Supergroove
Encyclopedia
Supergroove is a New Zealand funk rock
music group. Their debut album Traction
was released in 1994. The group disbanded in 1997 but recently reformed in 2007.
, now with a successful solo career, Joe Lonie, a music video producer, and Paul Russell, who moved on to start the New Zealand band Eight (who recently split), and who still studio drums with Che Fu and Brooke Fraser
. Two other ex-members, Tim Stewart (trumpet) and Ben Sciascia (guitar) formed a new band in late 2005 called Svelte. Ian Jones recently joined upcoming Sydney band, Lost Valentinos on drums. Karl Steven has completed a PhD in Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy at Cambridge University and is now a member of Auckland surf-punk band The Drab Doo-Riffs.
Supergroove's first release was the single Here Comes the Supergroove, which wasn't added to either of their original albums. Supergroove released two albums of original content - Traction
, from which four singles were taken, and Backspacer, which yielded two singles. Between the two they recorded the EP Tractor, and put out an EP of remixes, GreatMixes
. Seven years after the group split a 'Best Of' compilation, Postage
, was released.
Former member Che Ness, now performing as Che Fu, was named Best Male Vocalist. "Chains", which he recorded with DLT
, was Single of the Year and its performers shared the Best Songwriter award.
for the three shows of their October 2007 New Zealand tour. This reunion included Che Fu, Jo Lonie, Tim Stewart, Ben Sciascia, Ian Jones, Nick Atkinson and Karl Steven.
Supergroove continued in 2007 on a summer tour, playing alongside popular New Zealand bands such as Atlas, Elemeno P
, The Feelers
and were one of the headline Kiwi acts of the Big Day Out
2008 in Auckland. The band featured in the University of Otago
's, the University of Canterbury's and the University of Waikato's 2008 orientation weeks.
Supergroove also played at the Groove in the Park 2008 festival held on New Zealand's Waitangi Day
(6 February), at the Western Springs in Auckland.
Supergroove played at the Homegrown festival in Wellington on 14 March 2009
Funk rock
Funk rock is a music genre that fuses funk and rock elements. Its earliest incarnation was heard in the late 1960s through the mid-1970s by acts such as the Jimi Hendrix Experience , Eric Burdon and War, Trapeze, Parliament-Funkadelic, Betty Davis and Mother's Finest. The 1990s were known for acts...
music group. Their debut album Traction
Traction (album)
Traction is the first album by New Zealand rock band Supergroove. It was released in 1994 by RCA Records, debuting at #1 on the National Album Charts and quickly reaching platinum status. Before the band could record their second album, creative differences forced member Che Ness to leave to...
was released in 1994. The group disbanded in 1997 but recently reformed in 2007.
History
The band was founded New Year's Eve 1989/1990, and originally named the Low-Down Dirty Blues Band. They split up in 1997 over creative differences. Notable former members include Che Ness, aka Che FuChe Fu
Che Fu MNZM is a New Zealand Hip hop/R&B and Reggae recording artist and producer. Originally one part of the band Supergroove, as a solo artist he has gone on to sell thousands of albums both in New Zealand and internationally, including in Australia and the UK.-History:Fu is one of New Zealand's...
, now with a successful solo career, Joe Lonie, a music video producer, and Paul Russell, who moved on to start the New Zealand band Eight (who recently split), and who still studio drums with Che Fu and Brooke Fraser
Brooke Fraser
Brooke Gabrielle Fraser Ligertwood, better known as Brooke Fraser is a New Zealand award-winning folk-pop and Christian music artist...
. Two other ex-members, Tim Stewart (trumpet) and Ben Sciascia (guitar) formed a new band in late 2005 called Svelte. Ian Jones recently joined upcoming Sydney band, Lost Valentinos on drums. Karl Steven has completed a PhD in Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy at Cambridge University and is now a member of Auckland surf-punk band The Drab Doo-Riffs.
Supergroove's first release was the single Here Comes the Supergroove, which wasn't added to either of their original albums. Supergroove released two albums of original content - Traction
Traction (album)
Traction is the first album by New Zealand rock band Supergroove. It was released in 1994 by RCA Records, debuting at #1 on the National Album Charts and quickly reaching platinum status. Before the band could record their second album, creative differences forced member Che Ness to leave to...
, from which four singles were taken, and Backspacer, which yielded two singles. Between the two they recorded the EP Tractor, and put out an EP of remixes, GreatMixes
Great Mixes (album)
GreatMixes is a remix album released by Supergroove in 1994 to capitalise on the band's success generated by their hit album Traction and the large following they had attracted worldwide from their live performances....
. Seven years after the group split a 'Best Of' compilation, Postage
Postage (album)
Postage was released in 2003 as an in depth synopsis of Supergroove's output. Whilst it is the band's Greatest Hits collection there were a number of songs on the album, predominantly from singles, which had not been previously released on any of the band's earlier albums and EPs...
, was released.
1995 New Zealand Music Awards
- Best Group
- Album of the Year (Traction)
- Best Video (Jo Fischer & Matt Noonan – Can't Get Enough)
- Best Producer (Karl Steven & Malcolm Welsford – Traction)
1997 New Zealand Music Awards
- Best Video (Sigi Spath & Joe Lonie – If I Had My Way)
- Best Producer (Malcolm Welsford & Karl Steven - Backspacer)
Former member Che Ness, now performing as Che Fu, was named Best Male Vocalist. "Chains", which he recorded with DLT
DLT (musician)
DLT is a New Zealand DJ, music producer, composer & artist. Born Darryl Thompson in Maraenui, New Zealand.DLT was inspired by an article about rap and breakdancing in Life magazine when he was 16 years of age; he moved to Wellington in the '80s and established himself as a graffiti artist known as...
, was Single of the Year and its performers shared the Best Songwriter award.
Members
- Che Ness, aka Che FuChe FuChe Fu MNZM is a New Zealand Hip hop/R&B and Reggae recording artist and producer. Originally one part of the band Supergroove, as a solo artist he has gone on to sell thousands of albums both in New Zealand and internationally, including in Australia and the UK.-History:Fu is one of New Zealand's...
- Joe Lonie
- Paul Russell
- Tim Stewart
- Ben Sciascia
- Ian Jones
- Nick Atkinson
- Karl Steven
Performance
- Saturday, 15 January 1994, Supergroove played at Mountain Rock III, Mountain Rock Music FestivalMountain Rock Music FestivalMountain Rock Music Festivals held on a farm near Woodville then moved to a site near Palmerston North, were widely celebrated Kiwi music events in New Zealand during the 1990s...
, later partying backstage with Idol FretIdol FretNot to be confused with a New Zealand band of the same name, this Idol Fret was a rock band from Saddleworth, Oldham, England, mostly known for playing in clubs and pubs around the east of Manchester...
, a group of young Supergroove fans who also played at the festival.
Reunion
Despite what was widely considered to be a less than amicable break up, Supergroove supported Crowded HouseCrowded House
Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Australia and led by New Zealand singer-songwriter Neil Finn. Finn is the primary songwriter and creative director of the band, having led it through several incarnations, drawing members from New Zealand , Australia and the United States...
for the three shows of their October 2007 New Zealand tour. This reunion included Che Fu, Jo Lonie, Tim Stewart, Ben Sciascia, Ian Jones, Nick Atkinson and Karl Steven.
Supergroove continued in 2007 on a summer tour, playing alongside popular New Zealand bands such as Atlas, Elemeno P
Elemeno P
Elemeno P is a New Zealand rock band. The band's first album, Love & Disrespect was released on 4 July 2003, and reached number one on the RIANZ albums chart. Their second album, Trouble in Paradise was released on 24 November 2005 and includes the singles 11:57, Burn, One Left Standing and You Are...
, The Feelers
The Feelers
The Feelers are a New Zealand rock band formed in the early 1990s in Christchurch by James Reid , Matthew Thomas and Hamish Gee .-History:...
and were one of the headline Kiwi acts of the Big Day Out
Big Day Out
The Big Day Out is an annual music festival held in several cities in Australia and New Zealand in late January. It started in Sydney in 1992, spread to Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth by 1993, with the Gold Coast and Auckland joining in 1994...
2008 in Auckland. The band featured in the University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
's, the University of Canterbury's and the University of Waikato's 2008 orientation weeks.
Supergroove also played at the Groove in the Park 2008 festival held on New Zealand's Waitangi Day
Waitangi Day
Waitangi Day commemorates a significant day in the history of New Zealand. It is a public holiday held each year on 6 February to celebrate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand's founding document, on that date in 1840.-History:...
(6 February), at the Western Springs in Auckland.
Supergroove played at the Homegrown festival in Wellington on 14 March 2009
Discography
| Date of Release | Title | Label | Charted | Certification | Catalog Number | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albums | ||||||
| 1994 1994 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1994.-January–February:*January 25 – Alice in Chains release their Jar of Flies album which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first ever EP to do so.... |
Traction Traction (album) Traction is the first album by New Zealand rock band Supergroove. It was released in 1994 by RCA Records, debuting at #1 on the National Album Charts and quickly reaching platinum status. Before the band could record their second album, creative differences forced member Che Ness to leave to... |
BMG BMG Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann... |
1 (NZ) | Platinum (NZ), Gold (Indonesia) | 74321 27954 2 | |
| 1996 1996 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1996.-January:* January – At the trial of two American teenagers, Nicholaus McDonald and Brian Bassett, for the murder of Bassett's parents and young brother, defense lawyers attempt to lay the blame for the murders on the fact... |
Backspacer | RCA RCA RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor... |
2 (NZ) | Gold (NZ) | ||
| 2003 2003 in music -January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested... |
Postage Postage (album) Postage was released in 2003 as an in depth synopsis of Supergroove's output. Whilst it is the band's Greatest Hits collection there were a number of songs on the album, predominantly from singles, which had not been previously released on any of the band's earlier albums and EPs... |
BMG BMG Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann... |
10 (NZ) | - | ||
| EPs | ||||||
| 1995 1995 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1995.- January–February :*January 18 – Jerry Garcia crashes his rented BMW into a guard rail near Mill Valley, California, USA, but is not injured in the accident.... |
Tractor | - | Platinum (NZ) | |||
| 1994 1994 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1994.-January–February:*January 25 – Alice in Chains release their Jar of Flies album which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first ever EP to do so.... |
GreatMixes Great Mixes (album) GreatMixes is a remix album released by Supergroove in 1994 to capitalise on the band's success generated by their hit album Traction and the large following they had attracted worldwide from their live performances.... |
BMG BMG Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann... |
- | - | 74321 30851 2 | |
| Singles | ||||||
| 1992 1992 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1992.-January–February:*January 11**Nirvana's Nevermind album goes to #1 in the US Billboard 200 chart, establishing the widespread popularity of the Grunge movement of the 1990s.... |
Here Comes The Supergroove | - | 21 (NZ) | |||
| 1993 1993 in music This is a summary of significant events in music in 1993.-January–February:*January 8 – The U.S. Postal Service issues an Elvis Presley stamp. The design was voted on in February 1992.... |
Scorpio Girls | - | 3 (NZ) | Gold (NZ) | ||
| Can't Get Enough | - | 1 (NZ), 32 (Aus) | Platinum (NZ) | |||
| You Gotta Know | - | 4 (NZ) | ||||
| Sitting Inside My Head | - | 6 (NZ) | Gold (NZ) | |||
| 1996 1996 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1996.-January:* January – At the trial of two American teenagers, Nicholaus McDonald and Brian Bassett, for the murder of Bassett's parents and young brother, defense lawyers attempt to lay the blame for the murders on the fact... |
If I Had My Way | - | 7 (NZ) | |||
| 1996 1996 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1996.-January:* January – At the trial of two American teenagers, Nicholaus McDonald and Brian Bassett, for the murder of Bassett's parents and young brother, defense lawyers attempt to lay the blame for the murders on the fact... |
5th Wheel | - | - | |||
| Only Ever You | - | - | ||||
| 2003 2003 in music -January:* January – following an investigation by The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and London detectives, police raids in England and the Netherlands recover nearly 500 original Beatles studio tapes, recorded during the Let It Be sessions. Five people are arrested... |
For Whatever Remix | - | - | |||