| D:Ream | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Derry, Northern Ireland |
| Genres | Pop rock Synthpop Dance Soul R&B |
| Years active | 1992–1997 2008–present |
| Labels | Magnet Records / FXU Sire/Giant/Warner Bros. Records |
| Website | Official Web Site MySpace Web Site |
| Members | |
| Peter Cunnah (1992–1997; 2008–present) Al Mackenzie (1992–1993; 2008–present) |
|
| Past members | |
| Cian McCarthy Mark Roberts Brian Cox |
|
D:Ream was a UK pop and dance band of the 1990s. They had a UK Number One hit with "Things Can Only Get Better" in 1994 as well as eight more top 40 hits. They released two albums, both of which reached the top five. The group had an all-male line-up which varied in number, but mainly centred on lead singer Peter Cunnah.
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D:Ream first came to prominence with the euphoric single "U R The Best Thing" in the summer of 1992, an anthemic piano-house tune which did not chart but thanks to a Sasha remix was Pete Tong's Essential Tune of 1992. "Things can only get better"; released in the spring of 1993, gave the group their first chart success and thanks to the Labour Party election campaign of 1997 became their best known success. "U R The Best Thing" was eventually re-released in April 1993 and gave the group their second chart hit.
Between 1992 and 1997, the period during which they were active, the band released two studio albums (D:Ream On Volume 1 and World), ten different singles (two of which were released three times), and an official greatest hits album (The Best of D:Ream). In 2006, a second collection was released, for The Platinum Collection series.
When D:Ream became famous the main members were Peter Cunnah (vocalist, songwriter), Al Mackenzie (musician) and Cian McCarthy (sax), although later the group would become a one man band, exclusively centred upon the singer. Another member, the physicist Brian Cox (now Prof. Brian Cox, O.B.E.), played keyboards for several years in D:Ream, while studying for his physics PhD degree. Drumtech trained Mark Roberts played drums. The group also used a number of guest vocalists - such as T.J. Davis, who is featured as co-lead vocalist on "The Power (Of All the Love in the World)", one of the singles taken from their second album, as well as providing backing vocals on many other songs.
The band's first album, D:Ream On Volume 1, which was promoted for almost two years produced seven singles ("Star" and "I Like It" came on a joint release as a double A-side). It was the track "Things Can Only Get Better" that gave them UK success and international fame. After supporting Take That on their tour, "Things Can Only Get Better" topped the UK Singles Chart, in early 1994. Originally released in late 1993, when the track reached Number 24, it was later adopted by the UK Labour Party as their theme for the 1997 UK General Election, and consequently released for the third time, this time getting to Number 19. Despite this, the group's record label released their first compilation, The Best of D:Ream, in 1997 instead of their third studio album which remains unreleased.
In 2008 D:Ream reformed after a chance meeting by Cunnah and Mackenzie. They recorded a new album released in 2011 on their own label User Records and their single, "All Things to All Men" was released on 7 September 2009. They also planned concert dates to follow.[1]
Brian Cox became a renowned physicist and science broadcaster and is currently working on the Large Hadron Collider project.[2] In late 2010 he announced that he was to provide some keyboard work for the new album, but would not be re-joining the band full-time.[3]
The band were nominated for Best Dance act in the MTV Europe music awards in 1994 and for Best Single in the Brit Awards in 1995.
| Year | Album title | UK chart [4] |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | D:Ream On Volume 1 | 5 |
| 1995 | World | 5 |
| 1997 | The Best of D:Ream | - |
| 2006 | The Platinum Collection | - |
| 2011 | In Memory Of... |
| Year | Single title | UK chart [5] |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | "4 Things 2 Come" (EP) | - |
| "U R the Best Thing" | 72 | |
| 1993 | "Things Can Only Get Better" | 24 |
| "U R the Best Thing" (re-release) | 19 | |
| "Unforgiven" | 29 | |
| "Star" / "I Like It" | 26 | |
| 1994 | "Things Can Only Get Better" (re-release) | 1 |
| "U R the Best Thing" (re-release) | 3 | |
| "Take Me Away" | 18 | |
| "Blame It on Me" | 25 | |
| 1995 | "Shoot Me With Your Love" | 7 |
| "Party Up the World" | 20 | |
| "The Power (Of All the Love in the World)" | 40 | |
| 1997 | "Things Can Only Get Better" (re-release) | 19 |
| 2009 | "All Things to All Men" | - |
| 2010 | "Drop Beats Not Bombs (PROMO)" | - |
| 2011 | "Gods in the Making" | - |
| "Sleepy Head" | - |