Harriet Wheeler
| Harriet Wheeler | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Harriet Ella Wheeler[1] |
| Born | 26 June 1963 |
| Genres | Alternative rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Associated acts |
The Sundays Jim Jiminee |
Harriet Wheeler (born 26 June 1963) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer of the 1980s/1990s alternative rock band, The Sundays.[2][3]
Early years
Wheeler grew up in Sonning Common, near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, the daughter of an architect and a teacher.[4] She studied English literature for her undergraduate degree at Bristol University when she met David Gavurin.[4] The two shared a common passion for music, and despite little musical training (although Wheeler had sung in a band called Jim Jiminee before meeting Gavurin), released demos to various clubs in London.[4][5]
The Sundays
Wheeler and Gavurin were the core of a popular alternative band, The Sundays, with Paul Brindley on bass and Patrick Hannan on drums.[4] They decided upon the name by default as it was the only one they could all agree on.[4] The Sundays performed their first show in August 1988.[4]
Their debut album, Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic, was released in 1990.[4] Rolling Stone reviewer Ira Robbins called it "an alluring slice of lighter-than-air guitar pop, a collection of uncommonly good songs graced by Harriet Wheeler's wondrous singing."[4] The album sold over half a million copies around the world.[4]
The band released their second album, Blind, in 1992, and it also sold nearly half a million copies, giving the band another gold record.[4] Wheeler's vocals received the lion's share of praise.[4] One reviewer wrote, "Her singing is fluttery, mischievous, and full of unexpected, perverse flashes of tenderness."[4]
In February 1995, Wheeler and Gavurin had their first child, a daughter named Billie.[4] Parenthood prolonged the recording of their third album, but they eventually released Static & Silence in 1997. While some critics said The Sundays sounded exactly the same as before,[4][6] Kevin Raub of Ray Gun called Static & Silence "the band's most solid effort to date."[4]
Two years after the release of Static & Silence, Wheeler and Gavurin had their second child, a son named Frank in 1999.[7]
References
- ↑ "Harriet Wheeler". Repertoire.bmi.com. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
- ↑ Buckley, Peter (2003). The rough guide to rock. Rough Guides. p. 1034. ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
- ↑ Tortorici, Frank (26 June 1999). "The Sundays' Harriet Wheeler". VH1. Archived from the original on 2 September 2009. Retrieved 2009-08-13.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Brennan, Carol (1997). McConnell, Stacy A., ed. Contemporary Musicians. 20. Gale Cengage. ISBN 978-0-7876-1177-4. Retrieved 2011-03-30.
- ↑ Larkin, Colin; Larkin, edited by Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). London: Omnibus Press. p. 3268. ISBN 9780857125958. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
- ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas Static & Silence at Allmusic Retrieved 9 May 2011
- ↑ "Arithmetic - Where Everyday is Like Sunday". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2014.