The Verve

The Verve (originally Verve) is an English alternative rock band. The band was formed in 1989 at Winstanley College, Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, by vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bassist Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Simon Tong later became a member. The band originally split in 1995, but reunited in 1996 to great commercial success. They split once more in April 1999. The band reunited once more in June of 2007, but this reunion was short lived and the band split again in August 2009.

Beginning with a psychedelic sound indebted to space rock and shoegazer music, by the mid-1990s the band had released several EPs and two acclaimed records. They also endured name and lineup changes, breakups, health problems, drug abuse and various lawsuits. The band's commercial breakthrough was urban hymns and its single Bittersweet Symphony, which became a massive worldwide hit.