Caroline Crawley (8 August 1963 – 4 October 2016) was an English singer who sang for various bands.

Career

Caroline Crawley was the co-founder of

Shelleyan Orphan Shelleyan Orphan were a British alternative music group that peaked during the 1980s and early 1990s. They played a style of pop influenced by chamber music, and which featured dual male-female vocals. Career In 1980, Caroline Crawley and Jem ...

alongside guitarist Jemaur Tayle. They met in their mutual home town of Bournemouth, England, where they had a shared appreciation of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate; , pp. 500-01 The name of the band comes from the Shelley poem " Spirit of Solitude". Crawley was the lead vocalist in the band that went on to release four albums, ''Helleborine'' (1987), ''Century Flower'' (1989), ''Humroot'' (1992) and ''We Have Everything We Need'' (2008). In 1991, Crawley was approached by

4AD Records 4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name "Axis" (after the Hendrix album) by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD af ...

founder

Ivo Watts-Russell Ivo Watts-Russell (born 1954) is a British music producer and record label executive. He was joint-founder with Peter Kent of the indie record label 4AD. He has produced several records, although he prefers to use the term "musical director". Ea ...

who asked her to appear on four tracks of

This Mortal Coil This Mortal Coil were a British music collective led by Ivo Watts-Russell, founder of the British record label 4AD. Although Watts-Russell and John Fryer were the only two official members, the band's recorded output featured a large rotati ...

's album ''

Blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

''. Crawley was permitted to do her own interpretations of the tracks, and appeared in the video for the Syd Barrett cover, "Late Night". In the early 1990s, Crawley formed Babacar along with bassist Roberto Soave, guitarist Rob Steen, and drummer

Boris Williams Boris Peter Bransby Williams (born 24 April 1957) is a French-born English drummer best known for his extensive work with the Cure (1984–1994). Biography Born in Versailles, France, he had previously worked with various artists, including ...

. They made their live debut playing four songs at the

13 Year Itch celebration on 22 July 1993 at the ICA, London.''Facing The Other Way: The 4AD Story'' by Martin Aston; book issued 26 September 2013

The Friday Project The Friday Project was a London-based independent publishing house founded by Paul Carr and Clare Christian in June 2004. It evolved out of ''The Friday Thing'', an Internet newsletter taking an offbeat look at the week's politics, media activ ...

They released one album, '' Babacar'' in 1998, which also featured

Porl Thompson Pearl Thompson (born 8 November 1957 as Paul Stephen ThompsonChris Gerrard (2021)The Cure FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About the Most Heartbreakingly Excellent Rock Band the World Has Ever Known. Backbeat, ISBN 9781493053988, p. 155) is an E ...

, and were later joined by Jemaur Tayle.

Death

Crawley died on 4 October 2016 after a long illness. She is survived by her daughter.

Discography

Albums

;as part of Shelleyan Orphan *1987-1988: ''Helleborine'' (UK and US Versions) *1989: ''Century Flower'' (UK, Brazil and US Versions) *1992: ''Humroot'' (UK, Brazil and US Versions) *2008: ''We Have Everything We Need'' ;as part of This Mortal Coil *1991: ''

'' ;as part of Babacar *1998: '' Babacar''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crawley, Caroline 1963 births 2016 deaths English women singers English rock singers Women new wave singers Musicians from Bournemouth Place of death missing Babacar (band) members