Ivor Arthur Davies, AM (born 22 May 1955), known professionally as Iva Davies, is an Australian singer, songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Davies' music career spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the early 1980s as co-founder and lead singer of

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Icehouse, becoming one of Australia's top rock stars of that decade. He is the only member who has been with Icehouse throughout its entire history. In addition to his work with Icehouse, Davies has made music for television series and films, most notably as the composer for the film '' Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World''. He has also had a solo career which included work on the

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' ...

'' The Berlin Tapes'' with Icehouse.

Early life

Davies was born on 22 May 1955 in

Wauchope, New South Wales Wauchope () is a town in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It is within the boundaries of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council area. Wauchope is inland on the Hastings River and the Oxley Highway west of Port Macquar ...

and was first attracted to bagpipes at the age of six. He played

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

with the

Sydney Youth Orchestra Sydney Youth Orchestras (SYO) provides a pathway for hundreds of young musicians from beginner to pre-professional to connect, create and champion orchestral music. Musicians are welcome to audition annually and are placed in orchestras and ens ...

and was a member of the

Epping Boys High School Epping Boys High School is a government high school located at Marsfield, New South Wales, Australia, which was established in 1957. The current principal is Jessica Schadel. Achievements As well as high achievements in the creative and perfor ...

Band where he also played the

euphonium The euphonium is a medium-sized, 3 or 4-valve, often compensating, conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument that derives its name from the Ancient Greek word ''euphōnos'', meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced" ( ''eu'' means "well" ...

. He went on to be an oboe and composition student at the

New South Wales Conservatorium of Music The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music and known by the moniker "The Con") is a heritage-listed music school in Macquarie Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the ol ...

, but dropped out at age 21 to pursue a professional career. Three floors down in the YMCA Basement in Sydney was a regular folk and acoustic music venue which featured artists such as Bob Hudson, Mike McClellan, Al Ward, Pat and Geoff Drummond, Al Head, Marion Henderson,

Margret RoadKnight Margret RoadKnight (born in July 1943) is an Australian singer-guitarist. In a career spanning more than five decades, she has sung in a wide variety of styles including blues, jazz, gospel, comedy, cabaret, and folk. In January 1976 she relea ...

and Graham Lowndes. Davies was influenced by the music.

Career

1970s

Davies first performed professionally as a 16-year-old musician with the Lucy Fields Jug Band, led by Lindsay Campbell around 1971/72. The band secured a recording contract with M7 Records, but the company changed hands shortly thereafter and the band's album was never released. In 1974, Davies performed Handel's Concerto for Oboe in E♭ major with Strathfield Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Richard Gill. Davies would later use his woodwind skills on some tracks with his band Icehouse, playing oboe on several albums and adding

cor anglais The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...

to "Man of Colours", the title track of their sixth studio album. In July 1975 Davies released his first single, “Leading Lady” on the RCA label. In early 1977, Davies was working as a part-time cleaner at a squash court in

Lindfield, New South Wales Lindfield is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney Central Business District and is in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council. East Lindfi ...

managed by bass player Keith Welsh's mother. Davies and Welsh got together to form the band Flowers, rehearsing in a house next door to same squash court. In 1977, Davies re-established an old acquaintance with Cameron Allan, the director of Sydney-based independent label

Regular Records Regular Records was an Australian record label based in Sydney that operated from 1978 until the mid-1990s. Regular Records released music by acts including Mental As Anything, Icehouse (band), Icehouse, and The Cockroaches. The Regular Records ...

, and Flowers signed with the label in early 1977. And in 1980 their debut album ''Icehouse'' containing the song " Can't Help Myself" reached the Top Five, making it the highest-selling debut album in Australia. To take advantage of this success, the band changed its name to Icehouse in 1981. The name was taken from a cold flat Davies lived in and the strange building across the road populated by itinerant people.

1980s

In 1983, Davies with Icehouse went on a European tour with David Bowie. In 1985, Davies and fellow Icehouse member Bob Kretschmer worked on the ballet '' Boxes'' with the

Sydney Dance Company Sydney Dance Company is a contemporary dance company in Australia. The company has performed on stages around the world, including the Sydney Opera House in Australia, the Joyce Theater in New York, the Shanghai Grand Theatre in China, and the ...

. In addition to scoring the ballet, they also co-wrote the script with

Graeme Murphy Graeme Lloyd Murphy AO (born 2 November 1950) is an Australian choreographer. With his fellow dancer (and wife since 2004) Janet Vernon, he guided Sydney Dance Company to become one of Australia's most successful and best-known dance compani ...

. ''Boxes'' opened at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

in December, and Davies performed in an acting/singing/dancing role to sold-out crowds for three weeks straight. 1985 also saw Davies win an APRA Music Award for Most Performed Australasian Music for Film for ''

Razorback The feral pig is a domestic pig which has gone feral, meaning it lives in the wild. They are found mostly in the Americas and Australia. Razorback and wild hog are Americanisms applied to feral pigs or boar-pig hybrids. Definition A feral pi ...

''. Davies was an early adopter of the Fairlight which he used to compose the music of the film. His score has been described as "pioneering" and "an important contribution to Australian film scoring". In 1988, Davies and co-collaborator

John Oates John William Oates (born April 7, 1948) is an American musician, best known as half of the rock and soul duo Hall & Oates, with Daryl Hall. He has played rock, R&B, and soul music, acting as a guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer ...

won an APRA Music Award for the Icehouse song " Electric Blue" (from the ''

Man of Colours A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromos ...

'' album) in the Most Performed Australasian Popular Work category. On 25 January 1988, Icehouse performed "Electric Blue" at the Royal Command, New South Wales Bicentennial Concert in front of the

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

and

Princess of Wales Princess of Wales (Welsh: ''Tywysoges Cymru'') is a courtesy title used since the 14th century by the wife of the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. The current title-holder is Catherine (née Middleton). The title was firs ...

at the

Sydney Entertainment Centre Sydney Entertainment Centre (later known as Qantas Credit Union Arena) was a multi-purpose arena located in Haymarket, Sydney, Australia. It opened in May 1983, to replace Sydney Stadium, which had been demolished in 1970 to make way for the E ...

1990s

In the early 1990s, the Sydney Dance Company worked on creating a work which became the ballet ''Berlin''. As well as recording the score to the ballet, Davies performed these songs live with Icehouse at each show. He was an intrinsic part of the ballet, in a role similar to the one he played in ''Boxes''. He was successful in creating a translation from the dancers to the audience. ''Berlin'' was an instant success and ran for two seasons.

2000s

In 2003, Davies travelled to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to record the soundtrack to the

Peter Weir Peter Lindsay Weir ( ; born August 21, 1944) is a retired Australian film director. He's known for directing films crossing various genres over forty years with films such as '' Picnic at Hanging Rock'' (1975), ''Gallipoli'' (1981), ''Witness ...

film '' Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World'' with Christopher Gordon and

Richard Tognetti Richard Leo Tognetti AO (born 4 August 1965) is a leading Australian musician recognised internationally as a violin soloist, ensemble player, leader, composer and arranger, conductor and artistic director. He is currently artistic dire ...

. Together, they won the 2004 APRA/ AGSC Screen Music Award in the Best Soundtrack Album category. In 2005, Davies scored the mini-series ''

The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant ''The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant'' is a 2005 miniseries loosely based on the life of Mary Bryant, an English girl from Cornwall who in this telling was convicted of petty theft (though the historical Mary Bryant was transported for a viole ...

''. On 6 November 2006, he won the 2006 APRA/AGSC Screen Music Award in the Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie category. From 15 June 2008, Davies was a judge on

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

TV series ''

Battle of the Choirs ''Battle of the Choirs'' was an Australian reality show, reality talent show, talent competition that premiered on the Seven Network on 15 June 2008. The show was hosted by David Koch (television presenter), David Koch, with the judging panel co ...

''; his band Icehouse performed "

Great Southern Land "Great Southern Land" is a song by Australian rock band Icehouse. It was released on 9 August 1982 as the lead single from their second studio album '' Primitive Man''. It peaked at No. 5 on the Australian Singles Chart, it was later featured ...

" on the grand final show won by University of Newcastle Chamber Choir.

Personal life

Davies currently lives in

Whale Beach, New South Wales Whale Beach is a northern beachside suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Whale Beach is located 40 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Northern Beaches Council, ...

. He married Tonia Kelly in 1990, then principal dancer at the

, but divorced in 2010. From the marriage he has two children, Brynn (born 1993) and Evan (born 1996).

Discography

Albums

Awards and nominations

In 2013, Davis was honoured in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

as a "Member (AM) in the General Division" for services to music, entertainment and the community

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. , - ,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, ''Razorback '' , Most Performed Australasian Music for Film , , - , 1989 , "Electric Blue" (Iva Davies, John Oates) by Icehouse , Most Performed Australasian Popular Work , , - , rowspan="2" ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, rowspan="2" , ''Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World'' (Iva Davies, Christopher Gordon, Richard Tognetti) , Best Feature Film Score , , - , Best Soundtrack Album , , - ,

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, ''The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant'' (Iva Davis) , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie ,

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

, ''The Berlin Tapes'' , rowspan="2" , Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album , , rowspan="2" , ARIA Award previous winners. , - ,

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

, ''The Ghost of Time'' , , -

Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame

The Australian Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 2004 to honour the lifetime achievements of some of Australia's greatest songwriters. , - , 2018 , himself , Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame ,

TV Week / Countdown Awards

Countdown A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...

'' was an Australian pop music TV series on national broadcaster ABC-TV from 1974 to 1987; it presented music awards from 1979 to 1987, initially in conjunction with magazine ''

TV Week ''TV Week'' is a weekly Australian magazine that provides television program listings information and highlights, as well as television-related news. Content ranges from previews for upcoming storylines of popular television programs, particu ...

''. The TV Week / Countdown Awards were a combination of popular-voted and peer-voted awards. , - , 1980 , himself , Best Recorded Songwriter , , - , rowspan="3" , 1982 , rowspan="2" , himself , Best Songwriter , , - , Best Australian Producer , , - , himself , Most Popular Male Performer , , - , 1984 , himself , Most Popular Male Performer , , -

References

External links

Flowers – Icehouse
The new official website as of April 2011
Spellbound – Icehouse
News, interviews, discography, photo gallery * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Iva 1955 births APRA Award winners Living people Icehouse (band) members Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni Australian electronic musicians Australian new wave musicians Australian rock singers Australian singer-songwriters Musicians from New South Wales Australian rock guitarists Australian multi-instrumentalists Members of the Order of Australia Australian people of Welsh descent People educated at Epping Boys High School Singers from Sydney Synth-pop singers 20th-century Australian musicians 21st-century Australian musicians Rock oboists Australian male guitarists Australian male singer-songwriters