Damon Gough
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Damon Michael Gough (born 2 October 1969), known by the stage name Badly Drawn Boy, is an English indie singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Gough chose his stage name from a character in the show ''Sam and his Magic Ball'', which he saw on TV at a party in Trafford, Greater Manchester, in 1995. Before he thought of using this name he made some business cards, each one unique, with a printed picture of a drawing by his nephew and a small collage by Gough. A chance meeting with
Andy Votel Andrew "Andy Votel" Shallcross (born 4 November 1975 in Marple Bridge, Stockport, England) is an English musician, DJ, record producer, graphic designer and co-founder of Twisted Nerve Records and the reissue label Finders Keepers Records. ...
at the Generation X bar in Manchester, where Gough's friends Scott Abraham and Damon Hayhurst were contributing to an exhibition by the Space Monkey Clothing Company and Votel was DJing, led to the foundation of
Twisted Nerve Records Twisted Nerve Records was a Manchester, England-based record label, founded by Damon Gough (AKA Badly Drawn Boy) and Andy Votel. Best known for being the home of Badly Drawn Boy and Alfie (band), Alfie, the label was active between 1997 and 20 ...
. In 2002, '' Q'' magazine named Badly Drawn Boy in their list of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die", although this was as part of a sub-list of "5 Bands That Could Go Either Way" on account of Gough's tendency to talk and tell stories for extended periods in concert rather than play songs.


History


Early years

Gough, though born in
Dunstable Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...
, Bedfordshire, grew up in the Breightmet area of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. He cites American singer-songwriter
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...
as his music hero. His recording career began in September 1997 with the five track vinyl release "EP1". This was distributed among friends and family members. In April 1998, Gough released his second EP, "EP2". This had one track less than its predecessor but twice as many copies were pressed. The highlight track, "I Love You All", was later transferred to a music box which was released alongside the EP. The box plays eleven seconds of the song and is considered much rarer than the record itself due to its limited production. Gough's third EP, "EP3", was released in November 1998 on both CD and vinyl formats, and was the first release in what became a long-term partnership with
XL Recordings XL Recordings is a British independent record label founded in 1989 by Tim Palmer and Nick Halkes. It has been ran and co-owned by Richard Russell since 1996. It forms part of the Beggars Group. Although only releasing an average of six album ...
. In the same year he collaborated with Unkle for their first album ''
Psyence Fiction ''Psyence'' is the second album by Japanese musician hide, released on September 2, 1996. It topped the Oricon Albums Chart and was certified double platinum by the RIAJ for sales over 500,000 copies. The album was re-released on the Japan onl ...
''. "Road Movie" was released as a live recording with the band Doves. The B-side to the single was another track from the EP, ''My Friend Cubilas''. Music videos were recorded for both tracks.


Mainstream success: 1999–2002

''It Came from the Ground'' was the next EP, released in March 1999 on CD and vinyl. The style of this recording focused on woodland environments, an aspect displayed in both the cover art and the title track's video. Also released during this period was the single "Whirlpool". An instrumental was released on vinyl in April 1999. Gough's last EP, ''Once Around the Block'', was released in August 1999 in two vinyl formats and one CD edition. The release is almost short enough to be considered a single. Following the success of his early EPs, Gough's first album, '' The Hour of Bewilderbeast'', was released in June 2000, accompanied by four singles (including a re-release of ''Once Around the Block''). The album was critically acclaimed and Badly Drawn Boy was successful in winning the 2000 Mercury Music Prize, beating his contemporaries Doves to the £20,000 prize. The album sold well (300,000 copies) and is widely considered to be his defining work. The Badly Drawn Boy band throughout this successful period consisted of Matt Wardle (keyboards/vocals), Robin File (guitar), Sean McCann (bass guitar) latterly replaced by the ex-Smiths bass guitarist Andy Rourke, Dave Verner (drums). After a short break, Gough returned to score the film adaptation of
Nick Hornby Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born 17 April 1957) is an English writer and lyricist. He is best known for his memoir ''Fever Pitch'' and novels '' High Fidelity'' and '' About a Boy'', all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work f ...
's novel '' About a Boy''. Impressed by his past work, the Weitz brothers asked Gough to score the film, a task which he undertook alone, with the assistance of producer Steve McLaughlin. Three singles from the album were released during 2002. His third album, '' Have You Fed the Fish?'', introduced more guitars and an increasingly mainstream pop sound which was not welcomed by all critics. The album is a play on Gough's minor celebrity status. Another three singles and a long American tour accompanied the album. The single " You Were Right" received heavy airplay on
BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
, became his first UK top ten single and includes lyrical references to music icons such as
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
and
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
.


Later years

After his long spell in America, Gough suffered from homesickness and decided to record his next album closer to home. Recorded at Moolah Rouge studios in
Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...
, Greater Manchester, ''
One Plus One Is One ''One Plus One Is One'' is the fourth studio album by Badly Drawn Boy, released in 2004. It is his last album for XL Recordings. Track listing #"One Plus One Is One" – 4:18 #"Easy Love" – 3:02 #"Summertime in Wintertime" – 3:02 #"This I ...
'' was a portrait of his personal life. Documenting a death of a close friend and the loss of a grandfather in the Battle of Normandy, the album was released in 2004. It was not a great commercial success, and Gough decided to leave his contract with XL Recordings after only one single was released. He then signed to
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 conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
. Two years went by before ''
Born in the U.K. ''Born in the U.K.'' is the fifth album released by the singer-songwriter Badly Drawn Boy, real name Damon Gough, released on 16 October 2006. The album's title is a reference to Bruce Springsteen’s 1984 album ''Born in the U.S.A.''. Gough is ...
'', which aimed to explain Gough's experience of growing up in the United Kingdom. The album was promoted with a small UK tour, profits from which were donated to
Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...
, a charity which "offers the chance for thousands of people to use music to achieve something together, which is an idea that gets me excited", said Gough. Gough also toured the US behind the album. The album '' Is There Nothing We Could Do?'', with music taken from and inspired by the film, '' The Fattest Man in Britain'', was released on his own BDB Records label in 2009. His seventh album, '' It's What I'm Thinking Pt.1 – Photographing Snowflakes'', the first of a planned trilogy of albums all to be released under the title ''It's What I'm Thinking'', was released in October 2010. In 2011, a portrait of Gough painted by British artist Joe Simpson was exhibited around the UK including a solo exhibition at The Royal Albert Hall. In March 2012, he released another soundtrack, for '' Being Flynn'', directed by Paul Weitz who had worked with Gough previously on the soundtrack album ''About a Boy''. In July 2015, to mark the fifteenth anniversary of the release of ''The Hour of the Bewilderbeast'', Gough undertook a short UK tour. In 2020 he released his first studio album for 10 years, '' Banana Skin Shoes''.


Discography

*'' The Hour of Bewilderbeast'' (2000) *'' About a Boy'' (2002) *'' Have You Fed the Fish?'' (2002) *''
One Plus One Is One ''One Plus One Is One'' is the fourth studio album by Badly Drawn Boy, released in 2004. It is his last album for XL Recordings. Track listing #"One Plus One Is One" – 4:18 #"Easy Love" – 3:02 #"Summertime in Wintertime" – 3:02 #"This I ...
'' (2004) *''
Born in the U.K. ''Born in the U.K.'' is the fifth album released by the singer-songwriter Badly Drawn Boy, real name Damon Gough, released on 16 October 2006. The album's title is a reference to Bruce Springsteen’s 1984 album ''Born in the U.S.A.''. Gough is ...
'' (2006) *'' Is There Nothing We Could Do?'' (2009) *'' It's What I'm Thinking Pt.1 – Photographing Snowflakes'' (2010) * ''Being Flynn'' (2012) * '' Banana Skin Shoes'' (2020)


Documentary and media appearances

There have been three documentaries made about Badly Drawn Boy: ''Open Map'' in 2007, ''Ipso Facto'' in 2010, and ''About A Badly Drawn Boy''. The first two tour documentaries remain unreleased, while the last, about Gough and his debut album '' The Hour of Bewilderbeast'', was released in 2018. In December 2015, Badly Drawn Boy appeared on a celebrity edition of Mastermind. His specialist subject was the singer Bruce Springsteen. In October 2017, he had a cameo role in the final episode of ''
Cold Feet Cold feet is a phrase that refers to a person not going through with an action, particularly one which requires long term commitment, due to fear, uncertainty, and doubt. A person is said to be "getting cold feet" when, after previously committin ...
'' (Series 7) where he played a busker.


References


External links

* *
Open Map
' *
Ipso Facto
' {{Authority control 1969 births English male singer-songwriters English buskers English male singers Living people Musicians from Manchester Musicians from the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton People from Dunstable XL Recordings artists