Neil Primrose (musician)

Last updated

Neil Primrose
1 neil primrose singapore 2014.jpg
Primrose (right) in Singapore with Travis
Background information
Birth nameNeil Primrose
Born (1972-02-20) 20 February 1972 (age 52)
Cumbernauld, Scotland
GenresRock, Britpop, Alternative rock
OccupationMusician
Instrument(s)Drums, percussion
Years active1989–present

Neil Primrose (born 20 February 1972) is the drummer of the Scottish rock band Travis. [1]

Contents

Early life

Primrose was born in Cumbernauld. His father, a power station engineer, was posted to Middlesbrough, and this was followed by a series of moves across the northeast of England during the first ten years of Primrose's life. At the age of 15 at high school in Glasgow he was playing drums with friends in local bands.

Career

Travis (1989–present)

In 1989 at the age of 17, Primrose started his drumming career when he was going for as many auditions as possible and looking for like-minded players to form a group.

This led to him joining the band Glass Onion with Andy Dunlop along with brothers Chris and Geoff Martyn in 1990. After a while of looking for success, the line-up changed with Fran Healy joining the line-up in 1991 and the group then splitting with the Martyn brothers and Dougie Payne soon joining the band as the bassist in 1994. Eventually, the name of the band was changed to Travis.

Unlike the other three members of the band, Primrose was not a student at the Glasgow School of Art instead working various jobs and studying Computer Science for a pre-degree course. Initially, Travis rehearsed in The Horse Shoe Bar where Primrose and Healy had met for the first time. The material for their first two albums was, in part, written and refined here. Travis moved to London in late spring 1996 and lived, rehearsed and toured from their North London base for many years.

Travis' début album Good Feeling was released in 1997 with positive review, but lukewarm performance in the charts. Their 1999 follow-up, The Man Who , proved to be far more successful, selling millions of copies worldwide, shortly followed by The Invisible Band in 2001. During this period, Travis had several UK hit singles, including Sing and Why Does It Always Rain on Me? . [2]

Before the recording of Travis' fourth album, 12 Memories , Primrose suffered a life-threatening spine injury while he was swimming on holiday in France. This led to the cancellation of several subsequent tour dates – most significantly a headline slot at V Festival. Primrose made a full recovery and was back on stage and recording with the band within months – including Isle of Wight Festival and Live 8 in 2005. As of 2021, Travis have released six more albums and continue to tour worldwide.

Other projects

Primrose has played drums on the Canadian musician Ron Sexsmith's seventh album Retriever and other individual album tracks, along with albums by Jamie Scott, Yusaf Islam, Magne F and Cyril Paulus. In Scotland, Primrose plays with the MOVE Project along with various artists on the Wild Biscuit label.

Personal life

Primrose is married to Esther, and has two daughters.

In 2007, Primrose gained his first racing licence and has since driven in many racing events including the Le Mans Classic and the SPA 25Hr FunCup. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crowded House</span> New Zealand / Australian / American pop rock band

Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were New Zealander Neil Finn and Australians Paul Hester (drums) and Nick Seymour (bass). Later band members included Finn's brother Tim, who was in their former band Split Enz; sons Liam and Elroy; as well as Americans Mark Hart and Matt Sherrod. Neil Finn and Seymour are the sole constant members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simple Minds</span> Scottish rock band

Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977, becoming best known internationally for their song "Don't You " (1985), which topped the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. Other commercially successful singles include "Promised You a Miracle" (1982), "Glittering Prize" (1982), "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" (1982), "Waterfront" (1983), "Alive and Kicking" (1985), "Sanctify Yourself" (1986), "Let There Be Love" (1991), "She's a River" (1995), and the UK number one single "Belfast Child" (1989).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Supernaturals</span> Scottish indie rock band

The Supernaturals are a five piece guitar-based indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. Fronted by singer-songwriter James McColl, they signed to Parlophone in 1996, and had a string of singles which were taken from their three albums and four EPs. Other members included Mark Guthrie, Derek McManus, Gavin Crawford and Ken McAlpine. The band's best known songs were featured prominently in a series of television advertisements. In total they scored five Top 40 entries in the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Travis (band)</span> Scottish band

Travis are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1990, and composed of Fran Healy, Dougie Payne, Andy Dunlop, and Neil Primrose. The band's name comes from the character Travis Henderson from the film Paris, Texas (1984). The band released their debut album, Good Feeling (1997), to moderate success where it debuted at number nine on the UK Albums Chart and was later awarded a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in January 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saxon (band)</span> British heavy metal band

Saxon are an English heavy metal band formed in Barnsley in 1975. As leaders of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM), they had eight UK Top 40 albums during the 1980s including four UK Top 10 albums and two Top 5 albums. They had numerous hit singles on the UK Singles Chart and experienced success all over Europe, South America and Japan, as well as in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marmalade (band)</span> Scottish rock band

Marmalade are a Scottish pop rock band originating from the east end of Glasgow, originally formed in 1961 as The Gaylords, and then later billed as Dean Ford and the Gaylords, recording four singles for Columbia (EMI). In 1966 they changed the band's name to The Marmalade and were credited as such on all of their subsequent recorded releases with CBS Records and Decca Records until 1972. Their greatest chart success was between 1968 and 1972, placing ten songs on the UK Singles Chart, and many overseas territories, including international hits "Reflections of My Life", which reached No. 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Chart and No. 3 on the UK chart in January 1970, and "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da", which topped the UK chart in January 1969, the group becoming the first-ever Scottish artist to top that chart.

<i>12 Memories</i> 2003 album by Travis

12 Memories is the fourth studio album from Scottish alternative rock band Travis. The album was released on 11 October 2003 on Epic Records. In comparison, the album is a much more mature and lyrically darker album, focusing on issues such as the 2003 Iraq invasion, politicians, psychological crisis and domestic abuse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biffy Clyro</span> Scottish rock band

Biffy Clyro are a Scottish rock band that formed in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, composed of Simon Neil and twin brothers James and Ben Johnston. Currently signed to 14th Floor Records, they have released nine studio albums, and following their first three albums, the band expanded their following significantly in 2007 with the release of their fourth album Puzzle, which peaked at No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart and was awarded a Platinum certification by the BPI.

<i>Singles</i> (Travis album) 2004 compilation album by Travis

Singles is the first and only compilation album by the Scottish rock band Travis, released on 1 November 2004. The album consists of all of the band's singles from 1997 to 2004, as well as including two new tracks, "Walking in the Sun" and "The Distance". The album charted at #4 on the UK Albums Chart, performing considerably better than 12 Memories, actually selling the required 300,000+ copies that were shipped to make it a platinum album.

<i>Good Feeling</i> (Travis album) 1997 studio album by Travis

Good Feeling is the debut studio album by the Scottish rock band Travis. The album was released on 8 September 1997, on Independiente Records. All four singles released from the album reached the UK Top 40.

"Boulevard of Broken Songs" is a popular mash-up mixed by American DJ and producer Party Ben in late 2004. The mix consists of elements from American rock band Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", English rock band Oasis's "Wonderwall", Scottish soft rock band Travis's "Writing to Reach You", and American rapper Eminem's "Sing for the Moment", which itself samples American hard rock band Aerosmith's "Dream On". "Sing for the Moment" was used solely because Party Ben did not have "Dream On" on hand and was on deadline for his Sixx Mixx radio show. Later versions used Aerosmith's original.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fran Healy (musician)</span> Scottish musician

Francis Healy is a Scottish musician. He is the lead singer and lyricist of the band Travis, having written nearly all of the songs on their first six studio albums along their ninth and tenth, with the seventh and eighth containing material written by other members of the band. Healy released his debut solo album, titled Wreckorder, in October 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sing (Travis song)</span> 2001 single by Travis

"Sing" is a song by Scottish rock band Travis from their third studio album, The Invisible Band (2001). The song was written in 1999 by frontman Fran Healy, produced by Nigel Godrich and recorded at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles. It was released as the album's lead single in the United States on 23 April 2001. Healy originally titled the melody "Swing" but eventually changed the title to "Sing", making it about working past the troubles of a relationship by not being afraid to let oneself go and sing in front of a loved one. The song is noted for its prominent use of the banjo, played by lead guitarist Andy Dunlop, and contains a string arrangement performed by Millennia Strings.

Aereogramme was a Scottish alternative rock band from Glasgow, formed in 1998, consisting of Craig B., Iain Cook, Campbell McNeil (bass) and Martin Scott (drums). Prior to their split in 2007, the band released four studio albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glasvegas</span> Scottish indie rock band

Glasvegas are a Scottish indie rock band from Glasgow. The band consists of James Allan (vocals), Rab Allan and Paul Donoghue, with Swedish drummer Jonna Löfgren joining the group in 2010 until her departure in 2020. Their platinum-selling debut album Glasvegas released in September 2008 was well received by critics and reached No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. It was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in September 2009. The album went on to enjoy further critical and commercial success in North America and in Sweden. On 1 December 2008, less than three months after the release of their debut album the band released the mini-album A Snowflake Fell , a 6 track Christmas EP, which was recorded in Transylvania.

<i>Ode to J. Smith</i> 2008 studio album by Travis

Ode to J. Smith is the sixth studio album by the Scottish rock band Travis, released on 29 September 2008 in the United Kingdom and received generally positive reviews. The album was released in the United States on 4 November 2008. The first single from the album, "J. Smith", was released on 30 June 2008 and the second single Something Anything", was released on 15 September, and despite being generally well received by Travis fans gained very little airplay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. Smith (song)</span> 2008 song by Travis

"J. Smith" is the first single from Indie band Travis' sixth studio album Ode to J. Smith, released as a limited-edition E.P. on both 10" vinyl and as a download, with only 1,000 copies made of the 10-inch. The song reached #1 on the UK Indie Chart on 6 July 2008, mainly due to strong downloads.

Beggars Opera was a Scottish progressive rock band from Glasgow, Scotland, formed in 1969 by guitarist Ricky Gardiner, vocalist Martin Griffiths, and bassist Marshall Erskine (bass/flute). After working together building parts of the M40 Motorway near Beaconsfield, the three lads moved back to Glasgow to look for an organist and drummer and recruited Alan Park (keyboards) and Raymond Wilson (drums). After an intensive time in rehearsal, they took up residency at Burns Howff club/pub in West Regent Street in the centre of Glasgow. Tours of Europe followed and the band found success in Germany, appearing on German TV's legendary Beat-Club, then at the first British Rock Meeting in Speyer in September 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moving (Travis song)</span> 2013 single by Travis

"Moving" is a song by alternative rock band Travis. It was released on 1 July 2013 as the second single to promote the band's seventh studio album, Where You Stand. "Moving" was written by the band's bassist Dougie Payne. The song has charted in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The LaFontaines</span> Scottish rock band

The LaFontaines are a rock band from Motherwell, Scotland. Their line up consists of Kerr Okan (vocals), Jamie Keenan and Darren McCaughey. The band was formed in 2008 and have released four studio albums: Class (2015), Common Problem (2017), Junior (2019), and Business as Usual (2024).

References

  1. Phares, Heather. "Biography: Travis". Allmusic . Retrieved 7 June 2010.
  2. "TRAVIS". officialcharts.com. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  3. "Saxon Motorsport Driver Profile Neil Primrose". Saxon Motorsport. 3 June 2020.