Barry Adamson
Encyclopedia
Barry Adamson is a British rock musician who has worked with rock bands
such as Magazine
, Visage
, The Birthday Party
, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
, and the electronic musicians Pan sonic
and Depeche Mode
. Adamson created the seven-minute opus "Useless
(Escape From Wherever: Pts. 1 & 2)" remix for the latter band in 1997. He has also worked on the soundtrack for David Lynch
's Lost Highway, and released numerous solo recordings
.
to Motown to David Bowie
.
attending Stockport Art College but quit shortly after, favouring to venture into the exploding punk rock
scene of the late 1970s. He joined ex-Buzzcocks
singer Howard Devoto
's band Magazine, playing bass guitar, scoring one chart
single, "Shot by Both Sides"; in late 1977, he also joined Buzzcocks, as a short-time replacement of Garth Smith
. He played on all of Magazine's albums, and contributed to Devoto's solo album and his next band, Luxuria
. He also contributed to the studio-based band Visage
, playing on the ensemble's first two albums, Visage
and The Anvil
.
After Magazine broke up, Adamson worked with another ex-Buzzcock, Pete Shelley
, before joining Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. He appeared on four of that band's albums: From Her to Eternity
, The Firstborn Is Dead
, Kicking Against the Pricks
and Your Funeral, My Trial. After his stint in the band, he went solo, releasing an EP
, The Man with the Golden Arm in 1988, and his first solo album, Moss Side Story, the following year, the soundtrack to a non-existent film noir
. The album incorporated newscasts and sampled sound effects and featured guest musicians Marcia Schofield (of The Fall), Diamanda Galas
, and former colleagues from the Bad Seeds. Adamson's second solo album was the soundtrack to a real film this time – Carl Colpaert's Delusion, and he would go on to provide soundtracks for several other films.
Adamson's third album, Soul Murder
, was shortlisted for the Mercury Music Prize in 1992.
His solo work is influenced by John Barry
, Elmer Bernstein
and Ennio Morricone
. Later works have included jazz
, electronica
, soul
, funk
, and dub
styles.
In 1996, Adamson contributed to the AIDS benefit album, Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip
, produced by the Red Hot Organization
. His own album that year, Oedipus Schmoedipus, reached #51 in the UK Albums Chart
.
In 2002, Adamson left his long-term label, Mute Records
, and started his own 'production home', Central Control International. In 2006, he released Stranger on the Sofa
, first for his Central Control International imprint, to critical acclaim. Back To The Cat, his second album for the label
, was released in March 2008.
In 2007 it was announced that Magazine would reform for concerts in 2008. Adamson took part in the same band line up that recorded Secondhand Daylight, with the exception of the late John McGeoch
, who was replaced by Apollo 440
member Noko. However, Adamson has since withdrawn from the reunion and new recordings.
On 27 August 2010, Adamson released "Rag and Bone", as a digital download and as a 12 inch vinyl record.
's The Last of England. Adamson also contributed soundtrack material to Gas Food Lodging
, David Lynch's Lost Highway and Oliver Stone
's Natural Born Killers
. Back to the Cats opening track, "The Beaten Side of Town", was featured in the hit video game, Alan Wake
.
JG, (although possibly a 4001 or 4003 model) and in Secondhand Daylight, a Gibson
EB-3. However, his primary bass during Magazine was an Ovation
Magnum 2. For the 2008 Magazine concerts, he alternated between the Ovation, a Fender
Artist and a Fender Jaguar Bass
.
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
such as Magazine
Magazine (band)
Magazine are an English post-punk group active from 1977 to 1981, then reformed in 2009. Their debut single, "Shot by Both Sides", is now acknowledged as a classic and their debut album, Real Life, is still widely admired as one of the greatest albums of all time...
, Visage
Visage
Visage are a British New Wave rock band. Formed in 1978, the band became closely linked to the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement of the early 1980s, and are best known for their 1980 hit "Fade to Grey".-New Wave years :...
, The Birthday Party
The Birthday Party (band)
The Birthday Party were an Australian rock band, active from 1973 to 1983.Despite being championed by John Peel, The Birthday Party found little commercial success during their career...
, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne in 1983. The band is fronted by Nick Cave and has featured international personnel throughout their career.-Formation and early releases :...
, and the electronic musicians Pan sonic
Pan sonic
Pan Sonic was a Finnish experimental electronic music duo consisting of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen.-Music:...
and Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
. Adamson created the seven-minute opus "Useless
Useless (song)
"Useless" is Depeche Mode's thirty-fourth UK single, released on October 20, 1997, and the fourth and final single for the album Ultra. It was released with "Home" as a double A-side in the US due to "Useless" getting airplay on US radio stations before "Home" was announced."Useless" is an...
(Escape From Wherever: Pts. 1 & 2)" remix for the latter band in 1997. He has also worked on the soundtrack for David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
's Lost Highway, and released numerous solo recordings
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
.
Early life
He read comic books from an early age. In school he absorbed himself in art, music and film, writing his first song, "Brain Pain", at the age of 10. His musical influences were diverse, ranging from Alice CooperAlice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
to Motown to David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
.
Career
Adamson left school and shifted into graphic designGraphic design
Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...
attending Stockport Art College but quit shortly after, favouring to venture into the exploding punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
scene of the late 1970s. He joined ex-Buzzcocks
Buzzcocks
Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton in 1976, led by singer–songwriter–guitarist Pete Shelley.They are regarded as an important influence on the Manchester music scene, the independent record label movement, punk rock, power pop, pop punk and indie rock. They achieved commercial...
singer Howard Devoto
Howard Devoto
Howard Devoto is an English rock and roll singer-songwriter, who began his career as the frontman for the punk band Buzzcocks, but then left to form Magazine, one of the first post-punk bands...
's band Magazine, playing bass guitar, scoring one chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
single, "Shot by Both Sides"; in late 1977, he also joined Buzzcocks, as a short-time replacement of Garth Smith
Garth Smith
Garth Smith and sometimes credited as Garth, was known for being one of the bassists of the Bolton formed punk rock band, Buzzcocks.-Biography:...
. He played on all of Magazine's albums, and contributed to Devoto's solo album and his next band, Luxuria
Luxuria
Luxuria was a British pop music band made up of vocalist Howard Devoto and instrumentalist Norman Fisher-Jones, aka "Noko." The band was active in the 1980s and early 1990s....
. He also contributed to the studio-based band Visage
Visage
Visage are a British New Wave rock band. Formed in 1978, the band became closely linked to the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement of the early 1980s, and are best known for their 1980 hit "Fade to Grey".-New Wave years :...
, playing on the ensemble's first two albums, Visage
Visage (album)
Visage is the eponymous debut album from the British pop group Visage, recorded at Genetic Sound Studios in Reading and released by Polydor Records on 10 November 1980...
and The Anvil
The Anvil (album)
-References:*...
.
After Magazine broke up, Adamson worked with another ex-Buzzcock, Pete Shelley
Pete Shelley
Pete Shelley is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist, best known as the leader of Buzzcocks.-Biography:...
, before joining Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. He appeared on four of that band's albums: From Her to Eternity
From Her to Eternity
From Her to Eternity is the debut album released by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in 1984. The title is a pun on the book/movie From Here to Eternity.-Background and production:...
, The Firstborn Is Dead
The Firstborn Is Dead
The Firstborn Is Dead is the second studio album released by the post-punk band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. It was first released in 1985. On this record, singer Nick Cave continued his fascination with the American South, with its references to Elvis Presley and bluesmen like Blind Lemon Jefferson...
, Kicking Against the Pricks
Kicking Against the Pricks
Kicking Against the Pricks is the third album released by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. First released in 1986, the album is a collection of cover versions...
and Your Funeral, My Trial. After his stint in the band, he went solo, releasing an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, The Man with the Golden Arm in 1988, and his first solo album, Moss Side Story, the following year, the soundtrack to a non-existent film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
. The album incorporated newscasts and sampled sound effects and featured guest musicians Marcia Schofield (of The Fall), Diamanda Galas
Diamanda Galás
Diamanda Galás is an American avant-garde composer, vocalist, pianist, organist, performance artist and painter.Galás has been described as "capable of the most unnerving vocal terror", with her three and a half octave vocal range. She often screams, hisses and growls...
, and former colleagues from the Bad Seeds. Adamson's second solo album was the soundtrack to a real film this time – Carl Colpaert's Delusion, and he would go on to provide soundtracks for several other films.
Adamson's third album, Soul Murder
Soul Murder
Soul Murder was a 1992 album by Barry Adamson. The album was nominated for the 1992 Mercury Prize.-Track listing:All tracks composed and arranged by Barry Adamson; except where indicated-Personnel:*Barry Adamson - bass, keyboards, vocals, narration...
, was shortlisted for the Mercury Music Prize in 1992.
His solo work is influenced by John Barry
John Barry (composer)
John Barry Prendergast, OBE was an English conductor and composer of film music. He is best known for composing the soundtracks for 12 of the James Bond films between 1962 and 1987...
, Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein was an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career which spanned fifty years, he composed music for hundreds of film and television productions...
and Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone, Grand Officer OMRI, , is an Italian composer and conductor, who wrote music to more than 500 motion pictures and television series, in a career lasting over 50 years. His scores have been included in over 20 award-winning films as well as several symphonic and choral pieces...
. Later works have included jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
, soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, and dub
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
styles.
In 1996, Adamson contributed to the AIDS benefit album, Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip
Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip
Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip is a compilation album from the Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series produced by Paul Heck. It combines elements of ambient, spoken word, and trip hop to expand the ideas of artistic collage and spiritual transcendence of "the Beats"...
, produced by the Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization is a not-for-profit, 501 3, international organization dedicated to fighting AIDS through pop culture.Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors have contributed to over 15 compilation albums, related television programs and media events to raise...
. His own album that year, Oedipus Schmoedipus, reached #51 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
.
In 2002, Adamson left his long-term label, Mute Records
Mute Records
Mute is an independent record label based in the UK. It was founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller and featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure and Fad Gadget.-Beginnings:...
, and started his own 'production home', Central Control International. In 2006, he released Stranger on the Sofa
Stranger on the Sofa
Stranger on the Sofa is an album, released in 2006 on Central Control by audio/visual artist Barry Adamson. It received mass critical acclaim upon its release and features a single in the track The Long Way Back Again.-Track listing:...
, first for his Central Control International imprint, to critical acclaim. Back To The Cat, his second album for the label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, was released in March 2008.
In 2007 it was announced that Magazine would reform for concerts in 2008. Adamson took part in the same band line up that recorded Secondhand Daylight, with the exception of the late John McGeoch
John McGeoch
John Alexander McGeoch, , was a Scottish guitarist who played with a number of bands of the post-punk era, including Magazine, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Visage and Public Image Ltd....
, who was replaced by Apollo 440
Apollo 440
Apollo 440 are an English band formed in Liverpool in 1990. Apollo 440 have written, recorded and produced four albums, collaborated with and produced other artists, remixed as Apollo 440 and as ambient cinematic alter-ego Stealth Sonic Orchestra, and created music for film, television,...
member Noko. However, Adamson has since withdrawn from the reunion and new recordings.
On 27 August 2010, Adamson released "Rag and Bone", as a digital download and as a 12 inch vinyl record.
Soundtracks
His "Refugee Song" was included in Derek JarmanDerek Jarman
Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener and author.-Life:...
's The Last of England. Adamson also contributed soundtrack material to Gas Food Lodging
Gas Food Lodging
Gas Food Lodging is a 1992 movie directed by Allison Anders about a waitress trying to find romance while raising two daughters in a trailer-park. It stars Brooke Adams, Ione Skye, and Fairuza Balk. The film was adapted from the novel Don't Look and It Won't Hurt by Richard Peck...
, David Lynch's Lost Highway and Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
's Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers
Natural Born Killers is a 1994 crime/black comedy film directed by Oliver Stone about two victims of traumatic childhoods who became lovers and psychopathic serial killers, and are irresponsibly glorified by the mass media...
. Back to the Cats opening track, "The Beaten Side of Town", was featured in the hit video game, Alan Wake
Alan Wake
Alan Wake is a story-driven action game in the psychological thriller genre, developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by Microsoft Game Studios, released for the Xbox 360 video game console in 2010...
.
Instruments
In the earliest Real Life Magazine videos, Adamson played a RickenbackerRickenbacker
Rickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker, is an electric and bass guitar manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California...
JG, (although possibly a 4001 or 4003 model) and in Secondhand Daylight, a Gibson
Gibson
Gibson may refer to:* Gibson Amphitheatre* Gibson Appliance* Gibson Girl* Gibson Guitar Corporation* Gibson * Gibson Generating Station-Places:In the United States:* Gibson, Arkansas* Gibson, Georgia* Gibson, Iowa* Gibson, Louisiana...
EB-3. However, his primary bass during Magazine was an Ovation
Ovation
The ovation was a lower form of the Roman triumph. Ovations were granted, when war was not declared between enemies on the level of states, when an enemy was considered basely inferior or when the general conflict was resolved with little to no bloodshed or danger to the army itself.The general...
Magnum 2. For the 2008 Magazine concerts, he alternated between the Ovation, a Fender
Fender
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, commonly referred to as simply Fender, of Scottsdale, Arizona is a manufacturer of stringed instruments and amplifiers, such as solid-body electric guitars, including the Stratocaster and the Telecaster...
Artist and a Fender Jaguar Bass
Fender Jaguar Bass
The Fender Jaguar Bass is an electric bass guitar manufactured in Japan by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.-Design:In appearance, the Jaguar Bass is largely faithful to the original Fender Jaguar, with exception of the neck, bridge, and pickups taken from the Fender Jazz Bass...
.
Albums
| Year | Title |
| 2008 | Back To The Cat |
| 2006 | Stranger on the Sofa Stranger on the Sofa Stranger on the Sofa is an album, released in 2006 on Central Control by audio/visual artist Barry Adamson. It received mass critical acclaim upon its release and features a single in the track The Long Way Back Again.-Track listing:... |
| 2002 | King of Nothing Hill |
| 1999 | The Murky World of Barry Adamson (compilation) |
| 1998 | As Above, So Below |
| 1996 | Oedipus Schmoedipus |
| 1993 | The Negro Inside Me |
| 1992 | Soul Murder Soul Murder Soul Murder was a 1992 album by Barry Adamson. The album was nominated for the 1992 Mercury Prize.-Track listing:All tracks composed and arranged by Barry Adamson; except where indicated-Personnel:*Barry Adamson - bass, keyboards, vocals, narration... |
| 1988 | Moss Side Story Moss Side Story Moss Side Story is an album by Barry Adamson released in 1989. The album is a concept album. The music is almost completely instrumental except for occasional screams, samples and a choir. The concept is the score to a fictitious film. To achieve the effect the song titles are descriptive of a film... |
EP's
| Year | Title |
| 1998 | Can't Get Loose |
| 1996 | Achieved In The Valley Of The Dolls |
| 1995 | The Big Bamboozle |
| 1995 | Movieology |
| 1992 | Cinema Is King |
| 1989 | Taming of the Shrewd |
Singles
| Year | Title |
| 2010 | "Rag and Bone" (12" and download) |
| 2008 | "Straight 'til Sunrise" (download only) |
| 2006 | "The Long Way Back Again" (CD and 7") |
| 2002 | "Whispering Streets" |
| 2002 | "Black Amour" |
| 2001 | "Motorlab #3" (with Pan Sonic Pan sonic Pan Sonic was a Finnish experimental electronic music duo consisting of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen.-Music:... ) |
| 1999 | "The Crime Scene" |
| 1998 | "Jazz Devil" |
| 1998 | "What it Means" |
| 1991 | "These Boots Are Made For Walking" (with Anita Lane Anita Lane Anita Lane is an Australian singer and songwriter who directly influenced the early 1980s European post-punk landscape.-Birthday Party:Lane was born in Melbourne, Australia in the late 1950s. Lane began singing and writing songs at age 16. She was a classmate with Rowland S. Howard who would... ) |
| 1988 | "The Man With The Golden Arm" |
Soundtracks
| Year | Title |
| 2001 | The World Of Interiors |
| 2000 | The Beach The Beach The Beach may refer to:*The Beach , a 1996 novel by Alex Garland**The Beach , a 2000 movie based on the aforementioned novel*The Beaches, a neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, also commonly known as "The Beach"... |
| 1997 | To Have And To Hold |
| 1997 | Lost Highway |
| 1994 | Natural Born Killers Natural Born Killers Natural Born Killers is a 1994 crime/black comedy film directed by Oliver Stone about two victims of traumatic childhoods who became lovers and psychopathic serial killers, and are irresponsibly glorified by the mass media... |
| 1992 | Gas Food Lodging Gas Food Lodging Gas Food Lodging is a 1992 movie directed by Allison Anders about a waitress trying to find romance while raising two daughters in a trailer-park. It stars Brooke Adams, Ione Skye, and Fairuza Balk. The film was adapted from the novel Don't Look and It Won't Hurt by Richard Peck... |
| 1991 | Delusion |
| 1987 | The Last of England |