Benjamin Brian Thomas Watt (born 6 December 1962) is a British musician, singer, songwriter, author, DJ and radio presenter, best known as one half of the duo

Everything but the Girl Everything but the Girl (occasionally referred to as EBTG) are an English musical duo formed in Kingston upon Hull in 1982, consisting of lead singer and occasional guitarist Tracey Thorn and guitarist, keyboardist, producer and singer Ben Wa ...

Early life

Watt was born in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it m ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and grew up in

Barnes Barnes may refer to: People *Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England ** Barnes railway station ** Barnes Bridge railway station **Barnes Railway Brid ...

, the son of

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

jazz bandleader and arranger Tommy Watt and showbusiness writer Romany Bain. He has four older half brothers and sisters.

Recording artist

Watt began recording in 1981 on the indie label Cherry Red. His first single 'Cant' was produced by folk-maverick

Kevin Coyne Kevin Coyne (27 January 1944 – 2 December 2004) was an English musician, singer, composer, film-maker, and a writer of lyrics, stories and poems. The "anti-star" was born in Derby, Derbyshire, England, and died in his adopted home of Nurember ...

and featured Richard Allen on viola and tambourine. His second release, 1982's 5-track EP ''Summer into Winter'' featured

Robert Wyatt Robert Wyatt (born Robert Wyatt-Ellidge, 28 January 1945) is a retired English musician. A founding member of the influential Canterbury scene bands Soft Machine and Matching Mole, he was initially a kit drummer and singer before becoming p ...

on backing vocals and piano. His debut album '' North Marine Drive'' was released in 1983 and reached UK Independent Album Charts Top 10. He then put his solo career on hold and joined forces with vocalist

Tracey Thorn Tracey Anne Thorn (born 26 September 1962) is a British singer. She is best known as being one half of the duo Everything but the Girl from 1982 to 1999. She was a member of the band Marine Girls between 1980 and 1983 and since 2007 has been ...

, with whom he wrote and recorded for 17 years—together they created nine studio albums as Everything but the Girl (EBTG) after signing to Blanco Y Negro through Warners in 1984, and then

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

in 1995. EBTG have received eight gold, and one platinum album BPI Certifications in the UK, and one gold album RIAA Certification in the US. The song ''

Missing Missing or The Missing may refer to: Film *Missing (1918 film), ''Missing'' (1918 film), an American silent drama directed by James Young *Missing (1982 film), ''Missing'' (1982 film), an American historical drama directed by Costa-Gavras *Missi ...

'' reached number two on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1996. Everything but the Girl

Following EBTG's self-imposed hiatus in 2000, Watt immersed himself in the world of underground electronic music both as a DJ and recording artist/producer. His recorded output during this period includes club tracks such as ''Lone Cat (Holding On)'', ''A Stronger Man'' featuring Sananda Maitreya (formerly known as

Terence Trent D'Arby Sananda Francesco Maitreya (born Terence Trent Howard; March 15, 1962), who started his career with the stage name Terence Trent D'Arby, is an American singer and songwriter who came to fame with his debut studio album, ''Introducing the Hardlin ...

), the ''Outspoken EP Part 1'' including ''Pop A Cap in Yo' Ass'' featuring Estelle, ''Just a Blip'' and ''Guinea Pig''. In 2014 Watt returned to his folk-jazz roots and released '' Hendra'', his first solo album since 1983, the content of which was recorded with a new band including

Bernard Butler Bernard Joseph Butler (born 1 May 1970) is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the first guitarist with Suede, until his departure in 1994. He has been hailed by some critics as the greatest guitarist of hi ...

, formerly of the band

Suede Suede (pronounced ) is a type of leather with a fuzzy, napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, fabrics, purses, furniture, and other items. The term comes from the French , which literally means "gloves from Sweden". The term was fir ...

—Watt explained that he knew that Butler would be the "perfect counterpoint to bring some darkness to the light." Watt also worked with Berlin-based producer Ewan Pearson, and David Gilmour of

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics an ...

. The album was released on a new record label, Unmade Road, founded by Watt in 2014. Watt completed over sixty live shows in support of '' Hendra'' including tours of UK, North America, Japan and Australia. The album won the 'Best 'Difficult' Second Album' category at the AIM Independent Music Awards 2014. It was included at No 27 in Uncut's Top 75 Albums of 2014. Rolling Stone (Germany) made it number two in its list of the best albums of 2014. Japan's Music Magazine made it their No 3 best album of 2014. April 2016 saw the release of his third solo album '' Fever Dream''. Self-produced at RAK Studios in London, it continued his relationship with Bernard Butler, and added guest cameos from MC Taylor of North Carolina folk-rock band, Hiss Golden Messenger, and Boston singer-songwriter

Marissa Nadler Marissa Nadler (born April 5, 1981) is an American musician and fine artist. Active since 2000, she is currently signed to Sacred Bones Records and Bella Union, and released her ninth full-length studio album, ''The Path of the Clouds'', in ...

. It received a 9/10 review in

Uncut magazine ''Uncut'' is a monthly magazine based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections. A DVD magazine under the ''Uncut'' brand was published quarterly from 2005 to 2006 ...

. In a four-star review, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' said: "In his early 50s, he is making some of the best music of his career."

Writer

Watt's first memoir, '' Patient – The True Story of a Rare Illness'' (Penguin, 1996), describes his life-changing ordeal with Churg–Strauss syndrome (Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis), a rare life-threatening auto-immune disease with which he was diagnosed and hospitalized in 1992, on the eve of a North American tour with Everything But The Girl. "An astonishingly assured anatomy of his ordeal, by turns terrifying, mordantly funny and intensely moving. Many people suffer the pain and indignities of intensive medical treatment; but few have written about it with quite such alarming vividness or clarity", wrote Mick Bown in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

''. The book was listed as a ''New York Times'' Notable Book of the Year, a ''Sunday Times'' Book of the Year chosen by

William Boyd William, Willie, Will or Bill Boyd may refer to: Academics * William Alexander Jenyns Boyd (1842–1928), Australian journalist and schoolmaster * William Boyd (educator) (1874–1962), Scottish educator * William Boyd (pathologist) (1885–1979), ...

and a ''Village Voice'' Literary Supplement Favorite Book of the Year, and was also a finalist for the Esquire-Waterstones Best Non-Fiction Award in the UK. His second memoir, ''Romany and Tom''—a portrait of his parents' lives and marriage—was published by Bloomsbury in February 2014. "Neither sentimental nor savage, yet often wise, moving and entertaining within the same paragraph, ''Romany and Tom'' is a major achievement to rival any of Watt's recordings", said ''The Guardian''. "Watt captures what real life feels like, and he captures it with breathtaking clarity, beauty, and precision", said the ''

Los Angeles Review of Books The ''Los Angeles Review of Books'' (''LARB'' is a literary review magazine covering the national and international book scenes. A preview version launched on Tumblr in April 2011, and the official website followed one year later in April 2012 ...

''. In September 2014 it was long-listed for the Samuel Johnson Prize 2014.

DJ, remixer, label owner

Lazy Dog (1998–2003)

In 1998 Watt established the London

deep house Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard ...

Sunday club night and compilation series ''Lazy Dog'' with Jay Hannan. The club night – where both Watt and Hannan DJ'd in a tag-team style – was hosted twice-monthly at the Notting Hill Arts Club in west London, and later every two months at The End in central London. Success led to appearances at the Miami Winter Music Conference and several tours of the United States. Watt produced a string of dance remixes for Sade, Sunshine Anderson, Zero 7,

Maxwell Maxwell may refer to: People * Maxwell (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** James Clerk Maxwell, mathematician and physicist * Justice Maxwell (disambiguation) * Maxwell baronets, in the Baronetage o ...

Meshell Ndegeocello Michelle Lynn Johnson, better known as Meshell Ndegeocello (; born August 29, 1968), is a German-born American singer-songwriter, rapper, and bassist. She has gone by the name Meshell Suhaila Bashir-Shakur which is used as a writing credit on so ...

and Sandy Rivera. Lazy Dog ended on 16 May 2003 with a farewell closing party at The End in central London. Two mix compilations – ''Lazy Dog Vol. 1'' and ''Lazy Dog Vol. 2'' were released by Virgin Records in 2000 and 2001 respectively.

Neighbourhood and Cherry Jam (2002–2005)

For three years between 2002 and 2005, Watt was a co-owner/founder of the West London nightclubs ''Neighbourhood'' and ''Cherry Jam''. Under Watt's creative direction Cherry Jam hosted underground club nights, art exhibitions, the inaugural events for the long-running

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics o ...

night ''Book Slam'' and

The Libertines The Libertines are an English rock band, formed in London in 1997 by frontmen Carl Barât (vocals/guitar) and Pete Doherty (vocals/guitar). The band, centred on the songwriting partnership of Barât and Doherty, has also included John Hassall (m ...

' official debut show. At Neighbourhood, Watt brought in artists such as

Groove Armada Groove Armada are an English electronic music duo, composed of Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They achieved chart success with their singles " At the River", " I See You Baby" and " Superstylin'". The duo have released nine studio albums, four of ...

and many international DJs to perform at his own in-house club nights. Watt also hosted the 25th Anniversary of the

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pu ...

music label and the inaugural ''House Music Awards'' ceremony.

Buzzin' Fly Records (2003–present)

In April 2003, Watt launched his own independent

and techno record label Buzzin' Fly Records (named after the

Tim Buckley Timothy Charles Buckley III (February 14, 1947 – June 29, 1975) was an American musician. His music and style changed considerably through the years. Buckley began his career based in folk music, but his subsequent albums experimented with ja ...

song). The label proceeded to foster the careers of young and emerging producers/DJs such as Justin Martin, Mademoiselle Caro & Franck Garcia, and Rodamaal. The label hosted Watt's own club productions as well as work from remixers such as Ame, Radio Slave, Charles Webster and

John Tejada John Tejada (born 21 April 1974) is an Austrian-born American electronic music producer and composer. Tejada's output of music began in 1994, including four albums for Kompakt, plus releases on Pokerflat, Cocoon, Plug Research, Seventh City, Playh ...

. Between 2003 and 2007 Watt also compiled and mixed four compilation albums, Buzzin' Fly Volumes 1–4, mixing tracks from the label with tracks from other artists. Buzzin' Fly won Best Breakthrough Label at the ''House Music Awards'' in 2004, and was awarded the Runner-up Best British Label by the

DJ Magazine ''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lat ...

Awards in both 2007 and 2008. In April 2013, on the label's tenth anniversary, Watt announced he was scaling back the label's activities to focus more fully on his own creative work. After a period of relative inactivity in 2017 Buzzin' Fly took control of the majority of the Everything But The Girl back catalogue, previously held by Warner Music. The transfer of rights was the result of Warner Music's obligation to release assets into the independent sector as part of the conditions surrounding its acquisition of EMI assets from Universal Music. A licensing deal with

Chrysalis Records Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright A ...

was simultaneously arranged for the shared curation of the catalogue. A new Buzzin' Fly website was launched the same year presenting a new home for all three labels within the Buzzin' Fly group – Buzzin' Fly, Strange Feeling and Unmade Road.

DJ

After several years of mostly London residencies, Watt performed as a DJ on the festival circuit in 2005, appearing at the Good Vibrations Festival in Australia, Homelands and Lovebox in the UK, Coachella in the US, and Ireland's Electric Picnic. In 2008 he opened the Sonar Festival in Barcelona, appeared at the Exit Festival the same year and was a resident DJ from 2007 to 2009 at ''We Love Sundays'' on the Space Terrace in Ibiza.

Giant Step Giant Step is a media, events and marketing company headquartered in New York City and Los Angeles. The company formerly released music through its record label, Giant Step Records. Giant Step is divided into two entities – the Giant Step bran ...

promoted his three-year residency at Cielo in New York, and he played on the main stage at the inaugural Electric Zoo Festival on New York City's Randall's Island in 2009. He was nominated four years running (2008–2011) as Best Deep House DJ at the global DJ Awards held in Ibiza, and for Outstanding Contribution to Dance Music at the ''DJ Magazine Best of British Awards 2009''.

Strange Feeling Records (2007–present)

Building upon the foundation of Buzzin' Fly, Watt launched Strange Feeling Records in 2007 as a sister label that would release alternative/indie music. The critically acclaimed Copenhagen band Figurines and the Hungarian trio The Unbending Trees were early signings of Strange Feeling. The label globally released and distributed the third solo album '' Love and Its Opposite'' by Watt's wife

on 17 May 2010; the album was the label's fifth release. This was followed by her alternative Christmas album, ''Tinsel and Lights'', in 2012. 2015 saw the release of Thorn's original soundtrack to '' The Falling'' – the debut feature film by British film director Carol Morley.

Unmade Road (2014–present)

In 2014, Watt launched Unmade Road, a new label and production company to act as a vehicle for his return to recording and touring as a singer-songwriter. He secured a licensing deal for the label with Caroline International. The label released Watt's albums '' Hendra'' in 2014 and ''Fever Dream'' in 2016.

Radio presenter

In 2006, Watt launched the online ''Buzzin' Fly'' radio show to showcase upcoming music from the label, new releases and guest mixes. It was re-broadcast on the Galaxy Network and Kiss. In 2009, after more than 150 editions, Watt presented his last show and accepted an invitation to move to the

BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available on ...

's flagship electronic radio show as a resident DJ on the ''6 Mix''; this show was cancelled in 2014.

Personal life

Watt lives with his spouse and creative partner

in Hampstead, north London. They met at

Hull University , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 millio ...

in 1981; after 27 years together, they married in 2008 at the Chelsea

Register Office A register office or The General Register Office, much more commonly but erroneously registry office (except in official use), is a British government office where births, deaths, marriages, civil partnership, stillbirths and adoptions in Engl ...

. Their twin daughters Jean and Alfie were born in 1998, and their son Blake was born in 2001. In 1992, Watt was diagnosed with Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), an extremely rare and potentially deadly autoimmune condition. He eventually had 5 m (15 ft) of necrotized small intestine removed (about 75%), leaving him on a permanently restricted diet. He later wrote the memoir ''

Patient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health ...

'' about his experiences with the disease and recovery.

Discography

Albums

* '' North Marine Drive'' (1983, Cherry Red) * '' Hendra'' (2014, Unmade Road dist. by Caroline International) UK No. 46 * '' Fever Dream'' (2016, Unmade Road) UK No. 53 * '' Storm Damage'' (January 2020, Unmade Road)

Singles and EPs

* ''Cant'' (June 1981, Cherry Red) * ''Summer into Winter EP'' with

(March 1982, Cherry Red) * ''Some Things Don't Matter'' (February 1983, Cherry Red) * ''Lone Cat (Holding On)'' (April 2003, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 1 EP'' includes ''A Stronger Man'' with Sananda Maitreya (January 2004, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Outspoken Part 1'' includes ''Pop a Cap in Yo' Ass'' with Estelle and ''Attack, Attack, Attack'' with Baby Blak (January 2005, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 2 EP'' includes ''Lone Cat (Holding On)'' (Justin Martin Remix) and ''Pop a Cap in Yo Ass'' (Dubstrumental) by Ben Watt with Estelle (April 2005, Buzzin' Fly) * ''We Are Silver EP'' includes ''Old Soul'' with Baby Blak, and ''Lone Cat'' ( Dennis Ferrer & Steve Martinez Special Re-Rub) (April 2007, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 4 EP'' includes ''Just a Blip'' (June 2007, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Guinea Pig'' (October 2008, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Bright Star'' by Stimming, Ben Watt & Julia Biel (Feb 2010, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Forget'' (includes acoustic version of ''The Levels'' recorded with David Gilmour). (July 2014, Unmade Road) * ''Golden Ratio EP'' (remixes by Charles Webster/Ewan Pearson) (Dec 2014, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Gradually'' (Jan 2016, Unmade Road) * ''Between Two Fires'' (Feb 2016, Unmade Road) * ''Storm Shelter EP'' (April 2021, Unmade Road)

Compilations mixed by Ben Watt

* ''Lazy Dog Vol. 1'' with Jay Hannan (October 2000,

) * ''Back to Mine'' with Tracey Thorn as Everything but the Girl (May 2001, DMC) * ''Lazy Dog Vol. 2'' with Jay Hannan (March 2002, Virgin) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 1: Replenishing Music for the Modern Soul'' (March 2004, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 2: Replenishing Music for the Modern Soul'' (April 2005, Buzzin' Fly) * ''InTheMix 2006'' (Australian release; 2 CDs; one compiled and mixed by Ben Watt, one by Ivan Gough) (November 2006, inthemix.au) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 3'' (June 2006, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly Vol 4'' (May 2007, Buzzin' Fly) * ''Buzzin' Fly – 5 Golden Years in the Wilderness'' (Compiled and unmixed by Ben Watt) (June 2008, Buzzin' Fly)

References

External links

*
Official Ben Watt website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watt, Ben 1962 births Living people Cherry Red Records artists Club DJs Deep house musicians Electronic dance music DJs English electronic musicians English DJs English male singers English people of Scottish descent English record producers People from Barnes, London People from Marylebone Remixers