Mic Christopher
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| Mic Christopher | |
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Mic Christopher
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| Born | 21 September 1969 Bronx, New York, USA |
| Died | 29 November 2001 Groningen, Holland, Netherlands |
Mic Christopher (21 September 1969 - 29 November 2001)
Despite being born in the Bronx, New York on 21 September 1969, Mic spent most of his life in Ireland. Because of his parents' Irish heritage they moved back to Dublin, Ireland in 1972 and together with an all-Irish school upbringing, Mic started to play traditional Irish music with school groups until he was about fifteen years old when he started busking.
Mic was a busker in Dublin for about five years where he met numerous people that he would play music with over the years. These included Karl and David Odlum and Glen Hansard of The Frames, among many many others.
In 1990 Mic formed the band, the Mary Janes with former Kila bass player and fellow busker, Karl Odlum, guitarist, Simon Goode and Steven Hogan on drums. Over the next nine years The Mary Janes played together in three different guises. Firstly with Steven on drums and then after he left the band stayed together and recorded their first album (Bored Of Their Laughing) as a three piece without drums.
In 1994 the Mary Janes signed a publishing deal with Warner-Chappell and in 1996 the band acquired the drumming talents of Mark Stanley from Australia and went on to record their second album Sham in 1998. Over the years The Mary Janes played everywhere from Feile and the Fleadh in Ireland, to Glastonbury Festival in England, to the CMJ in New York. Ultimately finishing with a six week stint in Bosnia with the War Child charity organization. The Mary Janes finally split in 1999 and Mic embarked on a three month solo tour of Victoria, Australia.
In the autumn of 2001 Mic, having recovered from a bad motorbike accident, released his solo Heyday EP and announced that he would be supporting The Waterboys on their next tour. On November 18 in Groningen, Holland, after he had played his set and gone down well with the crowd, he sold more CDs that night than any other night during the tour.
The accident that caused his death was described by Glen Hansard: 'He went for a few beers after the show and simply slipped on some steps. It could have happened anywhere, at any time.' On arrival at a local hospital, Mic was found to have lapsed into a coma as a result of severe swelling to the brain. He never regained consciousness. Mic died on 29 November 2001 aged 32.
Mic had been working on Skylarkin' but hadn't completed it before his death but had left instructions of how his early recordings could have been improved. During November 2002 work from many of his friends and family resulted in the posthumous release of what is Mic's first and only solo album. It also won Best Album at the 2003 Meteor Irish Music Award. His family were present to collect the award on his behalf.
Ever since his death, The Frames' frontman has dedicated every one of their albums to him. They also dedicate their cover version of his hit "Heyday" to him when played live.
Christopher has also gained a new generation of fans from "Heyday" being featured in an ad for Guinness in Ireland.
[edit] Discography
- Heyday EP (2000)
- Skylarkin' (2002)
