Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''
Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars
''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released on August 9, 1988 by Geffen Records. The album went 2× platinum in the United States.
"What I Am" was the l ...
'', the debut album by
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians is an alternative rock jam band that originated in Dallas, Texas, in the mid-1980s. The band is widely known for their 1988 hit "What I Am" from the album '' Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars''. Their music contain ...
, which went to No. 4 on the
''Billboard'' albums chart. She is married to singer-songwriter
Paul Simon.
Early life
Brickell was born in the
Oak Cliff
Oak Cliff is a neighborhood of Dallas, Texas, that was formerly a separate town in Dallas County; Dallas annexed Oak Cliff in 1901. It has since retained a distinct neighborhood identity as one of Dallas' older established neighborhoods.
Oak C ...
neighborhood of
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...
to Larry Jean (Sellers) Linden and Paul Edward Brickell. She was raised with her older sister, Laura Strain. She attended
in Dallas, and later studied at
Southern Methodist University
, mottoeng = "The truth will make you free"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = SACS
, academic_affiliations =
, religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church
, president = R. Gerald Turner
, ...
until she joined a band and decided to focus on songwriting.
Music career
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
In 1985, Brickell was invited to sing one night with friends from her high school in a local
folk rock
Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers s ...
group, New Bohemians. She joined the band as lead singer. After the band was signed to a recording contract, the label changed the group's name to
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians is an alternative rock jam band that originated in Dallas, Texas, in the mid-1980s. The band is widely known for their 1988 hit "What I Am" from the album '' Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars''. Their music contain ...
. Their 1988 debut album, ''
Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars
''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released on August 9, 1988 by Geffen Records. The album went 2× platinum in the United States.
"What I Am" was the l ...
'', became a critical and commercial success, including the
Top Ten single "
What I Am
"What I Am" is a song written by Edie Brickell and Kenny Withrow and recorded by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians for their debut album, ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' (1988). The song is highlighted by a guitar solo that notably features an ...
". The band's follow-up album, ''
Ghost of a Dog
''Ghost of a Dog'' is the second album by American alternative rock band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released in 1990.
In the printed lyrics that accompany the album, each song has a word with a single letter missing. In order, they spell ou ...
'' (1990), was a deliberate effort to highlight the band's eclectic personality and move away from the pop sound of their first record.
The band sporadically played gigs after the album ''Ghost of a Dog'' in 1990, and in 2006 released ''
Stranger Things''. In 2018 they announced their latest album, ''
Rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
'', along with dates for a US tour. The band released their fifth studio album
Hunter and the Dog Star
''Hunter and the Dog Star'' is the fifth studio album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released in 2021.
Reception
Writing for ''American Songwriter'', Lee Zimmerman gave the album four out of five stars, and called it a "remarkably uplifting ef ...
in 2021 available on CD and vinyl.
Solo career
Brickell had a role as a
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
Sociology
*Nation
*People
* Folklore
** Folk art
** Folk dance
** Folk hero
** Folk music
*** Folk metal
*** Folk punk
*** Folk rock
** Folk religion
* Folk taxonomy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Folk Plus or Fo ...
singer in the 1989 film ''
Born on the Fourth of July
''Born on the Fourth of July'', published in 1976, is the best-selling autobiography by Ron Kovic, a paralyzed Vietnam War veteran who became an anti-war activist. Kovic was born on July 4, 1946, and his book's ironic title echoed a famous line ...
''. Her version of
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's "
A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall
"A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" is a song written by American musician and Nobel Laureate Bob Dylan in the summer of 1962 and recorded later that year for his second album, ''The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' (1963). Its lyrical structure is modeled after ...
" is featured on the film's soundtrack. She also sang a cover version of
Lou Reed's "
Walk on the Wild Side" in the 1990 film ''
Flashback''.
As a solo artist, Brickell released ''
Picture Perfect Morning'' (1994) and ''
Volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Ear ...
'' (2003). The video for ''Picture Perfect Mornings "Good Times" was included as part of the multimedia samples featured on
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washin ...
's ''
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented operating system developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows 9x family of operating systems. The first operating system in the 9x family, it is the successor to Windows 3.1x, and was released to manufacturi ...
Companion'' CD-ROM. In 1992, she worked with producer
Bob Wiseman
Robert Neil "Bob" Wiseman (born 1962) is a film composer, songwriter, author and music teacher. Wiseman discovered or produced many artists including Ron Sexsmith, The Lowest of the Low, Bruce McCulloch of Kids in the Hall, Anhai, and former ...
in New York and
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
on a collection of songs, utilizing a wind ensemble, unusual keyboards, and
Ron Sexsmith
Ronald Eldon Sexsmith (born January 8, 1964) is a Canadian singer-songwriter from St. Catharines, Ontario. He was the songwriter of the year at the 2005 Juno Awards. He began releasing recordings of his own material in 1985 at age 21, and has s ...
. The songs were rejected by the record company and remained unreleased.
The Gaddabouts
In 2010, Brickell became a founding member of new band The Gaddabouts, consisting of
Steve Gadd
Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction into the '' Modern ...
on drums, Edie Brickell as lead vocalist and guitar,
Andy Fairweather Low
Andrew Fairweather Low (born 2 August 1948) is a Welsh guitarist and singer. He was a founding member and lead singer of 1960s pop band Amen Corner, and in recent years has toured extensively with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and Bill Wyman's R ...
on electric and acoustic guitars and background vocals,
Pino Palladino
Giuseppe Henry "Pino" Palladino (born 17 October 1957) is a Welsh musician, songwriter, and record producer. A prolific session bassist, he has played bass for acts such as The Who, the John Mayer Trio, Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Jeff Beck ...
on bass and guitar, and featuring
Dan Block
Daniel Block is an American jazz clarinetist who has worked with artists such as Charles Mingus, Toshiko Akiyoshi and Gerry Mulligan. He is a member of the Marty Grosz Band, and also can be found in the pits of various Broadway shows in New Yor ...
,
Ronnie Cuber
Ronald Edward Cuber (December 25, 1941 – October 7, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. He also played in Latin, pop, rock, and blues sessions. In addition to his primary instrument, baritone sax, he played tenor sax, soprano sax, clarinet ...
,
Joey DeFrancesco
Joey DeFrancesco (April 10, 1971August 25, 2022) was an American jazz organist, trumpeter, saxophonist, and occasional singer. He released more than 30 albums under his own name, and recorded extensively as a sideman with such leading jazz perfo ...
,
Gil Goldstein
Gil Goldstein (born November 6, 1950 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American jazz pianist and accordionist. He has won 5 Grammy Awards and he was nominated 8 time
Biography
He began studying accordion at age 5 after noticing it in The Lawrence We ...
, and
Marcus Rojas
Marcus Rojas (born February 23, 1963) is an American Tuba, tubist from New York City.
Early life
Rojas was born in New York City on February 23, 1963, and grew up in Red Hook, Brooklyn. His early influences included Eddie Palmieri, Willie Coló ...
. In 2011, Brickell wrote the title track, "The Meaning of Life", for
Tamar Halpern's film, ''
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life''.
Edie Brickell and Steve Martin
''
Love Has Come for You'' was released on April 23, 2013. The album is a collaboration with
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
. Both appeared on talk shows, such as ''
The View'' and ''
Late Show with David Letterman'', to promote the album in April 2013.
Starting in May 2013, she toured with Martin and the
Steep Canyon Rangers throughout North America.
In 2016, the musical ''
Bright Star''to which she contributed music, lyrics, and story
opened on Broadway at the
Cort Theatre
The James Earl Jones Theatre, originally the Cort Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 138 West 48th Street, between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. It was built in ...
.
In 2017, Brickell and Martin appeared in the documentary film ''
The American Epic Sessions
''The American Epic Sessions'' is a documentary film in which an engineer restores the fabled long-lost first electrical sound recording system from 1925, and twenty contemporary artists pay tribute to the momentous machine by attempting to record ...
'' directed by
Bernard MacMahon. They recorded "
The Coo Coo Bird", a traditional
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
folk song, live on the first
electrical sound recording system from the 1920s. The track appeared on the accompanying soundtrack, ''
Music from The American Epic Sessions.''
Personal life
Brickell married singer-songwriter
Paul Simon on May 30, 1992.
It was her first marriage and Simon's third. Brickell was performing "
What I Am
"What I Am" is a song written by Edie Brickell and Kenny Withrow and recorded by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians for their debut album, ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' (1988). The song is highlighted by a guitar solo that notably features an ...
"
on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
's ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...
'' on November 5, 1988, when she noticed Simon standing in front of the cameraman. "Even though I'd performed the song hundreds of times in clubs, he made me forget how the song went when I looked at him. We can show the kids the tape and say, 'Look, that's when we first laid eyes on each other.'" Brickell and Simon have three children: Adrian, Lulu, and Gabriel.
Discography
Albums
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
*''It's Like This...'' (cassette-only, 1986)
*''
Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars
''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released on August 9, 1988 by Geffen Records. The album went 2× platinum in the United States.
"What I Am" was the l ...
'' (1988) US #4,
2× platinum
*''
Ghost of a Dog
''Ghost of a Dog'' is the second album by American alternative rock band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, released in 1990.
In the printed lyrics that accompany the album, each song has a word with a single letter missing. In order, they spell ou ...
'' (1990)
*''The Live Montauk Sessions'' (2000)
*''The Ultimate Collection'' (2002)
*''
Stranger Things'' (2006)
*''
Rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
'' (2018)
*''Hunter and the Dog Star'' (2021)
Solo
*''
Picture Perfect Morning'' (1994)
*''
Volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Ear ...
'' (2003)
*''
Edie Brickell
Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. ...
'' (2011)
Other
*''
The Heavy Circles'' (2008) - The Heavy Circles
*''
The Gaddabouts'' (2011) – The Gaddabouts
*''
Look Out Now!
''Look Out Now!'' is the second album by The Gaddabouts, released in April 2012 as a double CD. The band consists of Edie Brickell, drummer Steve Gadd, guitarist Andy Fairweather Low and bass player Pino Palladino.
Development
The album takes ...
'' (2012) – The Gaddabouts
*''
Love Has Come for You'' (2013) – with
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
*''LIVE:
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
and
Steep Canyon Rangers featuring Edie Brickell'' (2014)
*''
So Familiar'' (2015) – with
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
Singles
*"
What I Am
"What I Am" is a song written by Edie Brickell and Kenny Withrow and recorded by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians for their debut album, ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' (1988). The song is highlighted by a guitar solo that notably features an ...
" (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians) (1988) #7 on US Billboard Hot 100
*"Circle" (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians)
*"Little Miss S." (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians) (1989)
*"A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians) (1990)
*"Mama Help Me" (Edie Brickell & New Bohemians)
*"Good Times" (Edie Brickell)
*"Pretty Little One" (Steve Martin and
Steep Canyon Rangers featuring Edie Brickell)
*"Like to Get to Know You" (duet with Paul Simon). (2014)
[Simon & Brickell release new duet](_blank)
theguardian.com; accessed March 20, 2015.
Other contributions
*''MSG Grateful Dead 1993'' (September 20, 1993) – "Space" > "The Other One" > "
Going Down the Road Feeling Bad
"Going Down The Road Feeling Bad" (also known as the "Lonesome Road Blues") is a traditional American folk song, "a white blues of universal appeal and uncertain origin".
Recording history
The song was recorded by many artists through the years. ...
"
*''Trios'' (1994) –
Rob Wasserman
Rob Wasserman (April 1, 1952 – June 29, 2016) was an American composer and bass player. A Grammy Award and NEA grant winner, he played and recorded with a wide variety of musicians including Bob Weir, Bruce Cockburn, Elvis Costello, Ani di Fr ...
*''
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented operating system developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows 9x family of operating systems. The first operating system in the 9x family, it is the successor to Windows 3.1x, and was released to manufacturi ...
'' (1995) – "Good Times" Video
*''
First Wish
''First Wish'' is the first album by the trumpet player Chris Botti. It was released by Verve Forecast Records on February 28, 1995.
Track listing
Personnel
* Chris Botti – trumpet and keyboards (1–10), programming (1, 2, 3, 5, 6), tambouri ...
'' (1995) –
Chris Botti
Christopher Stephen Botti ( ; born October 12, 1962) is an award-winning American trumpeter and composer.
In 2013, Botti won the Grammy Award in the Best Pop Instrumental Album category, for the album ''Impressions''.
He was also nominated in ...
*''
WFUV: City Folk Live VII'' (2004) – "Take a Walk"
*''The Way, Way Back'' OST (2013) - "For the Time Being" & "Go Where the Love Is" – The Gaddabouts
*''
Music from The American Epic Sessions: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' (2017) – "
The Coo Coo Bird"
References
External links
*
Edie Brickell
Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. ...
in
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brickell, Edie
1966 births
American women singer-songwriters
American folk-pop singers
Grammy Award winners
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians members
Living people
Musicians from Dallas
American folk rock musicians
American folk guitarists
American rock guitarists
21st-century American women guitarists
21st-century American guitarists
Guitarists from Texas
20th-century American women guitarists
20th-century American guitarists
People from Oak Cliff, Texas
Paul Simon
20th-century American women singers
21st-century American women singers
20th-century American singers
21st-century American singers
Microsoft Windows sample music