Formed in Oxford in 1989, The Candyskins were heralded as a bright new hope in British pop music. As their popularity grew, success followed and it wasn't long before music fans across the globe were clamouring to see one of the most entertaining live bands of its generation.
The band owes its origins to Mark and Nick Cope, Nick Burton and John Halliday all living in the same village and attending the same local secondary school between around 1974 and 1980. The four Islip members of the band had begun working together by the time they left school and various line-ups and name-changes followed during the 1980s, until The Candyskins were formed in 1989, with Richard (mini) Brown on bass and banjo.
After the successful release of the single Submarine Song in 1990, the band went into the studio to produce their first full-length album Space I'm In. The album included three singles Submarine Song, She Blew Me Away and You Are Here. Brown left the band before the album was released.
After a year of touring and the replacement of a stand-in bass player with Karl Shale, the band released their second album Fun? on Geffen Records in 1993. Characteristically, the band attempted to build upon the U.S. success of Space I'm In with an ironic album featuring songs about football and gardening. The poor selling record began an elongated legal dispute between the record company and the band, reportedly due to disagreements over songwriting royalties.
The album Sunday Morning Fever was released on Ultimate in the UK in 1997, and saw the band enjoy their biggest chart success with the single Monday Morning making it into the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. The record company went bankrupt and the band were left in limbo during the recording of their last album Death of a Minor TV Celebrity. The album did not do as well as their previous efforts, despite featuring the single Feed It which was one of the central songs on the soundtrack to the movie The Waterboy starring Adam Sandler.
The band broke up in 1998 and members now primarily pursue other projects in the music industry. Mark Cope has a new band Nine Stone Cowboy, and has released several singles including Jesus Doesn't Like Me.. Nick Cope writes and records music for children.
The band have re-united on several occasions since their break-up, fueling rumours that they may one day reform. Notable public performances include: