotional singles | 2 |
The discography of The Verve, a British alternative rock band, consists of four studio albums, two compilation albums, two video albums, three extended plays, fourteen singles, two promotional singles and fifteen music videos. The band formed in 1989 as Verve, with original members Richard Ashcroft, Nick McCabe, Simon Jones and Peter Salisbury, although they later added 'The' to their name after a lawsuit from the American jazz label Verve Records.[1] After signing to Virgin Records subsidiary Hut Records in 1991, The Verve released the non-album single 'All in the Mind' and a self-titled extended play containing the singles 'She's a Superstar' and 'Gravity Grave', the former reaching number 66 on the UK Singles Chart.[1][2] Their debut studio album, A Storm in Heaven was released in 1993; despite widespread critical acclaim, it only sold modestly, peaking at number 27 on the UK Albums Chart.[1][2]
Tensions grew in the band during the recording sessions for their second album, A Northern Soul (1995) – the album received little media recognition,[1] although it reached number 13 on the UK Albums Chart and was later certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).[2][3] Its lead single, 'This Is Music' became The Verve's first to reach the top 40 in the United Kingdom, and their following two singles 'On Your Own' and 'History' both peaked within the top 30.[2] The conflicts within the band, however, led Ashcroft to break the band up three months after the album's release. He eventually persuaded the other members to reform a few weeks later, except for McCabe, who was replaced by Simon Tong, although McCabe rejoined the band shortly afterwards.[1]
The Verve recorded their third studio album, Urban Hymns, in early 1997.[1] It was a commercial success, topping the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Swedish albums charts and reaching the top ten in Australia and France.[2][4][5][6][7] The singles 'Bitter Sweet Symphony' and 'The Drugs Don't Work' became international hits, with the former peaking at number two and the latter becoming their first single to top the UK Singles Chart:[2] they were later certified platinum and gold respectively by the BPI, with Urban Hymns eventually being certified ten times platinum.[3] Two further singles, 'Lucky Man' and 'Sonnet', were also released from the album; however, the band split up again in 1998 after McCabe pulled out of their tour of the United States. A greatest hits album, This Is Music: The Singles 92–98, was released in 2004, and the group reformed again in 2007.[1] Their final studio album, Forth, was released in 2008, and spawned the singles 'Love Is Noise' and 'Rather Be'. In 2010, Ashcroft confirmed that the band were indefinitely inactive.[8]
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales | Certifications | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [2] | AUS [6] | BEL (FL) [9] | CAN [10] | FRA [7] | GER [11] | NZ [4] | SWE [5] | SWI [12] | US [13] | ||||
A Storm in Heaven |
| 27 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| |
A Northern Soul |
| 13 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| |
Urban Hymns |
| 1 | 9 | 11 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 23 |
|
|
Forth |
| 1 | 20 | 8 | 12 | 31 | 10 | 10 | 34 | 6 | 23 |
|
|
'—' denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [2] | AUT [29] | IRL [30] | |||||||||||
No Come Down[31] |
| -- | -- | -- | |||||||||
This Is Music: The Singles 92–98 |
| 15 | 59 | 28 |
| ||||||||
'—' denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Title | Details |
---|---|
The Video 96–98[34] |
|
This Is Music: The Singles 92–98[35] |
|
Title | Details |
---|---|
The Verve E.P.[36] |
|
Voyager 1[37] |
|
Five by Five[38] |
|
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [2] | AUS [39] | BEL (FL) [9] | FIN [40] | FRA [7] | GER [41] | NZ [4] | SWE [5] | SWI [12] | US [42] | ||||
'All in the Mind'[43] | 1992 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Non-album single | |
'She's a Superstar' | 66 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | Verve | ||
'Gravity Grave'[44] | 78 [45] | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |||
'Blue' | 1993 | 69 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | A Storm in Heaven | |
'Slide Away'[46] | 90 [47] | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |||
'This Is Music' | 1995 | 35 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | A Northern Soul | |
'On Your Own' | 28 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |||
'History' | 24 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |||
'Bitter Sweet Symphony' | 1997 | 2 | 11 | 21 | 6 | 16 | 37 | 15 | 10 | 15 | 12 |
| Urban Hymns |
'The Drugs Don't Work' | 1 | 22 | 52 | 9 | 72 | 87 | 10 | 18 | -- | -- |
| ||
'Lucky Man' | 7 | 60 | 67 | 16 | 88 | 89 | 38 | -- | -- | -- |
| ||
'Sonnet' | 1998 | 74 | 83 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 43 | -- | -- | -- | ||
'Love Is Noise' | 2008 | 4 | 51 | 26 | -- | -- | 26 | 35 | 10 | 26 | -- |
| Forth |
'Rather Be' | 56 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | |||
'—' denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Title | Year | Album |
---|---|---|
'The Rolling People'[49] | 1998 | Urban Hymns |
'The Thaw Session'[50] | 2007 | Non-album single |
Title | Year | Director(s) |
---|---|---|
'All in the Mind' | 1992 | Miles Aldridge[51] |
'She's a Superstar' | Richie Smyth[51] | |
'Gravity Grave' | ||
'Blue' | 1993 | |
'Slide Away' | ||
'This Is Music' | 1995 | Nico Beyer[51] |
'On Your Own' | Jake Scott[51] | |
'History' | Richard Ashcroft[51] | |
'Bitter Sweet Symphony' | 1997 | Walter A. Stern[51] |
'The Drugs Don't Work' | Andy Baybutt, George Hanson[51] | |
'Lucky Man' (version 1) | ||
'Lucky Man' (version 2) | Jamie Thraves[51] | |
'Sonnet' | 1998 | Chris Palmer[51] |
'Love Is Noise' | 2008 | Sam Brown[52] |
'Rather Be' | Richard Ashcroft[53] |