Alisha's Attic

Alisha's Attic were an English pop duo of the 1990s and early 2000s. The two members were sisters Shelly McErlaine (born Poole) and Karen Poole, born in Barking and Chadwell Heath respectively.[1][2] Their father is Brian Poole of 1960s group Brian Poole and the Tremeloes.[3]

Alisha's Attic
Shelly (left) and Karen (right)
Background information
Origin	London, England
Genres	Pop
Years active	1996–2001
Labels	Universal, Mercury
Associated acts	Shelly McErlaine
Past members	Shelly McErlaine Karen Poole

History

Karen and Shelly's recording career began with the release of their debut single "I Am, I Feel", which quickly became a radio and chart hit in the UK. This was followed in November 1996 by their entirely self-written debut album Alisha Rules the World.[3] The platinum selling album was produced by Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics and spawned four top 15 UK hits and substantial success in Europe and Japan. They were nominated for a 1997 Brit Award[4] for Best Newcomer, and also nominated that year for an Ivor Novello Award for the best lyrical and melodic composition. In July 1997, the band played at the first Lilith Fair festival.[5] They also toured with INXS, and supported Jon Bon Jovi as well as their own headline tours throughout the late nineties.

Alisha's Attic went on to release two more albums, Illumina (silver in the UK) which produced the singles "The Incidentals", "Wish I Were You" and "Barbarella", and the critically acclaimed album The House We Built, a mostly live album recorded with Bill Bottrell in Mendocino, USA.[6] The two singles from this album were "Pretender Got My Heart" (which was featured in the film Bridget Jones's Diary) and "Push It All Aside". Both of these singles featured videos made by Sophie Muller. The group released one more album in Japan - Japanese Dream - before they went their separate ways in 2004.

Both members went on to become successful songwriters. Shelly is also in the band Red Sky July.

Discography

Alisha's Attic discography
Studio albums	5
Compilation albums	1
Singles	9

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions				Certifications
		UK [7]	AUS [8]	GER [9]	SCO [10]
Alisha Rules the World	Released: November 1996 Label: Mercury	14	54	58	29	UK: Platinum[11]
Japanese Dream	Released: 1997 Label: Mercury	—	—	—	—
Illumina	Released: October 1998 Label: Mercury	15	—	—	31	UK: Silver[11]
The House We Built	Released: July 2001 Label: Mercury	55	—	—	90
The Attic Vaults I	Released: August 2001 Fan club release only	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes items that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Compilation albums

Title	Album details
The Collection	Released: July 2003 Label: Spectrum Music

Singles

Year	Title	Peak chart positions							Certifications	Album
		UK [7]	AUS [8]	FRA [12]	GER [9]	IRE [13]	SCO [14]	SWE [15]
1996	"I Am, I Feel"	14	18	40	69	13	14	23	AUS: Gold[16]	Alisha Rules the World
	"Alisha Rules the World"	12	26	—	69	24	16	60
1997	"Indestructible"	12	128	—	—	—	13	—
	"Air We Breathe"	12	—	—	—	—	13	—
1998	"The Incidentals"	13	—	—	—	—	14	—		Illumina
	"Wish I Were You"	29	—	—	—	—	27	—
1999	"Barbarella"	34	—	—	—	—	30	—
2001	"Push It All Aside"	24	—	—	—	—	17	—		The House We Built
	"Pretender Got My Heart"	43	—	—	—	—	51	—
"—" denotes items that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Other songs

• A cover version of Suede's "Still Life" for the 1996 charity album by ChildLine.
• A cover of The Crystals' "He's a Rebel" for the 1997 film Bean.

References

1. "Alisha's Attic – news, lyrics, pictures, reviews, biography, videos, best songs, discography, concerts, gossip, pictures and tour dates". Nme.com. 26 September 1998. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
2. Kwaku (29 June 1996). "Mercury betting the house on Alisha's attic". Billboard. Vol. 108 no. 26, p58. ISSN 0006-2510.
3. Sexton, Paul; Horak, Terri (15 March 1997). "Mercury set to open up U.K.'s Alisha's Attic in U.S". Billboard. Vol. 109 no. 11. p. 15. ISSN 0006-2510.
4. Hudson, Heidi (April 1997). "Alisha's Attic". Lesbian News. 22 (9): 37. ISSN 0739-1803.
5. Courant.com: Alisha Rules The World: 24 July 1997
6. Tony Barrell (25 February 2001). "A Town Called Alisha". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
7. "Official Charts > Alisha's Attic". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
8. Australian (ARIA) chart peaks:
   • Top 50 peaks: "australian-charts.com > Alisha's Attic in Australian Charts". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
   • Top 100 peaks to December 2010: Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
   • Alisha Rules the World (album): "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Albums Chart – Week Ending 15 Jun 1997". Imgur.com (original document published by ARIA). Retrieved 9 April 2017.
   • "Indestructible": "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 5 June 2015". Imgur.com. Archived from the original on 5 June 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
9. German chart peaks:
   • "I Am, I Feel": "Alisha's Attic – I Am, I Feel (single)" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
   • Alisha Rules the World (album): "Alisha's Attic – Alisha Rules the World (album)" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
   • "Alisha Rules the World" (single): "Alisha's Attic – Alisha Rules the World (single)" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
10. "Scottish Albums". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
11. "UK Certification". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
12. "French Singles". lescharts.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
13. "Irish Singles". irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
14. "Scottish Singles". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
15. "Swedish Singles". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
16. "ARIA Charts Accreditations - 1997 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 4 June 2016.

External links

• Official Alisha's Attic website (offline)
• Alisha's Attic discography at MusicBrainz