Darren Cooper grew up in Tuscola, Illinois, a small midwestern town, just outside of Champaign-Urbana. His first musical epiphany was seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan when he was three years old. Santa responded with The Liverpool Combo drum kit. Growing up in those days, AM radio, the likes of WLS Chicago, offered some great moments, but as the 60s came to a close, and the 70s were in full swing, those great radio moments turned into great radio frustration. Somewhat better FM radio and a steady diet of British Invation bands became the musical soup du jour for most budding rock bands of the time. In 76, at the age of 15, Cooper and a friend snuck into a local club to see a band called Cheap Trick. Musical epiphany number two, thank you!!! After witnessing that amazingly raw, visual and musically perfect show, (if you don't think of Cheap Trick as being raw, listen to the first album on 10) it was time to start playing live, in a cover group with his two brothers. Cooper began writing his own material and established the Split Enzish-original band, Artificial Limbs. In late 86, Brad Steakley, Paul Chastain and Cooper, formed The Housepets. From that band came Cooper's association with Choo Choo Train and Velvet Crush. Cooper played on Choo Choo Train's Briar Rose EP, High album, and toured England in late 88 with Paul and Ric Menck. In 89, Cooper, Brad Elvis Steakley and Chicago artist and musician, Brian Paul Sindler, formed the band Big Hello, writing new songs, and touring the midwest, opening for bands like Material Issue, Reverend Horton Heat and Web Wilder as well as guitar legend Adrian Belew.
The ORIGINAL Three Hour Tour has been an ongoing Indi, powerpop, rock band project, led by guitarist - singer & prolific songwriter, Darren Cooper. The project started when Brad moved to Chicago to play with The Elvis Brothers, and Cooper was without a band, and a ton of original material. Cooper's Three Hour Tour was then approached by Parasol Records to put out a single in the early 90s. Cooper agreed and the single, Valentines Day, sold well. A follow up single, Till the Next Time, also on Parasol, came soon after. These singles prompted rave reviews, along with some sparce, but important radio play and praise, by the late-great, BBC Radio 1 Broadcaster, John Peel. Three Hour Tour then released their first full length CD called simply, Three Hour Tour. The next CD, 1969, featured the first two singles, plus a few new tracks. Cooper continued writing songs, and began working on all new Three Hour Tour recordings on Martian Records, with long-time friends and talented musicians Adam Schmitt, Paul Chastain, Brad Steakley, John Richardson and Ric Menck. A new promotional single, on 7", coke bottle clear vinyl, is available now, as well as the new CD, B Side Oblivion, released in February 2008. Cooper is currently recording another all-new, full length Three Hour Tour CD, due this fall, 2008!!!
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Amplifier Magazine - Album of the Week, Three Hour Tour, B Side Oblivion
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Remixed debut CD
Check out Three Hour Tour's ON LINE PRESS KIT!
View Three Hour Tour's EPK
