Success

In 2004, the Ordinary Boys released their debut album Over the Counter Culture preceded by the single "Maybe Someday". The title track "Over the Counter Culture" was featured on the soundtrack for the video game Burnout 3: Takedown. In support of the album, they embarked on tours supported by the Kaiser Chiefs, the Cribs and Hard-Fi.

In 2005, they released their second album Brassbound along with the single "Boys Will Be Boys". The single become a hit the following year, when the band's popularity grew while Preston participated in Celebrity Big Brother UK. During this time, "Boys Will Be Boys" was re-released and reached no. 3 on the UK Singles Chart and no. 1 on the UK Download Chart. That year, Simon Goldring replaced original drummer Charlie Stanley.

Following this, they released singles "Nine2Five" and "Lonely at the Top" to further top 10 success. In October 2006, they released their third album, How to Get Everything You Ever Wanted in Ten Easy Steps, which marked a change of sound, with more of a commercial pop feel, featuring synthesisers and samples. "I Luv U" was released as the final single from the album and became their fourth consecutive top 10 hit.

Yahoo! UK reported that "The Ordinary Boys" was the fourth most searched for keyword of 2006 in their annual top ten search results.^[3]

The song "Boys Will Be Boys" featured in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The band was also referenced in the episode "Smoke and Mirrors" from the second series of The IT Crowd.

The group toured Japan and supported acts such as Morrissey, Paul Weller and The Who. They appeared on Later... with Jools Holland and one of the last episodes of Top of the Pops.

Split and reunions

In early 2008^[when?], Preston confirmed the band's split through the Ordinary Boys website. The Ordinary Boys' final live performance was at the Ben and Jerry's Summer Sundae outdoor event on Clapham Common on 27 July 2008. Preston's announcement stated that he was writing new material for a solo album, and he went on to have a career as a songwriter for artists such as Olly Murs, Kylie Minogue and Enrique Iglesias, John Newman, Lucy Spraggan, and James Flannigan (songwriter).

A revived Ordinary Boys reunited in December 2011 for a full UK tour of small venues. Preston stated that his objective had been "to give this band the decent burial that they didn't get in 2008". Brown and Gregory were unavailable for the reunion but gave their approval. The band recruited three new members to perform with Preston and Goldring, and this line-up recorded the new song "Run This Town".^[4] which was performed on the tour. Gregory made a guest appearance at the Islington Academy show on the tour, playing on "Maybe Someday".

The Ordinary Boys reunited on 13 December 2013 to play a one-off gig at the Hoxton Bar and Grill in Shoreditch, London. This reunion featured the return of Gregory on bass, and featured Alex Kershaw of Exeter band the Computers on guitar in place of the previous reunion members. On 28 December 2013, Preston announced that the Ordinary Boys were to officially reform, this time with Louis Jones from Spectrals on lead guitar, with original drummer Charlie Stanley replacing Goldring. On 19 August 2014, the Ordinary Boys new lineup played a sold-out first show at Birthdays in Dalston as a warm up for their UK tour that November.

Later albums and singles

In July 2015, the band announced that they would release their fourth album, the eponymously titled The Ordinary Boys, on 2 October 2015 via their own imprint label, Treat Yourself. A single, "Four Letter Word", was released in July on 7-inch vinyl and CD single and they also issued "I'm Leaving You (and I'm Taking You With Me)" on a split 7-inch with American band Mixtapes.

In March 2021, The Ordinary Boys teamed up with Mini Murphy to record a tribute to Murphy's father, Ranking Roger, who had died on 26 March 2019. The resulting double-A side single, with "Legacy" on one side and "Jump and Skank" on the other, was released as a download, vinyl and CD single by United Sound Records/Proper.^[5]

Albums

Singles