Britt Daniel
| Britt Daniel | |
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Britt Daniel performing live
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Britt Daniel |
| Born | Galveston, Texas US |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-Songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Labels | Merge Records Peek-A-Boo Records Matador Records Elektra Records Syncretic Records |
| Associated acts | Spoon Drake Tungsten Skellington The Alien Beats Golden Millennium Divine Fits Split Single |
| Website | spoontheband |
John Britt Daniel is the co-founder, lead singer and guitarist of the Austin, Texas, rock band Spoon and the co-founder, guitarist, bassist, and singer of the band Divine Fits.
Contents
Early life
Britt Daniel was born in Galveston, Texas and grew up in Temple, Texas, a town of 50,000 people about an hour north of Austin. Daniel is the oldest of three children from his parents' marriage.[1] He also has two younger half-siblings. His father, a neurologist, was a fan of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and a collector of guitars;[2] Daniel himself reportedly picked up the guitar in high school after his college-bound girlfriend ended their relationship.[3][4]
Career
In 1988 Britt Daniel formed his first band The Zygotes while in high school. In 1990 Daniel formed his second band, Skellington, while a student at the University of Texas. After Skellington was formed by Daniel in 1990 at Austin, Texas with Travis Hartnett, Mac Stringfellow, Paul Cannon and Mike Hurewitz.[2] The band released three cassettes before disbanding in 1992. Later, Britt would go on to form Spoon. Skellington recorded and self-released This Town's Gone Dry in 1991, and the Skellington EP was released a year later in 1992. Before breaking up, the band released Skellington Rex, which contained songs that were re-recorded on Spoon's debut album Telephono.[2]
The following year, Daniel joined a three-piece rockabilly band named The Alien Beats with Brad Shenfeld.[2] During a 1993 Alien Beats recording session, computer-chip designer and percussionist Jim Eno was brought in as a substitute drummer, but he was later added as the permanent drummer.[2] The Alien Beats released a 7" single in May 1993; however, the band disbanded soon after its release.[2]
Spoon
In 1993, he teamed back up with ex-Alien Beats drummer Eno, as well as guitarist Greg Wilson and bassist Andy McGuire, to form Spoon. Spoon has served as Daniel's primary musical focus, though his resume also includes the following side projects:
Drake Tungsten
In the years that followed, Daniel wrote and recorded solo material under the pseudonym Drake Tungsten[5] (Daniel has since abandoned this name and plays solo shows under his own name).
Daniel has not recorded a solo album since self-releasing 1994's Clocking Out is for Suckers under the name Drake Tungsten. However, he has begun setting aside songs for a possible solo album, including "New York Kiss" and "Telephone My Heart,"[6] which he has been performing at solo shows since at least early 2006.[7]
Divine Fits
Daniel has been involved in a new band called Divine Fits, consisting of members from Spoon, Wolf Parade and New Bomb Turks. The group's debut, A Thing Called Divine Fits, was released on August 28, 2012 through Merge Records. The first single from the album, "My Love Is Real", was released on July 10, 2012.
Collaborations
- In 1999, Daniel played bass for two gigs in the glam rock supergroup Golden Millennium, composed of fellow Peek-A-Boo Records labelmates.[8]
- In 2002, Daniel worked with Bright Eyes on the fourth volume of Post-Parlo's Home Series.
- In 2002, Daniel recorded bass, keyboards and backing vocals on the first Sally Crewe & The Sudden Moves album, "Drive It Like You Stole It" (12XU).
- Daniel has produced songs for the bands I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness and Interpol.
- In 2004, Daniel remixed Interpol's "Slow Hands," which appears on the "Slow Hands" single.
- He previously worked as a sound designer and composer for the computer game company Origin Systems.[9]
- In 2006, Daniel teamed up with Brian Reitzell and helped create some of the original music for the film Stranger Than Fiction.[10]
- He also appeared in the Veronica Mars episode "Rashard and Wallace Go to White Castle", air date February 1, 2006, in which he sang a karaoke version of Elvis Costello's "Veronica."
- In 2009, he produced the White Rabbits album It's Frightening.
- In 2015, he collaborated with Austin band Sweet Spirit on the song "Have Mercy" and a cover of Spoon's Paper Tiger.[11]
Discography
Skellington
- The Town's Gone Dry (1991) Self-Released
- Skellington EP (1992) Self-Released
- Skellington Rex (1992) Self-Released
The Alien Beats
- Cavin' In (1993) Syncretic Records
Drake Tungsten
- Clocking Out is for Suckers (1994) Self-Released
- Six Pence for the Sauces (1996) Peek-A-Boo Records
- Dozy Vs. Drake (1998) Revival Records
Golden Millennium
- Golden Millennium (1999) Peek-A-Boo Records
Spoon
- Telephono (1996) Matador Records
- Soft Effects (1997) Matador Records
- A Series of Sneaks (1998) Elektra Records
- The Agony of Laffitte (1998) Saddle Creek
- Love Ways (2000) Merge Records
- Girls Can Tell (2001) Merge Records
- Kill the Moonlight (2002) Merge Records
- Gimme Fiction (2005) Merge Records
- Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (2007) Merge Records
- Transference (2010) Merge Records
- They Want My Soul (2014) Loma Vista Recordings
Divine Fits
Solo recordings
- Home: Volume IV (2002) Post-Parlo
See also
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Raoul Hernandez, "Drake Tungsten and his Boy Skellington", Austin Chronicle, January 25, 1999
- ↑ 'Sup Magazine, "The Biography of Britt Daniel of Spoon As Told Through Music", December 2005. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Laura Hightower, "Spoon Biography". Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Peek-A-Boo Records Drake Tungsten Bio Page, PeekABooRecords.com. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Sean O'Neal, "Britt Daniel of Spoon," July 19, 2007. Retrieved October 12, 2007.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Peek-A-Boo Records Golden Millennium Bio Page, PeekABooRecords.com. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Origin Systems Inc. Developer Bio, MobyGames.com. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Columbia Records, Stranger Than Fiction Soundtrack, ColumbiaRecords.com. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Britt Daniel. |
- Britt Daniel collection at Internet Archive live music archive
- Articles with hCards
- Pages using Template:Infobox musical artist with unknown parameters
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- Pages using authority control with parameters
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- American singer-songwriters
- American rock songwriters
- American male singer-songwriters
- American rock singers
- American rock guitarists
- People from Galveston, Texas
- Writers from Austin, Texas
- Musicians from Austin, Texas
- Living people
