Shaun William George Ryder (born 23 August 1962) is an English singer/songwriter and
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...
. As lead singer of
Happy Mondays
Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up was Shaun Ryder (vocals), his brother Paul Ryder (bass), Gary Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry later joine ...
, he was a leading figure in the
Madchester
Madchester was a musical and cultural scene that developed in the English city of Manchester in the late 1980s, closely associated with the indie dance scene. Indie-dance (sometimes referred to as indie-rave) saw artists merging indie music ...
cultural scene during the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1993, he formed
Black Grape
Black Grape are an English rock band, featuring former members of Happy Mondays and Ruthless Rap Assassins. Their musical style fuses funk and electronic rock with electronic programming and samples.
History Formation, first two albums and ...
with former Happy Mondays dancer
Bez. He was the runner-up on the
tenth series of ''
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!''.
Early life
Shaun William George Ryder was born on 23 August 1962 in
Little Hulton, Lancashire,
[Little Hulton did not join Salford until 1974 before which it was part of Worsley UDC] the son of nurse Linda and postman Derek (who would later become Happy Mondays' tour manager). By the age of 13, he had left school to work on a building site.
Musical career
Happy Mondays
As Ryder was singer for
Happy Mondays
Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up was Shaun Ryder (vocals), his brother Paul Ryder (bass), Gary Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry later joine ...
, his struggle with drugs led to the band's initial break-up in 1992. The film ''
24 Hour Party People
''24 Hour Party People'' is a 2002 British biographical comedy-drama film about Manchester's popular music community from 1976 to 1992, and specifically about Factory Records. It was written by Frank Cottrell Boyce and directed by Michael Wint ...
'' featured the (semi-fictional) story of Ryder's youth and the life of Happy Mondays whilst signed with
Factory Records in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the film, Ryder is portrayed by Danny Cunningham.
Ryder has taken part in two reformations of Happy Mondays (1999–2000 and 2004–present). He has also released a
solo album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...
, ''
Amateur Night in the Big Top'', to a mixed critical reception.
In 2000, following the Big Day Out Festival in Australia with Happy Mondays, Ryder stayed on in
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
, Western Australia with Pete Carroll, who had a record label called Offworld Sounds. While in Perth he recorded ''
Amateur Night in the Big Top'', an album of punk
electronica with Carroll, Shane Norton,
Stephen Mallinder
Stephen William Mallinder (born 1 January 1955) is an English artist and musician who was a founding member of Cabaret Voltaire, and went on to work as Sassi & Loco, the Ku-Ling Bros., Hey, Rube!, Wrangler, and Creep Show.
Biography
Mallinder ...
from
Cabaret Voltaire and
Lucky Oceans from American country band
Asleep at the Wheel. ''
UnCut
Uncut may refer to:
* ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship
* ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997
* '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...
'' called it, "exhilarating stuff. Another wildly implausible Ryder comeback" while
Ministry of Sound said it was "A remarkable album. The most
vitriolic lyrics this side of
Dylan's '
Ballad of a Thin Man
"Ballad of a Thin Man" is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan, and released in 1965 on his sixth album, ''Highway 61 Revisited''.
Recording
Dylan recorded "Ballad of a Thin Man" in Studio A of Columbia Records in New York City, located at 799 ...
' and
Sex Pistols '
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
. The album was recorded quickly during a few late night sessions in Carroll's garage studio during an extremely hot
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
summer. The album was subsequently released on Offworld Sounds.
In 2004, Happy Mondays reunited to play a comeback gig called "Get Loaded in the Park" on
Clapham Common
Clapham Common is a large triangular urban park in Clapham, south London, England. Originally common land for the parishes of Battersea and Clapham, it was converted to parkland under the terms of the Metropolitan Commons Act 1878. It is of g ...
, with only original members. Two years later they released the single "Playground Superstar", featured in the football film ''
Goal
A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines.
A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ...
'', which was released after Bez had won ''
Celebrity Big Brother
''Big Brother VIP'', is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, the housemates or houseguest ...
''. In 2007 Happy Mondays produced the album, ''
Uncle Dysfunktional''. In 2009 he made a
cameo appearance
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
(Ryder later revealed that it was also a non-speaking role) as himself in
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
drama ''
Shameless''.
Black Grape
In 1995 Ryder launched his new project,
Black Grape
Black Grape are an English rock band, featuring former members of Happy Mondays and Ruthless Rap Assassins. Their musical style fuses funk and electronic rock with electronic programming and samples.
History Formation, first two albums and ...
. Its first release, ''
It's Great When You're Straight... Yeah'', topped the British album chart for a week. However, the follow-up album, ''
Stupid Stupid Stupid'', did not achieve the same critical nor commercial success, and the group split in 1998. The group reformed briefly in 2010, and released a single in 2015. In August 2017, the group released ''Pop Voodoo'', their first full album since 1997.
Other work
Ryder collaborated with
Intastella in 1993 and in 1996 he worked with
Jerry Harrison
Jeremiah Griffin Harrison (born February 21, 1949) is an American songwriter, musician, producer, and entrepreneur. He began his professional music career as a member of the cult band the Modern Lovers before becoming keyboardist and guitarist ...
,
Tina Weymouth
Martina Michèle Weymouth (born November 22, 1950) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and a founding member and bassist of the new wave group Talking Heads and its side project Tom Tom Club, which she co-founded with her husband, Tal ...
, and
Chris Frantz
Charton Christopher Frantz (born May 8, 1951) is an American musician and record producer. He is the drummer for both Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club, both of which he co-founded with wife and Talking Heads bassist Tina Weymouth. In 2002, Frant ...
on ''
No Talking, Just Head
''No Talking, Just Head'' is an album released in 1996 by the Heads, a band composed of Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth, and Chris Frantz of Talking Heads, joined by a variety of guest singers. Its name may be seen as an allusion to the fact that ...
''.
1997 Ryder featured on the
Agent Provocateur
An agent provocateur () is a person who commits, or who acts to entice another person to commit, an illegal or rash act or falsely implicate them in partaking in an illegal act, so as to ruin the reputation of, or entice legal action against, th ...
album
Where the Wild Things Are
''Where the Wild Things Are'' is a 1963 children's picture book written and illustrated by American writer and illustrator Maurice Sendak, originally published in hardcover by Harper & Row. The book has been adapted into other media several tim ...
on track "Agent Dan" the track was also released as a single and remixed by
Propellerheads
Propellerheads were an English electronic music duo, formed in 1995 in Bath and consisting of Will White and Alex Gifford.
History
Their first release was an EP named ''Dive!'', released in 1996 through the independent label Wall of Sound. ...
.
He appeared on British
tenor
A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...
Russell Watson
Russell Watson is an English tenor who has released singles and albums of both operatic-style and pop songs. He began singing as a child, and became known after performing at a working men's club. He came to attention in 1999 when he sang "God ...
's 2001 debut album ''
The Voice
The Voice may refer to:
Fictional entities
* The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics
* The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe
* The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...
'', lending his vocals to a cover version of the
Freddie Mercury and
Montserrat Caballé
Montserrat Caballé i Folch or Folc (full name: María de Montserrat Bibiana Concepción Caballé i Folch (, , ; (12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018), known simply as Montserrat Caballé, was a Catalan Spanish operatic soprano. She sang a wide v ...
song "Barcelona".
In 2004, Ryder had a voice acting role in the video game ''
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' in which he played Maccer, a washed-up, masturbation-addicted musician who was planning a major comeback tour.
Ryder appeared in
Peter Kay
Peter John Kay (born 2 July 1973) is an English actor, comedy writer and stand-up comedian. He has written, produced and acted in several television and film projects, and has written three books.
Born and brought up in Bolton, Kay studied ...
's "
Is This the Way to Amarillo?" charity music video in 2005. Also in 2005, he collaborated with
Gorillaz on "
Dare", a song on their ''
Demon Days
''Demon Days'' is the second studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz. It was first released on 11 May 2005 in Japan and on 23 May 2005 in the United Kingdom by Parlophone and in the United States by Virgin Records. Produced by the band, ...
'' album.
Chris Evans stated at the
2006 Brit Awards
Brit Awards 2006 was the 26th show of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 14 February 2006 in Earls Court in London. It attracted 4. ...
that the song was originally called "It's There", but was changed as Ryder's thick
Mancunian accent made him pronounce the word "there" as "dare".
In 2010 he supported
The Charlatans on a UK tour, as well as one-off headline show at the Assembly,
Leamington Spa. In November 2011 Ryder played saxophone onstage at the
Barbican in
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
as a special guest in
Jools Holland's Rhythm and Blues Orchestra for the Sky television series ''First Love''.
Other work
Writing
Ryder wrote a column for the ''
Daily Sport
The ''Daily Sport'' was a tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom by Daily Sport Ltd., which specialised in celebrity news and softcore pornographic stories and images. The daily paper was launched in 1991 by David Sullivan, followin ...
'', in which he commented on current events and celebrities. The column was
ghostwritten with journalist John Warburton, who would write a book about the Happy Mondays reunion in the late 1990s, and co-credited it to Ryder. He said he "didn't really have anything to do with it at all," explaining that Warburton had approached him to write a biography. Ryder said he was not interested in the idea at the time, but allowed him to accompany the band on tour and document the proceedings.
In 2011, Ryder published his autobiography, ''
Twisting My Melon: The Autobiography''.
It was optioned by
Granada Television and writer
Danny Brocklehurst
Danny Brocklehurst (born June 1971 in Hyde, Cheshire) is an English screenwriter and playwright. He has won both BAFTA and Royal Television Society writing awards. He was featured in the writers' section of the ''Broadcast magazine'' Hot 100 ...
enlisted to write the screenplay.
Television
In 2004 he was the subject of
Richard Macer
Richard Macer is a British documentary maker who has made over fifty films whose subjects include singer/songwriter Shaun Ryder, model Jordan, dyslexia, morris dancing, British Vogue magazine, department stores and reincarnation.
He has won bot ...
's
BBC3 documentary ''Shaun Ryder: The Ecstasy and the Agony''.
Ryder was a contestant on the tenth series of ITV's reality game show ''
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' in 2010, where he finished second behind
Stacey Solomon
Stacey Chanelle Clare Solomon-Swash (born 4 October 1989) is an English singer and television personality. She finished in third place on the sixth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2009, and won the tenth series of '' I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Ou ...
. In January 2011 Ryder appeared on the first series of the ITV programme ''
That Sunday Night Show
''That Sunday Night Show'' is a British television chat show presented by Adrian Chiles
Adrian Chiles (born 21 March 1967) is a British writer and television and radio presenter. He has co-presented both '' The One Show'' (2007–2010) and ...
'', and again on the second series in September 2011. He collaborated with fellow ''I'm a Celebrity'' contestant
Stacey Solomon
Stacey Chanelle Clare Solomon-Swash (born 4 October 1989) is an English singer and television personality. She finished in third place on the sixth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2009, and won the tenth series of '' I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Ou ...
at the 2011
National Television Awards
The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are vot ...
.
In 2013, Ryder hosted the television show ''Shaun Ryder on UFOs'' on
The History Channel UK.
[ He has a lifelong interest in UFOs and claims that he has personally encountered ]space alien
Extraterrestrial life, colloquially referred to as alien life, is life that may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been conclusively detected, although efforts are underway. Such life might ...
s, stating that he saw a UFO
An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
for the first time in 1978.
Two years later, Ryder has appeared repeatedly on the panel of RT UK's '' News Thing''. In October 2016, he appeared on '' Would I Lie to You?''. In 2017 Ryder appeared on '' Celebrity Juice'' as a member of Fearne Cotton
Fearne Wood ( Cotton; born 3 September 1981) is an English broadcaster and author''.'' She began her career in the late 1990s presenting various children's television shows for GMTV, CITV and CBBC. In 2007, she presented '' The Xtra Factor'', a ...
's team. The next year he starred in ITVs ''100 years younger in 21 days'' and appeared on '' Celebrity Mastermind'', with the specialist subject of Manchester.
In August 2020, Ryder appeared in BBC Two comedy '' Mandy'' created by Diane Morgan
Diane Morgan (born 5 October 1975) is an English actress, comedian, television presenter, and writer. She is best known for playing Philomena Cunk on Charlie Brooker's '' Weekly Wipe'' and in other mockumentaries, as Liz in the BBC Two sitcom ...
in which he portrayed a fictional version of himself.
Personal life
Ryder has six children. For some time, he was addicted to heroin, saying he overcame it by taking up cycling.
Ryder contested contracts he drew up with his Black Grape management team, compiled in 1993. Following his dismissal of the company, they sued him for £160,000. The income from his £30,000 a year ''Daily Sport'' column went solely to cover his costs. His appearance on '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' (2010) and a £130,000 book deal financed Ryder out of the contract.
Ryder was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia later in life, saying in the 60s and 70s there was "no such thing as learning difficulties". "When I was at school they didn't know about ADHD, there were just four sets, one being the brightest and four being crowd control"... so "for the first 40-something years of my life I didn't know I had it DHD.
In 2021 he took part in Channel 4's ''Stand Up and Deliver''; mentored by Jason Manford
Jason John Manford (born 26 May 1981) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and singer.
Manford was a team captain on the Channel 4 panel show ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' from 2007 until 2010 and has presented numerous television shows for the BBC a ...
, he developed his own stand-up set. Manford explained in an interview “Shaun’s got severe ADHD, so remembering things, collecting information and taking on new thoughts, it’s been a real challenge."
Ryder took part in Channel 4's '' Fame in the Family''; where Ryder discovered three long lost relatives, Tracey and James had the most direct blood connection, both second cousins.
Ryder left school unable to read the alphabet. “But, y’see, there’s different ways of learning. I was 26 years old when I learnt the alphabet. My girlfriend at the time taught it to me through singing, and I learnt it in five minutes. It also helps me to learn when I have a stress ball in my hand, it’s called fiddling. When I have nothing in my hand, I can’t take anything in. I can’t retain any information.”
Discography
Solo albums
*2003 – '' Amateur Night in the Big Top''
*2021 – ''Visits from Future Technology''
Compilation
*2010 – ''Shaun William Ryder XXX: 30 Years of Bellyaching''
Videography
Solo
*1996 – "Don't Take My Kindness for Weakness" (with The Heads)
*2001 – "Barcelona" (with Russell Watson
Russell Watson is an English tenor who has released singles and albums of both operatic-style and pop songs. He began singing as a child, and became known after performing at a working men's club. He came to attention in 1999 when he sang "God ...
)
*2003 – "Scooter Girl"
*2005 – " DARE" (with Gorillaz)
*2005 – "Is This the Way to Amarillo?"
Awards
*NME Single of the Year
Every December, British music magazine '' NME'' compiles a list of what it considers the best single or track of the year. It was started in 1975. The list is usually published in one of the issues sold before Christmas – in 2006 it was published ...
1996 – Black Grape's "Reverend Black Grape"
*Godlike Genius – NME Awards
The ''NME'' Awards is an annual music awards show in the United Kingdom, founded by the music magazine '' NME'' (''New Musical Express''). The first awards show was held in 1953 as the ''NME'' Poll Winners Concerts, shortly after the founding ...
, 2000
*John Peel Music Innovation Award (for Gorillaz) – Shockwaves NME Awards 2006
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
Shaun Ryder narrowly escapes a heavy fine after giving evidence at a trial
Shaun Ryder was caricature of himself in Happy Mondays
Interview with Shaun Ryder in LeftLion magazine 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ryder, Shaun
1962 births
Living people
Male actors from Manchester
Alternative rock singers
Alternative dance musicians
Black Grape members
British alternative rock musicians
English male video game actors
English columnists
English dance musicians
English male singer-songwriters
English television personalities
Happy Mondays members
Music in Salford
Musicians from Manchester
People from Little Hulton
Male actors from Salford
Britpop musicians
Madchester musicians
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (British TV series) participants