Supergrass

Supergrass biography

Supergrass were an English alternative rock band from Oxford. The band consisted of brothers Gaz (guitar and lead vocals) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass and backing vocals) and Danny Goffey (drums and backing vocals).

Gaz Coombes, Mick Quinn and Danny Goffey formed Supergrass in 1993 in Oxford with Gaz's brother Rob Coombes officially joining the band in 2002. The band signed to Parlophone records in 1994 and produced I Should Coco (1995), the biggest selling début album for the label since the Beatles' Please Please Me. Their first album's fourth single Alright was a huge international hit that established the band's reputation. Since then the band have released five albums: In It for the Money (1997), Supergrass (1999), Life on Other Planets (2002), Road to Rouen (2005) and Diamond Hoo Ha (2008), as well as a decade-ending compilation called Supergrass is 10 (2004).

In August 2009 they signed to Cooking Vinyl and began work on 7th studio album Release the Drones. It remained unreleased and unfinished as, on 12 April 2010, the band announced that it was splitting up due to musical and creative differences. The group disbanded after four farewell gigs, the final one at La Cigale, Paris on 11 June 2010.

History

The Jennifers and formation (1990-1993)

At the age of 16 and 18 respectively Gaz Coombes and Danny Goffey were members of shoegaze band The Jennifers along with Nick Goffey and Andy Davis. The band played gigs at various venues around Oxfordshire, often public houses and clubs. One pub the band played at was the Jericho Tavern in Oxford. The band enjoyed enough success to release one single in 1992, "Just Got Back Today", on Nude Records before they disbanded.

When Coombes began working at the local Harvester he befriended co-worker Mick Quinn. The two realised they had common music interests and Coombes invited Quinn to come and jam with himself and Goffey. In February 1993 they formed Theodore Supergrass, "for about two months" Quinn explains, "then we realized that Theodore was a bit rubbish so we took that off."

Goffey claims that the name was his idea and says; "Although the others will dispute it, it was me. We were Theodore Supergrass and the idea was the band would be a little black character, and we wouldn't ever have to do interviews. We'd get the questions in advance, script the answers and then animate Theodore Supergrass answering them. But it cost too much money."

The brother of Gaz, Rob Coombes, played flute for the band's début gig at the Co-Op Hall, Oxford in 1993. In January 1995 he first performed as keyboardist with the band for a live Radio 1 John Peel session. His role in the band progressed over the years, post I Should Coco material is credited to "Supergrass and Rob Coombes", however, he wasn't introduced as a band member until almost a decade later.

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