East 17 are an English

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

boy band A boy band is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Ma ...

started by

Tony Mortimer Anthony Michael Mortimer (born 21 October 1970 in Stepney, London) is a British singer, songwriter and record producer from London. He is a former member of the boy band East 17, who were originally active from 1991 to 1997 and sold over 20 mill ...

Brian Harvey Brian Lee Harvey (born 8 August 1974) is a British singer from London. He was the lead singer of pop group East 17. The later incarnation of the band, E-17, had two top 20 singles on the UK Singles Chart between 1998 and 1999, with the album ' ...

, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell in 1991. As of 2020, the group consists of Coldwell, Robbie Craig, and Joe Livermore. East 17 have undergone multiple lineup changes, with Coldwell remaining the only constant member. The group has achieved eighteen top-20 singles and four top-10 albums, and they were one of the UK's most popular boy bands during the early to mid-1990s, aided by strong

tabloid Tabloid may refer to: * Tabloid journalism, a type of journalism * Tabloid (newspaper format), a newspaper with compact page size ** Chinese tabloid * Tabloid (paper size), a North American paper size * Sopwith Tabloid The Sopwith Tabloid an ...

interest in their 'bad boy' image, compared to the 'clean-cut' image of rivals Take That. Their style blended pop and hip hop in songs such as " House of Love" and " Let It Rain". East 17 have sold over 18 million albums worldwide and according to the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...

(BPI), they have been certified with sales of 1.8 million albums and 2.6 million singles in the UK. Their biggest hit, "

Stay Another Day "Stay Another Day" is a song recorded by British boy band East 17, released on 21 November 1994, as the third single from their second album, ''Steam'' (1994). It is their only number-one song on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the Christmas num ...

", was the UK Christmas number one in 1994. The group continues today under the lineup of Terry Coldwell, Joe Livermore, and former Artful Dodger collaborator Robbie Craig.

History

Formation (1991)

East 17 began in 1991 when

was promised a record deal with

London Records London Recordings (or London Records and London Music Stream) is a British record label that marketed records in the United States, Canada, and Latin America for Decca Records from 1947 to 1980 before becoming semi-independent. The London nam ...

after he presented his own material. The deal was granted under the condition that he form a group, which would be in the format that London Records were looking for. Mortimer later formed East 17 with Brian Harvey, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell. The group was named East 17 after the

postcode A postal code (also known locally in various English-speaking countries throughout the world as a postcode, post code, PIN or ZIP Code) is a series of letters or numerical digit, digits or both, sometimes including spaces or punctuation, includ ...

of their hometown,

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London and the ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Charing Cross, the town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and Sout ...

. The original roles in the band were soon altered when

, who was intended to be a backup singer and dancer, was made lead singer due to his vocal talent.

''Walthamstow'' (1992–1993)

Mortimer wrote the majority of the group's songs, which often contained rap verses vocalised by him to complement Harvey's more fluid vocals. The group was usually seen as a grittier, more political and hip hop or rap-aligned ensemble than rival boy band Take That, as noted by Guy Adams of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'': East 17 had twelve top-10 hits on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

between 1992 and 1998. Their debut album, ''

'', reached No. 1 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

. It featured a string of Top 20 singles, including " House of Love" and "Deep". " It's Alright" became a major success in Australia, reaching No. 1 in early 1994 for seven consecutive weeks, and No. 3 in the UK in 1993.

''Steam'' (1994)

In 1994, upon the release of their second album, ''

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizatio ...

'', East 17 scored their only UK number-one single with "

". It remained at the top for five weeks and was also that year's

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

number one.

''Up All Night'' (1995–1996)

The group's next album, 1995's '' Up All Night'', was less successful. In 1996, the group reached No. 2 with the track " If You Ever", a duet with Gabrielle. The single was featured on their compilation album '' Around the World Hit Singles: The Journey So Far''.

Mortimer's first departure and first split (1997)

In January 1997, Brian Harvey was engulfed in a drug-related controversy when he claimed that he had taken ecstasy pills on a night out, stating in the press that "It's cool to take drugs" and claiming that ecstasy "can make you a better person". This went against the group's image, and there was intense media scrutiny, leading to questions being raised in the House of Commons. With the group's career and reputation tarnished by the affair, Harvey was immediately sacked and Mortimer decided to leave several months later due to creative differences between himself and the rest of the group.

First reunion and second split (1998–1999)

Coldwell and Hendy later reinstated Harvey and attempted a comeback in 1998, renaming the group E-17. They landed a record deal with Telstar Records after recording an album's worth of self-written material in their home studios. Their first single as E-17 was " Each Time", which reached No. 2 in the UK. But without Mortimer's songwriting influence, the group's initial success soon wavered; sales of their next single, " Betcha Can't Wait", were disappointing, reaching number 12 in the charts, and their album ''

Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...

'' failed to make the UK Top 40. The band was later dropped by their label in 1999 and subsequently split up.

Post-split activities (1999–2006)

In 2001, Harvey, now as a solo artist, released a collaboration with

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, ...

, with the Top-20 single " Loving You", but later returned to perform numerous gigs with Coldwell and Hendy. On the ITV1 docusoap '' Redcoats'', the trio were shown performing at Butlins in

Bognor Bognor Regis (), sometimes simply known as Bognor (), is a town and seaside resort in West Sussex on the south coast of England, south-west of London, west of Brighton, south-east of Chichester and east of Portsmouth. Other nearby town ...

. Whilst in 2005, Harvey, Coldwell, and Hendy performed in Mongolia. In May 2005, Harvey was seriously injured in a car accident, requiring surgery.

Second reunion and Mortimer's second departure (2006–2009)

On 4 February 2006, Harvey appeared on the UK music television show '' CD:UK'', where he announced that East 17 might make a comeback with its original lineup. In mid-February 2006, the group reformed and played their first comeback concert on 30 May at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London. After reforming for the one-off performance, it was reported that Mortimer had left the group again due to a confrontation with Harvey, leading to an altercation between the two. A

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

documentary, ''East 17: The Reunion'', which charted the group's rise and fall, along with their subsequent attempt to re-launch, was broadcast in May 2007. 20061231 east17 02

East 17 continued to perform without Mortimer as a trio. They played at the

University of Strathclyde The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal chart ...

on 24 September 2006, after DJ Colin Murray was unable to attend. A new single, "Fuck That", was due to be released in early 2008, along with a new album, "Universalization", but both went unreleased. East 17 performed at the 2009 Glastonbury Festival on 25 June in the dance lounge. In November 2009, the group collaborated with Mortimer in aid of the

Born Free Foundation The Born Free Foundation is an international wildlife charity that campaigns to "Keep Wildlife in the Wild". It protects wild animals in their natural habitat, campaigns against the keeping of wild animals in captivity and rescues wild animals in ...

. They performed two of their best-known songs—"Deep" and "Stay Another Day"—for the ''Wild & Live!'' event at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

. After the performance, the four agreed that it would be best if they never sang together again. However, according to a

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

interview with

Zoë Ball Zoe Louise Ball (born 23 November 1970) is a British radio and television presenter. She was the first female host of both ''Radio 1 Breakfast'' and ''The Radio 2 Breakfast Show'' for the BBC, and presented the 1990s children's show '' Live & ...

in December 2009, songwriter Tony Mortimer mentioned that the band were on "talking terms" and planning a comeback for 2010.

Mortimer's second return, Harvey's departure, Dreelan's arrival and departure, and ''Dark Light'' (2010–2013)

Tony Mortimer returned to East 17 in 2010. Brian Harvey left soon after, when his commitment was questioned by the rest of the group; he had been missing rehearsals and cancelling performances. In 2011, T-Mobile used the East 17 song "House of Love" in a Royal Wedding "spoof" commercial. In April 2011, it was announced that Blair Dreelan had joined the band for their Back to the Future tour in August and September 2011 to promote their comeback single, "Secret of My Life". On 28 September 2011, Dreelan left the group due to contractual obligations. On 27 November 2011, East 17 appeared as musical guests on '' X Factor Romania''. East 17's fifth studio album, '' Dark Light'', along with the new single "I Can't Get You Off My Mind", were released in 2012.

Mortimer's third departure, Craig's arrival, ''24/7'', and Hendy's departure (2013–present)

Tony Mortimer departed for the third time in 2013. Robbie Craig later joined East 17 in early 2014. John Hendy and Terry Coldwell became the only original members in the group at that stage. In 2017, East 17 partook in B*Witched's Australia & NZ Tour as a supporting act alongside Atomic Kitten,

S Club 3 S Club Allstars (previously known as S Club 3) are an English spin-off pop group based in London with S Club 7 and S Club 8 former members. Originally, the group was founded by Bradley McIntosh, Jo O'Meara and Paul Cattermole. In February 2014, ...

, and Liberty X. During this time, the band released their sixth studio album, ''24/7'', exclusively in Australia, titling it ''24/7: Australian Tour Edition''. In June 2018, John Hendy departed the group, citing personal reasons. Since then, Terry John joined the band as Hendy's replacement, performed with them at numerous shows, but eventually also left and was replaced by Joe Livermore. On 27 August 2021, East 17 released ''24/7'' internationally. On 27 May 2022, East 17 released a new single, said to be from an upcoming album, called "I Just Wanna".

Band members

Current * Terry Coldwell (1991–1997, 1998–1999, 2006–2013, 2014–present) * Robbie Craig (2014–present) * Joe Livermore (2019–present) Past * Terry John (2018-2019) * John Hendy (1991–1997, 1998–1999, 2006–2013, 2014-2018) *

(1991–1997, 1998–1999, 2006–2010) *

(1991–1997, 2006, 2010–2013)

Timeline

Tours

Main * Letting Off Steam: The Around the World Tour (1994–1995) * Moscow Olympic Stadium (1996) * East 17 Live in Australia (2012) Supporting * Australia & NZ Tour (2017)

Awards and nominations

{, class=wikitable , - ! Year !! Awards !! Work !! Category !! Result !! Ref. , - , rowspan=2, 1993 ,

Mercury Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the ...

, ''

'' , Album of the Year , , - , rowspan=2,

Bravo Otto Awards The Bravo Otto is a German accolade honoring excellence of performers in film, television and music. Established in 1957, the award is presented annually, with winners selected by the readers of ''Bravo'' magazine. The award is presented in ...

, rowspan=4, Themselves , rowspan=2, Best Pop Band (Bronze) , , - , rowspan=6, 1994 , , - , rowspan=5, Smash Hits Poll Winners Party , Best Group in the World , , rowspan=5, , - , Best British Group , , - , ''

'' , Best Album , , - , rowspan=2, "Steam" , Best Single , , - , Best Pop Video , , - , rowspan=3, 1995 ,

Brit Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

, rowspan=2, "

" , Best British Single , , - , Ivor Novello Awards , Most Performed Work , , , - , MTV Europe Music Awards , Themselves , Best Dance , , , - , rowspan=2, 1996 , rowspan=2, Smash Hits Poll Winners Party , " If I Ever Fall in Love" , Best Single , , rowspan=2, , - , Themselves , Best British Group ,

Discography

* ''

'' (1992) * ''

'' (1994) * '' Up All Night'' (1995) * ''

'' (1998) * '' Dark Light'' (2012) * ''24/7'' (2021)

References

External links

* {{Authority control English boy bands Musical groups from London Musical groups established in 1991 Pop-rap groups MTV Europe Music Award winners London Records artists Telstar Records artists