Neil Davidge
Encyclopedia
Neil Davidge, is a record producer
, songwriter
, film score composer, musician
and occasional backing vocalist. Once an associate of dance producers, DNA, he is best known as the long-term co-writer, producer and key sonic facilitator for the music production outfit Massive Attack
. (In 1997, he also produced the Sunna
album, One Minute Science.) During that time he has established a career as a film score composer including projects such as Push
, Bullet Boy
, Trouble the Water
and additional music for Clash of the Titans
.
Artists he has worked with include Unkle
, Damon Albarn
, Elizabeth Fraser
, Mos Def
, David Bowie
and Snoop Dogg
.
Most recently he recorded "The Storm That Brought Me To You" with Tina Dico
for the Clash of the Titans
soundtrack, the first vocal track for which he is credited as an artist separately from Massive Attack
.
's "Tom's Diner
" in 1990 as well as producing several remixes with the likes of Kylie Minogue
, Vanessa L. Williams
and Electronic
.
’s Mushroom aka Andrew Vowles
as early as 1991, and was in and around Bristol’s Coach House Studios when Portishead recorded their debut album Dummy
between 1991-1994. Neil was introduced to the rest of Massive Attack in 1996, and hitting it off, he produced ‘The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game
’, a song for the Batman Forever
soundtrack that featured Everything But The Girl
vocalist Tracey Thorn
.
Working in close collaboration with Massive’s Robert Del Naja
, aka 3D, Neil then had a key hand in shaping the darker, forward-looking sound of the band’s third album, 1998’s Mezzanine
. One of its most memorable sessions found him working with former Cocteau Twins
vocalist Liz Fraser
on the song Teardrop
, now known to millions more as the theme tune for House
, the hit US medical drama
.
Mezzanine went on to be critically acclaimed, winning a Q Award for Best Album as well as being nominated for a Mercury Award. The record eschewed hip-hop to some extent in favour of more experimental, gothic and post-punk-like music. Most of the songs were started and co-written by Neil Davidge, but Davidge did not receive any writing credit on the record.
As with Mezzanine, Massive Attack’s fourth album 100th Window
was largely piloted by Davidge and Robert Del Naja. Sessions for the 2003 chart-topper were protracted and pressurised, the group jettisoning huge swathes of material to re-write the whole record in the last six months of a three-year odyssey. “Some great things had been said about Mezzanine and we didn’t want to repeat ourselves”, says Neil “It was a strange period of isolation and the weirdness of 9/11, but we got there in the end.”
Collected was Massive Attack’s best of album released on 27 March 2006. The album was preceded by the release of the single "Live With Me
" on 13 March. Again co-written and produced by Davidge.
Heligoland is the fifth studio album by Massive Attack
, released almost exactly 7 years after 100th Window
. Co-produced by Davidge and 3D
with additional production by Tim Goldsworthy
, the record features vocals from Horace Andy
, Tunde Adebimpe
, Damon Albarn
, Hope Sandoval
, Guy Garvey
and Martina Topley-Bird
. Davidge co-wrote 8 of the 10 tracks as well as playing keyboards, bass and guitar. The album was mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent
although Davidge Produced and Mixed airplay hit “Paradise Circus” featuring vocals by Hope Sandoval
.
approached Davidge and Robert Del Naja to score the movie Danny The Dog, later renamed Unleashed
. There then followed scores for Bullet Boy
, Battle In Seattle
, and Trouble the Water
, which received an Oscar nomination for its film score. It is a moving study of those displaced by Hurricane Katrina
which won ‘Best Documentary’ at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
. Working with Snoop Dogg
, Neil also scored the music for In Prison My Whole Life
, a documentary about US death-row journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal
.
Away from his collaborations with Robert, Neil scored the music to the Paul McGuigan
directed Push
and provided additional music to the Warner Brothers blockbuster Clash of the Titans
working alongside fellow composer Ramin Djawadi
. He was approached by director Louis Leterrier
to replace Matt Bellamy from Muse
who had to pull out due to touring commitments in the USA.
's John Madejski
Garden over winter 2006. Volume was a sculpture of light and sound - an array of light columns positioned dramatically in the centre of the garden. Volume responded spectacularly to human movement, creating a series of audio-visual experiences. Visitors were invited to step inside and see their actions at play with the energy fields throughout the space, triggering a brilliant display of light and sound.
The piece was a collaboration between design collective United Visual Artists (UVA) and Robert Del Naja and Neil.
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, 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...
, film score composer, musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and occasional backing vocalist. Once an associate of dance producers, DNA, he is best known as the long-term co-writer, producer and key sonic facilitator for the music production outfit Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
. (In 1997, he also produced the Sunna
Sunna (band)
Sunna are an Hard rock/Industrial rock band from Bristol, England. They released their third album, After the Third Pin on the 3rd October, 2011.- History :...
album, One Minute Science.) During that time he has established a career as a film score composer including projects such as Push
Push (2009 film)
Push is a 2009 American science fiction thriller film directed by Paul McGuigan. The film stars Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle, Cliff Curtis, Joel Gretsch and Djimon Hounsou...
, Bullet Boy
Bullet Boy
Bullet Boy is a 2005 film directed by Saul Dibb, written by Saul Dibb and Catherine Johnson, and stars Ashley Walters. The film's original music was composed and performed by Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, who released it as an album...
, Trouble the Water
Trouble the Water
Trouble the Water is a 2008 documentary film produced and directed by Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, producers of Fahrenheit 9/11. Trouble the Water is a redemptive tale of a couple surviving failed levees, bungling bureaucrats, and their own troubled past and a portrait of a community abandoned long...
and additional music for Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (2010 film)
Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010...
.
Artists he has worked with include Unkle
UNKLE
Unkle are a British musical outfit founded in 1994 by school friends James Lavelle and Tim Goldsworthy. Originally categorized as trip-hop, the group once included producer DJ Shadow and have employed a variety of guest artists and producers.-First incarnation :Lavelle and Goldsworthy were joined...
, Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
, Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
, Mos Def
Mos Def
Dante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
, 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...
and Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
.
Most recently he recorded "The Storm That Brought Me To You" with Tina Dico
Tina Dico
Tina Dico is a singer and songwriter inspired by artists such as Tracy Chapman, Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen.In Denmark she performs under her real name, Tina Dickow.- Beginnings :...
for the Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (2010 film)
Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010...
soundtrack, the first vocal track for which he is credited as an artist separately from Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
.
DNA (1989–1992)
Davidge worked with UK Band DNA in the period between 1989-1992 co-producing 4 singles and 1 album. DNA was the pseudonym taken by two British dance-music producers Nick Batt & Neal Slateford, best known for issuing a remix of Suzanne VegaSuzanne Vega
Suzanne Nadine Vega is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.Two of Vega's songs reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner"...
's "Tom's Diner
Tom's Diner
"Tom's Diner" is an a cappella pop song written in 1981 by American singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega. It was first released as a track on the January 1984 issue of Fast Folk Musical Magazine. When first featured on one of her own studio albums, it appeared as the first track of her Solitude Standing...
" in 1990 as well as producing several remixes with the likes of Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams is an American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, actress and showgirl. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal generated by her having posed for nude photographs published in Penthouse magazine...
and Electronic
Electronic (band)
-Albums:-Singles:-Music videos:-External links:* *...
.
Massive Attack (1995–present)
Davidge had met Massive AttackMassive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
’s Mushroom aka Andrew Vowles
Andrew Vowles
Andrew Lee Isaac Vowles , also known as Mushroom, is a founding member of British trip-hop collective Massive Attack.-Early years:Vowles grew up in Bath, attending Newbridge Junior School...
as early as 1991, and was in and around Bristol’s Coach House Studios when Portishead recorded their debut album Dummy
Dummy (album)
Dummy is the debut album of the Bristol-based group Portishead. Released in October 22, 1994 on Go! Discs, the album earned critical acclaim, winning the 1995 Mercury Music Prize. It is often credited with popularizing the trip-hop genre and is frequently cited in lists of the best albums of the...
between 1991-1994. Neil was introduced to the rest of Massive Attack in 1996, and hitting it off, he produced ‘The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game
The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game
"The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" is a 1966 song recorded by The Marvelettes for the Motown label, from their self-titled album released that year....
’, a song for the Batman Forever
Batman Forever (soundtrack)
Batman Forever: Music from the Motion Picture is the 1995 soundtrack to the motion picture Batman Forever.-Background:Only five of the songs are actually featured in the movie. Hit singles from the soundtrack include "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" by U2 and "Kiss from a Rose" by Seal, both...
soundtrack that featured Everything But The Girl
Everything but the Girl
Everything but the Girl was a two-person English band, formed in Hull during 1981, consisting of lead singer and occasional guitarist Tracey Thorn and guitarist, keyboardist, and singer Ben Watt . They are currently inactive although vocalist Tracey Thorn hinted that they may reform someday...
vocalist Tracey Thorn
Tracey Thorn
Tracey Anne Thorn is an English pop singer and songwriter. She is best known as being one half of the duo Everything but the Girl, which is currently on extended hiatus.-Personal life:...
.
Working in close collaboration with Massive’s Robert Del Naja
Robert Del Naja
Robert Del Naja , also known as 3D, is an English artist and musician. Initially gaining notoriety as a graffiti artist and member of the Bristol collective known as "The Wild Bunch", Del Naja went on to become a founding member of the band Massive Attack where he is active to this day.-Music:Del...
, aka 3D, Neil then had a key hand in shaping the darker, forward-looking sound of the band’s third album, 1998’s Mezzanine
Mezzanine (album)
Mezzanine is the third studio album by English trip hop group Massive Attack, released on 20 April 1998. It was produced by Neil Davidge along with the group. The album was released on Virgin Records....
. One of its most memorable sessions found him working with former Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
vocalist Liz Fraser
Liz Fraser
Liz Fraser is an English actress, mainly in comedy roles.- Life and career :Her birthdate is usually attributed as 1933, the year she gave when auditioning for her role in I'm All Right Jack, as the Boulting Brothers wanted someone younger for the part...
on the song Teardrop
Teardrop (song)
"Teardrop" is a song by Massive Attack, which was first released on their 1998 album Mezzanine. It was released as a single on 27 April 1998. The song became another UK hit for the group, peaking at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart...
, now known to millions more as the theme tune for House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
, the hit US medical drama
Medical drama
A medical drama is a television program, in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment.In the United States, most medical episodes are one hour long and, more often than not, are set in a hospital. Most current medical Dramatic programming go beyond the...
.
Mezzanine went on to be critically acclaimed, winning a Q Award for Best Album as well as being nominated for a Mercury Award. The record eschewed hip-hop to some extent in favour of more experimental, gothic and post-punk-like music. Most of the songs were started and co-written by Neil Davidge, but Davidge did not receive any writing credit on the record.
As with Mezzanine, Massive Attack’s fourth album 100th Window
100th Window
-Personnel:* Robert "3D" Del Naja* Neil Davidge* Horace Andy – Vocals* Sinéad O'Connor – Vocals* Alex Swift – Additional programming and keyboards* Angelo Bruschini – Guitars* Jon Harris – Bass* Damon Reece – Drums...
was largely piloted by Davidge and Robert Del Naja. Sessions for the 2003 chart-topper were protracted and pressurised, the group jettisoning huge swathes of material to re-write the whole record in the last six months of a three-year odyssey. “Some great things had been said about Mezzanine and we didn’t want to repeat ourselves”, says Neil “It was a strange period of isolation and the weirdness of 9/11, but we got there in the end.”
Collected was Massive Attack’s best of album released on 27 March 2006. The album was preceded by the release of the single "Live With Me
Live with Me (song)
"Live with Me" is a song by Massive Attack which was included in their 2006 compilation album, Collected, and was also released as a single...
" on 13 March. Again co-written and produced by Davidge.
Heligoland is the fifth studio album by Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
, released almost exactly 7 years after 100th Window
100th Window
-Personnel:* Robert "3D" Del Naja* Neil Davidge* Horace Andy – Vocals* Sinéad O'Connor – Vocals* Alex Swift – Additional programming and keyboards* Angelo Bruschini – Guitars* Jon Harris – Bass* Damon Reece – Drums...
. Co-produced by Davidge and 3D
Robert Del Naja
Robert Del Naja , also known as 3D, is an English artist and musician. Initially gaining notoriety as a graffiti artist and member of the Bristol collective known as "The Wild Bunch", Del Naja went on to become a founding member of the band Massive Attack where he is active to this day.-Music:Del...
with additional production by Tim Goldsworthy
Tim Goldsworthy
Tim Goldsworthy is a British record producer, DJ and recording artist, living and working in New York City since 1999.Originally a musician/producer for UNKLE, Goldsworthy co-founded James Lavelle's Mo' Wax label...
, the record features vocals from Horace Andy
Horace Andy
Horace Andy is a roots reggae songwriter and singer, known for his distinctive vocals and hit songs such as "Government Land", "Angel", "Five Man Army" and a cover version of "Ain't No Sunshine"....
, Tunde Adebimpe
Tunde Adebimpe
Babatunde Omoroga "Tunde" Adebimpe is an American musician, actor, and director best known as the lead singer of the Brooklyn-based band TV on the Radio. His vocal method often involves improvisation, the use of effects and repeating sampled loops....
, Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
, Hope Sandoval
Hope Sandoval
Hope Sandoval is an American singer-songwriter who is the lead singer for Mazzy Star and Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions....
, Guy Garvey
Guy Garvey
Guy Edward John Patrick Garvey , is the singer/guitarist in the band Elbow, as well as a presenter for BBC 6 Music and A&R manager of Skinny Dog Records...
and Martina Topley-Bird
Martina Topley-Bird
Martina Topley-Bird is a British vocalist and songwriter who first gained fame as the featured female vocalist on trip hop pioneer Tricky's debut album, Maxinquaye...
. Davidge co-wrote 8 of the 10 tracks as well as playing keyboards, bass and guitar. The album was mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent
Mark Stent
Mark 'Spike' Stent is a British record producer, and audio engineer who has worked with The KLF, Björk, Keane, Depeche Mode, Muse, Erasure, Hard-Fi, Massive Attack, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Marilyn Manson, Pet Shop Boys, Dave Matthews, No Doubt/Gwen Stefani, CSS, Beth Orton,...
although Davidge Produced and Mixed airplay hit “Paradise Circus” featuring vocals by Hope Sandoval
Hope Sandoval
Hope Sandoval is an American singer-songwriter who is the lead singer for Mazzy Star and Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions....
.
Film projects (2004–present)
In 2004 Luc BessonLuc Besson
Luc Besson is a French film director, writer, and producer. He is the creator of EuropaCorp film company. He has been involved with over 50 films, spanning 26 years, as writer, director, and/or producer.-Early life:...
approached Davidge and Robert Del Naja to score the movie Danny The Dog, later renamed Unleashed
Unleashed (film)
Unleashed , is a 2005 American-British-French martial arts action thriller film directed by Louis Leterrier and written by Luc Besson. Film stars Jet Li, Bob Hoskins, Morgan Freeman and Kerry Condon...
. There then followed scores for Bullet Boy
Bullet Boy
Bullet Boy is a 2005 film directed by Saul Dibb, written by Saul Dibb and Catherine Johnson, and stars Ashley Walters. The film's original music was composed and performed by Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, who released it as an album...
, Battle In Seattle
Battle in Seattle
Battle in Seattle is a 2007 film and the directorial debut of actor Stuart Townsend. It is based on the protest activity at the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999...
, and Trouble the Water
Trouble the Water
Trouble the Water is a 2008 documentary film produced and directed by Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, producers of Fahrenheit 9/11. Trouble the Water is a redemptive tale of a couple surviving failed levees, bungling bureaucrats, and their own troubled past and a portrait of a community abandoned long...
, which received an Oscar nomination for its film score. It is a moving study of those displaced by Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
which won ‘Best Documentary’ at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
. Working with Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
, Neil also scored the music for In Prison My Whole Life
In Prison My Whole Life
In Prison My Whole Life is a 2008 documentary film about Mumia Abu-Jamal. Mumia was arrested the day William Francome was born. When Francome made this film he was 25 years old and Mumia was still on death row....
, a documentary about US death-row journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal was convicted of the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner and sentenced to death. He has been described as "perhaps the world's best known death-row inmate", and his sentence is one of the most debated today...
.
Away from his collaborations with Robert, Neil scored the music to the Paul McGuigan
Paul McGuigan (filmmaker)
Paul McGuigan is a film director, best known for directing films such as Lucky Number Slevin and Push. He has also directed episodes of Sherlock and Monroe.-Filmography:-Awards:...
directed Push
Push (2009 film)
Push is a 2009 American science fiction thriller film directed by Paul McGuigan. The film stars Chris Evans, Dakota Fanning, Camilla Belle, Cliff Curtis, Joel Gretsch and Djimon Hounsou...
and provided additional music to the Warner Brothers blockbuster Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (2010 film)
Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010...
working alongside fellow composer Ramin Djawadi
Ramin Djawadi
Ramin Djawadi is a German composer of orchestral music for film and television. He was born in Duisburg, Germany to an Iranian father and German mother...
. He was approached by director Louis Leterrier
Louis Leterrier
Louis Leterrier is a French film director whose notable films include the first two Transporter movies, Unleashed , The Incredible Hulk , and Clash of the Titans .-Life and career:...
to replace Matt Bellamy from Muse
Muse (band)
Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...
who had to pull out due to touring commitments in the USA.
Volume (2006)
Volume, a luminous interactive installation, transformed the Victoria and Albert MuseumVictoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
's John Madejski
John Madejski
Sir John Robert Madejski OBE DL is an English businessman, with commercial interests, spanning property, broadcast media, hotels, restaurants, publishing and football...
Garden over winter 2006. Volume was a sculpture of light and sound - an array of light columns positioned dramatically in the centre of the garden. Volume responded spectacularly to human movement, creating a series of audio-visual experiences. Visitors were invited to step inside and see their actions at play with the energy fields throughout the space, triggering a brilliant display of light and sound.
The piece was a collaboration between design collective United Visual Artists (UVA) and Robert Del Naja and Neil.