Global InformationCulture Club information
Culture Club | |
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 Culture Club performing in July 2016, from left to right: Roy Hay, Boy George and Mikey Craig | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | London, England |
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| Years active |
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| Members |
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| Past members | Jon Moss |
| Website | boygeorgeandcultureclub |
Culture Club are an English new wave band formed in London in 1981. The band comprises Boy George (lead vocals), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), and Mikey Craig (bass guitar), and formerly included Jon Moss (drums and percussion). Emerging in the New Romantic scene, they are considered one of the most representative and influential groups of the 1980s.[1]
Led by singer and frontman Boy George, whose androgynous style of dressing caught the attention of the public and the media in the early 1980s, the band have sold more than 50 million records,[2][3] including over six million BPI certified records sold in the UK[4] and over seven million RIAA certified records sold in the US.[5] Their hits include "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", "Time (Clock of the Heart)", "I'll Tumble 4 Ya", "Church of the Poison Mind", "Karma Chameleon", "Victims", "Miss Me Blind", "It's a Miracle", "The War Song", "Move Away", and "I Just Wanna Be Loved". In the UK they amassed twelve top 40 hit singles between 1982 and 1999, including the number ones "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" and "Karma Chameleon", the latter being the biggest selling single of 1983 in the UK, and hit number one on the US Hot 100 in 1984. The song "Time (Clock of the Heart)" is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of 500 songs that shaped rock and roll.
Their second album, Colour by Numbers, sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. It appeared on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 Best Albums of the 1980s and is also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Ten of their singles reached the US top 40, where they are associated with the Second British Invasion of British "new music"[6][7] groups that became popular in the US due to the cable music channel MTV. Culture Club's music has been described as combining new wave and American soul and pop. It also includes some elements of Jamaican reggae and other styles such as calypso, salsa, and, with "Karma Chameleon", elements of country music.[8][9]
Culture Club have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, including seven million records in the United States.[10][11] In 1984, Culture Club won Brit Awards for Best British Group, Best British Single ("Karma Chameleon"), and the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.[12] They were nominated the same year for the Grammy Award for Pop Vocal by Group or Duo. The band were also nominated for a Canadian Juno Award for International Album of the Year. In January 1985, Culture Club were nominated for an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Video Artist, and in September 1985, they were nominated for two MTV Video Music Awards for Best Special Effects and Best Art Direction for their video "It's a Miracle". In 1987, they received another nomination for an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Video Artist.[13]
- ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (17 April 2002). "Roll over, Beatles – Smiths top the pops". The Guardian. London.
- ^ "Culture Club to perform in Singapore in December". CNA. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ "Culture Club announces Brighton show". Eastbourne Herald. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ "British Phonographic Industry database (enter Culture Club in search field)". Bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum – RIAA". Riaa.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
- ^ Denisoff, R. Serge (1 January 1986). Tarnished Gold: The Record Industry Revisted [i.e. Revisited]. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 9781412835565.
- ^ Sullivan, Jim (2 March 1984). "Triumph of the 'New'". The Michigan Daily.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Blackwell (1986) 56was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Blackwell (1990) 48was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ RIAA, Gold & Platinum Culture Club, retrieved on 7 January 2017
- ^ "Culture Club to perform in Singapore in December". CNA. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
- ^ "Culture Club: BRITs Profile". Brit Awards. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
- ^ "Grammy Awards: Best New Artist". Rock on the Net. Retrieved 30 October 2012