Ian Dench
Encyclopedia
Ian Dench is a British
songwriter
and musician
. Dench was the guitarist
and principal songwriter for EMF
, who scored a major international hit
reaching number 1 in the United States
with "Unbelievable" in 1991.
He recently co-wrote 'Bedroom Hymns' from Florence and the Machine's 'Ceremonials' album and is writing with Mary-Jess Leaverland and Anna F.
In 2007 they wrote the duet "Beautiful Liar
" for Beyoncé
and "Shakira
", and "Tattoo" for American Idol
winner Jordin Sparks
.
Beyoncé's 2008 album I Am Sasha Fierce saw a further three Dench/ Ghost collaborations: Disappear, Ave Maria, and Satellites.
From March 2009 till November 2010 he was Vice President of A&R at Epic Records in New York where he A&R'd albums by Alice Smith and Augustana and signed acts Progress in Color and HeyHiHello.
Dench won an Ivor Novello Award for "Beautiful Liar" in the Best Selling British Song Category in 2008. He had been nominated in the same category for "Unbelievable" in 1991.
In 2009 he was nominated for a Golden Globe as co writer of "Once in a Lifetime" sung by Beyonce for the film "Cadillac Records".
He was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2010 , one as co-producer of two tracks on Beyoncé's album "I Am... Sasha Fierce" which was nominated as Album of the Year and the other for "Once In A Lifetime", which he co-wrote with Amanda, Scott McFarnon
, The Rural and Beyoncé.
He co-wrote "Colours" on the Prodigy's 2009 album, "Invaders Must Die", and "Red" a top 5 hit for Daniel Merriweather in the UK in May 2009.
"Gypsy" another collaboration with Amanda Ghost, was the third single from the album "She Wolf" by Shakira.
Dench began his music career playing in a punk
band although his father, Harold Dench a classical guitarist, later taught Ian classical guitar. Dench was also a promising artist who dropped out of Ruskin Art College, Oxford University to pursue a full time career in music. Before EMF, he was a member of Gloucester
based band Apple Mosaic who were signed to Virgin Records
. After leaving EMF, he found independent success with the band, Whistler
, signed to Wiiija Records. Whistler released 2 albums, Whistler and Faith in the Morning.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. Dench was the guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and principal songwriter for EMF
EMF (band)
EMF were an indie dance band from the United Kingdom. The band, from the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, came to prominence at the beginning of the 1990s. During its initial eight year run , EMF had released three studio albums and had gone on hiatus and reformed twice...
, who scored a major international hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
reaching number 1 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with "Unbelievable" in 1991.
He recently co-wrote 'Bedroom Hymns' from Florence and the Machine's 'Ceremonials' album and is writing with Mary-Jess Leaverland and Anna F.
Biography
He has been working with Amanda Ghost since 1995 when they started writing for her Ghost Stories album which was released in 2000 on Warner Bros. RecordsWarner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
In 2007 they wrote the duet "Beautiful Liar
Beautiful Liar
"Beautiful Liar" is a song recorded by American R&B singer Beyoncé and Colombian Latin pop singer Shakira. The song was written by Knowles, Amanda Ghost, Ian Dench, and Stargate members Mikkel S. Eriksen and Tor Erik Hermansen, and produced by Stargate and Knowles for the re-release of Knowles'...
" for Beyoncé
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...
and "Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
", and "Tattoo" for American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
winner Jordin Sparks
Jordin Sparks
Jordin Brianna Sparks is an American pop / R&B singer-songwriter and actress. She hails from Glendale, Arizona who rose to fame as the winner of the sixth season of American Idol. Sparks won when she was 17 years old, making her the youngest winner in Idol history...
.
Beyoncé's 2008 album I Am Sasha Fierce saw a further three Dench/ Ghost collaborations: Disappear, Ave Maria, and Satellites.
From March 2009 till November 2010 he was Vice President of A&R at Epic Records in New York where he A&R'd albums by Alice Smith and Augustana and signed acts Progress in Color and HeyHiHello.
Dench won an Ivor Novello Award for "Beautiful Liar" in the Best Selling British Song Category in 2008. He had been nominated in the same category for "Unbelievable" in 1991.
In 2009 he was nominated for a Golden Globe as co writer of "Once in a Lifetime" sung by Beyonce for the film "Cadillac Records".
He was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2010 , one as co-producer of two tracks on Beyoncé's album "I Am... Sasha Fierce" which was nominated as Album of the Year and the other for "Once In A Lifetime", which he co-wrote with Amanda, Scott McFarnon
Scott McFarnon
Scott McFarnon is a singer and songwriter from southeast London, England. After spending many years writing and performing in relative obscurity in London, he has recently begun collaborating with some of the biggest superstars in the music business....
, The Rural and Beyoncé.
He co-wrote "Colours" on the Prodigy's 2009 album, "Invaders Must Die", and "Red" a top 5 hit for Daniel Merriweather in the UK in May 2009.
"Gypsy" another collaboration with Amanda Ghost, was the third single from the album "She Wolf" by Shakira.
Dench began his music career playing in a punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band although his father, Harold Dench a classical guitarist, later taught Ian classical guitar. Dench was also a promising artist who dropped out of Ruskin Art College, Oxford University to pursue a full time career in music. Before EMF, he was a member of Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
based band Apple Mosaic who were signed to Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
. After leaving EMF, he found independent success with the band, Whistler
Whistler (band)
Whistler were a British indie band who released two albums on the Wiiija label. Formed by Ian Dench after leaving EMF, the band consisted of Dench, Kerry Shaw and James Topham .Both of the band's albums feature contributions from Tim Weller and...
, signed to Wiiija Records. Whistler released 2 albums, Whistler and Faith in the Morning.