The Tea Party
Encyclopedia
The Tea Party is a Canadian
rock
band with blues
, progressive rock
, Indian
and Middle Eastern
influences, dubbed "Moroccan
roll
" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s up until 2005 when the band broke up, The Tea Party released eight albums on EMI
Music Canada, selling 1.6 million records worldwide, and achieving a #1 Canadian single "Heaven Coming Down
" in 1999.
The Tea Party toured Canada on twenty-one occasions and Australia on twelve. In November 2002, The Tea Party toured Canada with symphony orchestras reinterpreting a decade's worth of shared songwriting. The band broke up in 2005 due to creative differences, but re-united in 2011 to play several Canadian tour dates during the summer.
, Stuart Chatwood
and Jeff Burrows
after a marathon jam session at the Cherry Beach Rehearsal Studios
in Toronto
. Each member had previously played together during their teenage years in a number of different bands in Windsor, Ontario
, where they were originally from. They had decided to name their new group The Tea Party after the infamous hash sessions of famous Beat generation
poets Allen Ginsberg
, Jack Kerouac
and William Burroughs.
The Tea Party released their eponymous debut album
in 1991, distributing it through their own label Eternal Discs. The album drew influences from psychedelic rock and blues, and was produced by Martin; album production was something Martin would continue with for all of The Tea Party's albums, as a way of giving the band complete artistic control. In 1993 The Tea Party signed to EMI Music Canada and released their first major label recording, Splendor Solis
. The band employed open tunings and goblet drums (Dumbek) to imitate Indian sounds, something they continued to employ throughout their career, while continuing in a blues influenced style. In 1994 the album released in Australia
, with the single "Save Me
" launching the band's career in the country. The band gained the support of national radio station Triple J
, enabling the band's first tour, with "Save Me" becoming a staple of their setlists.
was recorded with an array of Indian and Middle-eastern instrumentation. "Sister Awake
", the third single from the album, defines what the band set out to do, combining three-piece rock compositions with music from the world. "Sister Awake" is an acoustically based arrangement on 12-string guitar, sitar
, sarod
, harmonium
and goblet drums. The Edges of Twilight is The Tea Party's most commercially successful album; with sales exceeding 270,000 units, the album is certified double platinum in Canada and platinum in Australia.
Upon returning from successful tours in Canada, Europe and Australia in 1996, The Tea Party recorded Alhambra
, an enhanced CD
which features acoustic re-recordings of songs from The Edges of Twilight, and followed its release with a brief tour of Canada called "Alhambra Acoustic and Eclectic". English folk musician Roy Harper
appeared on The Edges of Twilight reciting a poem and on Alhambra providing vocals for the song "Time".
Transmission
released in 1997 saw The Tea Party's first foray into electronica
with a sampled world music foundation and thrust. Transmission is a collection of aggressive songs influenced by upheavals around the band; the firing of their management and the feeling of a lack of support from their record company. Epitomising the feelings were the first single "Temptation
" and the album's title song.
Triptych followed in 1999, the first single "Heaven Coming Down
" rose to #1 on Canadian radio. The Tea Party's music took on a more orchestral sound, maturing from the blues base. Live at the Enmore Theatre
, the band's only live album was released through Australian radio station Triple J
during the band's tour for Triptych.
in 2000, and then a DVD compilation of music videos (which Martin remixed in surround sound
) called Illuminations
in 2001. The Tea Party released The Interzone Mantras
later in 2001, and in November 2002 joined symphony orchestras across Canada in adapting their live show.
Seven Circles
, the band's final album, was released in 2004. Both The Interzone Mantras and Seven Circles saw the band return to their earlier sound with maturity.
In October 2005 The Tea Party disbanded due to creative differences, with Martin abruptly announcing he was beginning a solo career. Afterward Chatwood stated on the band's forum "that Jeff Burrows and myself are sincerely sorry for the way this was handled. As far as Jeff Burrows and myself were concerned, the band was taking an extended break."
video game soundtracks for Ubisoft Montreal
.
Burrows joined Rush
's Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and other Canadian musicians as drummer in the one-off project the Big Dirty Band
as well as presenting the midday shift on The Rock
, a radio station in Windsor. In 2008 Burrows announced that he, Edwin
, Mike Turner
and Amir Epstein would form the band Crash Karma
, recording their debut album in early 2009.
Martin moved to Ireland and recorded his debut solo album Exile and the Kingdom
, which was released in Canada and Australia in 2006. He has toured parts of Europe, Canada and Australia, and released two live albums, Live in Brisbane 2006
and Live in Dublin, in November 2006 and May 2007, respectively. In August 2008, Martin announced the formation of his new band, The Armada
. In 2010, The Armada broke up. Jeff Martin founded a new band called Jeff Martin 777 with Jay Cortez on bass and Malcolm Clark on drums. Their debut album The Ground Cries Out was released on March 1 in Canada and made it to #51 in the Canadian Albums Chart
.
page was launched with a biography section that closed with "The band is scheduled to play a select number of dates in 2011. No other info was available at this time." The following day, the local radio station K106.3 announced the Sarnia Bayfest lineup including The Tea Party, which was later confirmed by drummer Jeff Burrows on his radio show on April 13. Burrows further stated that a Canadian summer tour was in the works.
On April 26, 2011, the Cisco Systems Bluesfest in Ottawa, Ontario confirmed that The Tea Party is scheduled to play their "Subway Stage" on July 14. The band will also play at the Metropolis in Montreal on July 7, the Barrie New Music Festival on July 15, as well as The Festival of Friends
in Hamilton, ON on August 6, 2011.
On July 9, 2011, the band performed to a capacity crowd at the annual outdoor event Roger's Bayfest in the port city of Sarnia, Ontario, with 60,000 people in attendance.
On August 6, 2011 the band had implied that they were going to be back together permanently. Martin said "We are the Tea Party and we're here to stay. And we're never going away again."
reported that political groups associated with the Tea Party movement
were trying to purchase the band's domain name. Stuart Chatwood stated "So much damage has been done to our name by the political movement that we're considering selling (The domain)" It is estimated the band could sell the domain for over $1M U.S. The band purchased the domain in 1993, and has since added the phrase "No politics... Just Rock and Roll" to their site in order to distance themselves from the political movement. On October 15, 2011, Sedo announced that they will be exclusively listing the domain for sale on their online marketplace.
, and were awarded three People's Choice Awards for Favourite Music Video: two for "The River" and one for "The Bazaar". "Sister Awake" director Curtis Wehrfritz was nominated at the 1996
Juno Awards for Best Director; "Release" director Ulf Buddensieck won the Best Cinematography Award at the 1998 Juno Awards
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
band with blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, Indian
Music of India
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
and Middle Eastern
Middle Eastern music
The music of Western Asia and North Africa spans across a vast region, from Morocco to Afghanistan, and its influences can be felt even further afield. Middle Eastern music influenced the music of India, as well as Central Asia, Spain, Southern Italy, the Caucasus and the Balkans, as in chalga...
influences, dubbed "Moroccan
Music of Morocco
The music of Morocco ranges and differs according to the various areas of the country.-Berber folk music:There are three varieties of Berber folk music: village and ritual music, and the music performed by professional musicians....
roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s up until 2005 when the band broke up, The Tea Party released eight albums on EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
Music Canada, selling 1.6 million records worldwide, and achieving a #1 Canadian single "Heaven Coming Down
Heaven Coming Down
"Heaven Coming Down" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party. It a rock composition of heavy drums, chiming 12-string Rickenbacker guitar with bass and keyboard accompaniment. The music video was shot in Toronto....
" in 1999.
The Tea Party toured Canada on twenty-one occasions and Australia on twelve. In November 2002, The Tea Party toured Canada with symphony orchestras reinterpreting a decade's worth of shared songwriting. The band broke up in 2005 due to creative differences, but re-united in 2011 to play several Canadian tour dates during the summer.
Early years (1990–1995)
The Tea Party was formed in 1990 by Jeff MartinJeff Martin (Canadian musician)
Jeffrey Scott Martin is a Canadian guitarist and singer-songwriter best known for fronting the rock band The Tea Party. Martin began his career as a solo artist in October 2005, when The Tea Party disbanded....
, Stuart Chatwood
Stuart Chatwood
Stuart Chatwood, is a Canadian musician, best known as the bass guitar and keyboard player for the rock band The Tea Party. The Tea Party are known for fusing together musical styles of both the Eastern and Western worlds, in what they call "Moroccan roll"...
and Jeff Burrows
Jeff Burrows
Jeffrey John Burrows is the drummer and percussionist for Canadian rock band Crash Karma, and formerly for The Tea Party....
after a marathon jam session at the Cherry Beach Rehearsal Studios
Cherry Beach Sound
Cherry Beach Sound is a recording studio in the Port Lands of Toronto, Canada at 33 Villiers Street. It is in Toronto's growing film district and is also a successful audio post-production house; TV, radio, and film commercials and or advertisements are often mixed in stereo or 5.1 surround...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. Each member had previously played together during their teenage years in a number of different bands in Windsor, Ontario
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
, where they were originally from. They had decided to name their new group The Tea Party after the infamous hash sessions of famous Beat generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
poets Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
, Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
and William Burroughs.
The Tea Party released their eponymous debut album
The Tea Party (album)
The Tea Party is the eponymous debut album of Canadian rock group The Tea Party. The album was originally recorded as a demo which the band submitted to several record companies, however the trio was not signed to any recording contract and decided to release the album independently...
in 1991, distributing it through their own label Eternal Discs. The album drew influences from psychedelic rock and blues, and was produced by Martin; album production was something Martin would continue with for all of The Tea Party's albums, as a way of giving the band complete artistic control. In 1993 The Tea Party signed to EMI Music Canada and released their first major label recording, Splendor Solis
Splendor Solis (album)
Splendor Solis is The Tea Party's second album, and their first release on EMI Music Canada. The overall tone of the album is very organic and natural, with many songs featuring 6 and 12 string guitar acoustic guitars, and very little in terms of electronic effects or production techniques.The...
. The band employed open tunings and goblet drums (Dumbek) to imitate Indian sounds, something they continued to employ throughout their career, while continuing in a blues influenced style. In 1994 the album released in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, with the single "Save Me
Save Me (The Tea Party song)
"Save Me" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party. It was released as a promotional single in Canada. The music video was shot in Toronto, directed by Floria Sigismondi....
" launching the band's career in the country. The band gained the support of national radio station Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
, enabling the band's first tour, with "Save Me" becoming a staple of their setlists.
Success (1995–2000)
Further developing The Tea Party's sound in 1995, The Edges of TwilightThe Edges of Twilight
The Edges of Twilight is the third album by The Tea Party. The album features many instruments from around the world, giving various songs a strong world music flavour in addition to the rock/blues influences evident in the band's earlier releases...
was recorded with an array of Indian and Middle-eastern instrumentation. "Sister Awake
Sister Awake
"Sister Awake" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party. It was released as a promotional single in Canada. The music video was shot in Toronto and images from the video illustrate the booklet of Alhambra and its multimedia component...
", the third single from the album, defines what the band set out to do, combining three-piece rock compositions with music from the world. "Sister Awake" is an acoustically based arrangement on 12-string guitar, sitar
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
, sarod
Sarod
The sarod is a stringed musical instrument, used mainly in Indian classical music. Along with the sitar, it is the most popular and prominent instrument in the classical music of Hindustan...
, harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
and goblet drums. The Edges of Twilight is The Tea Party's most commercially successful album; with sales exceeding 270,000 units, the album is certified double platinum in Canada and platinum in Australia.
Upon returning from successful tours in Canada, Europe and Australia in 1996, The Tea Party recorded Alhambra
Alhambra (album)
Alhambra is an EP by The Tea Party and was used as a bridge between The Edges of Twilight and Transmission. It features four intricately re-worked acoustic songs from The Edges of Twilight and two others; the first a song entitled "Time" with Roy Harper on vocals, the second a remix of Sister...
, an enhanced CD
Enhanced CD
Enhanced CD, also known as CD Extra and CD Plus, is a certification mark of the Recording Industry Association of America for various technologies that combine audio and computer data for use in both Compact Disc and CD-ROM players....
which features acoustic re-recordings of songs from The Edges of Twilight, and followed its release with a brief tour of Canada called "Alhambra Acoustic and Eclectic". English folk musician Roy Harper
Roy Harper
Roy Harper is an English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist who has been a professional musician since the mid 1960s...
appeared on The Edges of Twilight reciting a poem and on Alhambra providing vocals for the song "Time".
Transmission
Transmission (album)
Transmission is the fourth album recorded by Canadian band The Tea Party, released in 1997 . The album sees the band expanding on the mix of rock, blues, and world music found in their previous albums by adding electronic instruments and recording techniques to their repertoire.While still using...
released in 1997 saw The Tea Party's first foray into electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
with a sampled world music foundation and thrust. Transmission is a collection of aggressive songs influenced by upheavals around the band; the firing of their management and the feeling of a lack of support from their record company. Epitomising the feelings were the first single "Temptation
Temptation (The Tea Party song)
"Temptation" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party from the album Transmission. It was released as a single in Australia and a promotional single in Canada and the USA...
" and the album's title song.
Triptych followed in 1999, the first single "Heaven Coming Down
Heaven Coming Down
"Heaven Coming Down" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party. It a rock composition of heavy drums, chiming 12-string Rickenbacker guitar with bass and keyboard accompaniment. The music video was shot in Toronto....
" rose to #1 on Canadian radio. The Tea Party's music took on a more orchestral sound, maturing from the blues base. Live at the Enmore Theatre
Live at the Enmore Theatre
Live at the Enmore Theatre is a live EP by The Tea Party and the band's only live release. The EP was released through Australian radio station Triple J in a limited quantity of 100. Recorded live at the Enmore Theatre, Sydney on 7 October 1999, during the band's tour for Triptych, the EP features...
, the band's only live album was released through Australian radio station Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
during the band's tour for Triptych.
Later years (2000–2005)
The band released a singles compilation called Tangents: The Tea Party CollectionTangents: The Tea Party Collection
Tangents is a greatest hits collection from Canadian band The Tea Party, released in 2000 .Tangents includes singles from Splendor Solis , The Edges of Twilight , Transmission and Triptych , together with the single "Walking Wounded", B-sides recorded during the Triptych sessions and a cover of...
in 2000, and then a DVD compilation of music videos (which Martin remixed in surround sound
Surround sound
Surround sound encompasses a range of techniques such as for enriching the sound reproduction quality of an audio source with audio channels reproduced via additional, discrete speakers. Surround sound is characterized by a listener location or sweet spot where the audio effects work best, and...
) called Illuminations
Illuminations (DVD)
Illuminations is a single digital versatile disc by the Canadian rock band The Tea Party. The music DVD spans the years from 1993 to 2000 and includes all of the band's EMI Music Canada produced music videos, remixed by Nick Blagona and Jeff Martin in 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround and DTS sound plus...
in 2001. The Tea Party released The Interzone Mantras
The Interzone Mantras
The Interzone Mantras is the sixth album from Canadian rock group The Tea Party.Named after William S. Burroughs' book of short stories Interzone and the band's interest in eastern mysticism and esoteric philosophies, the songwriting on The Interzone Mantras builds on the subtle electronica and...
later in 2001, and in November 2002 joined symphony orchestras across Canada in adapting their live show.
Seven Circles
Seven Circles
Seven Circles is The Tea Party's seventh album, and the last prior to the band breaking up in 2005. The album continues the style of the band's two previous offerings by combining world music influences with rock instrumentation and electronic studio techniques...
, the band's final album, was released in 2004. Both The Interzone Mantras and Seven Circles saw the band return to their earlier sound with maturity.
In October 2005 The Tea Party disbanded due to creative differences, with Martin abruptly announcing he was beginning a solo career. Afterward Chatwood stated on the band's forum "that Jeff Burrows and myself are sincerely sorry for the way this was handled. As far as Jeff Burrows and myself were concerned, the band was taking an extended break."
Post-breakup (2006–2011)
In 2006 Chatwood continued to compose the Prince of PersiaPrince of Persia
Prince of Persia is a platform game, originally developed by Jordan Mechner and released in 1989 for the Apple II, that represented a great leap forward in the quality of animation seen in video games....
video game soundtracks for Ubisoft Montreal
Ubisoft Montreal
Ubisoft Montreal is a Canadian video game developer owned by French publisher Ubisoft.Ubisoft's North American studio is located in Montreal, Quebec...
.
Burrows joined Rush
Rush (band)
Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
's Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and other Canadian musicians as drummer in the one-off project the Big Dirty Band
Big Dirty Band
The Big Dirty Band is a Canadian supergroup composed of Rush's Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson , Thornley's and Big Wreck's Ian Thornley , Three Days Grace's Adam Gontier , Die Mannequin's Care Failure and The Tea Party drummer Jeff Burrows.The Big Dirty Band was put together in support of the Trailer...
as well as presenting the midday shift on The Rock
CKUE-FM
CKUE-FM is the callsign for a radio station located in Chatham-Kent, Ontario, with a booster station in Windsor, and an office in Leamington. Dubbing itself "Canada's Rock Station", the station features an active rock format.-History:...
, a radio station in Windsor. In 2008 Burrows announced that he, Edwin
Edwin (musician)
Edwin is a Canadian alternative rock singer and solo artist from Toronto, and former lead vocalist for I Mother Earth. He was on the band's first two albums, and was also on the majority of the songs on Victor, a 1996 side project from Alex Lifeson of Rush. He went solo in late 1997 and released...
, Mike Turner
Mike Turner (musician)
Mike A. Turner is a musician and producer. He is the former lead guitarist of the band Our Lady Peace. After his departure from OLP he began producing music and played guitar in the Canadian band Fair Ground, with Harem Scarem guitarist Pete Lesperance...
and Amir Epstein would form the band Crash Karma
Crash Karma
Crash Karma is a Canadian rock supergroup formed in 2008 consisting of Edwin , Mike Turner , Jeff Burrows , and Amir Epstein of Zygote. The band's first full live concert was held in Burlington, Ontario on June 20, 2009. Their first single "Awake" premiered on July 10, 2009...
, recording their debut album in early 2009.
Martin moved to Ireland and recorded his debut solo album Exile and the Kingdom
Exile and the Kingdom (album)
Exile and the Kingdom is the debut solo album from Canadian singer/songwriter Jeff Martin. The title is derived from the 1957 book of the same name by Albert Camus.-Track listing:...
, which was released in Canada and Australia in 2006. He has toured parts of Europe, Canada and Australia, and released two live albums, Live in Brisbane 2006
Live in Brisbane 2006
Live in Brisbane 2006 is a two disc live music album from Canadian singer/songwriter Jeff Martin. The album is a complete recording of a live performance full of Jeff's banter with bandmates and the audience, including his thoughts on the disbanding of The Tea Party and where he sees himself in...
and Live in Dublin, in November 2006 and May 2007, respectively. In August 2008, Martin announced the formation of his new band, The Armada
The Armada (band)
The Armada was a three-piece rock band based in Cork, Ireland. Fronted by Jeff Martin of The Tea Party, The Armada aimed to encompass the tone of The Tea Party, while moving it forward....
. In 2010, The Armada broke up. Jeff Martin founded a new band called Jeff Martin 777 with Jay Cortez on bass and Malcolm Clark on drums. Their debut album The Ground Cries Out was released on March 1 in Canada and made it to #51 in the Canadian Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
.
Reunion
On April 12, 2011, an official FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
page was launched with a biography section that closed with "The band is scheduled to play a select number of dates in 2011. No other info was available at this time." The following day, the local radio station K106.3 announced the Sarnia Bayfest lineup including The Tea Party, which was later confirmed by drummer Jeff Burrows on his radio show on April 13. Burrows further stated that a Canadian summer tour was in the works.
On April 26, 2011, the Cisco Systems Bluesfest in Ottawa, Ontario confirmed that The Tea Party is scheduled to play their "Subway Stage" on July 14. The band will also play at the Metropolis in Montreal on July 7, the Barrie New Music Festival on July 15, as well as The Festival of Friends
Festival of Friends
The Festival of Friends is an annual three-day free summer music festival held on the second weekend of August at the Gage Park in Hamilton, Ontario. The 35th year saw it at Ancaster Fairgrounds. It is the largest annual event of its kind in Canada...
in Hamilton, ON on August 6, 2011.
On July 9, 2011, the band performed to a capacity crowd at the annual outdoor event Roger's Bayfest in the port city of Sarnia, Ontario, with 60,000 people in attendance.
On August 6, 2011 the band had implied that they were going to be back together permanently. Martin said "We are the Tea Party and we're here to stay. And we're never going away again."
Domain Name
In September, Yahoo!Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...
reported that political groups associated with the Tea Party movement
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
were trying to purchase the band's domain name. Stuart Chatwood stated "So much damage has been done to our name by the political movement that we're considering selling (The domain)" It is estimated the band could sell the domain for over $1M U.S. The band purchased the domain in 1993, and has since added the phrase "No politics... Just Rock and Roll" to their site in order to distance themselves from the political movement. On October 15, 2011, Sedo announced that they will be exclusively listing the domain for sale on their online marketplace.
Members
- Jeff MartinJeff Martin (Canadian musician)Jeffrey Scott Martin is a Canadian guitarist and singer-songwriter best known for fronting the rock band The Tea Party. Martin began his career as a solo artist in October 2005, when The Tea Party disbanded....
– vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
, sarodSarodThe sarod is a stringed musical instrument, used mainly in Indian classical music. Along with the sitar, it is the most popular and prominent instrument in the classical music of Hindustan...
, oudOudThe oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in North African and Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths...
, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, dumbek, hurdy-gurdy, mellotronMellotronThe Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
, esrajEsrajThe esraj is a string instrument found in two forms throughout the north, central, and east regions of India. It is a young instrument by Indian terms, being only about 200 years old. The dilruba is found in the north, where it is used in religious music and light classical songs in the urban areas...
, percussion - Stuart ChatwoodStuart ChatwoodStuart Chatwood, is a Canadian musician, best known as the bass guitar and keyboard player for the rock band The Tea Party. The Tea Party are known for fusing together musical styles of both the Eastern and Western worlds, in what they call "Moroccan roll"...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, keyboard instrumentKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s, harmoniumHarmoniumA harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, percussion, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, tamburaTamburaThe tambura, tanpura, or tambora is a long-necked plucked lute . The body shape of the tambura somewhat resembles that of the sitar, but it has no frets – only the open strings are played to accompany other musicians...
, celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
, lap steel guitarLap steel guitarThe lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
, bass pedalsBass pedalsBass pedals are an electronic musical instrument with foot-operated pedal keyboard with a range of one or more octaves. The earliest bass pedals from the 1970s consisted of a pedalboard and analog synthesizer tone generation circuitry packaged together as a unit... - Jeff BurrowsJeff BurrowsJeffrey John Burrows is the drummer and percussionist for Canadian rock band Crash Karma, and formerly for The Tea Party....
– drum kitDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion, djembeDjembeA djembe also known as jembe, jenbe, djbobimbe, jymbe, yembe, or jimbay, or sanbanyi in Susu; is a skin-covered drum meant played with bare hands....
, goblet drums, tablaTablaThe tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
Discography
- The Tea PartyThe Tea Party (album)The Tea Party is the eponymous debut album of Canadian rock group The Tea Party. The album was originally recorded as a demo which the band submitted to several record companies, however the trio was not signed to any recording contract and decided to release the album independently...
(1991) - Splendor SolisSplendor Solis (album)Splendor Solis is The Tea Party's second album, and their first release on EMI Music Canada. The overall tone of the album is very organic and natural, with many songs featuring 6 and 12 string guitar acoustic guitars, and very little in terms of electronic effects or production techniques.The...
(1993) - The Edges of TwilightThe Edges of TwilightThe Edges of Twilight is the third album by The Tea Party. The album features many instruments from around the world, giving various songs a strong world music flavour in addition to the rock/blues influences evident in the band's earlier releases...
(1995) - TransmissionTransmission (album)Transmission is the fourth album recorded by Canadian band The Tea Party, released in 1997 . The album sees the band expanding on the mix of rock, blues, and world music found in their previous albums by adding electronic instruments and recording techniques to their repertoire.While still using...
(1997) - Triptych (1999)
- The Interzone MantrasThe Interzone MantrasThe Interzone Mantras is the sixth album from Canadian rock group The Tea Party.Named after William S. Burroughs' book of short stories Interzone and the band's interest in eastern mysticism and esoteric philosophies, the songwriting on The Interzone Mantras builds on the subtle electronica and...
(2001) - Seven CirclesSeven CirclesSeven Circles is The Tea Party's seventh album, and the last prior to the band breaking up in 2005. The album continues the style of the band's two previous offerings by combining world music influences with rock instrumentation and electronic studio techniques...
(2004)
Video awards and nominations
The Tea Party were nominated for 22 MuchMusic Video AwardsMuchMusic Video Awards
The MuchMusic Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic to honour the year's best music videos....
, and were awarded three People's Choice Awards for Favourite Music Video: two for "The River" and one for "The Bazaar". "Sister Awake" director Curtis Wehrfritz was nominated at the 1996
Juno Awards of 1996
The Juno Awards of 1996, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 10 March 1996 in Hamilton, Ontario at a ceremony in the Copps Coliseum...
Juno Awards for Best Director; "Release" director Ulf Buddensieck won the Best Cinematography Award at the 1998 Juno Awards
Juno Awards of 1998
The Juno Awards of 1998 were presented in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The primary ceremonies at GM Place before an audience of 10 000 on 22 March 1998....
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See also
- Canadian rockCanadian rockCanadian rock describes a wide and diverse variety of music produced by Canadians, beginning with American style rock 'n' roll in the mid-20th century. Since then Canada has had a considerable impact on the development of the modern popular music called rock...
- Music of CanadaMusic of CanadaThe music of Canada has influences that have shaped the country. Aboriginals, the British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has subsequently been heavily influenced by American culture because of its proximity and migration between...
- List of bands from Canada