Cerys Matthews
Encyclopedia
Cerys Elizabeth Matthews (icon; born 11 April 1969) is a Welsh
singer and songwriter
. She is known as the lead singer of the Welsh rock band Catatonia
, her more recent bilingual solo career, and for a 1998 Christmas duet with Tom Jones
.
and brought up in Swansea
and Pembrokeshire
, and is a fluent Welsh
speaker and multi-instrumentalist. She has cited her childhood heroes as being Pippi Longstocking
and The Wombles
due to their love of recycling. She learned to play the guitar
at the age of nine, teaching herself blues
and Irish
folk
songs. After a stint in Spain
as a nanny, where she learned to speak Spanish
and Catalan
, Matthews worked for the Pembrokeshire County Council
. She later moved back to Cardiff
and became involved with the local music scene, meeting Mark Roberts
. She currently resides in London
with her children Glenys Pearl y Felin (born 10 August 2003), Johnny Tupelo Jones (born August 2005), and Red (born 23 November 2009). Her son Red was born eight weeks premature.
in a street in Cardiff city centre. This later turned out to be a story fabricated by the band, as Matthews had known Roberts for some time, although they did often go busking. She subsequently sang lead vocals on, and co-wrote the music and lyrics for, the band's hits. Songs she co-wrote included "You've Got a Lot to Answer For", "Mulder and Scully", "Dead From the Waist Down", and "Road Rage". Matthews also played guitar on the earlier material before second guitar
ist Owen Powell joined the band. She also performed a single with the band Space named "The Ballad of Tom Jones", which tells the story of two lovers who want to kill each other, but then hear a Tom Jones
song that defuses their homicidal
feelings. Matthews later collaborated with Jones to record a version of Frank Loesser
's "Baby, It's Cold Outside
" on Jones' album Reload
. Matthews was voted the "Sexiest Female in Rock" in a 1999 readers' poll in the now defunct magazine
Melody Maker
.
for the first time since Catatonia split up. She recorded a song in both English
and Welsh
for the pre-school cartoon series Sali Mali.
band They Might Be Giants
2001 album "Mink Car
". Her line was originally supposed to be done by Joe Strummer
of The Clash
.
, Tennessee
in the early summer of 2002. On her arrival she began playing with Bucky Baxter
, who had played lap steel guitar
for Bob Dylan
and Ryan Adams
. She had already collected seventy-six traditional folk
songs with the idea of making an album of folk covers
. Her debut album, Cockahoop, ended up consisting mainly of her own songs. It was recorded in seven months and appeared on Blanco y Negro Records
in the UK
in May 2003. Whilst recording this album she met Seth Riddle, whom she married in Pembrokeshire in February 2003. She toured the album around Britain with minimal promotion as she was several months pregnant at the time. The album's Stateside Records
release followed in October 2004.
In December 2005, Matthews recorded a new version of Len Barry
's 1960s UK top 10 hit "1-2-3" in Nashville. She released it as a download-single with all profits going to a children's charity.
In spring 2006, Matthews introduced material from her upcoming album at SXSW
in Austin, Texas
.
, Mason Neely
on drums
, and Jeff Irwin
playing bass
. She headlined Cardiff's Big Weekend festival
on 6 August 2006.
During September and October 2006, Matthews embarked on an extensive UK and Ireland tour, during which she played tracks from her first two solo albums as well as three Catatonia hits. She also embarked upon a short acoustic Welsh tour in November 2006 before returning to Nashville for Christmas.
Matthews appeared at the live 'Guilty Pleasures' concert at the Hackney Empire
, London on 20 March 2007. She performed the Bonnie Tyler
hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart
" and the Dolly Parton
/Kenny Rogers
duet "Islands in the Stream
" along with Terry Hall
and the BBC Concert Orchestra
In an interview on the eve of the launch of her Welsh mini-album Awyren = Aeroplane, Matthews confirmed she had divorced from Riddle and temporarily moved back to her farm in Pembrokeshire. Awyren = Aeroplane won her the 'Contemporary Composition' award in the National Eisteddfod. The award had been resurrected and presented for the first time since 1936.
In 2007 Matthews became Vice-President of the Welsh homelessness charity Shelter Cymru
. She also accepted a role of Performing Arts Ambassador for Linden Lodge School, Surrey
in the same year.
's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here!, which aired from 12 to 30 November. She was voted off on 29 November, one day before the final episode, coming fourth behind Jason 'J' Brown
, Janice Dickinson
and the eventual winner of the series, Christopher Biggins
. Matthews became involved with fellow contestant Marc Bannerman
after the show, but they split four months later.
onstage at The O2
on 28 February 2008 to sing the female vocals of their 2007 hit "Your Love Alone Is Not Enough
". She replaced Nina Persson
in both the awards ceremony (within indigO2) and at the following 'Big Gig' live show (within The O2 arena
).
and Marc Riley
on BBC 6 Music
and went on to present George Lamb
's slot in April 2009. In May 2009 she presented show A Month of Sundays With... Cerys Matthews. She then covered for Nemone
on 6 Music from July 2009 while Nemone was on maternity leave. Her show Cerys on 6 included virtual radio roadtrips, musical challenges and back-to-school features on subjects including the boll weevil
, the Vietnam War
, the Bo Diddley
beat and Hildegard von Bingen. Matthews began maternity leave from November 2009 and had to finish presenting the show a month early. On 4 April 2010, Matthews returned to 6 Music to present a weekend show on Sunday mornings. She spoke out in 2010 after the (now-abandoned) proposed closure of BBC 6 Music, calling for the decision to be reversed.
in two years on 5 October 2009. The album, entitled Don't Look Down, was released in two versions, one in English and the other in Welsh (the title of the Welsh edition was Paid Edrych i Lawr). It was recorded in Providence, Rhode Island
, Nashville, Seattle
and London and coincided with a two-week sold-out UK tour in October.
for both BBC Television
and BBC 6 Music, she wrote and presented a BBC Two
programme on Celtic poetry, a documentary on singer Dorothy Squires
, and music of the Mississippi River
. She also wrote and presented a documentary on early blues players like Memphis Minnie, also a documentary on Pippi Longstocking both for Radio 4.
, Cwm Rhondda
, Migldi-Magldi (sung as a duet with Bryn Terfel
), Myfanwy and Sospan Fach. This is the third release on her own label of Rainbow City.
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. She is known as the lead singer of the Welsh rock band Catatonia
Catatonia (band)
Catatonia were an alternative rock band from Wales who gained a national following in the United Kingdom in the mid to late 1990s. The band consisted of Cerys Matthews on vocals, Mark Roberts on guitar, Paul Jones on bass , Owen Powell on...
, her more recent bilingual solo career, and for a 1998 Christmas duet with Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
.
Biography
Matthews was born in CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
and brought up in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
and Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
, and is a fluent Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
speaker and multi-instrumentalist. She has cited her childhood heroes as being Pippi Longstocking
Pippi Longstocking
Pippi Longstocking is a fictional character in a series of children's books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren, and adapted into multiple films and television series...
and The Wombles
The Wombles
The Wombles are fictional pointy-nosed, furry creatures that live in burrows, where they help the environment by collecting and recycling rubbish in useful and ingenious ways. Wombles were created by author Elisabeth Beresford, originally appearing in a series of children's novels from 1968...
due to their love of recycling. She learned to play the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
at the age of nine, teaching herself blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
songs. After a stint in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
as a nanny, where she learned to speak Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Catalan
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
, Matthews worked for the Pembrokeshire County Council
Pembrokeshire County Council
Pembrokeshire County Council is the governing body for Pembrokeshire, one of the Principal Areas of Wales.-Political makeup:Elections take place every four years. The last election was 1 May 2008.- Current composition :- Historic results :...
. She later moved back to Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
and became involved with the local music scene, meeting Mark Roberts
Mark Roberts (singer)
Mark Roberts sang and played the guitar during his teenage years in the local Welsh band, Y Cyrff. He then met Cerys Matthews and formed Catatonia along with Paul Jones....
. She currently resides in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with her children Glenys Pearl y Felin (born 10 August 2003), Johnny Tupelo Jones (born August 2005), and Red (born 23 November 2009). Her son Red was born eight weeks premature.
Catatonia
Catatonia was formed in 1992, reputedly after Roberts heard Cerys Matthews buskingBusking
Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...
in a street in Cardiff city centre. This later turned out to be a story fabricated by the band, as Matthews had known Roberts for some time, although they did often go busking. She subsequently sang lead vocals on, and co-wrote the music and lyrics for, the band's hits. Songs she co-wrote included "You've Got a Lot to Answer For", "Mulder and Scully", "Dead From the Waist Down", and "Road Rage". Matthews also played guitar on the earlier material before second guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist Owen Powell joined the band. She also performed a single with the band Space named "The Ballad of Tom Jones", which tells the story of two lovers who want to kill each other, but then hear a Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
song that defuses their homicidal
Homicide
Homicide refers to the act of a human killing another human. Murder, for example, is a type of homicide. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...
feelings. Matthews later collaborated with Jones to record a version of Frank Loesser
Frank Loesser
Frank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
's "Baby, It's Cold Outside
Baby, It's Cold Outside (song)
"Baby, It's Cold Outside" is a pop standard with words and music by Frank Loesser.-Background:Loesser wrote the duet in 1936 and premiered the song with his wife, Lynn Garland, at their Navarro Hotel housewarming party...
" on Jones' album Reload
Reload (album)
Reload is the title of an album, released in 1999 by Welsh singer Tom Jones.After a lengthy career, and a notable absence from the music charts for several years, Jones resurrected his career with this album of 15 cover versions and 2 original tracks recorded as duets with current artists...
. Matthews was voted the "Sexiest Female in Rock" in a 1999 readers' poll in the now defunct magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
.
Catatonia's split
After Catatonia's rise to fame with their second album International Velvet, and subsequent success with Equally Cursed And Blessed, the band returned in 2001 with their fourth studio album Paper Scissors Stone. During promotional appearances for this album it became clear that Matthews was not happy. On 21 September 2001, the band officially split.Sali Mali cartoon series
In December 2001, Matthews returned to the recording studioRecording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
for the first time since Catatonia split up. She recorded a song in both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
for the pre-school cartoon series Sali Mali.
Mink Car
Matthews provided guest vocals on the track "Cyclops Rock", from US alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
2001 album "Mink Car
Mink Car
Mink Car is the eighth studio album by They Might Be Giants, released in 2001 on Restless Records, on the same morning as the September 11 attacks....
". Her line was originally supposed to be done by Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer
John Graham Mellor , best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership in The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in...
of The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
.
Nashville
Matthews moved to NashvilleNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
in the early summer of 2002. On her arrival she began playing with Bucky Baxter
Bucky Baxter
William "Bucky" Baxter is an American multi-instrumentalist from New Jersey. He was born in Melbourne, Florida. He has appeared on various albums by artists such as Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams, Steve Earle, R.E.M., and Joe Henry....
, who had played lap steel guitar
Lap steel guitar
The lap steel guitar is a type of steel guitar, an instrument derived from and similar to the guitar. The player changes pitch by pressing a metal or glass bar against the strings instead of by pressing strings against the fingerboard....
for Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
and Ryan Adams
Ryan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
. She had already collected seventy-six traditional folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
songs with the idea of making an album of folk covers
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
. Her debut album, Cockahoop, ended up consisting mainly of her own songs. It was recorded in seven months and appeared on Blanco y Negro Records
Blanco y Negro Records
Blanco y Negro Records, a subsidiary of WEA Records Ltd., was established in 1983 by Geoff Travis of Rough Trade Records.Blanco y Negro was home to such artists as Bananarama, Everything But the Girl, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Dream Academy, Dinosaur Jr., Bernthøler, A House, Catatonia, The...
in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in May 2003. Whilst recording this album she met Seth Riddle, whom she married in Pembrokeshire in February 2003. She toured the album around Britain with minimal promotion as she was several months pregnant at the time. The album's Stateside Records
Stateside Records
Stateside Records is a British record label which initially released licenced American recordings and is now a reissue label....
release followed in October 2004.
In December 2005, Matthews recorded a new version of Len Barry
Len Barry
Len Barry is a retired American vocalist, songwriter and record producer.-Career:...
's 1960s UK top 10 hit "1-2-3" in Nashville. She released it as a download-single with all profits going to a children's charity.
In spring 2006, Matthews introduced material from her upcoming album at SXSW
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
.
Never Said Goodbye album
In July and August 2006 Matthews conducted a short tour of the UK to promote her new second solo album, Never Said Goodbye. The new album was preceded by the single "Open Roads" (released 7 August 2006). Band members included Kevin Teel on guitar, Ben Elkins playing keyboardsKeyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, Mason Neely
Mason Neely
Mason Neely is an American-born record producer, drummer, orchestral arranger and multi-instrumentalist who has produced and arranged for and toured with artists including; Lambchop, Cerys Matthews, Damien Jurado, Diane Birch, Rosie Thomas, David Bazan, Leigh Nash, Martyn Joseph, Hayley Westenra,...
on drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, and Jeff Irwin
Jeff Irwin
Jeff Irwin is an East Nashville, Tennessee based multi-instrumentalist. He has performed with Griffin House, Cerys Matthews , Derek Webb & Sandra McCracken, Mat Kearney, Taylor Sorensen & the Trigger Code, and many others including the Counting Crows.-Biography:Born in Creve Coeur, Missouri, Irwin...
playing bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
. She headlined Cardiff's Big Weekend festival
Cardiff Big Weekend
The Cardiff Big Weekend has taken place annually since 1995 as part of the Cardiff Festival organised by Cardiff Council. Billed as the UK’s biggest free outdoor music festival, it offers three days of quality live music and entertainment. Alongside the live music stage runs the UK’s largest...
on 6 August 2006.
During September and October 2006, Matthews embarked on an extensive UK and Ireland tour, during which she played tracks from her first two solo albums as well as three Catatonia hits. She also embarked upon a short acoustic Welsh tour in November 2006 before returning to Nashville for Christmas.
Matthews appeared at the live 'Guilty Pleasures' concert at the Hackney Empire
Hackney Empire
The Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney, built in 1901 as a music hall.-History:Hackney Empire is a grade II* listed building...
, London on 20 March 2007. She performed the Bonnie Tyler
Bonnie Tyler
Bonnie Tyler is a Welsh singer, most notable for her hits in the 1970s and 1980s including "It's a Heartache", "Holding Out for a Hero" and "Total Eclipse of the Heart".-Early life:...
hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart
Total Eclipse of the Heart
"Total Eclipse of the Heart" is a song written and produced by Jim Steinman and recorded by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler for her fifth studio album, Faster Than the Speed of Night...
" and the Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
/Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
duet "Islands in the Stream
Islands in the Stream
"Islands in the Stream" is the title of a song written by the Bee Gees and sung by American country music artists Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. It was released in August 1983 as the first single from Rogers' album Eyes That See in the Dark and the second pop number-one for both Rogers and Parton...
" along with Terry Hall
Terry Hall (singer)
Terry Hall is the lead singer of The Specials, and formerly of Fun Boy Three, The Colourfield, Terry, Blair & Anouchka and Vegas. He has released two solo albums and has also collaborated with many artists including David A...
and the BBC Concert Orchestra
BBC Concert Orchestra
The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five which is not a full-scale symphony orchestra....
In an interview on the eve of the launch of her Welsh mini-album Awyren = Aeroplane, Matthews confirmed she had divorced from Riddle and temporarily moved back to her farm in Pembrokeshire. Awyren = Aeroplane won her the 'Contemporary Composition' award in the National Eisteddfod. The award had been resurrected and presented for the first time since 1936.
In 2007 Matthews became Vice-President of the Welsh homelessness charity Shelter Cymru
Shelter Cymru
Shelter Cymru is the largest independent housing and homelessness charity in Wales. It works in collaboration with the UK charity Shelter. Shelter Cymru has worked in Wales since 1981, and has been an independent organisation since 1986....
. She also accepted a role of Performing Arts Ambassador for Linden Lodge School, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
in the same year.
I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here (Series 7)
Matthews appeared on the 2007 series of ITVITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here!, which aired from 12 to 30 November. She was voted off on 29 November, one day before the final episode, coming fourth behind Jason 'J' Brown
Jason 'J' Brown
Jason Paul "J" Brown is an English singer who is best known as one of the lead vocalists in the former boyband, Five...
, Janice Dickinson
Janice Dickinson
Janice Doreen Dickinson is an American actress, author, fashion photographer, model and talent agent.Initially notable as a model, she has described herself as the first supermodel. One of the most successful models throughout the 1970s and 1980s, she expanded her profession to reality television...
and the eventual winner of the series, Christopher Biggins
Christopher Biggins
Christopher Kenneth Biggins is an English actor and media personality.-Career:Biggins was born in Oldham, Lancashire, England and brought up in Salisbury, Wiltshire, where he took elocution lessons and participated in local drama groups...
. Matthews became involved with fellow contestant Marc Bannerman
Marc Bannerman
Marc Bannerman is a UK based actor. His most notable role has been his portrayal of Gianni di Marco in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. Bannerman's character was introduced in 1998, but was axed three years later by the executive producer of EastEnders, John Yorke...
after the show, but they split four months later.
NME Shockwaves Awards and Big Gig 2008
Matthews joined the Welsh band Manic Street PreachersManic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh alternative rock band, formed in 1986. They are James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire, Richey Edwards and Sean Moore. The band are part of the Cardiff music scene, and were at their most prominent during the 1990s...
onstage at The O2
The O2 (London)
The O2, visually typeset in branding as The O2, is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars and restaurants...
on 28 February 2008 to sing the female vocals of their 2007 hit "Your Love Alone Is Not Enough
Your Love Alone Is Not Enough
"Your Love Alone Is Not Enough" is a single by Welsh rock group the Manic Street Preachers, taken from the album Send Away the Tigers. The song is a duet featuring the vocals of lead singer James Dean Bradfield and Nina Persson of The Cardigans, as well as additional vocals from bass guitarist...
". She replaced Nina Persson
Nina Persson
is the lead singer and lyricist for the Swedish pop group The Cardigans. She has also worked as a solo artist, releasing two albums as A Camp and appearing on the tribute album to Serge Gainsbourg entitled Monsieur Gainsbourg Revisited...
in both the awards ceremony (within indigO2) and at the following 'Big Gig' live show (within The O2 arena
The O2 arena (London)
The O2 Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the centre of The O2, a large entertainment complex on the Greenwich peninsula in London, England.With a capacity of up to 20,000 depending on the event, it is second largest...
).
Radio
From November 2008 Matthews sat in for Stephen MerchantStephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as the...
and Marc Riley
Marc Riley
Marc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
on BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
and went on to present George Lamb
George Lamb (presenter)
George Martin Lamb is a Scottish-born British radio and TV presenter. He is the son of actor Larry Lamb.-Career:Lamb's radio career peaked with presenting his own daytime show on BBC Radio 6 Music for two years from October 2007 to November 2009, before being moved the early weekend mornings for 6...
's slot in April 2009. In May 2009 she presented show A Month of Sundays With... Cerys Matthews. She then covered for Nemone
Nemone
Nemone Metaxas is a British DJ, Radio Presenter, Television Presenter/Producer and former athlete of Greek descent.Her family's Greek ancestral village is in Sekhia and the family name is `Anastasakis'....
on 6 Music from July 2009 while Nemone was on maternity leave. Her show Cerys on 6 included virtual radio roadtrips, musical challenges and back-to-school features on subjects including the boll weevil
Boll weevil
The boll weevil is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s,...
, the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, the Bo Diddley
Bo Diddley
Ellas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
beat and Hildegard von Bingen. Matthews began maternity leave from November 2009 and had to finish presenting the show a month early. On 4 April 2010, Matthews returned to 6 Music to present a weekend show on Sunday mornings. She spoke out in 2010 after the (now-abandoned) proposed closure of BBC 6 Music, calling for the decision to be reversed.
Don't Look Down: Paid Edrych i Lawr album and tour
Matthews released her first CDCompact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
in two years on 5 October 2009. The album, entitled Don't Look Down, was released in two versions, one in English and the other in Welsh (the title of the Welsh edition was Paid Edrych i Lawr). It was recorded in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Nashville, Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
and London and coincided with a two-week sold-out UK tour in October.
Other
After covering the Glastonbury FestivalGlastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
for both BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
and BBC 6 Music, she wrote and presented a BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
programme on Celtic poetry, a documentary on singer Dorothy Squires
Dorothy Squires
Dorothy Squires was a Welsh vocalist. Among her recordings were versions of "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening", "I'm in the Mood for Love", "Anytime", "If You Love Me " and "And So to Sleep Again".-Biography:...
, and music of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. She also wrote and presented a documentary on early blues players like Memphis Minnie, also a documentary on Pippi Longstocking both for Radio 4.
TIR 2010
On 21 June Matthews released 'TIR', a collection of traditional Welsh songs and photographs from the late 19th century to early 1930s. They include Calon LânCalon Lan
Calon Lân is a Welsh hymn, the words of which were written in the 19th century by Daniel James to a tune by John Hughes ....
, Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda, the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley, is a popular hymn tune written by John Hughes and first performed in 1907. It is often erroneously called Bread of Heaven and is usually used in English as a setting for William Williams's text Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah , originally...
, Migldi-Magldi (sung as a duet with Bryn Terfel
Bryn Terfel
Bryn Terfel Jones CBE is a Welsh bass-baritone opera and concert singer. Terfel was initially associated with the roles of Mozart, particularly Figaro and Leporello, but has subsequently shifted his attention to heavier roles, especially those by Wagner....
), Myfanwy and Sospan Fach. This is the third release on her own label of Rainbow City.
Explorer 2011
"Explorer " is the title of Cerys' fourth solo album and in both choosing and writing the songs she has sub consciously delved into the huge influence of not just all the music she has heard, but the places she has been around the globe, and by the times we live in, but most importantly made an album that over the seven days of recording had no pre determined sound or calculated format. On the 28 April 2011, a video was released through Matthews' official YouTube Page of the Lead single from Explorer, Sweet Magnolia. Explorer is set to be released 2 May 2011, through the online store EarthquakeAlbums
- CockahoopCockahoopCockahoop is Cerys Matthews' first solo album, released in 2003. It went to #30 in the UK .-Track listing:#"Chardonnay" – 3:04...
(UK #30, 5 weeks on Chart) (Blanco y NegroBlanco y Negro RecordsBlanco y Negro Records, a subsidiary of WEA Records Ltd., was established in 1983 by Geoff Travis of Rough Trade Records.Blanco y Negro was home to such artists as Bananarama, Everything But the Girl, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Dream Academy, Dinosaur Jr., Bernthøler, A House, Catatonia, The...
- 2003) - Never Said GoodbyeNever Said Goodbye-Track listing:#"Streets of New York"#"A Bird In Hand"#"Oxygen"#"Open Roads"#"This Endless Rain"#"Blue Light Alarm"#"Morning Sunshine"#"Seed Song"#"What Kind Of Man"#"Ruby"#"Elen"...
(Rough TradeRough Trade RecordsRough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
- 2006) - Awyren = Aeroplane (mini-album) (My Kung FuMy Kung FuMy Kung Fu is an independent record label based in Cardiff, United Kingdom.Currently signed artists include Soft Hearted Scientists and Truckers Of Husk...
030 - 2007) - Don't Look Down/Paid Edrych i Lawr (Rainbow City Recordings - 2009)
- "Tir" (Rainbow City Recordings - 2010)
- "Explorer" (Rainbow City Recordings - 2011)
Compilation albums
- Brand New Boots and Panties (2001) - contributed "If I Was With a Woman"
- Songs for the Young at HeartSongs for the Young at HeartSongs for the Young at Heart is a children's music album put together by Stuart A. Staples and Dave Boulter, both from the band Tindersticks...
(2007) - contributed "White Horses", the theme song to The White HorsesThe White HorsesThe White Horses is a 1965 television series co-produced by RTV Ljubljana of Yugoslavia and German TV .-Plotline:... - Listen to Bob Dylan: A Tribute - contributed "I Believe in You", a Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
song from Slow Train ComingSlow Train ComingSlow Train Coming is singer-songwriter Bob Dylan's 19th studio album, released by Columbia Records in August 1979.It was the artist's first effort since becoming a born-again Christian, and all of the songs either express his strong personal faith, or stress the importance of Christian teachings... - Over the RainbowOver the Rainbow (2007 album)Over the Rainbow - Show Tunes in Aid of the Association of Children's Hospices is a charity album of show tunes, recorded by various artists and released in 2007. It is in aid of...
(2007) - contributed "Secret Love"
Singles
- 1998 "The Ballad of Tom JonesThe Ballad of Tom Jones"The Ballad of Tom Jones" is a song by Space and Cerys Matthews, lead singer of the band Catatonia, which was released in 1998. The song peaked at number four in the charts in March 1998.-Track listings:CD 1 #"The Ballad of Tom Jones" - 4:13...
" (with Space) UK #4 - 1999 "Baby, It's Cold OutsideBaby, It's Cold Outside (song)"Baby, It's Cold Outside" is a pop standard with words and music by Frank Loesser.-Background:Loesser wrote the duet in 1936 and premiered the song with his wife, Lynn Garland, at their Navarro Hotel housewarming party...
" (with Tom JonesTom Jones (singer)Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
) UK #17 - 2003 "Caught In The Middle" UK #47
- 2005 "1-2-3"
- 2006 "Open Roads" UK #53
- 2007 "Some Kind of WonderfulSome Kind of WonderfulSome Kind of Wonderful is a 1987 romance film starring Eric Stoltz, Lea Thompson, and Mary Stuart Masterson. It was one of the many successful teen dramas written by John Hughes in the 1980s, although this one was directed by Howard Deutch. During filming, Deutch met Thompson and two years later...
" (with Aled JonesAled JonesAled Jones is a Welsh singer and television/radio personality, broadcaster and television presenter who first came to fame as a treble...
) (Universal Records) - 2009 "Arlington Way" (Rainbow City Records)
- 2010 "Into The Blue"/"Mae Angen Llong Ar Gapten" (Rainbow City Records)
- 2011 "Sweet Magnolia" (Rainbow City Records)
Studio albums
| Year | Details | Peak chart position | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
GER Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
IRL Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
NZL |
|||
| 1996 | Way Beyond Blue Way Beyond Blue Way Beyond Blue is the debut album by Welsh band Catatonia. It has been seen by many fans as being something of an early greatest hits compilation, as many of the tracks have either been released previously and/or re-recorded with previous members and different producers...
|
32 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1998 | International Velvet
|
1 | 27 | — | 39 | 32 |
British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... : 3x Platinum |
| 1999 | Equally Cursed and Blessed Equally Cursed and Blessed Equally Cursed and Blessed is the third album by Welsh band Catatonia, released in April 1999 via Blanco y Negro Records. Like its predecessor, International Velvet, it reached number one in the UK Album Chart... Atlantic Records Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz... |
1 | 48 | — | — | 28 |
|
| 2001 | Paper Scissors Stone Paper Scissors Stone (album) Paper Scissors Stone was the fourth and final album by Welsh band Catatonia. It was released on August 6, 2001 in the UK, and reached #6 on the UK album chart.... |
6 | — | 55 | 37 | — |
|
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||
Compilation albums
| Year | Details | Peak chart position | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
GER Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
IRL Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
NZL |
|||
| 1995 | The Sublime Magic of Catatonia The Sublime Magic of Catatonia The Sublime Magic Of Catatonia is a compilation of singles and EPs released by the band Catatonia. It combined tracks from the Bleed and Whale singles and the Hooked EP. The first five tracks on this release were later re-recorded for the band's first album, Way Beyond Blue...
|
— | — | — | — | — | |
| 1998 | The Crai-EPs 1993/1994 The Crai-EPs 1993/1994 The Crai-EPs 1993/1994 is a compilation of two EPs released by the band Catatonia; For Tinkerbell and Hooked .... |
— | — | — | — | — | |
| 2002 | Greatest Hits Catatonia Greatest Hits (album) Catatonia's Greatest Hits is a compilation of the bands best known songs, mainly the singles, but also included collaborations between Cerys Matthews with Space and with Tom Jones himself .... |
24 | — | — | 43 | — | |
| 2006 | Platinum Collection Catatonia Platinum Collection (album) Catatonia's Platinum Collection is a compilation album of the bands songs ranging from 1994 to 2001.Although the band released a Greatest Hits in 2002... |
— | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||
Singles and EPs
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
IRL Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
NZL |
||||
| 1993 | May | "For Tinkerbell" (EP) | — | — | — | — | Non-album EP |
| 1994 | Jun | "Hooked" (EP) | — | — | — | — | The Sublime Magic of Catatonia |
| Sep | "Whale" (vinyl-only) | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995 | Jan | "Bleed" | 158 | — | — | — | |
| Dec | "Christmas '95" (fan club vinyl)1 | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| 1996 | Apr | "Sweet Catatonia" | 61 | — | — | — | Way Beyond Blue |
| Jul | "Lost Cat" | 41 | — | — | — | ||
| Oct | "Bleed" (re-issue) | 46 | — | — | — | ||
| 1997 | Feb | "You've Got A Lot To Answer For" | 35 | — | — | — | |
| Oct | "I Am the Mob I Am the Mob "I Am the Mob" is a song by Welsh rock band Catatonia from their album International Velvet. It became the band's second top 40 hit, peaking at No.40... " |
40 | — | — | — | International Velvet | |
| 1998 | Jan | "Mulder and Scully" | 3 | — | 17 | — | |
| May | "Road Rage" | 5 | 40 | 29 | — | ||
| Jul | "Strange Glue" | 11 | — | — | — | ||
| Oct | "Game On" | 33 | — | — | — | ||
| 1999 | Apr | "Dead From the Waist Down" | 7 | — | — | 44 | Equally Cursed and Blessed |
| Jul | "Londinium" | 20 | — | — | — | ||
| Oct | "Karaoke Queen Karaoke Queen "Karaoke Queen" is a song by Welsh rock group Catatonia. Taken from the album, Equally Cursed and Blessed, and inspired by the talent-tv show Stars In Their Eyes.... " |
36 | — | — | — | ||
| 2000 | Mar | "Storm the Palace Storm The Palace Storm The Palace is an EP released only in Japan as a tour souvenir and promotional CD by the band Catatonia. The EP contained 7 tracks, studio and live, most of them having been previously released as B-sides on singles.-Track listing:... " (EP) |
— | — | — | — | |
| 2001 | Sep | "Stone by Stone" | 19 | — | — | — | Paper Scissors Stone |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||
- 1 - The A-side being "Blow the Millennium, Blow".
Miscellaneous and promos
- "TouristTourist EPTourist is an EP release by the band Catatonia that was released in Japan to promote their upcoming album Way Beyond Blue. The first two tracks are from the main album, but all of the other tracks are B-sides; studio and live tracks.The final track "Cut You Inside" a demo, has not been released as...
" (Japan EP) - 1996 - "A's & B's Of CatatoniaA's & B's Of CatatoniaA's & B's Of Catatonia is a promotional EP CD released only in America by the band, Catatonia. As its title suggests, it contains A-Sides, "I Am The Mob" and "Bleed" and the rest of the tracks, B-Sides....
" (Promo EP) - 1998
External links
- Official website
- Official MySpace page
- August 2006 interview with Matthews
- Cerys Matthews Interview
- BBC WalesBBC WalesBBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
Music - Matthews microsite