For other persons of the
same name, see Ian McCulloch.
| Ian McCulloch |
|
| Background information |
| Birth name |
Ian Stephen McCulloch |
| Born |
May 5, 1959 (1959-05-05) (age 48),
Liverpool,
England |
Associated
acts |
Echo & the Bunnymen,
Electrafixion |
Ian McCulloch (born Ian Stephen McCulloch, 5 May 1959, Liverpool)
is an English
singer
best known for his work with Echo & the Bunnymen.
|
Contents
- 1 Career
- 2 Trivia
- 3 Discography
- 3.1 Albums
- 3.2 Duets
- 3.3 Singles
- 4 External
links
|
Career
McCulloch was a singer-songwriter with the Crucial
Three, one of many local bands that sprung up amongst the
regulars who patronized a Liverpool club called Eric's in the late
seventies. The other two members were Julian
Cope, later of The Teardrop Explodes
and Pete
Wylie who went on to form Wah!
In 1978 McCulloch formed Echo & the Bunnymen
with Will
Sergeant (guitar), Les Pattinson (bass) and a
drum machine (allegedly named Echo), making their live debut at Eric's
later that year. In 1979 the Bunnymen exchanged the drum machine for Pete
de Freitas on drums. With their line up solidified, the Bunnymen
enjoyed critical acclaim in the late seventies and early eighties
culminating with the release of Ocean Rain
in 1984. After an incredible self titled album, McCulloch left to
pursue a solo career under the impression the Bunnymen would be laid to
rest if only temporarily. When the remaining Bunnymen continued using
the name with a new singer the split became permanent with McCulloch
referring to the band as "Echo & the Bogusmen".
In 1990 McCulloch achieved modest chart success with the album
Candleland
which reflected a more mature outlook on the world, owing to the recent
deaths of McCulloch's father and Pete de Freitas. The album Mysterio
was released in 1992 as the public's interest in the former Bunnyman
was waning. Shortly after, McCulloch left the public eye to devote more
time to his family.
In 1993 McCulloch partnered with Johnny
Marr of The Smiths, writing an album's
worth of material and generating public excitement over the
collaboration of two highly regarded artists. McCulloch has credited
Marr with helping him regain his lost confidence and rejuvenating his
desire to create music. When it was suggested that Will
Sergeant be brought in to work on the songs, the tapes were allegedly
stolen from a courier van preventing Sergeant from offering any input.
Rumour has it that Marr was in fact so angry over Sergeant being
brought in, he refused to hand over the masters.
The rekindling of the relationship between McCulloch and
Sergeant led to the formation of Electrafixion
in 1994 which was notable for band's rock oriented approach and
McCulloch's new found vocal ferocity. The band received glowing live
reviews and released the album Burned
to very positive press but little chart success. The band soon found
themselves performing set lists composed of half Electrafixion
songs and half Echo & the Bunnymen
songs. In 1997 Echo & the Bunnymen
reformed and released the album Evergreen
to positive reviews and chart success. The reformed Bunnymen have since
released three further albums to generally favourable reviews, the most
recent being Siberia
which was released in late 2005.
In 2003 McCulloch released his third solo album Slideling
which received the best reviews of his solo career and saw a solo tour
in support of the album.
McCulloch has cited Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Leonard
Cohen and - in particular - David Bowie as influences for
his work.
At the height of the Bunnymen's popularity, McCulloch earned
the nickname "Mac the Mouth" due to a penchant for witty, blunt
criticism of artists he deemed inferior, while proclaiming the
Bunnymen's superiority. Targets of his observations included Bono of U2, Julian
Cope, Paul Weller and Nick Cave.
In 1998, McCulloch teamed up with the Spice
Girls, Tommy Scott of Space and Simon
Fowler of Ocean Colour Scene as
"England United" to record Top
of the World, the official song for Team England in the 1998
FIFA World Cup, although it fared less well than a reissue of "Three
Lions". Mac has been a lifetime supporter of the Liverpool Football Club. In
2006, he took part in recording the team's anthem with the Bootroom
Allstars - a remake of the Johnny Cash song Ring
of Fire.
Trivia
- In 1983 McCulloch married Lorraine Fox. They have two
daughters, Candy and Mimi. The couple separated in 2003.
- McCulloch was raised in the Norris
Green area of Liverpool. The road on which he originally lived, Parthenon
Drive, is the title of a song contained in their 2006 album Siberia.
- Ian made his money to produce the first demo tape and buy
quality mikes and instruments by spending a summer working on a
crayfishing boat in Alaska. "Hard work it was, mate! Hard work!"
Discography
Albums
- Candleland, 1989
- Mysterio, 1992
- Slideling, 2003
Duets
Singles
| Year |
Title |
Chart positions |
Album |
| US Hot 100 |
US Modern Rock |
US Mainstream Rock |
UK |
| 1984 |
"September Song" |
- |
- |
- |
# 51 |
- |
| 1989 |
"Proud to Fall" |
- |
# 1 (4 weeks) |
- |
# 51 |
Candleland |
| 1990 |
"Faith and Healing" |
- |
# 10 |
- |
# 96 |
Candleland |
| 1990 |
"Candleland" |
- |
- |
- |
# 75 |
Candleland |
| 1992 |
"Honeydrip" |
- |
- |
- |
n.r. |
Mysterio |
| 1992 |
"Lover Lover Lover" |
- |
- |
- |
# 47 |
Mysterio |
| 1992 |
"Dug for Love" |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Mysterio |
| 2003 |
"Sliding" |
- |
- |
- |
# 61 |
Slideling |
External links
