Everything but the Girl
Everything but the Girl |
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Everything but the Girl (EBTG) is a two-person English band formed in Hull in 1982.
The band's members are:
- Lead singer and sometime-guitarist Tracey Thorn (born September 26, 1962)
- Guitarist, keyboardist & vocalist Ben Watt (born December 6, 1962).
Watt and Thorn are also a couple; they are intensely private about their relationship and personal life. It was not a publicized fact for some time that they were a couple, or that they had subsequently married. [1] The duo have a strong desire to raise their three children outside of the spotlight.
Early career
When Thorn and Watt met, their paths were very similar; they were both attending the University of Hull, and both had signed to independent record label Cherry Red Records as solo artists. Thorn was also a member of the trio Marine Girls, and Watt contributed a photograph to the cover of their first album, Lazy Ways. The pair each had solo album releases through Cherry Red Records: Thorn’s 1982 L.P. was A Distant Shore, an eight-track mini-album. Watt’s L.P. was entitled North Marine Drive.
They formed a duo and took their unusual name "Everything but the Girl" from the slogan of well-known Hull shop Turner's furniture on Beverley Road (left).
Everything but the Girl
EBTG's debut single, a cover version of Cole Porter's "Night and Day", was released in June 1982. Following steady sales and exposure from the Pillows & Prayers compilation album, the single was re-issued in August 1983. Their first album was released in 1984 in the UK as Eden. 1984 also saw the UK release of singles "Mine", and "Native Land". Their first UK hit single, "Each and Every One", had a jazzy sound, and EBTG was considered part of the jazz/pop movement known as sophisti-pop that included other British acts like Sade, Matt Bianco, and The Style Council, on whose Café Bleu album they guested. EBTG and Sade both worked with producer Robin Millar and engineers Ben Rogan and Mike Pela for their debut albums.
Although Eden was released in the UK, a different recording, Everything But the Girl, was released in the United States. The U.S. release contained about half the tracks from "Eden", along with some different tracks, including 'Mine' and 'Native Land'. The U.S. release balanced the bossa nova stylings of the British version with a more folk rock aesthetic, helping to establish the group's eclectic musicality.
Subsequent releases underscored EBTG's versatility and range. Their 1985 album Love Not Money featured a shimmering pop sound with jangly guitars, and included a cover version of The Pretenders' song "Kid" (not on the UK L.P.). The lyrics have strong social and political content. "Angel" comments upon child poverty and public attitudes towards it. "Sean" is a bitter comment on the Northern Ireland troubles. "Ugly Little Dreams" comments upon male attitudes to intelligent women and is dedicated to actress Frances Farmer. "Angel" was also released as a single in the UK.
The following year they released the self-produced Baby the Stars Shine Bright, an album of original pop songs recorded with an orchestra. They revealed the album's inspiration by their choices of B-sides for its single releases: one finds songs from Bacharach and Jimmy Webb on the 12" versions (as well as a cover of Patsy Cline's "I Fall to Pieces"). The first single was "Come On Home", followed by "Don't Leave Me Behind". While the jump from jazz to post-Smiths rock (with the release of Love Not Money) may have jarred some of their audience, the move to orchestral pop was much bolder and foretold the stylistic swap they'd make ten years later with Walking Wounded.
In 1988, EBTG released Idlewild, a collection of mature songs that began a trend towards middle-of-the-road, adult-orientated contemporary music. A cover version of Danny Whitten's "I Don't Want to Talk About It" (previously a hit by Rod Stewart) was released as a non-L.P. single; it achieved a high UK chart position and was later added to the album. Around this time, Lloyd Cole and the Commotions asked Tracey to contribute vocals to the song "Big Snake" on their final studio album Mainstream.
Tommy Lipuma produced the band’s 1990 album The Language of Life. The album, which featured the single "Driving", was another lush pop effort, but with a more contemporary sound. Jazz great Stan Getz contributed a tenor sax solo on the song "The Road". Next came Worldwide, and its single "Old Friends" in 1991. Worldwide's lyrics revolve around the themes of relationships, travel and personal memories.
1992 saw another UK hit single with the release of the Covers E.P. The lead track was "Love Is Strange", and the E.P. featured cover versions of Bruce Springsteen's "Tougher Than the Rest"; Cyndi Lauper's "Time after Time" and Elvis Costello's "Alison". These four tracks were included on the U.S.-only album Acoustic.
In 1993, EBTG released a cover version of Paul Simon's "The Only Living Boy in New York" as a single in the UK.
The duo were forced to curtail recording and touring for a few years when Watt contracted Churg-Strauss syndrome, an autoimmune disease (he subsequently wrote a memoir, Patient, about his ordeal). The next work of original music was not until 1994, when EBTG released Amplified Heart. Although most of the music was still acoustic-based, it had a much more contemporary feel. Producer Todd Terry remixed the track "Missing", and when EBTG released the remix as a single, it became a huge international hit. It hit the top of nearly every chart around the world, and charted in the U.S., a feat that had previously eluded the band. The track reached number two and stayed in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for well over a year.
The success of that track, along with a collaboration Thorn did with the bands Massive Attack and Deep Dish, influenced them and helped usher the band into a more electronic sound. Having completed contractual obligations to WEA, they were free to shop their recordings and had full ownership of their future recorded works. They signed licensing deals with Virgin Records for the United Kingdom and Europe, and Atlantic Records for the United States and Canada. Their subsequent albums Walking Wounded and Temperamental, showed the band's musical progress as well as established Ben Watt as a notable dance music producer. Between the two albums he produced "Stars All Seem To Weep" for Beth Orton, and it immediately garnered attention. This would bolster his growing reputation as a D.J. and producer.
Collaborations and other work
- Batman Forever Soundtrack – "Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" (with Massive Attack)
- Back to Mine – tracks selected by Everything But the Girl
- Watt has concentrated on being a DJ and producer/remixer, finding success as one half of Lazy Dog with partner Jay Hannan before going solo and launching Buzzin Fly records and The Neighborhood (a dance club). He has helped to produce two acclaimed albums for Beth Orton.
- In late spring 2005, Thorn recorded her first vocals in three years, on a song called "Damage" on the album Eat Books for the German band Tiefschwarz, for which she also wrote the lyrics and melody.
- Thorn's first full solo album, Out of the Woods was released in March 2007, garnering positive reviews.
Their fan base is still very active, as messages on the band's website confirm. Their most recent release is a double disc of remixes highlighting the best of their electronica-influenced music including a trio of newly commissioned remixes.
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | UK | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Eden | 14 | - |
| 1985 | Love Not Money | 10 | - |
| 1986 | Baby the Stars Shine Bright | 22 | - |
| 1988 | Idlewild | 13 | - |
| 1990 | The Language of Life | 10 | 77 |
| 1991 | Worldwide | 29 | - |
| 1992 | Acoustic | - | - |
| 1992 | Essence & Rare 82-92 | - | - |
| 1993 | Home Movies | 5 | - |
| 1994 | Amplified Heart | 20 | 46 |
| 1996 | Walking Wounded | 4 | 37 |
| 1996 | The Best of Everything but the Girl | 23 | - |
| 1999 | Temperamental | 16 | 65 |
| 2003 | Like the Deserts Miss the Rain | - | - |
| 2006 | Adapt or Die: Ten Years of Remixes | - | - |
EPs
| Year | EP | UK | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Covers EP | 13 | - |
| 1993 | The Only Living Boy in New York EP | 42 | - |
| 1993 | I Didn't Know I Was Looking for Love EP | 72 | - |
| 1994 | Missing - the Live EP | - | - |
Singles
| Year | Song | UK | IRL | U.S. | U.S. Dance | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | "Night and Day" | 92 | - | - | - | — |
| 1984 | "Each and Every One" | 28 | 19 | - | - | Eden |
| "Mine" | 58 | - | - | - | — | |
| "Native Land" | 73 | - | - | - | ||
| 1985 | "When All's Well" | 77 | - | - | - | Love Not Money |
| "Angel" | 93 | - | - | - | ||
| 1986 | "Come On Home" | 44 | 27 | - | - | Baby, the Stars Shine Bright |
| "Don't Leave Me Behind" | 72 | - | - | - | ||
| 1988 | "These Early Days" (remix) | 75 | - | - | - | Idlewild |
| "I Always Was Your Girl" | 87 | - | - | - | ||
| "I Don't Want to Talk About It" | 3 | 3 | - | - | ||
| 1990 | "Driving" | 54 | 30 | - | - | The Language of Life |
| 1991 | "Old Friends" | - | - | - | - | Worldwide |
| 1993 | "The Only Living Boy In New York" | - | - | - | - | |
| 1994 | "Rollercoaster" | 65 | - | - | - | Amplified Heart |
| "Missing" | 69 | - | - | - | ||
| 1995 | "Missing" (Todd Terry remix) | 3 | 3 | 2 | - | |
| 1996 | "Walking Wounded" | 6 | 29 | - | - | Walking Wounded |
| "Wrong" | 8 | 20 | 68 | 1 | ||
| "Single" | 20 | - | - | - | ||
| "Driving" (remix) | 36 | - | - | - | The Best of Everything but the Girl | |
| 1997 | "Before Today" | 25 | - | - | - | Walking Wounded |
| 1998 | "The Future of the Future (Stay Gold)" (with Deep Dish) | 31 | - | - | 1 | Temperamental |
| 1999 | "Five Fathoms (Love More)" | 27 | - | - | 1 | |
| "Blame" | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2000 | "Temperamental" | 72 | - | - | 1 | |
| "Lullaby of Clubland" | - | - | - | 3 | ||
| 2001 | "Tracey in My Room" (Mash-up – credited to Soul Vision vs. EBTG) |
34 | - | - | - | — |
| 2002 | "Corcovado" | - | - | - | - | Like the Deserts Miss the Rain |
Trivia
 | This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. (June 2007) |
- A short version of "Five Fathoms" was featured on the video game Beatmania IIDX, with the music video featuring Watt and Thorn playing on other Bemani video games by Konami in the London Trocadero.
- A short version of "Five Fathoms" was also featured on the movie Hitch.(Bar Scene)
- "Single" is featured in the film Timecode
- The French singer Marc Lavoine refers to the band in the chorus of his song 2005 hit “Tu me manques tant” : Tu me manques tant/Je me sens si seul/Que j’écoute Everything/Que j’écoute Everything/Everything But The Girl
- The song Missing was covered by the English gothic metal Paradise Lost. It features on the 2007 album In Requiem (bonustrack on the special edition).
- Australian band The Whitlams covered the song "Pigeons In The Attic Room" on their debut album Introducing The Whitlams in 1993.
- Ben Watt wrote a Christmas song. "25th December" by Everything but the Girl appears on the Atlantic Records Christmas compilation, You Sleigh Me!, which was released October 24, 1995. It is also included on Amplified Heart.
EBTG tracks have also been used in these movies and TV- The Saint (movie)-Before Today She's Having A Baby (movie)-Apron Strings Cold Feet (TV) UK-Missing (Todd Terry Remix) Charmed (TV)-Five Fathoms Roswell (TV)-Before Today The Thirteenth Floor (movie)-The Future Of The Future Splendor (movie)-Before Today (Chicane Remix)
See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart