The Stereophonics' recent rise to success has led to two number one albums - Performance And Cocktails, and most recently Just Enough Education to Perform, Performance And Cocktails having sold well over one million copies in the UK.

        This massive success didn't come easily for the band. The three band members are Kelly Jones on lead guitar and vocals, Richard Jones on bass guitar and Stuart Cable on drums.

        The band began by playing at pubs, singing cover versions of their favourite songs. At this time, they went under the name of Tragic Love Company, a combination of the names of their favourite bands - Tragically Hip, Mother Love Bone and Bad Company.

        A name change came with their signing to V2 records in 1996, after being inspired by the word 'Stereophonic' on Stuart's Gran's Gramophone.

        All of the band's songs are written by Kelly Jones, and many of their early songs were based upon real life happenings from and around their home village of Cwmaman, near Aberdare. The suicide of the 'Local Boy In The Photograph' and the town gossip in 'A Thousand Trees' are just a few of the stories recalled in their songs.

    As many fans of the band will know, the band's first release came in late 1996, with the double A-side 'Looks Like Chaplin' and 'More Life In A Tramp's Vest'. Although both tracks can be found on the band's debut album, it was a limited edition release, and copies are very hard to find.

        By August 1997, the band has released a further two singles, and were ready to release their fourth - A Thousand Trees. This was to coincide with the release of their debut album 'Word Gets Around'. The album charted at number 6, and in the same month, the band made their first appearance on Top Of The Pops. All of this happened to the band within only a year of being signed.

        In the winter of 1997, the Stereophonics toured Europe, headlining their own gigs, and supporting Supergrass in Germany. In December 1997 they played their 100th gig of the year.

        February 1998 was a good month for the band when they won the Brit Award for 'Best Newcomer'. In the same month it was announced that 'Word Gets Around' had gone gold as it had  sold over 100,000 copies.

        Throughout the rest of 1998 the Stereophonics performed in many gigs, and worked on new material. In November, the first single from their forthcoming album was released. The single 'The Bartender And The Thief ' reached number 3, and is the band's most successful single so far.

        February 1999 saw the second release from the new album. 'Just Looking' reached number 4. The following month, the band's much anticipated album 'Performance And Cocktails' was released. It went straight to number one, and within three weeks went platinum, selling half a million copies!

        The third single from the album, 'Pick A Part That's New' was released in May 1999, and it also reached number 4. Around this time, it was announced that the Stereophonics would be playing a 50,000 guest gig at the Morfa Stadium in Swansea.

        The gig was a huge success, and many fans including myself had a great day out. The gig was awarded the title 'Best Music Event Of 1999' beating the likes of Glastonbury.

        Another two singles were released before the end of 1999. 'I Wouldn't Believe Your Radio' and 'Hurry Up And Wait' both charted at number 11.

        In November 2000 Kelly Jones embarked on a Solo Acoustic Tour to showcase songs from their new album 'Just Enough Education to Perform'. The album was recorded in the summer, and many fans, desperate to hear new material, attended these sell-out gigs around the UK.

        The year 2001 was another of success for the band. They perfomed a number of gigs, including a November tour and two large outdoor gigs in the summer entitled 'A Day At The Races'. Their latest album, entitled Just Enough Education to Perform was released in early April, going straight in at Number 1. It and was preceeded in March by a fantastic new single, Mr Writer, which reached No. 5 in the UK charts. The second single Have A Nice Day also entered the charts at No. 5 in June. Another single, 'Step On My Old Size Nines' was released in the Autumn, and December saw the release of a fantastic cover version of Rod Stewart's 'Handbags and Gladrags, giving the band their biggest selling single yet.

        2002 saw the release of the final single from 'Just Enough Education to Perform', 'Vegas Two Times' which is a live favourite with the fans. Also, 2001's 'Day At The Races' concerts was released on Video and DVD. During the summer, the band played the Glastonbury and V2002 festivals, along with a few low-key dates in Bristol and Edinburgh, all of which saw the preview of new song 'Madame Helga'.

        At the moment, fans are waiting for the imminent release of 'Madame Helga' as the first single from the new album, 'You Gotta Go There To Come Back'. The album is due to be released in June, over 2 years after the last album, and will be highly anticipated by fans, waiting to see what changes in musical direction it will take. November and December are to see the band embark on a huge arena tour, ending triumphantly at Cardiff Millennium Stadium.