Biography

Previously known as Jo Jo And The Real People, the Real People were formed in 1989 by two brothers, Tony Griffiths (b. 7 April 1966, Liverpool, Merseyside, England; bass, vocals) and Chris Griffiths (b. 30 March 1968, Liverpool, Merseyside, England; guitar, vocals), and Sean Simpson (b. 9 October 1968, Liverpool, Merseyside, England; guitar) and Tony Elson (b. 2 January 1966, Liverpool, Merseyside, England; drums). The quartet started playing local pub gigs in the Bootle area of Merseyside and soon found themselves embroiled in a scene that included Rain, Top and the La’s. Unfortunately, the Real People’s natural instinct for muscular tunes and powerful melodies was undermined by the demands of the music industry. Although the quartet signed to CBS Records (soon to be Sony), at the end of 1989, and had enormous fun spending their advance on a trip to India, it was to be a whole year before any records were released. ‘Windowpane’ reached only number 60 in the UK and when the album charted for only one week (at number 59) the Real People complained about Sony’s lack of promotion. They returned to Liverpool and the unemployment register. In 1995, they formed their own record label, Egg Records, and, without Sean Simpson, recorded The Real People EP, which reached number 13 in the UK’s independent charts. Earlier, Chris Griffiths had met Liam Gallagher of the yet-to-be-discovered Oasis and invited the group to use the Real People’s eight-track studio to record their first demos. As a result, Chris co-wrote the song ‘Columbia’ with Liam, long before his band’s breakthrough. The connection helped rekindle interest in the Real People, who continued into 1995 with the release of ‘Bring You Down’ and in 1996 with What’s On The Outside.