The Cranberries are an Irish rock band who formed in Limerick in 1990. The band consists
of vocalist Dolores O'Riordan, guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal
Lawler. Although widely associated with alternative rock, the band's sound also incorporates indie
pop, post-punk, Irish folk and pop rock elements. The Cranberries rose to international fame
in the 1990s with their debut album, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?, which
became a commercial success. The group was one of the most successful rock acts of the
'90s and sold over 40 million albums worldwide. The band has achieved four top 20 albums on
the Billboard 200 chart and eight top 20 singles on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.
In early 2010, after a six-year hiatus, The Cranberries reunited and began a North American
tour, followed by shows in Latin America and Europe. The band recorded their sixth album,
Roses, in May 2011, and released it on 27 February 2012.
History Formation and early years
In 1989, brothers Mike and Noel Hogan formed The Cranberry Saw Us with drummer Fergal Lawler
and singer Niall Quinn, in Limerick, Ireland. Less than a year later, Quinn left the band.
The remaining band members then placed an advertisement for a female singer. Dolores
O'Riordan responded to the advertisement and auditioned by writing lyrics and melodies
to some existing demos. When she returned with a rough version of "Linger", the group
hired her. After hiring O'Riordan, the band started recording
a home-made demo tape, of which 300 copies were sold. Changing their name to The Cranberries,
the band sent another demo tape, which featured early versions of both "Linger" and "Dreams,"
to record companies throughout the UK. The tape was recorded at the Xeric studios, which
was run by Pearse Gilmore, who would later become their manager.
The demo tape earned the attention of both the UK press and record industry and sparked
a bidding war between major British record labels. Eventually, the group signed with
Island Records. The Cranberries headed back into studio with Gilmore as their producer
to record their first EP, "Uncertain", it became the first commercial recording of the
band, released on CDs and vinyls; besides, an unreleased music video was made for "Uncertain".
The title proved to be prophetic as they did sound ill at ease, leading to poor reviews
in the press. This led to tension between the group and Gilmore. After a disastrous
recording session intended for their first Island records album in January 1992, the
band scrapped their work and fired Gilmore. After hiring Geoff Travis as their new manager,
The Cranberries headed back into studio in Dublin in March 1992 to restart working on
their first LP with Stephen Street, who had previously worked with The Smiths.
During that time period, The Cranberries toured in Ireland and the UK, getting the attention
of the British press. The band also recorded several studio and live sessions intended
for Irish and British radio and television shows, including 2fm's The Dave Fanning Show
and BBC Radio 1's John Peel Show. Mainstream success
After the release of a first single, "Dreams" in September 1992, The Cranberries proposed
their debut album, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?, in March 1993. Neither
the album nor the single gained much attention, nor did a second single, "Linger". When the
band embarked on a tour supporting Suede, they then caught the attention of MTV, which
put their videos into heavy rotation. Although "Linger" was first released in the UK in February
1993, peaking at 74, it was later re-issued in February 1994 peaking at 14. This was followed
by Dreams which helped their debut album to reach No. 1 on the UK Album Chart, becoming
one of only five artists to ever achieve a re-entry at that chart position. After a North
American and European Tour, O'Riordan married the band's tour manager, Don Burton, in July
1994. O'Riordan's position in the group continued
to rise with the fall release of the group's second album, No Need to Argue. Boasting a
slightly harder, more streamlined sound, yet still produced by Stephen Street, the record
debuted at number six on the US charts and eventually outsold its predecessor. Within
a year it went triple platinum, spawning the number one hit "Zombie" and the number 11
"Ode to My Family" on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. In 1995, the band continued to tour,
and released two more singles "I Can't Be With You" and "Ridiculous Thoughts". The album
went 5x platinum in Canada, platinum in Switzerland, and seven times platinum in the United States.
Middle era The band's heavier third album, To the Faithful
Departed, failed to garner the same reception as its predecessors. On its spring release
the album entered the charts, peaking at number 2 on the UK Album Chart and number 4 on the
Billboard 200. Despite favorable reviews, the album did not match the sales of No Need
to Argue. The album only went double platinum in the US and Gold in the UK, which was considerably
less than its two predecessors' which were certified seven times platinum. The first
single from the album was "Salvation" which peaked at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks
chart. The second single from the album was "Free To Decide"; the single's peak in the
UK was 33. During the autumn of 1996, the group cancelled their Australian and European
tour, sparking rumors that O'Riordan was about to launch a solo career. In November 1996
"When You're Gone" was released as a single in the United States, peaking at 22 on the
Billboard Hot 100, thereby becoming the second single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 from
the album; the first was "Free To Decide". In 1999, the group released their fourth studio
album Bury the Hatchet. The first single "Promises" was released in February. "Promises" would
be the only single from the album to chart in the US and last single before their hiatus.
The album peaked at 7 in the UK and 13 in the US. The album was certified gold in the
US. The second single from the album was "Animal Instinct", which didn't chart in the UK, although
it did chart in France, Austria and many others. The third and fourth singles were "Just My
Imagination" and "You & Me", respectively. The band had a guest appearance on popular
television series Charmed, performing "Just My Imagination" on the fifth episode of the
second season, "She's a Man, Baby, A Man!". The group started a world tour in April 1999
and it finished in July 2000. It was the biggest and most successful tour of the Cranberries'
career. The tour brought them back to Ireland for
their first date since May 2000. They performed at Millstreet in County Cork. As the tour
rolled on, the band released Bury The Hatchet – The Complete Sessions, a double CD featuring
B-sides as well as live tracks taken from a live show in Paris.
Later years In October 2001, the album Wake Up and Smell
the Coffee was released. The band's old producer, Stephen Street, had returned and produced
their new music video. The album peaked at 46 on the Billboard 200. Its peak in the UK
was No. 61. The first single released from the album was "Analyse", which didn't chart
in the UK but chart in US Adult Top 40 at 26 peak. In January 2002, they released the
second single "Time Is Ticking Out", and some months later another one, "This Is The Day".
None of the songs charted. The following year a greatest hits album was
released entitled Stars - The Best of 1992 - 2002 which was released alongside eponymous
DVD of music videos. The album peaked in the UK was 20. The song "Stars" was released as
a single from that album. They started a European tour in mid October
2002, which ended in December of the same year.
At the end of February 2003, The Cranberries started working with Stephen Street and debuted
their work for the first time in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on 29 May 2003. While "Astral
Projection" was described as "a dreamy rock song", "In it Together" – which had just
been finished that day – was more "the same type of atmosphere as Stars". These two songs
were played again during the band’s mini tour that summer, some with the Rolling Stones,
and some alone. In September 2003, despite working on a new
album, the Cranberries announced they were taking some time to pursue individual careers.
Hiatus and solo careers Since 2004 Dolores O'Riordan has been collaborating
on a number of musical projects, before launching her solo career with the album Are You Listening?
in 2007, following it with No Baggage in 2009. Dolores O'Riordan performed Linger by The
Cranberries in the 2006 Adam Sandler movie Click. Noel Hogan started a new project called
Mono Band, whose first full-length self-titled album saw a limited release in 2005. He went
on to form Arkitekt with singer-songwriter Richard Walters. He has also been working
as a producer with Supermodel Twins, from his native Limerick and Remma. Fergal Lawler
was a member of The Low Network, whose first album was released in 2007. He has also worked
with Walter Mitty and the Realists as well as Last Days Of Death Country as both producer
and musician. Reunion and Roses
The Cranberries reunited in January 2009 "to celebrate Dolores becoming an Honorary Patron
of University Philosophical Society". While the group indicated at the time that this
did not signify an official reunion, things seem to have changed. On 25 August 2009 in
anticipation of the release of her second solo album, No Baggage, O'Riordan announced
that the Cranberries would be reuniting for a North American and European tour. O'Riordan
indicated that the band would be playing songs from her solo albums and a lot of The Cranberries
classic hits as well as some new group compositions. The Cranberries recorded Roses at the Metalworks
Studios in Mississauga, from 18 April to 15 May 2011 with producer Stephen Street, who
previously collaborated with the band on first, second and fifth albums. The Cranberries worked
on 15 tracks during the Roses session, although not all were included on the album. The album
was released on 27 February 2012. O'Riordan started legal proceedings against
Hogan in October 2013, but the cause has not yet been divulged.
Band members Dolores O'Riordan – lead vocals, rhythm
and acoustic guitars, keyboards Noel Hogan – lead guitar
Mike Hogan – bass guitar Fergal Lawler – drums and percussion
Former members Niall Quinn – lead vocals, guitar
Touring musicians Russell Burton – keyboards, keyboards and
guitar Johanna Cranitch – backing vocals
Former touring musicians Steve DeMarchi – lead guitar, backing vocals
Denny DeMarchi – keyboards, guitar, backing vocals
Discography
Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? No Need to Argue
To the Faithful Departed Bury the Hatchet
Wake Up and Smell the Coffee Roses
References
External links Official website
Official Dolores O'Riordan website The Cranberries on Facebook
The Cranberries on Twitter The Cranberries on Google+
The Cranberries: Tiny Desk Concert, National Public Radio, 23 February 2012