Harry Cowell
Encyclopedia
'Sir' Harry Cowell is a British musician and record producer - he is no relation to Simon Cowell
. He is married and lives in West London.
Cowell was educated at Ashdown House
Prep School in East Sussex, then Millfield
School in Somerset; he later attended Crawley College and entered the music business in 1980 as a drummer. Whilst solely working as a drummer / drum tec, he struggled financially and at one point had four separate jobs, including cleaning at Gatwick Airport. He then progressed from playing with friends from Crawley College, to touring with:
Cowell then moved playing to full time drum tec and tour management and has been involved with such groups as:
Cowell briefly worked as the drum tech for Genesis
and The Police
- The Police's Stewart Copeland
was also at Millfield School; in 1986 Cowell opened a new recording studio "The Stone Room" in London's Shepherd's Bush. Here he worked with well known names such as T'Pau
, Captain Sensible
, My Bloody Valentine and The Manic Street Preachers. During the mid 80's he made a name for himself managing rock acts like Chrome Molly, Blue Blud and the mighty Mammoth featuring John McCoy
on bass (Gillan) and Nicky Moore
(Samson). In 1991, Cowell joined forces with Simon Napier-Bell
before expanding into personal management and subsequently worked with Asia
and Ultravox
. After a period as managing director of River Droite Music, Cowell left and set up Private and Confidential Music. In 2009, Cowell signed up to run publishing and production companies - Mission Publishing Ltd and Mission Recordings Ltd. Following a joint venture with Imagem Music in late 2009 the Mission companies are to launch Mission Recordings Ltd in early 2011 - the first artist signed to the new label is Gianluca Paganelli and more recently Demi Holborn (the Youngest Female Artist to enter the UK's Top 40 Single Charts).
Cowell is credited with signing:
Cowell is also on the board of AIM (Association of Independent Music
) who represent the independent record sector.
Simon Cowell
Simon Phillip Cowell is an English A&R executive, television producer, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is known in the United Kingdom and United States for his role as a talent judge on TV shows such as Pop Idol, The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and American Idol...
. He is married and lives in West London.
Cowell was educated at Ashdown House
Ashdown House, East Sussex
Ashdown House is a mixed independent preparatory school in Forest Row, East Sussex. There are currently 169 pupils from the ages seven to thirteen, currently comprising around 110 boys and 59 girls.-Headmaster:...
Prep School in East Sussex, then Millfield
Millfield
Millfield is an independent school in Street in Somerset, in south-west England.The school currently has a roll of 1,260 pupils, of whom 910 are boarders...
School in Somerset; he later attended Crawley College and entered the music business in 1980 as a drummer. Whilst solely working as a drummer / drum tec, he struggled financially and at one point had four separate jobs, including cleaning at Gatwick Airport. He then progressed from playing with friends from Crawley College, to touring with:
- Department SDepartment SDepartment S is a United Kingdom spy-fi adventure series produced by ITC Entertainment. The series consists of 28 episodes which originally aired in 1969–1970. It starred Peter Wyngarde as author Jason King , Joel Fabiani as Stewart Sullivan, and Rosemary Nicols as computer expert Annabelle Hurst...
- DollarDollarThe dollar is the name of the official currency of many countries, including Australia, Belize, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.-Etymology:...
, - Martha and The MuffinsMartha and the MuffinsMartha and the Muffins are a Canadian new wave band, active from 1977 to the present. Although they only had one major international hit single under their original band name, they had a number of hits in their native Canada, and the core members of the band also charted in Canada and...
, - SagaSagaSagas, are stories in Old Norse about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history, etc.Saga may also refer to:Business*Saga DAB radio, a British radio station*Saga Airlines, a Turkish airline*Saga Falabella, a department store chain in Peru...
, - Steve Skolnik of Fischer-ZFischer-ZFischer-Z were a British rock band formed in 1976 by John Watts and Steve Skolnik at Brunel University. The original line-up consisted of John Watts , David Graham , Steve Skolnik , and Steve Liddle .-History:...
, - The StranglersThe StranglersThe Stranglers are an English punk/rock music group.Scoring some 23 UK top 40 singles and 17 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are the longest-surviving and most "continuously successful" band to have originated in the UK punk scene of the mid to late 1970s...
, and - The VaporsThe VaporsThe Vapors were a New Wave and power pop band from England, that existed between 1979 and 1981. They had a hit with the song "Turning Japanese" in 1980, which reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart, and #36 in the U.S...
.
Cowell then moved playing to full time drum tec and tour management and has been involved with such groups as:
- AC-DC
- Ozzy OsbourneOzzy OsbourneJohn Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
. - The PassionsThe PassionsThe Passions were a British band which formed in 1978, and disbanded in 1983. They were one-hit wonders with their misty song, "I'm in Love with a German Film Star". which was released in early 1981.-Career:...
and - The PoliceThe PoliceThe Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
,
Cowell briefly worked as the drum tech for Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
and The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
- The Police's Stewart Copeland
Stewart Copeland
Stewart Armstrong Copeland is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the band The Police. During the group's extended hiatus from the mid-1980s to 2007, he played in other bands and composed soundtracks...
was also at Millfield School; in 1986 Cowell opened a new recording studio "The Stone Room" in London's Shepherd's Bush. Here he worked with well known names such as T'Pau
T'Pau (band)
T'Pau was a 1980s British Rock group led by singer Carol Decker. They had a string of Top 40 hits in the UK, and several hits in the United States and Europe...
, Captain Sensible
Captain Sensible
Captain Sensible is a singer, songwriter, guitarist who grew up in Croydon, England, and co-founded the punk rock band The Damned in 1976. After leaving the band, he reinvented himself as an alternative pop singer with a rebellious, self-conscious image...
, My Bloody Valentine and The Manic Street Preachers. During the mid 80's he made a name for himself managing rock acts like Chrome Molly, Blue Blud and the mighty Mammoth featuring John McCoy
John McCoy (musician)
John McCoy is a British bass guitarist who is best known for his work with Ian Gillan and Mammoth as well as numerous other bands and sessions since the late 1960s. He currently plays in British rock trio Guy McCoy Torme with former Gillan/Ozzy guitarist Bernie Torme and Bruce Dickinson/Sack Trick...
on bass (Gillan) and Nicky Moore
Nicky Moore
Nicky Moore is a vocalist who is best known as a former member of the British band Samson. He replaced Bruce Dickinson who left the band to join Iron Maiden in 1982. Moore left Samson in the late 80s and rejoined in the late 90s....
(Samson). In 1991, Cowell joined forces with Simon Napier-Bell
Simon Napier-Bell
Simon Napier-Bell has undertaken many jobs in the music industry, including bandboy, manager, producer, songwriter, journalist and author and gourmet...
before expanding into personal management and subsequently worked with Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and Ultravox
Ultravox
Ultravox is a British New Wave rock band. They were one of the primary exponents of the British electronic pop music movement of the late 1970s/early 1980s. The band was particularly associated with the New Romantic and New Wave movements....
. After a period as managing director of River Droite Music, Cowell left and set up Private and Confidential Music. In 2009, Cowell signed up to run publishing and production companies - Mission Publishing Ltd and Mission Recordings Ltd. Following a joint venture with Imagem Music in late 2009 the Mission companies are to launch Mission Recordings Ltd in early 2011 - the first artist signed to the new label is Gianluca Paganelli and more recently Demi Holborn (the Youngest Female Artist to enter the UK's Top 40 Single Charts).
Cowell is credited with signing:
- the Welsh singer Katherine JenkinsKatherine JenkinsKatherine Jenkins is a Welsh mezzo-soprano. She is a classical-popular crossover singer who performs across a spectrum of operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns.-Early life and education:...
- Errol BrownErrol BrownErrol Brown MBE is a singer and songwriter, best known as the frontman of Hot Chocolate. He has British citizenship by marriage to Ginette and they live in The Bahamas...
and - Heather SmallHeather SmallHeather Small is a British soul singer, best known for being the lead singer in the Manchester based band M People. Her debut solo album was Proud in 2000...
Cowell is also on the board of AIM (Association of Independent Music
Association of Independent Music
The Association of Independent Music is a non-profit trade body established in 1998 by UK independent record labels to represent the independent record sector, which constitutes approximately 25% of the UK market....
) who represent the independent record sector.