John Southworth (musician)
Encyclopedia
John Southworth is an English
-Canadian singer-songwriter. His style encompasses a range of popular song genres, from oldies-radio to folk, 80’s pop to cabaret. New York Press
wrote that his "capacity for a wide range of antiquated styles seems to have emerged out of a time vacuum" and described him as “delightfully eccentric.” Rich Terfry of CBC Radio 2 said, “John is to music what Guy Maddin
is to film.”
, West Sussex
, England. He is the son of U.K pop producer/songwriter Peter Shelley
, who wrote and produced numerous U.K/European hits for Alvin Stardust
and as a solo artist in the seventies. At age eight, he moved with his family to Vancouver, Canada, and then a few years later to Toronto. Southworth first started playing guitar at age ten, and at age sixteen began writing poetry and songs. He attended Upper Canada College
, but left before his last year to attend a local high school, Northern Secondary.
Southworth’s signature debut album "Mars Pennsylvania", co-produced with Jono Grant, was released in 1996 on Water Street/AM Records in his native Canada, and later in 1998, on Bar None Records in the U.S and Quattro in Japan. The record received rave critical acclaim. One reviewer said, “If Burt Bacharach and Bobby Vinton had a sexually ambiguous alien love child, John Southworth would be it. Damn odd music. But catchy and wonderful at the same time.” Exclaim Magazine called it “the most original Canadian debut album since Mary Margaret O’Hara’s ‘Miss America’”; the Toronto Star called him a “pop poet”.
Sedona Arizona & Banff Springs Transylvania & Rose Milk Appalachia E.P 1999-2001
In 1999 Southworth released the high-energy lo-fi “Sedona Arizona”, produced by fellow Canadian cohort Hawksley Workman
. Both “Sedona” and the self-produced “Banff Springs Transylvania (2000)” were released only in Canada on Water Street/Outside Music and Perimeter Records/Universal respectively. The folk-orchestral “Banff” contained a duet with Mary Margaret O’Hara on “Cat Mountain”. To promote these records, Southworth performed theatrical shows in white face with a three-piece bluegrass band. An apartment recording of the bluegrass Sedona songs would later surface on the self-released “Rose Milk Appalachia” EP in 2001.
Yosemite & The Pillowmaker w/The South Seas 2004-07
“Yosemite” was recorded with a group of Toronto jazz and avant-garde improv musicians, consisting of Jean Martin (drums), Justin Haynes (guitar) and Andrew Downing (bass), later dubbed by Southworth as ‘The South Seas’. To promote “Yosemite”, Southworth took on a persona he called “the lost child of the railroad” and completed a cross-country Canadian tour by train. Inspired by Nature artists like Andy Goldsworthy, he planted ceremonial turnip seeds along the way.
In 2006, Southworth and ‘The South Seas’ recorded “The Pillowmaker”. The record was co-produced with drummer Jean Martin and featured nineteen songs. Two of the songs have since garnered cover versions by Canadian artists Sarah Slean
(“Eyes Are The Flowers” on the upcoming “Black Flowers” CD with The Art of Time Ensemble), as well as Veda Hille
and Kim Barlow
’s CBC Radio duet of “We Can Live Life”. ‘The Pillowmaker’ was digitally released on Minnesota-based Grimsey Records in 2007.
Mama Tevatron 2009
Southworth’s sixth record “Mama Tevatron” was released on Dead Daisy Records in Canada in October 2009. On his website, Southworth has described “Mama” as “divine and savage, an epic medicinal leech”.
”; he and Hawksley also co-wrote “Never Lost My Sight” for Canadian R+B artist Jully Black
’s recent CD “Revival”. Recently, he has contributed a song ("Bcc") for Buck 65
's "20 Odd Years" album.
Southworth has taken part in the last three Art of Time Ensemble’s Source and Inspiration concerts at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, contributing original songs inspired by select Schumann, Schubert, and Korngold pieces.
Video/film
Southworth has directed Bravo-funded videos for “Life Is Unbelievable” and “First Of May”, as well as super-8 videos for “Pineapple Shoes”, “Simple Simple Boy”, and “Sunday Brunch Buffet”.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
-Canadian singer-songwriter. His style encompasses a range of popular song genres, from oldies-radio to folk, 80’s pop to cabaret. New York Press
New York Press
New York Press was a free alternative weekly in New York City, that was published from 1988 to 2011. During its lifetime, it was the main competitor to the Village Voice...
wrote that his "capacity for a wide range of antiquated styles seems to have emerged out of a time vacuum" and described him as “delightfully eccentric.” Rich Terfry of CBC Radio 2 said, “John is to music what Guy Maddin
Guy Maddin
Guy Maddin, OM is a Canadian screenwriter, director, cinematographer and film editor of both features and short films from Winnipeg, Manitoba...
is to film.”
Early years
John Southworth was born in CuckfieldCuckfield
Cuckfield is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester. Nearby towns include Haywards Heath to the southeast and Burgess...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, England. He is the son of U.K pop producer/songwriter Peter Shelley
Peter Shelley
Peter Shelley is a British 1970s pop singer and songwriter who had UK hits with "Gee Baby" and "Love Me Love My Dog".-Career:Shelley entered the UK music industry in 1965 working initially as a song plugger with the music publisher, Chappell & Co...
, who wrote and produced numerous U.K/European hits for Alvin Stardust
Alvin Stardust
Alvin Stardust is an English pop singer and stage actor.-Career:...
and as a solo artist in the seventies. At age eight, he moved with his family to Vancouver, Canada, and then a few years later to Toronto. Southworth first started playing guitar at age ten, and at age sixteen began writing poetry and songs. He attended Upper Canada College
Upper Canada College
Upper Canada College , located in midtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is an independent elementary and secondary school for boys between Senior Kindergarten and Grade Twelve, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The secondary school segment is divided into ten houses; eight are...
, but left before his last year to attend a local high school, Northern Secondary.
Albums 1996-2009
Mars Pennsylvania 1996-98Southworth’s signature debut album "Mars Pennsylvania", co-produced with Jono Grant, was released in 1996 on Water Street/AM Records in his native Canada, and later in 1998, on Bar None Records in the U.S and Quattro in Japan. The record received rave critical acclaim. One reviewer said, “If Burt Bacharach and Bobby Vinton had a sexually ambiguous alien love child, John Southworth would be it. Damn odd music. But catchy and wonderful at the same time.” Exclaim Magazine called it “the most original Canadian debut album since Mary Margaret O’Hara’s ‘Miss America’”; the Toronto Star called him a “pop poet”.
Sedona Arizona & Banff Springs Transylvania & Rose Milk Appalachia E.P 1999-2001
In 1999 Southworth released the high-energy lo-fi “Sedona Arizona”, produced by fellow Canadian cohort Hawksley Workman
Hawksley Workman
Ryan Corrigan , better known by the stage name Hawksley Workman, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter who has garnered critical acclaim for his blend of cabaret pop and glam rock. Workman has released eleven full length albums throughout his career...
. Both “Sedona” and the self-produced “Banff Springs Transylvania (2000)” were released only in Canada on Water Street/Outside Music and Perimeter Records/Universal respectively. The folk-orchestral “Banff” contained a duet with Mary Margaret O’Hara on “Cat Mountain”. To promote these records, Southworth performed theatrical shows in white face with a three-piece bluegrass band. An apartment recording of the bluegrass Sedona songs would later surface on the self-released “Rose Milk Appalachia” EP in 2001.
Yosemite & The Pillowmaker w/The South Seas 2004-07
“Yosemite” was recorded with a group of Toronto jazz and avant-garde improv musicians, consisting of Jean Martin (drums), Justin Haynes (guitar) and Andrew Downing (bass), later dubbed by Southworth as ‘The South Seas’. To promote “Yosemite”, Southworth took on a persona he called “the lost child of the railroad” and completed a cross-country Canadian tour by train. Inspired by Nature artists like Andy Goldsworthy, he planted ceremonial turnip seeds along the way.
In 2006, Southworth and ‘The South Seas’ recorded “The Pillowmaker”. The record was co-produced with drummer Jean Martin and featured nineteen songs. Two of the songs have since garnered cover versions by Canadian artists Sarah Slean
Sarah Slean
Sarah Hope Slean is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet, and occasional actress from Pickering, Ontario. She has released eleven albums to date .-Major recordings:...
(“Eyes Are The Flowers” on the upcoming “Black Flowers” CD with The Art of Time Ensemble), as well as Veda Hille
Veda Hille
Veda Hille is a Canadian singer-songwriter.- Biography :Veda Hille was born in 1968 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She started playing piano when she was 6 at her own insistence. Her family moved around a lot, from the city to the country and back again...
and Kim Barlow
Kim Barlow
Kim Barlow is a Canadian folk music singer-songwriter, based in Whitehorse, Yukon.- Biography :Born in Montreal on March 10, 1969, and raised in rural Nova Scotia, she studied classical guitar at Florida State University before moving to the Yukon....
’s CBC Radio duet of “We Can Live Life”. ‘The Pillowmaker’ was digitally released on Minnesota-based Grimsey Records in 2007.
Mama Tevatron 2009
Southworth’s sixth record “Mama Tevatron” was released on Dead Daisy Records in Canada in October 2009. On his website, Southworth has described “Mama” as “divine and savage, an epic medicinal leech”.
Other works
In 2006 Southworth co-wrote songs with the aforementioned Hawksley Workman, including “Kissing Girls (You Shouldn’t Kiss) and “When You Gonna Flower”, the lead single to Hawksley’s 2008 CD “Los ManliciousLos Manlicious
Los Manlicious is a studio album by Canadian musician Hawksley Workman released in May 2008 in Europe and on August 26, 2008, in Canada.The record was recorded in the same sessions as Between the Beautifuls and Workman intended to release it first, but Universal Music preferred to release the...
”; he and Hawksley also co-wrote “Never Lost My Sight” for Canadian R+B artist Jully Black
Jully Black
Jully Black |Julie]]"; born Jullyann Inderia Gordon; November 8, 1977) is a Canadian R&B singer–songwriter. She has collaborated and written for many artists, including Nas, Missy Elliott, Saukrates, Choclair, Kardinal Offishall, Destiny's Child, and Sean Paul.-Life & career:Black was born Jullyann...
’s recent CD “Revival”. Recently, he has contributed a song ("Bcc") for Buck 65
Buck 65
Richard Terfry , who uses the stage name Buck 65, is a Canadian experimental artist, MC and turntablist. Underpinned by an extensive background in abstract hip hop, his more recent music has extensively incorporated blues, country, rock, folk and avant garde influences.Terfry is also a radio host,...
's "20 Odd Years" album.
Southworth has taken part in the last three Art of Time Ensemble’s Source and Inspiration concerts at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, contributing original songs inspired by select Schumann, Schubert, and Korngold pieces.
Video/film
Southworth has directed Bravo-funded videos for “Life Is Unbelievable” and “First Of May”, as well as super-8 videos for “Pineapple Shoes”, “Simple Simple Boy”, and “Sunday Brunch Buffet”.
Discography
- Mars Pennsylvania (1998)
- Sedona Arizona (1999)
- Banff Springs Transylvania (2000)
- Rose Milk Appalachia (E.P 2001)
- Yosemite (2005)
- The Pillowmaker (2006)
- Mama Tevatron (2009)
- Human Cry (2010)
- SPIRITUAL WAR cassette tape (2011)