IT TOOK 16 years for Burnley band Chumbawamba to conquer the pop charts. Following their phenomenal success both in this country and the US, singer Danbert Nobacon talks to SIMON DONOHUE about six months of stardom.

ANARCHIC Burnley band Chumbawamba played their first gig at Colne's Hendly Hotel in 1982 - to a crowd comprising 150 family and friends.

Ten years on they debated calling it quits - a move which could have proved very costly, considering the subsequent huge sales of their smash single Tubthumping.

"We all had other jobs until then," said singer Danbert Nobacon, whose parents still live in Burnley.

"Some of us were turning 30.

"We held a meeting and said: 'We either try and make a living from it or we give up.'

"Up until then we had toured when we were on holiday and practised at weekend.

"It was impossible to give it the energy it deserved."

The 1992 debate resulted in the band - which includes other Burnley members Boff, Lou and Alice Nutter, who named herself after the famous Pendle witch - going full-time.

There followed a string of releases, first on their own Agit Prop label and then with One Little Indian. But true success only arrived after they made the surprising step of signing to EMI after leaving One Little Indian in January 1997.

One Little Indian heard early tapes of the Tubthumper album on which Tubthumping appears and decided they didn't like it!

Tubthumping has since achieved millions of sales throughout the world, with the album hitting number three in the USA.

Tubthumping happened because the record company were really good at their job and there was also an element of luck.

"People describe it as a summer song but we wrote it in the winter of 1996.

"Because we left our label, it didn't come out until August. It coincided with the Radio One Roadshows in the summer and became really big." The success of Tubthumping has secured Chumbawamba tours across the USA and Europe, the chance to appear on a new album of World Cup songs and a Brit Award nomination for best single. They will perform live at the award ceremony next month and are set to return to Los Angeles for an appearance on world-famous Jay Leno Show.

"Considering the sales of Tubthumping last year, it's hardly surprising but we think it is really cool that the ordinary radio listeners were the ones who voted for the Brit nomination," added Danbert.

Signing to EMI has set the scene for three albums in Great Britain and Europe, although Danbert admits that the company could lose interest at any time.

Strangely, it seems that America is more of a certainty and the band have accordingly signed a four album deal with Universal.

"They went into it thinking we were a longer-term project," said Danbert.

"But you can never really tell what is going to happen."

The single which has been set the difficult task of following the "whisky drink, lager drink" chant of Tubthumping is Amnesia, which was released yesterday.

It's going to be a tough challenge, despite the sweet vocals which are this time provided mainly by Lou.

Danbert said: "It's very upbeat but it's not got that football sort of chorus.

"It's more mainstream Chumbawamba. "We are all keeping our fingers crossed."

The last time the band played in their home town was back in summer 1996 when they were promoting the final One Little Indian album, Swinging With Raymond.

The Burnley Mechanics show featured Danbert - recovering from a broken leg - in a wheelchair and there were lots of family greetings from the three other East Lancashire members.

They only have three British dates set up for this year but Danbert hasn't ruled out another date at the Burnley Mechanics.

"You never know what we might be doing after the summer," he said.

Blame Scooby Doo for the name!

A CARTOON spook is believed to have sparked the riddle which has kept music fans guessing for the last six months - just what does Chumbawamba mean?

Suggestions have ranged from the name of an ancient Indian tribe to a cry of passion.

But, according to the band's record label EMI, it has more to do with Scooby Doo, the American cartoon show featuring a gang of teenage investigators and their clumsy dog. A spokesman said: "It relates to early episodes of Scooby Doo.

"One of the characters that Daphne, Thelma, Shaggy, Fred and Scooby used to come up against was called the Chumbawamba ghost.

"A lot of people have asked that same question.

"I knew the answer because I have a five-year-old who watches the videos."

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