90.213.65.134: Added past member

2025-01-13T15:18:06Z

Added past member

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{{Short description|Celtic rock band from Scotland}}
{{distinguish|Red Hot Chili Peppers}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Red Hot Chilli Pipers
| image = Red Hot Chilli Pipers Logo.jpg
| image_size = 250
| landscape = yes
| background = group_or_band
| origin = [[Scotland]]
| genre = [[Celtic rock]]
| years_active = 2002–present
| label = REL Records Ltd
| website = {{URL|rhcp.scot}}

| current_members =
* Kevin MacDonald
* Willie Armstrong
* Malcolm McEwan

| past_members =
* Stuart Cassells
* Steven Graham
* Steven Black
}}
'''Red Hot Chilli Pipers''' is a [[Celtic rock]] band from Scotland. Formed in 2002, the band became popular internationally in 2007 after winning the [[BBC]] talent show [[When Will I Be Famous? (TV series)|''When Will I Be Famous?'']]<ref>{{citation |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article4026407.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830045540/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article4026407.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 August 2008 |date=31 May 2008 |title=Bagrock with the Red Hot Chilli Pipers: it's a total blast |journal=[[The Times]] |author=Gavin Cumine}}</ref>

The band's lineup features three [[Great Highland bagpipe|highland bagpipers]] and traditional [[marching percussion|marching snare]], backed by a five- to seven-piece band. The band's live show also features vocal performances and [[Scottish highland dance|highland dancing]].

==History==
Since their formation the Red Hot Chilli Pipers have combined [[Guitar|guitars]], [[Keyboard instrument|keyboards]], [[drums]] and their [[bagpipes]] to create 'bagrock' sound. The Red Hot Chilli Pipers perform a fusion of traditional pipe tunes and contemporary pieces. Notable covers performed have included "[[We Will Rock You]]" by [[Queen (band)|Queen]], "[[Clocks (song)|Clocks]]" by [[Coldplay]] and "[[Smoke on the Water]]" by [[Deep Purple]] as well as "[[Chasing Cars]]" by [[Snow Patrol]], "[[Don't Stop Believing]]" by [[Journey (band)|Journey]].

In 2004, the group appeared on the main stage at [[T in the Park]] with the headline band, the rock group [[The Darkness (band)|The Darkness]]. They appeared on [[BBC Radio 1]] on the [[Greg James]] show in July 2013<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bloggregjames/posts/Here-We-Go-Again|title=Here We Go Again...|last=James|first=Greg|date=9 July 2013|accessdate=14 September 2013|publisher=BBC}}</ref> and [[The Radio 1 Breakfast Show]] with [[Nick Grimshaw]] in 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01qzy0g|title=Red Hot Chilli Pipers cover Avicii's Wake Me Up|date=1 February 2014|publisher=BBC}}</ref>

The group appears on the soundtrack of ''[[How to Train Your Dragon 2]].''<ref>[http://www.cineworld.co.uk/blog/Composer-John-Powell-talks-How-To-Train-Your-Dragon-2 Composer John Powell talks How To Train Your Dragon 2]</ref>

==Discography==
* 2005 – ''The Red Hot Chilli Pipers''
* 2007 – ''Bagrock to the Masses''
* 2008 – ''Blast Live''
* 2010 – ''Music for the Kilted Generation''
* 2012 – ''Braveheart (live)''
* 2013 – ''Breathe''
* 2014 – ''Live at the Lake 2014''
* 2016 – ''Octane''
* 2019 – ''Fresh Air''

The band's first studio release ''The Red Hot Chilli Pipers'' (2005), was their least successful. Their 2007 album ''Bagrock to the Masses'' went platinum in Scotland and silver in the rest of the UK. Their third album and first live album, ''Blast Live'' (2008), went triple platinum in Scotland. Their fourth release ''Music for the Kilted Generation'', The Red Hot Chilli Pipers' most successful International record to date, reached Number 2 on the US Amazon Chart.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/music/music-news/red-hot-chilli-pipers-no2-1229729 |title=Red Hot Chilli Pipers No2 in US chart – Daily Record |first=David |last=Taylor |work=[[Daily Record (Scotland)|Daily Record]] |date=7 August 2012}}</ref> behind [[Adele]]'s record-breaking album, ''[[21 (Adele album)|21]]''. ''Breathe'' was released in July 2013 on CD and [[iTunes]].

==Tours and performances==
[[File:Koblenz im Buga-Jahr 2011 - Eröffnung Kultursommer Rheinland-Pfalz 1.jpg|thumb|Red Hot Chilli Pipers in [[Koblenz]] 2011]]
The group's highest profile performance's have been on the Main Stage at [[T in the Park]] in 2004 where they performed alongside The Darkness, and in 2014 when they performed on the Main Stage again in their own right.

===''When Will I Be Famous''===
In 2007, the Red Hot Chilli Pipers appeared on the BBC show ''When Will I be Famous?''<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/whenwillibefamous/news/showfour.shtml |title=BBC – When Will I Be Famous? – Contestants |last=Anon|publisher=BBC |date=March 2007 |accessdate=20 July 2013}}</ref> hosted by [[Graham Norton]]. The band were in the episode and competed against seven others. The eight contestants were paired into a head-to-head showdown in which the winner would be decided by 101 preregistered viewers who were dubbed the "Armchair Judges". The four winners of these head-to-heads would then compete against each other in the second show with the winner being decided by an open public phone vote. In their first head-to-head showdown, The Red Hot Chilli Pipers were pitted against the "Stringfever", a four-member string quartet. The Red Hot Chilli Pipers won the head-to-head 51–50 and went on to win the weekly prize of ten thousand pounds.

===After TV appearance===
In September 2008, the group performed a Scottish-flavoured medley of songs during the opening of [[Eurovision Dance Contest 2008]] in Glasgow.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurovisiondance.tv/page/news?id=1320|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080909195828/http://www.eurovisiondance.tv/page/news?id=1320|url-status=dead|archive-date=9 September 2008|title=It gets serious!|date=9 September 2008|access-date=6 May 2019}}</ref> In 2010, The Red Hot Chilli Pipers completed an 11-date sold-out tour of [[Scotland]], as well as an 11-week tour of Germany and a 7-week tour of [[United States|America]]. They also toured [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Malaysia]], [[India]] and most of Europe. They performed concerts in New York and Beijing as well as at the [[Hebridean Celtic Festival]] in [[Stornoway]].

==Musicianship==
With a total of four degrees from the [[Royal Conservatoire of Scotland]], many of the band members past & present have competed at the highest level of bagpiping and drumming for many years. Founder and former Musical Director Cassells received [[BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician]] in 2005 and became the first person to attain a degree in bagpipes<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rsamd.ac.uk/aboutus/alumni/graduates.html |title=Royal Conservatoire Graduates |last=Anon |work=rsamd.ac.uk |year=2013 |accessdate=20 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20121223115354/http://www.rsamd.ac.uk/aboutus/alumni/graduates.html |archivedate=23 December 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> from the [[Royal Conservatoire of Scotland]] (Formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama). The snare drummer and percussionist, Grant Cassidy is an 8 time Juvenile Solo World Drumming Champion and in 2016 placed 7th in the adult section of the World Solo Drumming Championships held in Glasgow, Scotland.

==Former members==
On 23 September 2011, founder and [[frontman]] Stuart Cassells, left the band. Prior to leaving, Cassells had been struggling with '[[Cognitive neuroscience of music#Focal hand dystonia|focal hand dystonia']], more commonly known as [[writer's cramp]] since 2008. Speaking to ''[[Daily Record (Scotland)|The Daily Record]]'' on the subject, Cassells said, "My left hand refused to stay on the chanter. It was like my left hand wasn't my own, it wouldn't stay still, like someone else was controlling it. I knew in my head how I wanted to play but I couldn't because my hands would curl right up and tense up and move involuntarily. They weren't doing what they were supposed to do. The brain was sending far too many signals to my hands." He tried various treatments throughout this period, including surgery to release a trapped nerve, [[physiotherapy]] and [[botox]] injections into his arm to relax the muscles. In efforts to help him play the bagpipes, he had [[McCallum Bagpipes]] manufacture him a custom chanter that uses flute keys to cover the holes instead of requiring the player to cover them. However, he was still unable to play them and left the band. A recent World Pipe Band Championship winner with the Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band, Kyle Warren, replaced him.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.collegeofpiping.org/2011/09/stuart-cassells-leaves-red-hot-chilli-pipers/|accessdate=14 September 2013|date=23 September 2011|author=Anon|publisher=The [[College of Piping]]|title=Stuart Cassells leaves Red Hot Chilli Pipers|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116130423/http://www.collegeofpiping.org/2011/09/stuart-cassells-leaves-red-hot-chilli-pipers/|archivedate=16 January 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/real-life/medical-condition-cost-career-says-1066641 |title=Medical condition almost cost me my career, says Red Hot Chilli Piper founder Stuart Cassells – Daily Record |first=Laura |last=Coventry |work=[[Daily Record (Scotland)|Daily Record]] |date=9 August 2010|location=Glasgow |issn=0956-8069 |oclc=500344244 |accessdate=20 July 2013}}</ref>

==Awards and nominations==

===Scottish Live Act of the Year===
{{Awards table}}
|-
| 2007 || Red Hot Chilli Pipers || Scottish Live Act of the Year ||{{won}}
|-
| 2010 || Red Hot Chilli Pipers || Scottish Live Act of the Year ||{{won}}
{{end}}

=== BBC's 'When Will I Be Famous' ===
* Winners 2007

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category inline}}
* {{Official website|https://rhcp.scot/}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Great Highland bagpipe players]]
[[Category:Scottish pipe bands]]
[[Category:Musical groups established in 2002]]
[[Category:2002 establishments in Scotland]]
[[Category:Scottish rock music groups]]

Red Hot Chilli Pipers - Revision history

90.213.65.134: Added past member