The Supernaturals are a guitar-based indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. Fronted by singer-songwriter James McColl, the band signed to Parlophone in 1996, and had a string of singles which were taken from their three albums and four EPs. Other members included Mark Guthrie, Derek McManus, Gavin Crawford and Ken McAlpine. Having come to the attention of Andy Ross of Food Records in 1995, they were signed to Food/EMI in November 1995. and around Europe, They were also a staple on compilation albums such as Shine, and played radio sessions for BBC Radio 1, Radio 2, Virgin and others. Television appearances included Top of the Pops, TFI Friday, The Jack Docherty Show, Fully Booked and The Big Breakfast, with keyboardist Ken McAlpine appearing as a contestant on Never Mind the Buzzcocks (for Phill Jupitus' team). The band performed at each T in the Park festival between 1995 and 1998.
"The Day Before Yesterday's Man" was used in the TV series Teachers, Hollyoaks and the film Shooting Fish.
Smile was the theme tune for bank Smile.co.uk's TV advertisements, Arnold Clark Automobiles, Sky Movies UK, Pearl Drops, and mayonnaise in Japan, and was re-recorded for use as the main theme of the Nine Network idents in Australia 2008, and was also parodied in Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights. The song was also used on As If, Holiday Showdown, Wife Swap, That'll Teach 'Em, Grumpy Old Men, X Factor, Clarkson's Car Years, and in 2005 was included in VH2's list of the best indie songs of all time. The song was also used as the theme music for the television review show Manic Episodes.
I Wasn't Built to Get Up was used in an advertising campaign for Direct Debits on UK television in 1999. The song "Monday Mornings" was used in the film Fast Food in 1998. "Life is a Motorway" has been used in the BBC TV show Homes Under the Hammer.
Rod Stewart recorded the band's song "Dylan's Day Off" for his album The Rod Stewart Sessions 1971–1998.
Post break-up: 2005–present
The Supernaturals took a break after their third album's release in 2002. At their peak, they enjoyed a loyal fanbase, with several high-quality fansites.
Songwriter McColl went on to be guitarist in band the Hussys. In 2007 the band released We Expected, an eight track album on Quince Records in Japan. The band's 2008 album Super Pro was recorded by Kevin Burleigh at the Byre Studio in Beauly. This was augmented by four songs and released as Super Pro + by Quince Records in Japan in 2009. The band's 2009 UK album Japanese Graffiti had a more 1980s sound. The band then recorded Tokyo Elephant Brothers in a camper van in 2010. The band's final album to date is Please Secure Your Valuables, which was released in 2011. The band have played sessions on Rapal, Channel M and the Janice Long radio show.
Their songs "Rock Concert", "Napoleon", "Friends Reunited", "Warm and Fuzzy" and "We Expected" have been used variously on Jersey Shore, When I Was 17, Paris Hilton's BFF and Made on MTV. "Rock Concert" was used in a US national advert for Payless Shoes. Their songs "Aftershave" "Roller Disco" "T Rex Records" and "Jenny Teaches Rock School" have been played by Rodney Bingenheimer. The Hills have also featured their song "Rocksteady" and "We Expected". The song "Roller Disco" was a top 10 airplay single in Peru in 2009 together with "Greatest Living Actress" and "Aftershave" which received extensive airplay in South America. "Tiger" was used in the Russian language film "20 Cigarettes". The song "Just Think of my Heart as a Campervan" has been used on the BBC 1 TV show, The Legalizer.
Keyboardist McAlpine later became a cameraman for Eòrpa, House Guest, Dragons' Den, and music videos for Justin Currie.
Drummer Tilston collaborated with William Orbit on his 2009 album My Oracle Lives Uptown, and with Madonna on her 2012 album MDNA.
In February 2012, the Supernaturals began rehearsing again with their four original members. Over the next two years they wrote and recorded a fourth album 360, at Gorbals Sound Studios in Glasgow. The album was released on 6 April 2015.
The band released their fifth album, Bird of Luck, on 1 August 2019.
Archive footage from one of the band's appearances on Channel 4's TFI Friday appears in the documentary feature film, 'The Closer We Get' (2016) directed by Karen Guthrie, sister of bass player Mark Guthrie.
The band returned to playing live in 2015 and have since performed supporting Sleeper, Embrace and performed at the Loopallu Festival, the Belladrum Festival, Mugstock Festival and as part of the Star Shaped Festival tour at venues including the Brixton Academy.
Guitarist Derek McManus died on 27 June 2022, at the age of 55.
Discography
Albums
- It Doesn't Matter Anymore, May 1997 – Number 9 UK
- A Tune a Day, August 1998 – Number 21 UK
- What We Did Last Summer, June 2002
- 360, April 2015
- Bird of Luck, August 2019
- It Only Gets Worse, July 2023
- Show Tunes, May 2025
! Album
! Video director
|-
|rowspan="2"| 1996
|align="left"| "Smile"
| 98 || 48
|rowspan="6"| It Doesn't Matter Anymore
|rowspan="2"| n/a
|-
|align="left"| "Lazy Lover"
|34||13
|-
|rowspan="4"| 1997
|align="left"|"The Day Before Yesterday's Man"
|25||10
|rowspan="2"| Hammer & Tongs
|-
|align="left"| "Smile"
|23||12
|-
|align="left"| "Love Has Passed Away"
|38||23
|rowspan="2"| Barry Maguire
|-
|align="left"| "Prepare to Land"
|48||32
|-
|rowspan="2"| 1998
|align="left"| "I Wasn't Built to Get Up"
|25||8
|rowspan="3"| A Tune a Day
|Rupert Jones
|-
|align="left"| "Sheffield Song"
|45||17
|Dave Osborne
|-
|1999
|align="left"| "Everest"
|52||21
|Barnaby & Scott
|-
|2001
|align="left"| "Finishing Credits"
|117||90
|rowspan="3"| What We Did Last Summer
| n/a
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2002
|align="left"| "What We Did Last Summer"
|116||92
|rowspan="2"| Craig Martin
|-
|align="left"| "Life Is a Motorway"
| –|| –
|-
|| 2020
|align="left"| "You're My Best Friend"||||||| Warner Archives
|rowspan="5"| n/a
|-
|| 2022
|align="left"| "I Want You Back For Xmas"||||||| Non album single
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2023
|align="left"| "Roy Wouldn't"|||||
|rowspan="3"| Show Tunes
|-
|align="left"|"Burn The Witch"|||||
|-
|| 2025
|align="left"|"Don't Let The Past Catch Up With You"|||||
|}
Television appearances
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Date
!Programme
|-
|14 October 1996
|The Big Breakfast
|-
|16 October 1996
|Fresh Pop
|-
|29 January 1997
|The Big Breakfast
|-
|31 January 1997
|TFI Friday
|-
|8 February 1997
|Top of the Pops
|-
|4 July 1997
|The Big Breakfast
|-
|2 July 1997
|Top of the Pops
|-
|31 October 1997
|TFI Friday
|-
|19 July 1998
|Fully Booked
|-
|9 October 1998
|TFI Friday
|-
|15 October 1998
|STV Box Set
|-
|12 November 1998
|The Jack Docherty Show
|-
|5 March 1999
|Ozone
|}
Timeline
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