Howe Gelb (born October 22, 1956, in
Wilkes-Barre
Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...
, Pennsylvania) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer based in
Tucson
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
, Arizona.
Projects
Gelb's approach to music is collaborative and he has recorded with a number of side projects. In a 2004 interview with Gelb, ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' wrote "Gelb's way of dealing with it was to treat
Giant Sand
Giant Sand is an American musical group from Tucson, Arizona, United States. Its most constant member is singer-songwriter Howe Gelb. The group started as Giant Sandworms in the late 1970s post-punk and paisley underground scenes. They later s ...
(not to be confused with his 1970s electro-rock band Giant Sandworms) as a loose, uncompetitive, mutually supportive musical collective, a place for friends to hang out and play. 'I just liked the idea of having this kind of removed world, this brotherhood—the idea of a band being something more than a front person or dealing with the throes of fame.'"
In 2013, he worked with the Scottish singer/songwriter
KT Tunstall
Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained attention with a 2004 live solo performance of her song " Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on '' Later... with Jools Holland''.
Th ...
on her fourth studio album ''
Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon
''Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon'' is the fourth studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall. It was released on 10 June 2013 in the United Kingdom, entering the UK Albums Chart at Number 14, and on 6 August 2013 in the United Sta ...
''. He co-wrote and co-produced, and sang on several songs. His own solo album entitled ''The Coincidentalist'' was released on New West Records in November 2013.
Image:howe-gelb_01.jpg
Image:howe-gelb_02.jpg
Image:howe-gelb_04.jpg
Discography
Giant Sand
*''Valley of Rain'' (1985)
*''Ballad of a Thin Line Man'' (1986)
*''Storm'' (1987)
*''The Love Songs'' (1988)
*''Long Stem Rant'' (1989)
*''Swerve'' (1990)
*''
Ramp
An inclined plane, also known as a ramp, is a flat supporting surface tilted at an angle from the vertical direction, with one end higher than the other, used as an aid for raising or lowering a load. The inclined plane is one of the six clas ...
'' (1991)
*''Center of the Universe'' (1992)
*''Stromausfall'' (1993)
*''Purge & Slouch'' (1994)
*''Glum'' (1994)
*''Goods and Services'' (1995)
*''Backyard Barbecue Broadcast'' (1995)
*''Build Your Own Night It's Easy'' (1997)
*''
Chore of Enchantment
''Chore of Enchantment'' is a studio album by the alternative rock band Giant Sand. It was released in March 2000 by Thrill Jockey.
Reception
The British music journalism publication ''NME'' praised the album's "raw but tender empathy in songs f ...
'' (2000)
*''The Rock Opera Years'' (2000)
*''Unsungglum'' (2001)
*''
Cover Magazine'' (2002)
*''Selections Circa 1990-2000'' (Compilation, 2001)
*''Infiltration of Dreams'' (2003)
*''Too Many Spare Parts in the Yard Too Close at Hand'' (2003)
*''Is All Over the Map'' (2004)
*''Provisions'' (2008)
*''Provisional Supplement'' (2008)
*''Blurry Blue Mountain'' (2010)
*''Tucson'' (2012)
*''Heartbreak Pass'' (2015)
*''The Sun Set Vol.1
inyl LP' (2017)
*''Returns To Valley Of Rain'' (2018)
Arizona Amp and Alternator
*''
Arizona Amp and Alternator'' (2005)
*''The Open Road'' (2016)
Howe Gelb
*''Dreaded Brown Recluse'' (1991)
*''Hisser'' (1998)
*''Upside Down Home'' (1998)
*''Upside Down Home 2000'' (2000)
*''Confluence'' (2001)
*''Lull Some Piano'' (2001)
*''The Listener'' (2003)
*''Upside Down Home 2002'' (2003)
*''Ogle Some Piano'' (2004)
*''The Listener's Coffee Companion'' (2004)
*''Upside Down Home 2004: Year of the Monkey'' (2004)
*Sno Angel Like You'' (2006)
*''Fourcast: Flurries'' (2006)
*''Upside Down Home 2007: Return to San Pedro'' (2007)
*''Spun Some Piano'' (2008)
*Sno Angel Winging It (Live album)'' (2009)
*''Alegrías'' (2010)
*''Melted Wires'' (2010)
*''Snarl Some Piano'' (2011)
*''Dust Bowl'' (2013)
*''
The Coincidentalist'' (2013)
*''Future Standards'' (2016)
*''Further Standards'' (2017)
ith Lonna Kelley*''Cocoon'' (2020)
The Band of Blacky Ranchette
*''The Band of Blacky Ranchette'' (1985)
*''Heartland'' (1986)
*''Sage Advice'' (1990)
*''
Still Lookin' Good to Me
''Still Lookin' Good to Me'' is a 2003 album by the Band of Blacky Ranchette. The album features contributions from John Convertino, Joey Burns, Neko Case, Richard Buckner, Cat Power, M. Ward, Kurt Wagner, Jason Lytle and Bob Neuwirth.
Track ...
'' (2003)
OP8
OP8 is the musical collaboration of the multi-instrumentalist Lisa Germano, Howe Gelb, Joey Burns and John Convertino. Joey Burns and John Convertino form the band Calexico together and have both been members of Gelb's Giant Sand.
The only alb ...
*''
Slush
Slush, also called slush ice, is a slurry mixture of small ice crystals (e.g., snow) and liquid water.
In the natural environment, slush forms when ice or snow melts or during mixed precipitation. This often mixes with dirt and other pollutant ...
'' (1997)
Filmography
*''Drunken Bees'' (1996) – Giant Sand documentary by Marianne Dissard
*''Looking for a Thrill: An Anthology of Inspiration'' (2005) – Howe Gelb interviewed
*''High and Dry: Where the Desert Meets Rock and Roll'' (2006) – documentary which includes music and interviews with Giant Sand members
*''This Band Has No Members'' (2006) – Howe Gelb solo concert film of his Japan tour in 2005
*''
Ingenious'' (2009) - feature film soundtrack
*''
Jackie'' (2012) - actor, "Paul"
References
External links
Ow Om Records*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gelb, Howe
Living people
American country singer-songwriters
Musicians from Tucson, Arizona
American alternative country singers
American indie rock musicians
1956 births
Country musicians from Arizona
Singer-songwriters from Arizona