from=May 16th 1998
Interviewer-Johnny Walker
Johnny(Introduces everyone): So listen, it kinda began with the
Commitments movie, you auditioned for that? was it anything like the film? I
love the bit in the film where they're all knocking on the door and he opens the door and
says something rude to them
Sharon: We were definitely as bad as some of those people anyway. Yeah,
it did, it all started with the Commitments, we went up...everybody was auditioning at the
time and we went up and that was the first time we played as a band and we did two covers,
a Quincy Jones number and if I can remember..Knock on Wood we did as well. And em',
that day we also met our manager and em then we just started writing and recording music
after that and in 1994 we got a record deal
Johnny: Em' yeah..we got a bit of a 'hum' on one of the microphones, so we'll do
our best to sort that out...you all got sortof cameo roles..but you got a bigger role
didn't you Andrea?
Andrea: Yeah, I got to say a few rude lines in it yeah
Johnny: And then later on you got hauled out of bed by Madonna
Andrea: In Evita yes
Johnny: Ok, well what's the first song you're gonna do for us?
Caroline: This is called...only when I sleep
Johnny: OK
They perform Only When I Sleep acoustically
Johnny: the Corrs live here on Radio 2, Only When I Sleep, a song featured on the latest album, called Talk On Corners. Just to borrow the words of a fellow called Garth Cartwright, who reviewed the Corrs at the Albert Hall, he said:
"it takes some doing to turn the Albert Halls' expansive and illustrious space into the worlds largest Irish pub, but for Irelands premier pop family, the Corrs, it appears as effortless as singing 'to ra lu ra li"
Was that a good night for you then?
Jim: It was a fantastic night, we were very lucky to have Mick Fleetwood come out
and join us on stage, both himself and Caroline playing drums at the same time. It was an
honour and certainly it was an endorsement of the version that we did of dreams and it
was....we were very nervous before we went onstage, there was no doubt about that, and the
rapturous applause, it just made it all...it was like a peak experience if you know what I
mean, made it all worthwhile, all the hardwork...
Johnny: Cos' it is a bit nerve-wracking when you do the soundcheck and you see this
enormous place but, but when everybody is in the Albert Hall, it can seem quite intimate..
Andrea: Yeah, it was...I mean the atmosphere was fantastic and I think that with
the whole idea of it being St Patricks night and with us playing eventually in the Albert
Hall with Mick Fleetwood coming on, and also with that there was...BBC were filming it for
a show that would go out live...so there was an awful lot that we had to not think
about...and it actually worked, it was no problem because of the audience and because of
the whole feeling in the place...y'know all those kindof nervous feelings went away...it
was very good
Johnny: Because didn't you go from playing really small places to like huge
stadiums almost
Jim: We played with Celine Dion, we were supporting Celine Dion...we sorta went
from playing gigs of 200 people with capacity to suddenly finding ourselves in Glasgow I
think was the first gig and it was to 10,000 people, so that was a big jump!
Johnny: Sorry, Caroline was just about to tell us all about it, and Jim
jumped in
Caroline: No it's OK now...questions answered now..I'll just
stay quiet for the rest of the interview
Johnny: Who wants to tell us how the recording of the Fleetwood Mac song came
about...that you've done
Sharon: Well that came about...
Johnny: This is Sharon
Sharon: This is me Sharon.....the guy who actually originally signed us to
Atlantic Records Jason Flom, he was putting the record together, the Legacy record
together and he suggested to Mick Fleetwood that we get involved in it and Mick Fleetwood
was delighted to have us on it and we were lucky enough to get the song Dreams, so we went
and we recorded it, originally we recorded it very close to the original Fleetwood Mac
sound and but then we thought, that's kindof so brilliant the way they did it, you don't
wanna do the same again, 'cos it's never gonna be as good as them, and I mean their
recording is a classic of it so we wanted to take it down a different road so at this
stage it's a Todd Terry remix ,and this is the way it is now..
Johnny: This is the way it is now
Dreams is played from a CD (Jim can be heard saying "This isn't the dance version")
Johnny: the Corrs version of the Fleetwood Mac song Dreams from their tribute to
the Fleetwood Mac, the legacy album and also featured on their own album too, called Talk
On Corners, and Sharon, Andrea, Caroline and Jim Corr with us in the studio. So what
was this about your big break was playing on a battleship? I seemed to see
somewhere...was that one of those things I shouldn't have believed....they all look at
each other blankly!
Caroline: I dunno if it was a break for us to be honest
Sharon: It was certainly something different... Andrea: it was just one of
these crazy adventures that band life brings us on sometimes, it wasn't like really a big
break, we em', that thing..... Jim: I think it was
Andrea: ....Aircraft carrier and all came in...
Jim: JFK.
Jim: Yeah, came into Dun Laoirghe in Dublin and we were making a video
at the same time and we played on it and we made it part of our video for 'Love to Love
You' from Forgiven Not Forgotten on the aircraft carrier....
Johnny: I presume there was about 3,000 sailors who were pleased to see you on I
actually
Sharon: I think they had been on the sea for too long!
Johnny: They were out like nine months before they saw us!
Andrea: It was a bit scary
Johnny: So your Mum and Dad were doing music weren't they? weekend music
makers weren't they?
Jim: They were part time, they played for about 20 years I think in total doing a
lot of covers, from middle of the road stuff from the Eagles to Karen Carpenter and what
was currently in the charts at that time...
Johnny: And you sold what, about 2 million plus for your debut album which is
wonderful going but a lot of the sales not in the UK, were you a bit 'miffed' about that
or what?
Andrea: Well, y'know I mean, we're happy..I think we're strong believers in what's'
meant to be is meant to be, I mean obviously we weren't ready for the em' for the British
market I mean at the time, when we released Forgiven Not Forgotten, it was very Britpop
and we certainly aren't that and as well as that I think we gave too much of a confusion
in that fact to be categorised here. People go 'right there's traditional sounds
there...is it folk?? OK where'll I put it..I can't put it here, I can't put it
there' and so switch off maybe, or else maybe it just wasn't good enough for the
British market...
Jim: Yeah but it still did very well, we're very happy with the way we did, we went
gold here on the first album and I think it was just sortof bubbling under if you know
what I mean and just spreading by word of mouth. We're now platinum with the second
album here so I don't think.......we've been laying a very good foundation here, put it
that way
Johnny: That's the serious view there from Jim in the band. I mean America
obviously took to you with open arms and we're not going to lose you to that place, you're
always going to stay in Ireland are you or?....Don't go and live in Los Angeles
Caroline: I mean we've done the last two albums in Los Angeles so we've had our
taste of it so...I don't really think it's for us to be honest...
Johnny: I wouldn't have thought so...
Caroline: We're a bit far removed from that you know
Johnny: Alright, one more live song would be great before you go, what would you
like to do?
Jim: This is a number by Slayer and it's called 'I'd like to bite....' No here we
go
Andrea: This is called I Never Loved You Anyway
Johnny: OK, the Corrs live on Radio 2
They play 'I Never Loved You Anyway' acoustically (laughter during the song)
Jim: (In an English accent) What 'happened there then?
Johnny: We don't know! That's I Never Loved You Anyway, the fun mix
Andrea: Without backing vocals at the end
Caroline: That was me...I didn't come in on a backing vocal
Johnny: I wondered because Sharon was going like this to you sortof beckoning you
on y'know
Caroline: Yeah, I just decided to laugh then....y'know there was nothing I could do
Johnny: Alright the Corrs playing live for us here on Radio 2 and we're gonna
here you again on Radio 2 actually on the 7th June at the Fleadh, cos we're gonna be
there..the big outdoor Irish music festival in London so we're looking forward to
that, and whats this about Pavarotti, you're gonna do a gig with him...that'll be a big
one won't it?
Sharon: Yeah we're doing em'....a charity gig with him pretty soon in em' Modena in
Italy and I think there's a great line-up on it, there's Stevie Wonder and Celine Dion and
various others huge artists so....we'll actually be singing with him, we don't know what
yet...probably one of his recordings...I think we might be doing one of our own as well,
so it should be a bit of fun
Johnny: Well here at Radio 2 we've loved you from the beginning haven't we?
Sharon: You have
Johnny: There's a certain other station just up the road...very much late on the
game (Everyone laughs at the reference to Radio1)
Jim: Better late than never!
Johnny: Yeah, better late than never....well thankyou very much for coming to see
us,it was fun
All: Thankyou
Johnny: Thanks a lot...the Corrs