Brits who havent crossed the atlantic

Neneh Cherry?

Sophie Ellis Bextor - daughter of 80s kids TV presenter, turned teenage singer in strumalong indiepop band. They split up, she then appeared on a massive dancefloor smash and parlayed this into a career pushing classy dance-pop. Unique Selling Points: posh girl, funny shaped head. Finest Four Minutes: "Murder On The Dancefloor".

Will Young - winner of reality TV show Pop Idol (viewers vote to find the next pop idol). Light entertainment crooner style, currently at #1 with fastest-selling UK single ever, a Westlife cast-off ballad. Unique Selling Points: people's choice, posh boy. Finest Four Minutes: none yet.

5ive - boy band established in 1996-7 as the 'new Take That'. Image - cheeky and naughty but not streetwise. Included pop-funk and pop-hip- hop elements a lot i.e. dubious boyband rapping. All their singles were good except the collaborations and quite wide ranging within the teenypop genre. Replaced a member with a cardboard cut-out for their final album then split up. Finest Four Minutes: "Let's Dance" or "Keep On Moving" according to your tolerance for their rapping.

thanx tom , any more i should know ?

Do you want to know about the rock-ish bands too?

Sir Cliff Richard!

A1 and A.

yeah pop hip hop rock . i want to know what you limeys are up to .

I think we are starting to copy nu-metal, and doing it very badly.

carn't say that about Rod Stewart... i've, er, seen the photo...

Be happy you aint heard of Muse.

Be happy you aint heard of Muse.

Oh, they were being touted as "the new Coldplay!" on US MTV so no such luck.

Oh, they were being touted as "the new Coldplay!" on US MTV

ditto for Trellis, Haven and Starsailor, all of which suck. (And I like Coldplay.)

Who among them, however, have crossed over to Canada but not the US? I seem to recall record bins in Toronto making me feel like having one foot in London.

Has Roots Manuva crossed the Atlantic?