Tanya Donelly (born July 14, 1966) is an American
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
-nominated singer-songwriter and guitarist based in
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
who co-founded
Throwing Muses
Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects.
The group was originall ...
with her step-sister
Kristin Hersh Kristin may refer to:
* Kristin (name), a Scandinavian form of Christine
* ''Kristin'' (TV series), a 2001 American sitcom
* Kristin Peak, Antarctica
* Kristin School, a school in New Zealand
See also
* Kristen (disambiguation) Kristen may re ...
. Donelly went on to co-form the alternative rock band
The Breeders
The Breeders are an American alternative rock band based in Dayton, Ohio, consisting of members Kim Deal (rhythm guitar, lead vocals), her twin sister Kelley Deal (lead guitar, vocals), Josephine Wiggs (bass guitar, vocals) and Jim Macpherson ...
(alongside
Pixies
A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas arou ...
bassist
Kim Deal
Kimberley Ann Deal (born June 10, 1961) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She was the bassist and the co-vocalist in the alternative rock band Pixies, before forming the Breeders in 1989.
Deal joined Pixies in January ...
) in 1989, before leaving to front her own band
Belly
Belly may refer to:
Anatomy
* The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach
** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking
** Belly dance
* The fleshy, cent ...
in 1991. By the late 1990s, she settled into a solo recording career, working largely with musicians connected to the
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
music scene.
Donelly is best known for her Grammy-nominated work in the mid-1990s as lead vocalist and songwriter for Belly, when she scored a national radio and music television hit with her composition "
Feed the Tree
"Feed the Tree" is a song by American alternative rock band Belly, released as the band's first single from their debut album, ''Star'', in 1993. It is the band's biggest hit, reaching number one on the US ''Billboard'' Modern Rock Tracks chart ...
". Belly recorded on
Sire
Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French.
The words "sire" a ...
/
Reprise Records
Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels.
Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...
and
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 ...
; Donelly's solo works have been released on
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
and 4AD.
Over the years, she has listed several musical influences. In one interview, she named her guitar playing influences as
Marc Ribot
Marc Ribot (;
born May 21, 1954) is an American guitarist and composer.
His work has touched on many styles, including no wave, free jazz, rock, and Cuban music. Ribot is also known for collaborating with other musicians, most notably Tom Wait ...
,
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
, and former bandmate Hersh. More recently, she mentioned
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...
as a songwriting hero, citing her then current listening favorites as
Lucinda Williams
Lucinda Gayle Williams (born January 26, 1953) is an American singer-songwriter and a solo guitarist. She recorded her first two albums: '' Ramblin' on My Mind'' (1979) and '' Happy Woman Blues'' (1980), in a traditional country and blues style ...
and
Joan Wasser
Joan Wasser (born July 26, 1970) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and producer who releases music as Joan As Police Woman. She began her career playing violin with the Dambuilders and played with Black Beetle, Antony and the Johnsons, a ...
, and listing Boston-based groups like the
Dambuilders
The Dambuilders was an indie rock band that began in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, in 1989 and later relocated to Boston. They released seven LPs (six studio albums & one compilation) and a number of EPs before breaking up in 1998. Members have gone o ...
, Pixies, and Count Zero as past favorites. Although Donelly mainly performs her own original songs, she has in recent years added
covers of songs by
Robyn Hitchcock
Robyn Rowan Hitchcock (born 3 March 1953) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano, and bass guitar. After leading the Soft Boys in the late 1970s and releasing the ...
,
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, ...
, the Beatles, and Pixies to her repertoire.
Early life
Donelly has said that her parents, Richard and Kristin Donelly, shuttled the family "between Rhode Island and
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
" for the first four years of her life. Donelly has described her early school experience as including bouts of nervous shyness from fear that what she has called her family's "
hippie
A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
" background was different from that of her classmates.
Donelly has said that she met
Kristin Hersh Kristin may refer to:
* Kristin (name), a Scandinavian form of Christine
* ''Kristin'' (TV series), a 2001 American sitcom
* Kristin Peak, Antarctica
* Kristin School, a school in New Zealand
See also
* Kristen (disambiguation) Kristen may re ...
in school around age eight, quickly becoming close friends. Donelly's father later married Hersh's mother after both divorced in the 1980s. When she was 12 years old, Donelly and her mother were injured in a traumatic car accident that led her to carefully weigh for the first time her spiritual values and her concept of what "
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
" was. Previously, her upbringing had been an
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
one, but after the car accident a family friend introduced Donelly to the
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
traditions of
Krishna
Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
, in which she immersed herself for a brief period.
Throwing Muses band beginnings
![Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses, 1991](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Tanya_Donelly_of_Throwing_Muses%2C_1991.jpg)
Around age 14, Hersh's and Donelly's fathers both gave them their own guitars and they initially started playing along with Beatles songs. Soon after, the two started to play along with songs written by Hersh's musical father and then began to write original songs of their own. Donelly co-founded
Throwing Muses
Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects.
The group was originall ...
with Hersh and other members like
Elaine Adamedes at around age 15.
Throughout the 1980s, Donelly worked as lead guitarist and secondary vocalist/songwriter, complementing the work of Throwing Muses leader Hersh. The group moved from Rhode Island to Boston around 1986 and signed as the first American group on the influential British label 4AD. Although the band's work generally employed complex rhythms and offbeat chord structures, Donelly has said she eventually accepted that her compositions were simpler and had "more traditional songwriting sensibilities" than Hersh's, by the last two years she worked in the band. Some of her tunes from this period include "Green", "Reel," "Pools in Eyes", "The River", "Giant", "Dragonhead", "Honeychain", "Not Too Soon" and "Angel". Hersh's most popular Muses songs like "Fish", "Dizzy", "Counting Backwards" and most of "The Real Ramona" LP almost always featured Donelly's distinctive lead guitar playing, heavy background vocals, inner vocal workings with different lyrics and pop vocal harmonies and melodic hooks.
1990s: Breeders and Belly
By 1990, Donelly had additionally begun working in a side project called
The Breeders
The Breeders are an American alternative rock band based in Dayton, Ohio, consisting of members Kim Deal (rhythm guitar, lead vocals), her twin sister Kelley Deal (lead guitar, vocals), Josephine Wiggs (bass guitar, vocals) and Jim Macpherson ...
with
Kim Deal
Kimberley Ann Deal (born June 10, 1961) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She was the bassist and the co-vocalist in the alternative rock band Pixies, before forming the Breeders in 1989.
Deal joined Pixies in January ...
of
Pixies
A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas arou ...
, a Boston-based group who had opened shows for Throwing Muses in the 1980s. The first album's vocals and songwriting responsibilities were centered on Deal. The group released ''
Pod'' with Donelly in 1990.
''The Real Ramona'', Throwing Muses' last album with Donelly, which included her "Not Too Soon" and "Honeychain" originals, was released in 1991. In May 1991, Deal and Donelly were asked to contribute vocals to
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 rotating ...
's
''Blood'' album on 4AD, with a cover of
Chris Bell's "You and Your Sister," a month before Donelly officially left Throwing Muses.
In December 1991, Donelly formed
Belly
Belly may refer to:
Anatomy
* The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach
** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking
** Belly dance
* The fleshy, cent ...
as guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, with
Thomas Gorman on lead guitar,
Chris Gorman on drums, and
Fred Abong (previously with Throwing Muses) on bass guitar. This group would become her primary creative focus for the next few years, as Donelly's participation in The Breeders faded after the 1992 release of the ''Safari'' EP.
In 1993 Belly released the ''
Star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...
'' LP, with
Gail Greenwood
Gail Greenwood (born March 10, 1960) is an American musician and illustrator most notable for performing bass guitar and guitar with the bands Belly and L7.
Career
Greenwood grew up in Rhode Island. She became a vegetarian at age fourteen and h ...
soon replacing Fred Abong on bass after the release for touring. The album soon peaked at number two on the United Kingdom music charts and featured a single and music video, "Feed the Tree", that quickly was rated number one on the Modern Rock Tracks Survey. The album scored commercial chart successes and was certified as a gold record in 1994 by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
. The band was also nominated for two
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
(Best New Artist and Best Alternative Music Performance) and won two Boston Music Awards the same year.
In 1995, Belly released a second album, ''
King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
'', which progressed the avant folk-rock influences,
power-pop
Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...
jangle guitar sounds, and vocal harmonies of the first album into a direction driven more by vocals and driving rhythms, varying the pace within the songs to create tension. Flangers and chorus effects were evident in the guitar sounds. This album, produced by
Glyn Johns
Glyn Thomas Johns (born 15 February 1942) is an English musician, recording engineer and record producer.
Biography
Early history
Johns was born in Epsom, Surrey, England. He had three siblings, two older sisters and a younger brother, Andy ...
, did not match the commercial success of ''Star''. The band broke up in 1996.
1990s solo career begins
In 1995, during her post-Belly/pre-solo career, Donelly recorded a track with
Catherine Wheel
Catherine wheel may refer to:
* wheel or breaking wheel, an instrument of torturous execution originally associated with Saint Catherine of Alexandria
* Catherine wheel (firework), a firework that rotates when lit
Arts and entertainment
* Cather ...
entitled "Judy Staring at the Sun," which appeared on Catherine Wheel's 1995 album ''Happy Days''. The single version featured Donelly and Catherine Wheel's lead singer
Rob Dickinson
Robert Dickinson (born 23 July 1965) is a British musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter previously of the band Catherine Wheel (band), Catherine Wheel.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 664 ...
singing in trade-off vocals, but after the final Belly album, Catherine Wheel's record label insisted that the song be re-recorded to remove most of Donelly's vocals, replacing them with Dickinson's, although Donelly's voice can still be heard during the chorus of the reworked version.
The 1995
tribute 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 coll ...
''
Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits'', produced by
Ralph Sall
Ralph Sall is an American record producer, music supervisor, composer, songwriter and screenwriter. He is the president of Bulletproof Entertainment, a company involved in several facets of the entertainment industry, including film, television ...
for
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group.
Pre-history
MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...
, included the cover of "Josie and the Pussycats" performed by Tanya Donelly and
Juliana Hatfield
Juliana Hatfield (born July 27, 1967) is an American musician and singer-songwriter from the Boston area, formerly of the indie rock bands Blake Babies, Some Girls (band), Some Girls, and The Lemonheads. She also fronted her own band, The Julia ...
.
In November 1996, Donelly put together a group of musicians to tour internationally with, just prior to her first solo release, the ''Sliding & Diving'' EP on 4AD. Included on the tour were husband Fisher on bass, keyboardist Lisa Mednick (formerly of
Juliana Hatfield
Juliana Hatfield (born July 27, 1967) is an American musician and singer-songwriter from the Boston area, formerly of the indie rock bands Blake Babies, Some Girls (band), Some Girls, and The Lemonheads. She also fronted her own band, The Julia ...
's group), drummer Stacy Jones (formerly of
Letters to Cleo
Letters to Cleo is an American alternative rock band originating from Boston, Massachusetts, best known for the 1994 single, "Here & Now", from their full-length debut album, '' Aurora Gory Alice''. The band's members are Kay Hanley, Greg McKe ...
and
Veruca Salt
Veruca Salt is an American alternative rock band founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1992 by vocalist-guitarists Nina Gordon and Louise Post, drummer Jim Shapiro and bassist Steve Lack. They are best known for their first single, " Seether", that ...
), and Madder Rose guitarists
Mary Lorson
Mary Lorson is an American writer, musician and composer. Best known for her time as the lead singer of alternative pop groups Madder Rose and Saint Low, Lorson has gone on to release albums with The Piano Creeps and Mary Lorson & the Soubr ...
and Billy Coté. The album release featured Donelly on vocals, guitars and keyboards, Rich Gilbert (of Human Sexual Response, Goober & the Peas, Blackstone Valley Sinners) on pedal steel, Fisher on bass, and drummers
David Lovering
David Lovering (born December 6, 1961) is an American musician and magician. He is best known as the drummer for the alternative rock band Pixies, which he joined in 1986. After the band's breakup in 1993, Lovering drummed with several other act ...
(formerly of the Pixies) and Jones.
After the 1997 dual solo release of ''Pretty Deep'' with two different B-sides, she toured North America with Fisher, Throwing Muses' drummer
Dave Narcizo, Gilbert, and keyboardist Elizabeth Steen. She soon released her solo debut LP ''
Lovesongs for Underdogs
''Lovesongs for Underdogs'' is the solo debut album by American singer Tanya Donelly, who had formerly recorded with Throwing Muses, The Breeders, and Belly. It was released on August 9, 1997. Two singles were released for promotion of the album. ...
'', recorded with Gilbert, Fisher, Jones, Narcizo, and engineer Wally Gagel on assorted instruments.
Career since 2000
In 2000, Donelly performed live in her first reunion with Throwing Muses at a special fan gathering called "Gut Pageant" in
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
, and at a Rhode Island festival.
She continued to record and release symbol-laden, alternative folk-pop solo EPs and full-length LPs on 4AD in 2001, 2002, and 2004. Belly's ''
Sweet Ride: The Best of Belly'' retrospective was also released in 2002.
As Donelly's writing continued to mature into a softer rhythmic vein than with the Belly material, allusions to motherhood were heard in songs like "Life is But a Dream" and "The Night You Saved My Life" on her 2002 ''
Beautysleep
''Beautysleep'' is the second album by Tanya Donelly, released in 2002.
Tanya's last music video to date was "''Keeping You''". "''The Night You Saved My Life''" was also released to Triple A radio in the U.S.
"Beautysleep" peaked at #88 on the ...
'' release.
Mark Sandman
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* Fin ...
, of Boston's
Morphine
Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a analgesic, pain medication, and is also commonly used recreational drug, recreationally, or to make ...
indie-rock group, sang on "Moonbeam Monkey." Donelly's background vocals are heard on several tracks of the 2003 self-titled Throwing Muses reunion album, which she helped promote with public performances as backing vocalist and guitarist for a few concerts in 2003. Boston
post-punk
Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...
band
Mission of Burma
Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. The group formed in 1979 with Roger Miller on guitar, Clint Conley on bass, Peter Prescott on drums, and Martin Swope contributing audiotape manipulation and acting as ...
included Donelly's backing vocals on their reunion album, ''Onoffon'' in 2004.
The same year, she released ''
Whiskey Tango Ghosts
''Whiskey Tango Ghosts'' is the third solo album by Tanya Donelly, released in 2004. The album marks a departure from Donelly's previous pop work in favor of a country and folk-influenced sound. Donelly has described the album as influenced by " ...
'', a sparely arranged, acoustic album laced with Gilbert's
pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
touches. The album's personnel included Steen on piano, Narcizo on drums, and Fisher on guitar, bass, and drums. The album's lyrics explored, in part, marital relationships and family life. Donelly has said the album's minor-key tone was influenced by "a horrible war, a horrible administration, a bleak, mean winter."
She then followed that acoustic album release with three weekend shows of old and new songs performed in 2004 before audiences at The Windham, an old hotel in
Bellows Falls, Vermont
Bellows Falls is an incorporated village located in the town of Rockingham in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,747 at the 2020 census. Bellows Falls is home to the Green Mountain Railroad, a heritage railroad; the ...
. Backing Donelly in concert were Fisher on guitar, Gilbert on pedal steel and acoustic guitar,
Joan Wasser
Joan Wasser (born July 26, 1970) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and producer who releases music as Joan As Police Woman. She began her career playing violin with the Dambuilders and played with Black Beetle, Antony and the Johnsons, a ...
((of the Dambuilders, and Joan as Policewoman),
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...
, Antony and the Johnsons) on violin and backing vocals, Joe McMahon (of Señor Happy and Will Dailey) on upright bass,
Bill Janovitz
Bill Janovitz (born June 3, 1966) is an American musician and writer. He is the singer, guitarist, and songwriter of alternative rock band Buffalo Tom, and has also released three solo albums. Janovitz has written extensively for Allmusic, author ...
(lead singer of Buffalo Tom) contributing vocals, and Arthur Johnson (of
Come
Come may refer to:
*Comè, a city and commune in Benin
*Come (Tenos), an ancient town on Tenos island, Greece
Music
*Come (American band), an American indie rock band formed in 1990
*Come (UK band), a British noise project founded in 1979
**Come ...
) on drums. The performances were recorded by Donelly's manager, veteran producer
Gary Smith of
Fort Apache Studios
Fort Apache Studios is a New England recording studio focusing on alternative rock sessions produced there since 1986.
History
The studio was initially built by a collective begun in 1985 by musician/producer Joe Harvard and members of a band ...
, which helps operate the small concert space and recording room in The Windham's lobby. While Donelly included some of her longtime lyrical allusions to nature imagery, such as bees and honey, in the songs recorded at the Vermont concerts, she said that some of her new material reflected a more direct approach, relying less on symbolic analogy. The topics of religion and spiritual hypocrisy, which first began to interest her after her childhood automobile accident, were reflected in the lyrics to "Kundalini Slide," performed at these concerts. The album of the Vermont performances is titled ''
This Hungry Life
''This Hungry Life'' is the fourth solo album by American singer-songwriter Tanya Donelly, released in 2006. The album was recorded live in front of an audience at a closed hotel in Bellows Falls, Vermont in August 2004.
Track listing
All songs ...
'' and was released by
Eleven Thirty Records
Eleven Thirty Records is an indie label based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and owned by RedEye Distribution. Co-founded in 2004 by A&R Director Stephen Judge and Redeye and Yep Roc Records co-owner Glenn Dicker, the label has released albums ...
on October 17, 2006 in the US and October 24, 2006 in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
.
In June 2005, Donelly mentioned on her official "Slumberland" message board that her future plans included working on a children's compilation album with Boston musicians such as Chris Toppin, writing a book, working with
Mark Eitzel
Mark Eitzel (born January 30, 1959) is an American musician, best known as a songwriter and lead singer of the San Francisco band American Music Club.
Biography
Eitzel spent his formative years in a military family living in Okinawa, Taiwan, Ohi ...
and Greek songwriter Manolis Famellos, and occasionally performing live. She planned to focus future performance plans on a few cities like Boston, New York, and
London
London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, playing live when time permitted as she raised her daughter. In March 2006, she gave birth to another daughter, Harriet Pearl Fisher.
In early 2006, Donelly sang on two songs on the debut EP from the Boston-based band Dylan In The Movies. In October 2006, she recorded a cover of
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...
's "Heart of Gold" with producer Paul Kolderie for the
American Laundromat Records
American Laundromat Records is an independent record label founded in 2004 by Joe Spadaro.
ALR specializes in almost annual indie rock compilation albums, which have included tracks by OK Go, The Dresden Dolls, and The Watson Twins. Compilation t ...
benefit CD titled ''Cinnamon Girl - Women Artists Cover Neil Young for Charity''.
She wrote four songs for the pop girl group
Girl Authority
Girl Authority was an American cover pop girl group. The group consisted of nine girls, at the time, ranging in ages 8 to 13; Jacqueline Laviolette, Carly Grayson, Jessica "Jess" Bonner, Crystal Evans, Kate Barker, Zoë Virant, Jessica Tarr, Gin ...
for their second debut ''
Road Trip
A road trip, sometimes spelled roadtrip, is a long-distance journey on the road. Typically, road trips are long distances travelled by automobile.
History
First road trips by automobile
The world's first recorded long-distance road trip by t ...
'', one of which is titled "This Is My Day". Her daughter, Gracie, is a fan of the group, according to an article in
''The Phoenix''.
Two shows at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on October 6, 2007, were a musical reunion of sorts, as Donelly co-headlined with Hersh.
In 2008, Donelly teamed up with Dylan in the Movies to cover The Cure's "Lovecats" for
American Laundromat Records
American Laundromat Records is an independent record label founded in 2004 by Joe Spadaro.
ALR specializes in almost annual indie rock compilation albums, which have included tracks by OK Go, The Dresden Dolls, and The Watson Twins. Compilation t ...
tribute compilation "Just Like Heaven - a tribute to The Cure".
A 2010 feature in ''
Spin Magazine
''Spin'' (stylized in all caps) is an American music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione, Jr. Now owned by Next Management Partners, the magazine is an online publication since it stopped issuing a print edition in 2012.
Histor ...
'' profiles Donelly's new career as a
postpartum doula.
In December 2010, Donelly teamed up once again with singer and songwriter Brian Sullivan's band, Dylan In The Movies, to release the single "Girl With the Black Tights" on American Laundromat Records. Donelly shares a co-writing credit and sings on the track.
In August 2013, Donelly surprised her audience by announcing a series of extended plays to be issued online. Each release featured songs co-written with friends, musicians and previous collaborators including authors. The first volume contained five songs; "Mass Ave" (for which a video was also released), "Christopher Street", "Let Fall The Sky", "Blame The Muse" and "Meteor Shower". In a rare and extensive interview on a podcast by UK music website The Mouth Magazine, Donelly announced that the series was her way of taking control of an exit strategy as she retired from the music industry.
In early February 2016, the official Belly website announced the group would reform to play shows in Europe the following July and, subsequently, North America. She composed the score for the 2022 animated film ''
Luck
Luck is the phenomenon and belief that defines the experience of improbable events, especially improbably positive or negative ones. The naturalistic interpretation is that positive and negative events may happen at any time, both due to rand ...
''.
Personal life
Donelly married former
Juliana Hatfield
Juliana Hatfield (born July 27, 1967) is an American musician and singer-songwriter from the Boston area, formerly of the indie rock bands Blake Babies, Some Girls (band), Some Girls, and The Lemonheads. She also fronted her own band, The Julia ...
bassist Dean Fisher on September 22, 1996.
They have two daughters.
[
]
Discography
Solo
Albums
* ''Lovesongs for Underdogs
''Lovesongs for Underdogs'' is the solo debut album by American singer Tanya Donelly, who had formerly recorded with Throwing Muses, The Breeders, and Belly. It was released on August 9, 1997. Two singles were released for promotion of the album. ...
'' (1997)
* ''Beautysleep
''Beautysleep'' is the second album by Tanya Donelly, released in 2002.
Tanya's last music video to date was "''Keeping You''". "''The Night You Saved My Life''" was also released to Triple A radio in the U.S.
"Beautysleep" peaked at #88 on the ...
'' (2002)
* ''Whiskey Tango Ghosts
''Whiskey Tango Ghosts'' is the third solo album by Tanya Donelly, released in 2004. The album marks a departure from Donelly's previous pop work in favor of a country and folk-influenced sound. Donelly has described the album as influenced by " ...
'' (2004)
* ''This Hungry Life
''This Hungry Life'' is the fourth solo album by American singer-songwriter Tanya Donelly, released in 2006. The album was recorded live in front of an audience at a closed hotel in Bellows Falls, Vermont in August 2004.
Track listing
All songs ...
'' (2006)
EPs
* ''Sliding & Diving'' (1996)
* ''The Bright Light, disc 1'' (1997)
* ''The Bright Light, disc 2'' (1997)
* ''Pretty Deep, disc 1'' (1997)
* ''Pretty Deep, disc 2'' (1997)
* ''Sleepwalk'' (2001)
* ''Swan Song Series, Vol. 1'' (2013)
* ''Swan Song Series, Vol. 2'' (2013)
* ''Swan Song Series, Vol. 3'' (2013)
* ''Swan Song Series, Vol. 4'' (2014)
* ''Swan Song Series, Vol. 5'' (2014)
Other albums
* '' Beautysleep and Lovesongs Demos'' (2006)
Tanya Donelly and the Parkington Sisters
* '' Tanya Donelly and the Parkington Sisters'' (2020)
References
Other sources
* Ankeny, Jason. "Tanya Donelly".''Allmusic''. Retrieved January 29, 2006.
* Evans, Liz (1994). ''Women, Sex and Rock 'N' Roll: In Their Own Words''. Pandora. .
* Fortier, James
Tanya Donelly: Storyboard to the singer/songwriter's career
Retrieved April 20, 2005.
*
(January 26, 2005). ''Boston Beats''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Koradi, Reto (February 27, 1995)
''Consumable''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Krinsky, David (February 20, 2002)
"Tanya Donelly Gets Her Beauty Sleep: College rocker grows up on second solo effort"
''Rolling Stone''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Le, Vinh (1996–2005)
''Vinh Le's Belly/Tanya Donelly Pages''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Le, Vinh (1996–2005)
''Vinh Le's Belly/Tanya Donelly Pages''. Retrieved April 26, 2005.
* "Lovesongs for Underdogs Credits" ''Allmusic''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Milano, Brett (November 21, 1996)
"On Her Own: Tanya Donelly Begins Life After Belly"
''Boston Phoenix''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* Obrecht, Jas (March 1995). "Belly Up! The Rise of Tanya Donelly & Tom Gorman." ''Guitar Player''.
* Phares, Heather (2002). "Beautysleep Review" ''Allmusic''. Retrieved April 13, 2005.
* White, Timothy (January 16, 1993). "Discovering Belly's Personal Politics." ''Billboard''.
"Tanya Donelly's This Hungry Life Set for October 17th Release."
''Eleven Thirty Records Website''. Retrieved July 25, 2006.
"Tanya Donelly - The Mouthcast"
''The Mouth Magazine''. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
External links
4AD artist website
Beggars Banquet and Beggars Group labels
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Donelly, Tanya
1966 births
Living people
4AD artists
American women singer-songwriters
American women rock singers
American rock guitarists
American rock songwriters
Musicians from Newport, Rhode Island
Songwriters from Rhode Island
The Breeders members
Throwing Muses members
Guitarists from Rhode Island
20th-century American guitarists
Remote Control Records artists
20th-century American women guitarists