Busted (band)

<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; background-color: #f9f9f9;">
The band on the cover of second album A Present for Everyone</td></tr><tr><th>Country</th><td>England</td></tr><tr><th>Years active</th><td>2001—2005</td></tr><tr><th>Genres</th><td>Pop/Teen Pop Rock</td></tr><tr><th>Members</th><td>James Bourne, Charlie Simpson, Matt Willis</td></tr>

For the Joanne song, see Busted (song).

Busted were an English pop band consisting of James Bourne (born September 13, 1983), Charlie Simpson (born June 7, 1985) and Matt Willis (born May 8, 1983) which formed in 2001 and disbanded in 2005. The band briefly contained two more members: Ki Fitzgerald and Owen Hargreaves, who attempted a lawsuit for writing royalties. Busted may also be recognised as the originating forces behind the breakout act McFly. They earned a place in the Guinness World Records by selling out London's Wembley Arena 6 nights in a row. Band member Charlie Simpson has gained mass appeal as Cosmo UK named him one of the sexiest men alive in both 2003 and 2005.

America or Busted

The TV series "America or Busted", about Busted's attempts to achieve success in the United States, debuted on MTV UK and Ireland in November 2004. Over the course of the series, the audience see Busted's attempts to 'break' America dwindle as interviews fall through and performances remain limited both in terms of audience size and press attention. Some have claimed flaws in the band's management's strategy, such as which radio stations were targeted as a reason for the failure of the tour. "Thunderbirds Are Go"/"3am" (2004) went to #1 in the UK and Japan, and was record of the year in the UK, but the live action remake Thunderbirds movie that it was based on was a flop in the United States, as interest in that series was never great there.

It is also possible that many in the U.S. public felt that the band was too similar to the proliferation of American pop punk bands on which Busted had based itself, although an American band The Jonas Brothers have found success in covering "What I Go To School For" and "Year 3000".

Solo Careers

After the failure of the US tour, rumours soon began to surface that a split was imminent. Charlie Simpson announced that he had to take a break to tour with his side-project, Fightstar (a band which differs greatly from the music Busted recorded). The group then formally disbanded at a press conference on 14 January 2004. Simpson declared that he had become restless with the sound and the 'clean' image he was expected to uphold and that he wanted to concentrate fully on Fightstar. His current project has since left it's UK record label and expects to come stateside in the coming months as Simpson feels America to be much more welcoming of their musical style.

James Bourne went on to release music through his pop punk band Son Of Dork and Matt Willis set up a solo career, having released his first single "Up All Night" in May 2006. While neither have yet to reach anywhere near the success they enjoyed in Busted, they have both managed to remain in some sort of public favor. Bourne and Willis are cited as still maintaining a friendship while it appears Simpson has distanced himself from both. "Hey Kid" was Willis' next single release. The track is also the leading track on the soundtrack to American teen comedy drama John Tucker Must Die. Another Matt Willis track called "Don't Let It Go To Waste" is the next single to be released.

Influences

The group were strongly influenced by American teen punk bands such as Blink 182.

Discography

(with UK chart positions)

Albums

• Busted (2002) – #2
• A Present For Everyone (2003) – #2
• Busted Live: A Ticket For Everyone (2004) – #11
• Busted (US) (2004)

Singles

• "What I Go to School For" (2002) – #3 UK, #22 AUS, #32 Austria, #34 GER, #20 IRE, #40 USA Airplay
• "Year 3000" (2003) – #2 UK, #15 Austria, #5 Belgium, #21 GER, #9 NETH, #9 Taiwan, #2 IRE, 19 NOR, #10 DEN, #43 Australia
• "You Said No" (2003) – #1 UK, #38 GER, #27 NETH, #3 IRE, #15 DEN
• "Sleeping with the Light On" (2003) – #3 UK, #4 IRE
• "Hurra Hurra Die Schule Brennt" (2003) – #20 Austria, #19 GER translated as "Hooray Hooray, The School Is Burning" (German/Austrian release only)
• "Crashed the Wedding" (2003) – #1 UK, #28 NETH, #3 IRE, #14 Japan, #6 Spain, #3 DEN
• "Who's David?" (2004) – #1 UK, #9 IRE
• "Air Hostess" (2004) – #2 UK, #12 IRE
• "Thunderbirds Are Go"/"3am" (2004) – #1 UK, #6 IRE, #1 Japan
• "She Wants To Be Me" (2004) Ineligible To Chart (Limited Edition 3" Single)

Other appearances

• "Do They Know It's Christmas?" (as part of Band Aid 20) (2004) #1

External links

Official sites

• Official website
• Official American website

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