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East 17

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East 17
East 17, promo tour in Cologne, 2012
East 17, promo tour in Cologne, 2012
Background information
Also known asE-17 (1998–1999)
OriginWalthamstow, London, England
GenresPop, dance-pop, pop-rap, hip hop
Years active1991–1999
2006–present
LabelsLondon Records (1991–1997)
Telstar Records (1998–1999)
FOD Records (2011–2014)
Dax Music (2014-present)
MembersTerry Coldwell
Robbie Craig
Terry John
Past membersJohn Hendy
Brian Harvey
Tony Mortimer
Blair Dreelan

East 17 are an English pop boy band group consisting of original member Terry Coldwell, Robbie Craig since 2014 and Terry John since 2018. The original line-up also featured John Hendy, Brian Harvey and Tony Mortimer. Other former members include former Union J manager Blair Dreelan.

The group achieved 18 top-20 singles and four top-10 albums, and were one of the UK's most popular boy bands during the early to mid-1990s, aided by strong tabloid interest in their 'bad boy' image compared to the 'clean cut' image of rivals Take That. Their style blended pop and hip hop in songs such as "House of Love" and "Let It Rain".

The group have sold over 18 million albums worldwide and according to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), East 17 has been certified for 1.8 million albums and 2.4 million singles in the UK.[1] Their biggest selling single, “Stay Another Day”, was the UK Christmas number one of 1994.

Career

Formation (1991)

The group began in 1991 when Tony Mortimer was promised a record deal with London Records after he presented his own material. The deal was granted under the condition that he form a group, which would be in the format that London Records were looking for. Mortimer later formed East 17 with Brian Harvey, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell.

The group was named East 17 after the postcode of their hometown, Walthamstow.[2] The original roles in the band were soon altered when Brian Harvey, who was intended to be a back-up singer and dancer, was made lead singer due to his vocal talent.

Walthamstow (1992–93)

Mortimer wrote the vast majority of the group's songs, which often contained rap verses vocalised by him to complement Harvey's more fluid vocals.

The group was usually seen as a grittier, more political and hip-hop or rap-aligned group than rival boy band Take That, as noted by Guy Adams of The Independent:[3]

They shaved their heads, and had tattoos, and were a lot, lot cooler than the nancy boys of Take That. In the great five-year battle that dominated British pop, East 17 were also on the winning side. Their music was sharper and more streetwise. It was infused with hip hop and sold by the bucketload: 18 million records across Europe, compared with Take That's paltry 17 million.

— Guy Adams

East 17 scored twelve Top 10 hits on the UK Singles Chart between 1992 and 1998.[4] Their debut album, Walthamstow, reached No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart. It featured a string of Top 20 singles, including "House of Love" and "Deep". "It's Alright" became a major success in Australia, reaching No. 1 in early 1994 for seven consecutive weeks, and No. 3 in the UK in 1993. The lyrics to some of their songs, such as "Let It Rain", had slightly sinister political undertones, talking about war, peace, equality, love, and other political issues such as the Maastricht Treaty.

Steam (1994)

In 1994, upon the release of their second album Steam, they scored their only UK number-one single with "Stay Another Day". It remained at the top for five weeks and was also that year's Christmas number-one.

Up All Night (1995-96)

The group’s next album, Up All Night was less successful. The album's songwriting duties were split among the four members of the group, rather than Mortimer alone, although he wrote the tracks released as singles.

In 1996, the group hit No. 2 with the track "If You Ever", a duet with the singer Gabrielle.[5] The single featured on their compilation album, Around the World Hit Singles: The Journey So Far.

Mortimer's first departure and first split (1997)

In January 1997, Brian Harvey was engulfed in a drug-related controversy when he claimed that he had taken Ecstasy pills on a night out, stating in the press that "It's cool to take drugs" and claiming that Ecstasy "can make you a better person".

The act went against the group's 'boy band' image, and there was a media uproar, leading to questions being raised in the House of Commons.[6][3] With the group's career and reputation tarnished by the affair, Harvey was swiftly sacked and Mortimer decided to leave several months later, due to creative differences between himself and the rest of the group.[3]

First reunion and second split (1998–1999)

Coldwell and Hendy later reinstated Harvey and attempted a comeback in 1998 renaming the group E-17[7] and landed a record deal with Telstar Records after recording an album's worth of self-written material in their home studios. Their first single as E-17 was "Each Time," which reached No. 2 in the UK. But without Mortimer's songwriting influence, the group's initial success soon wavered, and after disappointing sales of the next single "Betcha Can't Wait" reaching number 12 in the charts, and their album Resurrection failing to make the UK Top 40. The band were later dropped by their label in 1999 and subsequently split up.

Post-split activities (1999–2006)

In 2001, Harvey launched himself as a solo artist in a collaboration with Wyclef Jean on the Top 20 single "Loving You", but later returned to perform numerous gigs on the nostalgia circuit with Coldwell and Hendy. On the ITV1 docusoap Redcoats, the trio were shown performing at a gig that was held at Butlins in Bognor on a bill which also featured Keith Harris, whilst in 2005, Harvey, Coldwell and Hendy performed a gig in Mongolia. In May 2005, Harvey was seriously injured in a car accident, requiring surgery.[8]

Second reunion and Mortimer's second departure (2006–2009)

On 4 February 2006, Harvey appeared on the UK music television show CD:UK, where he announced that East 17 might make a comeback with its four original members. In mid-February 2006, the group reformed, and played their first comeback concert on 30 May at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London.[4] After reforming for the one-off gig, it was reported that Mortimer had left the group again due to a confrontation with Harvey, leading to a "punch-up" between the two men.[3]

A Channel 4 documentary, East 17: The Reunion, which charted the group's rise and fall, along with their subsequent attempt to re-launch, was broadcast in May 2007.[3]

East 17 performance in Sibiu, Romania, on New Year's Eve 2007.

East 17 continued to perform as a three-member group without Mortimer.[3] They played at the University of Strathclyde on 24 September 2006, after DJ Colin Murray was unable to attend. Since then, the group has performed in clubs around the UK as well as becoming regulars on the 1990s themed Butlins Big Weekends. A new single, "Fuck That" was due to be released in early 2008[9] as well as a new album "Universalization", but both went unreleased.

The group performed at the 2009 Glastonbury Festival on 25 June in the dance lounge.[10] In November 2009, the group collaborated with Mortimer in aid of the Born Free Foundation, they performed two of their best known songs—"Deep" and "Stay Another Day"—for the Wild & Live! event at the Royal Albert Hall.[11] After the performance, the four agreed that it would be best if they never sang together again, however, according to a BBC Radio 2 interview with Zoë Ball in December 2009, songwriter Tony Mortimer mentioned that the band were on 'talking terms' and were planning a comeback for 2010.

Mortimer's second return, Harvey's departure, Dreelan's arrival and departure and Dark Light (2010–2013)

Tony Mortimer returned to the group in 2010. Brian Harvey left soon after as his commitment was questioned by the rest of the group, as he had been missing rehearsals and cancelling gigs. In 2011 T-Mobile used the East 17 song "House of Love" in a Royal Wedding "spoof" commercial. In April 2011 it was announced Blair Dreelan had joined the band for their 'Back to the Future' tour in August and September 2011 to promote their comeback single 'Secret of My Life'. On 28 September 2011 Dreelan left the group due to contractual obligations. On 27 November 2011, they appeared as musical guests on X Factor (Romania).[12]

East 17's fifth studio album Dark Light, along with a new single "I Can't Get You Off My Mind", were released in 2012.

Mortimer's third departure, Craig's arrival, 24/7 and Hendy's departure (2013-present)

Mortimer departed for the third time in 2013. Robbie Craig later joined East 17 in early 2014. John Hendy and Terry Coldwell became the only original band members in the group at that stage.[13]

A small concert in 2015 was held in Dublin.[14] The concert did not attract as many fans as they had hoped. Fans blamed this on the replacement of the core band members who had sung their top tracks. After the show, they did an interview with Donagh Corby, of website Young Perspective and said they still enjoyed playing at the venue. John Hendy said "it was an amazing show... amazing crowd, lots of energy," while Robbie Craig added "Dubliners know how to enjoy themselves don't they."[15]

In the interview with Young Perspective, Terry Coldwell revealed that they will be releasing a new album, with their debut single to be called "Warning".

In 2018, East 17 hope to release their sixth studio album 24/7, with the intended first single being Strip along with an accompanying music video. The album was released early in Australia as 24/7: Australian Tour Edition as a surprise while they partook in B*Witched's Australia & NZ Tour as a supporting act alongside Atomic Kitten, S Club 3 and Liberty X in 2017.

In June 2018, John Hendy departed the group citing personal reasons and wishing them luck in a tweet.[16] Since then a replacement was found and accepted into the group; Terry John has performed with them in numerous shows.[17]

Members

Current
  • Terry Coldwell (1991-1997, 1998-1999, 2006-2013, 2014-present)
  • Robbie Craig (2014–present)
  • Terry John (2018–present)
Former
  • John Hendy (1991-1997, 1998-1999, 2006-2013, 2014-2018)
  • Brian Harvey (1991–1997, 1998–1999, 2006–2010)
  • Tony Mortimer (1991–1997, 2006, 2010–2013)
  • Blair Dreelan (2011)
Timeline

Tours

Main
  • Letting Off Steam: The Around The World Tour (1994–1995)
  • Moscow Olympic Stadium (1996)
  • East 17 Live in Australia (2012)[18]
Supporting
  • Australia & NZ Tour (2017)

Awards and nominations

Year Awards Work Category Result
1993 Mercury Prize Walthamstow Album of the Year Nominated
Bravo Otto Awards Themselves Best Pop Band (Bronze) Won
1994 Won
1995 Brit Awards "Stay Another Day" Best British Single Nominated
Ivor Novello Awards The Best Selling Single Nominated
Most Performed Work Nominated

Discography

Main article: East 17 discography

Studio albums

Extended Plays

Compilations

References

  1. ^ "Certified Awards". Bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  2. ^ Holland, Sinead. "Feature: East 17 star Tony Mortimer is Stansted family man". Herts and Essex Newspapers Ltd. Archived from the original on 25 December 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Adams, Guy (28 February 2007). "Feature: On the road with East 17". Independent News & Media. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  4. ^ a b "Report: East 17 play one-off reunion show". IPC Media. 31 May 2006. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  5. ^ "East 17 Featuring Gabrielle at OfficialCharts.com". Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  6. ^ Barry Legg (16 January 1997). "Prime Minister's Questions". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 450. What is his reaction to the comments made today by Brian Harvey of East 17, who says that Ecstasy makes people feel better and that he takes up to 12 tablets a day?
    Nigel Evans (16 January 1997). "Business of the House". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 463. Brian Harvey and East 17 are idolised by many thousands of youngsters, some as young as 12. All the campaigning that has been done by voluntary bodies and others may now be jeopardised by the fact that Brian Harvey has come up with those stupid remarks.
    Barry Legg (17 January 1997). "Public Entertainments Licences (Drug Misuse) Bill". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 526. We heard some dreadful remarks from Mr. Brian Harvey of East 17. [...] However, there was also a promising sign yesterday. I spoke to a 12-year-old schoolgirl in my constituency, who said that she would be taking down the posters of East 17. [...] Incidentally, I was pleased yesterday to note that many radio stations and record companies said that they would ban the music of East 17.
  7. ^ "Report: E17 star on drugs charges". BBC. 15 June 2002. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  8. ^ "Report: Singer Harvey hopes to walk again". BBC. 8 August 2005. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  9. ^ Colothan, Scott (25 January 2008). "Report: Brian Harvey: 'East 17 Will Take On Take That'". Gigwise.com. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  10. ^ Swash, Rosie (25 June 2009). "Review: East 17 at Glastonbury 2009". Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  11. ^ Pink, Stuart (9 November 2009). "Preview: Harvey: We're too old to fall out". News Group Newspapers. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  12. ^ "Noi artisti internationali urca pe scena X Factor. East 17 canta duminica la Antena 1!" (in Romanian). Antena 1. 24 November 2011. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  13. ^ Bayley, Leanne. "East 17 are back! But um, who the hell is Robbie Craig?". Glamourmagazine.co.uk.
  14. ^ "East 17 perform to just 30 people in 800 capacity venue as 90s boy band play in Dublin". Daily Record. 28 June 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  15. ^ "East 17 Interview 2015". YouTube.
  16. ^ "East 17 Fans". Facebook.com.
  17. ^ "East 17 Fans". Facebook.com.
  18. ^ "East 17". Eventfinda.com.au.
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