Steve Fitzmaurice
Encyclopedia
Steven Fitzmaurice is a Grammy Award
-winning mixer
and producer
based in London, UK
. His credits include albums for Craig David
, Depeche Mode
, Kate Nash
, Seal
, and U2
.
Born in Ireland
, Fitzmaurice moved to London in 1987 to carve out a career in music. He began working at Sarm Studios under the watchful eye of mixer Julian Mendelsohn
and producer Trevor Horn
, leaving in 1992 for The Hit Factory
in New York City
where he worked on records by Eric Clapton
and Jodeci
and recorded the as-yet undiscovered Timbaland
. Fitzmaurice went freelance in New York and soon started to mix all of Trevor Horn's records. These included Seal's second album, for which he received his first Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Recording
. The following year, Fitzmaurice won his first Grammy when "Kiss from a Rose
", which he mixed, picked up the award for Record of the Year
. He has gone on to work with a diverse array of artists including Brett Anderson
, Ian Brown
, Depeche Mode, The Frames
, Gemma Hayes
, Jai
, Kylie Minogue
, Kate Nash, Tina Turner
, U2 and Wendy & Lisa
.
Projects in 2009 and 2010 included Paloma Faith
debut album "Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful", Filthy Dukes
"Nonsense in the Dark", Professor Green
singles "I Need You Tonight" and "Just Be Good to Me", and Olly Murs
' number-one single "Please Don't Let Me Go", as well as tracks with Cage the Elephant
, Taio Cruz
, Groove Armada
, Hard-Fi
, Daniel Merriweather
and Metronomy
.
Recent work includes producing and mixing songs for Sting - 25 Years - The Definitive Collection, the debut album for harpist
Lucinda Belle, mixing the debut albums for both Joe Janiak and Primary One, and mixing tracks for Sophie Ellis-Bextor
, The King Blues
, Kuran and the Wolfnotes, Lemar
, Lisa Mitchell
and Professor Green.
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning mixer
Audio engineering
An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
and producer
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...
based in London, UK
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...
. His credits include albums for Craig David
Craig David
Craig Ashley David is an English singer and songwriter. He has released five studio albums: Born to Do It, Slicker Than Your Average, The Story Goes..., Trust Me, Signed Sealed Delivered and a Greatest Hits album...
, Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
, Kate Nash
Kate Nash
Kate Marie Nash is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. She had a UK no. 2 hit "Foundations" in 2007, followed by the platinum selling UK number 1 album Made of Bricks. She was named Best Female Artist at the 2008 BRIT Awards....
, Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
, and U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
.
Born in Ireland
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...
, Fitzmaurice moved to London in 1987 to carve out a career in music. He began working at Sarm Studios under the watchful eye of mixer Julian Mendelsohn
Julian Mendelsohn
Julian Mendelsohn is a British record producer, audio engineer and mixer. Records bearing his work have been featured on English top ten charts...
and producer Trevor Horn
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
, leaving in 1992 for The Hit Factory
The Hit Factory
The Hit Factory was a recording studio in New York City famous for its clientele. It was officially closed for business April 1, 2005 whereas other Hit Factory studio locations remained open, such as in Miami, Florida.-History:...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
where he worked on records by Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
and Jodeci
Jodeci
Jodeci is an American band, whose repertoire includes R&B, soul music, and new jack swing. The group consists of two pairs of brothers from Hampton, Virginia and Charlotte, North Carolina: Cedric & Joel Hailey and Donald & Dalvin DeGrate, all respectively known by their stage names: K-Ci & Jojo,...
and recorded the as-yet undiscovered Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
. Fitzmaurice went freelance in New York and soon started to mix all of Trevor Horn's records. These included Seal's second album, for which he received his first Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Recording
Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording
The Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording can mean:*The Grammy Award for Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical.*The Grammy Award for Best Classical Engineered Recording....
. The following year, Fitzmaurice won his first Grammy when "Kiss from a Rose
Kiss from a Rose
"Kiss from a Rose" is a song from Seal's second eponymous album Seal . The song was first released as a single in July 1994. Re-released in 1995, it was included on the Batman Forever film soundtrack, helping it top the charts in the U.S. and Australia. It took the 1996 Grammy Awards for both...
", which he mixed, picked up the award for Record of the Year
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959.-History:The honorees through its history have been:*1959-1965: Artist only.*1966-1998: Artist and producer....
. He has gone on to work with a diverse array of artists including Brett Anderson
Brett Anderson
Brett Lewis Anderson is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Suede. After Suede disbanded in 2003, he briefly fronted The Tears, and has released four solo albums...
, Ian Brown
Ian Brown
Ian George Brown is an English musician, best known as the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Stone Roses, which broke up in 1996 but are confirmed to reunite in 2012. Since the break-up of the Stone Roses he has pursued a solo career...
, Depeche Mode, The Frames
The Frames
The Frames are an Irish band based in Dublin. Founded in 1990 by Glen Hansard, the band has been influential in the Dublin rock music scene. The group has released six albums...
, Gemma Hayes
Gemma Hayes
Gemma Claire Hayes is an Irish singer-songwriter and member of The Cake Sale.-Early life:...
, Jai
Jason Rowe
Jason Rowe, who formerly recorded under the name Jai, is a British pop and soul singer currently residing in Bristol, England.- Biography :...
, 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...
, Kate Nash, Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
, U2 and Wendy & Lisa
Wendy & Lisa
Wendy & Lisa are a music duo consisting of Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman. They began working with Prince in the early 1980s and were part of his band The Revolution, before branching out on their own and releasing their debut album in 1987...
.
Projects in 2009 and 2010 included Paloma Faith
Paloma Faith
Paloma Faith is a British singer-songwriter and actress. In 2009, she released her debut single "Stone Cold Sober", then her debut album, Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?, which was certified Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. Her debut album stayed within the top 40 album...
debut album "Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful", Filthy Dukes
Filthy Dukes
Filthy Dukes are a synthpop band from London, England. The band is composed of Olly Dixon , Tim Lawton and Mark Ralph . Having been active since 2005, the band released their debut single "Tupac Robot Club Rock" on Fiction Records...
"Nonsense in the Dark", Professor Green
Professor Green
Professor Green , better known by his stage name Professor Green, is a British rapper. He was signed to The Beats, a record label run by Mike Skinner and Ted Mayhem, until 12 February 2008, as the label went under. He won the inaugural JumpOff MySpace £50,000 battle rap tournament in July 2008...
singles "I Need You Tonight" and "Just Be Good to Me", and Olly Murs
Olly Murs
Oliver Stanley "Olly" Murs is an English singer-songwriter and TV presenter. Murs rose to fame after being the runner-up on the sixth series of The X Factor...
' number-one single "Please Don't Let Me Go", as well as tracks with Cage the Elephant
Cage the Elephant
Cage the Elephant is an American rock band from Bowling Green, Kentucky, that formed in mid-2006. Since their formation, the band has gained a large following in the US as well as the UK and Canada for their sound and their high-energy live performances. The band released their self-titled debut...
, Taio Cruz
Taio Cruz
Taio Cruz is a British singer-songwriter, record producer, occasional rapper, and entrepreneur. In 2008, he released his debut album Departure, which Cruz wrote, arranged and produced himself. It achieved initial success in the UK and earned him a MOBO Award nomination...
, Groove Armada
Groove Armada
Groove Armada is an English electronic music duo from London, England comprising Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They are perhaps best known for their singles "I See You Baby" and "Superstylin'"...
, Hard-Fi
HARD-Fi
Hard-Fi are an English indie rock band formed in Staines, Surrey in 2003. The band's members are Richard Archer , Ross Phillips , Kai Stephens and Steve Kemp .They achieved chart success with their third single, "Hard to Beat" and then followed by other successful singles such as...
, Daniel Merriweather
Daniel Merriweather
Daniel Paul Merriweather is an Australian R&B singer-songwriter who has worked as a featured vocalist for other artists and has a solo career. His guest vocals are included on album tracks by Disco Montego, Mark Ronson and Phrase...
and Metronomy
Metronomy
Metronomy are an electronic music group formed by Joseph Mount in Totnes, Devon, England in 1999. The current band consists of Joseph Mount , Anna Prior , Oscar Cash and Gbenga Adelekan...
.
Recent work includes producing and mixing songs for Sting - 25 Years - The Definitive Collection, the debut album for harpist
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
Lucinda Belle, mixing the debut albums for both Joe Janiak and Primary One, and mixing tracks for Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor is an English singer, songwriter, model and occasional DJ. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s, as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo, achieving widespread success in the early 2000s...
, The King Blues
The King Blues
The King Blues are a punk band from London, England, credited for fusing ska and folk together with influences from punk rock and hardcore punk. Tariq Ali described the band's sounds as 'rough, radical music that should unsettle the rulers of this country. A new generation of musicians are...
, Kuran and the Wolfnotes, Lemar
Lemar
Lemar Obika , professionally known simply as Lemar, is an English recording artist. Obika has had a run of chart success in the UK, Europe and Australia...
, Lisa Mitchell
Lisa Mitchell
Lisa Helen Mitchell is an Australian singer-songwriter who grew up in Albury, New South Wales. Her debut EP, Said One To The Other topped iTunes in Australia and this success brought her to the attention of boutique London-based publisher, Little Victories , a subsidiary of Sony/ATV, with whom she...
and Professor Green.