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sharon
Niall Stokes:
People would make an assumption that since The Corrs have sold millions
of records, you've already got it made. Does it feel that way to you?
Sharon Corr:
Sometimes it's hard to relate to your own success, especially with
the type of speed which we move around the world. And generally we've left
a place - we've done the promo, and when we hit No.1 we're already on to
another territory what we're still trying to break. To be perfectly honest
we're are an incredibly successful band but we still would like to have
more success. I mean success for us is writing good albums and the being
appreciated worldwide. I think we've always had quite high expectations.
What do you say to people who see what you're doing as completely
glamorous occupation?
It's not really something I would
get into because they're so far removed from it if that's the way they
see it. I think it's 99% hard work and 1% glamour. In some ways it's quite
like the movie industry: the finished product looks very glamorous but
most of the time you're working very hard in quite uncomfortable conditions.
So give the level of effort that goes into it and the fact you have
to go out like an army, in a sense, to make the thing work, is it really
worth the grief involved to you?
Definitely. There's no gain without
pain and for me the reason I get so much satisfaction from what I do is
because I have worked so hard. Had it come easy I don't think I'd have
felt worthy of it.
Was there a time along the way when you felt a sense of despair,
that it wasn't going to fly and you'd just like to see the end of it?
Not really. There have been moments
of despair without a doubt. I can remember in the very early days when
we spent most of our time around the corner from our parent's house, in
Jim's place, recording and writing songs and the girls were still at school
and we'd be up till four in the morning singing backing vocals and it was
quite stifling because we were together all the time and we really needed
to feel the sense of ourselves - and maybe have experienced more of the
world as individuals - before we came together and did this. But although
that was quite stifling, it wasn't the worst. I can remember a member of
en enormous record company coming over to see us and it built our hopes.
He came over, had a look and said to John that he just didn't get it.
What company was that?
I wouldn't care to mention it
to be honest because there was no bitterness or anything like that. But
he was so good, he also passed on The Cranberries, put it that way! We
spent so many hours so many years working to try and get a record deal
and when somebody literally just doesn't hear it, that's quite frustrating.
And I think sometimes there's been a little bit of despair at the end of
a long haul of promotion and touring. But that's more to do with exhaustion
than with how you truly think about the band.
There was a perception in Ireland that The Corrs had it easy, that
it was just - you've got three gorgeous women, put some Irish music into
the mix and it's automatically going to be a hit.
Well that's just cynicism you
know. And there's plenty of it about. It also probably sells newspapers
but I don't really get involved in that because besides having played instruments
all our lives we've spent long hours writing our music, long hours travelling
around the world to try and make something of out music and of our career
- and without that nobody would ever have heard of us. So it's quite useless
saying that.
In a lot of ways, as the singer and as the youngest and as somebody
who's naturally emotional, Andrea is the most vulnerable person in the
group. As the big sister do you find yourself worrying about her?
I do yes, definitely. I think
even more so since our mum died because I was catapulted into adulthood
overnight. Even though I've been of an age to be considered an adult for
many years now there's something that happens when your mum dies - you
lose that ability to act like a child now and then. And I think for me
my first instinct was to pull everything together and make sure everybody
was okay. Sometimes Andrea - she is emotional and vulnerable - but I think
everybody in the band is to be perfectly honest. Music is something where
you truly expose yourself especially when you write your own music. I suppose
you see more of Andrea vulnerability because she's actually singing the
lyrics and I think perhaps for that reason people feel she's more vulnerable.
But certainly as an older sister I am quite protective of her, yes that's
for sure.
And does that make your position in the band more difficult?
I think we've learned over the
years to let our own personalities grow and give each other space to breathe.
Andrea, Caroline and Jim are very strong individuals and we would get along
absolutely fine on our own. And if I'm down, Andrea would look after me.
We all have bad days on different days. So she would help me and I would
help her at different times.
Obviously it's been very tough for everyone since your mother died.
That must make your current campaign that much more difficult in a lot
of ways.
I'm the eternal optimist. I seek
the silver lining out of every situation or I talk myself into it - one
or the other. And I think in some ways it has made me much stronger but
in some ways it has also made me much more vulnerable. So if I do have
a lot of work on, I have a tendency to become much more emotional in situations.
I find myself much more vulnerable on a daily basis and I find myself having
a tendency to be a little bit down. Especially around this time of year
because it was yesterday that Mum went to Newcastle (England) for her assessment
and it was on week later that she died. So if somebody says to me 'you've
got to go to America on Monday', I go 'oh my god, oh my God' and it's not
really America that's getting to me, it's mum. It's the pressure of going
and working but it's also the pressure of just being more vulnerable.
Most people have no concept of the impact grief can have until they're
plunged into it.
I think that's the most difficult
thing about it. I don't think you really have any preparations. For quite
a few months before mum died, I found myself crying myself to sleep every
night. It was almost like I knew but there's something in yourself that
seeks to preserve yourself and you don't admit it. And even the doctors
were saying it wasn't going to happen - but something in me knew. The finality
of it, that's the most frustrating thing. I find that it hits you in the
most uncanny situations. When you ask me about it, so straight and so directly
I can cope with it. But there can be other moments when I hear a song…I
was watching a film last night, Andrea Boccelli and Sarah Brightman, Time
To Say Goodbye. My mother played that 25 times in a row one night in the
house because she loved it so much. And it's moments like that that really
gets me. And what I find particularly difficult is I'm always surrounded
by a lot of people so you generally have to stifle your tears and hide
your feelings and try and find a corner where you can be alone you know.
Do you feel now that In Blue is that much stronger because it was
recorded in en emotional context?
That's something I can only speculate
on. For myself, I don't know if I'd written certain songs the way I did
if mum hadn't died. So definitely the lyrical content is about her and
to do with grief - 'No More Cry' in particular. So I suppose yes the record
did change because of that experience.
Pop music often doesn't deal with deeper emotional truths. So you
could see this record as the record where The Corrs' maturity is established.
Well year you could but (hesitates)
I'm quite allergic to that type of sentiment, that pop music is without
any sort of depth. Just because it's not Leonard Cohen doesn't mean that
within the lyrics or the music there isn't a very strong sentiment or a
very strong feeling. I think also that in situations of grief or trouble
or depression, sometimes the best release is to write something uplifting.
As I said earlier, I do tend to try and seek the good or the positive.
And I know that in whatever songs I wrote after mum died, it was about
losing my childhood overnight, but in The Corrs it's about the gift of
somebody loving me and how that helps me through it. So it's about both.
I don't think you necessarily need to be completely down in order to express
your true emotions. I think life is full of paradoxes and I think happiness
and sadness can't exist without each other. During mum's illnesses there
were moments of intense humour - even she was joking all the time. And
after she died there were moments of very black humour but that's life!
How do you evaluate the importance of the contribution of John Hughes
to the group?
Fundamental. He's the fifth Corr
and he certainly brought enthusiasm and bred hop in us all from the beginning.
I think he's a man with a vocation. He's going to get very embarrassed
if he reads this but I think he's a very, very good man and a very caring
man and I think we've been very lucky with him because he not only sough
to promote us career-wise but he also sough to promote us as people, learning-wise
and growing-up-wise. He basically had a bunch of kids on his hands and
he really nurtured our individuality and nurtured our belief in ourselves
and our good points. And I think he brought our capabilities and our possibilities
to the forefront. I do think he nurtured what was good in us and I don't
mean just on a musical level, I mean on a human level.
There's a very strong element with The Corrs that people see there's
three gorgeous women up there. Is there pressure on you to look beautiful
all the time?
Admittedly there's pressure. I
can't remember the last time I had a walk in daylight because I'm in venues
all the time and hotels, and we're arriving in at 5 in the morning and
sleeping till 12 and then going for a sound check. So I got up this morning
and said 'Okay I'm going out for a walk. I need some sunlight'. So I don't
want to put on any make-up, I put on a pair of shades and I walk out of
the hotel and there's this guy following me up the street with a camera
and when that happens there's a pressure I suppose to look a certain way,
to have make-up on and to be dressed up. But I don't want to let it get
in on me because it's not important. If we didn't play and write music
you would never know how we look.
Do you ever feel that you want to be a slob, you don't want to have
to think about any of this stuff?
It's not really in my nature to
be like that. My mother never really went out the door without lipstick
on. She always did herself up everyday. It was like a self-respect. She
always wanted to look well and it was just her way of doing things and
we got that from her. You'd rarely see me out in a track suit but it's
possible!
We have a great picture of you on stage playing the violin where
you're bent half backwards. Do you work on flexibility or do some kind
of training to be able to do that?
(laughs) Oh god, oh my god. Little
do you know, Niall. I do not work out whatsoever. The only work-out I get
is running from hotel to hotel, and from airport to airport. It is quite
good exercise! Yes, I do seem to be quite flexible but I think it's just
because of how fast my life is. I always was quite supple but the only
thing I do is walk and work hard. I chastise myself for it actually, because
I'm getting older and I think I might need to start doing some sort of
exercise.
You don't seem to have a problem staying slim.
I eat healthily although I believe
you should enjoy a little bit of everything. I eat all types of meat, a
little bit of chocolate, a little bit of junk food here and there but generally
very, very healthily. Also I think it's the pace of life. I think I've
got a lot of energy naturally. If I get overstressed I've a tendency to
lose weight so it's something I have to watch.
Is it extra-hard to maintain relationships being on the road and
especially being away for so long?
Yes, it is very difficult and
you do see so many relationships split up. I'm in a relationship now for
almost six years. It's fantastic. It's actually better than it was but
it's been very trying on him. I think it's harder for a woman involved
in the music industry. It's still quite chauvinist I suppose in that way:
women put up with men being on the road a lot more than men would put up
with women being on the road and for that reason, I need and women need
a man who's very self-contained and is very self-confident and also trusts
you and believes in your relationship. And I've been lucky, I've found
that.
Do you see yourself getting married?
Yes, definitely. I'm engaged.
Do you see yourself having a bunch of kids?
I would love to be blessed with
children. It's not something I would take for granted. Hopefully I'm healthy
enough and he's healthy enough, and we would have children. I would absolutely
love that.
In a group where you've got three women, that must be very hard to
incorporate in a way that works for the group, as well as for the individuals.
Well we haven't had to face that
so far but to be honest if I have children they'll come first. I would
endeavour to be always involved with music and I would always write but
if I need to make a sacrifice in some way I will do that because children
are the most important thing.
Do you envisage having a white wedding or will you do a Dolores with
the wedding dress?
No I'm going to have a good old-fashioned
traditional wedding with all my family there and just have a good day.
You spent a lot of in the North. There's a feeling that people are
feeling a lot less optimistic now then they would have done a year ago.
How do you feel yourself?
I tell you what I feel about the
North and it's from I suppose quite a non-political point of view. I see
a lot of fantastic changes in the North of Ireland. I see a lot of investment.
I see a lot of great clubs and great restaurants opening up in the city
centre in Belfast where you couldn't go at night time a few years ago.
I see a lot more optimism at street level in the North of Ireland. So I
don't think the news portrays accurately how people on the ground genuinely
feel. I think they're looking towards the future. They've moved on and
they cannot come back and even if it does go back for a short time I think
the people will not tolerate it any more. So from a very non-political
point of view I just feel that the people on the street are more optimistic
than you think.
But would you feel that the Real IRA are pushing the thing towards
boiling point again?
I think there's always a possibility
of extreme violence returning. Of course there is but as I said I'm an
optimist. I don't believe the people will allow that to happen, I really
don't.
Along the same lines, do you think Unionism is capable of accommodating
Sinn Finn in government?
Yes I do. I think some parts of
the Unionist parties may not be but I think that in general they are endeavouring
to embrace a new Northern Ireland and I think it is a fact that they will
have to be in government with them in order for it to work.
What is it about Ireland that most annoys you?
Oh God! I'll tell you what it
is, the road from Dundalk to Dublin, it's atrocious!
Is the taxi situation in Dublin adequate at all?
Absolutely not, it's crazy. I
did spend about an hour one night recently in front of Trinity College
waiting for a taxi. I know people who have waited two hours - that's terrible
but I don't like to give out because I miss home most of the time and I
just love it.
On of the prospects that's in store for us is now the possibility
of another abortion referendum.
I don't know. I am always in two
minds about that. I do feel it's wrong to take the life of the unborn child,
I really do but I also feel that for women in the very difficult position
let's say who are not equipped to cope with pregnancy at a certain age,
or who are victims of rape, that they should have that choice. So I suppose
I am pro-choice but at the same time I'm not pro-murder either. I don't
think it's clear cut, I really don't think it is.
Do you ever despair of politicians in Ireland?
Where I find that I would despair
in Ireland is cases of young girls being pregnant and not being able to
tell their families or someone at school that they are. And that young
girl dying - that makes me despair because it's very much skeletons in
the closet and sometimes still is in Ireland.
But isn't that a product of the fact that Irish people for a long
time had a very negative attitude towards sexuality?
Absolutely and that's something
I think is so wrong. Sexuality is a wonderful gift and it enables us to
have the gift of life. It's the most beautiful thing and it can be the
most terrific release for people from their daily frustrations. It can
also being two people so close together. It should be seen as a dirty thing
or something that you're suppose to hide or pretend you didn't enjoy. I
think especially for women although I must say I've little to complain
about because I've been brought up in a generation where these type of
situations didn't affect me. But things like a woman being churched after
she had a baby. My mother had to go through that. Why was my mother seen
as soiled or in some way unworthy of holy communion because she was pregnant?
That was a disgrace but it no longer exists and I don't want to cry over
spilt milk. And as I say especially because of the industry I'm in, I've
never really felt the pressure of oppressing my sexuality - I've always
felt free with it.
But the thing was, you were told "it's a sing, you can't do it, you
can only do it if you're married" - and that set up a whole series of chain
reactions, all of which made it an area where Irish people felt shame and
guilt.
Yes - you could only do if it
you were married and you certainly couldn't enjoy it then! I know for my
parents - they kissed and then they went to confession. It's absolutely
wrong.
We've talked about various aspects of being a star. Do you ever just
long for peace, quiet, to be on your own?
Yes I do. Some days I long for
space and some days I'd like to walk out of the hotel and know that nobody
knows me or go out to the pub and not have my fiancé have to watch
over me all night. It isn't often a problem in Ireland but it certainly
is a problem in other countries but at the same time, I wouldn't give up
what I have because I love it.
Is self-indulgence a danger for people in a band?
Definitely. The funny thing about
doing shows is that it's your work but after you come offstage there's
always a rider, and a bar to go to in the hotel. If you're a doctor you
don't get that. It's a funny scenario. Once you come off stage it takes
a long time to wind down and drink does help you to relax. We do very much
enjoy a drink or whatever and do let loose and have good fun. I wouldn't
consider it excessive but it's something you need to watch 'cos it's something
you could rely on in order to wind down.
In the music industry, something like cannabis is an accepted part
of what goes on. Do you feel this whole thing of criminalizing people who
use it is right?
One reason why I think criminalizing
it is wrong is because it can be medicinal for some people. Certainly people
with certain conditions find they can get a brief reprieve from their symptoms
through cannabis. I think it should definitely be available to them and
it shouldn't be criminal for them to take it at all. There are good sides
and bad sides to it - there's something in cannabis that can inhibit your
sense of reality. It is a form of escapism and sometimes I think you can
escape too much with it but ultimately I feel it could be a choice but
if it is going to be legalised, I do think there should be, in tandem with
it, a lot of information made available to the public - especially to the
children.
Finally, I asked the others for their recipe for the dish they'd
make if they were having a friend around to the house.
Okay, one of my favourite is fillets
of rainbow trout. It's simple and really quick. You switch on the grill
to medium, put the trout upside-down with the skin facing up towards the
grill and grill it until it starts to blister. Take it out, turn it over,
douse it in olive oil and sprinkle Cajun seasoning over the top, add a
bit of lemon juice and put it under for about seven minutes. Then it's
done and you can put crushed pistachio nuts over the top and it's absolutely
delicious. I would serve it with vegetable and potatoes, or I'd do ratatouille
and rice. I do all that as an after thought. The meat of the fish is the
main thing.