Jim Irvin
| Jim Irvin | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | James Lawrence Irvin |
| Origin | London, England, UK |
| Genres | New wave, pop, alternative rock, post-punk, psychedelic rock, |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instruments | Vocals, percussion, keyboards, synclavier |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Labels | Survival, Stiff, Arista Records |
| Associated acts | |
| Website |
www |
Jim Irvin is an English singer, songwriter and music journalist.
Early life
Born James Lawrence Irvin and raised in west London.
Career
Furniture
Irvin was the singer in the British indie band Furniture, who released singles and albums with Survival, Stiff and Arista Records between 1982 and 1990. He co-wrote their 1986 UK hit single, "Brilliant Mind", taken from the album, The Wrong People. The song also appeared in the John Hughes movie, Some Kind of Wonderful and was re-recorded for the soundtrack. Furniture made one further album, Food, Sex and Paranoia, for Arista (1989), and disbanded in 1991.[1] In 1992, Irvin recorded an album, "Mad Scared Dumb And Gorgeous" with jazz musician Chris Ingham, under the name Because. It was released on Boo Hewerdine's Haven label.[2]
Music journalism
In 1991, Irvin began contributing to Melody Maker magazine, where his work appeared under the name Jim Arundel. He was later made reviews editor. In 1994, reverting to Jim Irvin, he became the founding features editor of Mojo magazine. He was on the staff for seven years and left as its senior editor. One of his most notable pieces for the magazine was "Angel of Avalon", a major profile of the late Sandy Denny, published in 1998.[3] He also edited an acclaimed book, The Mojo Collection.[4] He has written for The Word, Time Out, The Sunday Times and The Guardian and continues to write a reissues column for Mojo. In February 2015 he published an e-book, A Book Of Wild Flowers, which collected his writings on Sandy Denny, Joni Mitchell and Kate Bush.
Later production and songwriting
In 1995, Irvin produced the first demos by the band Gay Dad, and co-write some of the songs which later appeared on their debut album, Leisure Noise. Their single, "Oh Jim", was said to be dedicated to him.
In 1999, he produced Lido, the debut album by Clearlake, released in 2000 on his own label, Dusty Company, an offshoot of Domino Records.
Irvin returned to full-time songwriting in 2001, concentrating initially on dance music. He co-wrote the 2004 hit "The Weekend" by Michael Gray, and has had work recorded by Groove Armada, Full Intention and David Guetta.[5]
Since 2006 his work has been mostly outside dance music, with artists like Lana Del Rey, Lissie, Simple Plan and Nothing but Thieves.
Discography
| Artist | Album | Song | Co-written with | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lissie | "My Wild West" (2016) | "Ojai" | Julian Emery, Lissie | Album UK #16 iTunes UK #2 Billboard Heatseekers #1 | |
| Nothing But Thieves | "Nothing But Thieves" (2015) | "Excuse Me" | Julian Emery, Nothing But Thieves | Album UK #7 iTunes UK #5 Alternative UK #1 | |
| "Graveyard Whistling" | |||||
| "Hostage" | |||||
| "Trip Switch" | |||||
| "Tempt You (Evocatio)" | |||||
| "Hanging" | |||||
| "Neon Brother" | |||||
| Nothing But Thieves | "Trip Switch (Single)" (2015) | "Trip Switch" | Julian Emery, Nothing But Thieves | (US #1 Alternative) | |
| Nothing But Thieves | "Ban All The Music (Single)" (2015) | "Ban All The Music" | Julian Emery, Nothing But Thieves | ||
| Chlöe Howl | "Rumour (Single)" (2014) | "Rumour" | Julian Emery, Chlöe Howl | ||
| Lewis Watson | "The Morning" (2014) | "Stones Around The Sun" | Julian Emery, Lewis Watson | (UK #28) | |
| Lower Than Atlantis | "Lower Than Atlantis" (2014) | "Live Slow, Die Old" | Julian Emery, Lower Than Atlantis | Album UK #12 | |
| "Time" | |||||
| "Number 1" | |||||
| Nothing But Thieves | "Graveyard Whistling EP" (2014) | "Graveyard Whistling" | Julian Emery, Nothing But Thieves | ||
| "Last Orders" | |||||
| Pixie Lott | ”Pixie Lott” (2014) | "Break Up Song" | Rami Afuni, Pixie Lott | Album UK #15 | |
| "Oceans" | Pixie Lott, Jerry Abbott | ||||
| "Leaving You" | Pixie Lott, Jerry Abbott | ||||
| Ruth Lorenzo | "Planeta Azul" (2014) | "Dancing in the Rain" | Julian Emery, Ruth Lorenzo | ||
| Lissie | "Back To Forever" (2013) | "Shameless" | Julian Emery, Lissie | Album UK #16 | |
| "Further Away (Romance Police)" | |||||
| "The Habit" | |||||
| "What's It Like" | |||||
| Ryan Beatty | "Chameleon" (single 2013) | "Chameleon" | Julian Emery, Ryan Beatty, Elisabeth Maurus | ||
| "Love will come my way" | |||||
| Gabrielle Aplin | "English Rain" (2013) | "Start Of Time" | Julian Emery, Gabrielle Aplin | UK #2 | |
| Gavin DeGraw | "Make A Move" (2013) | "Every Little Bit" | Julian Emery, Gavin Degraw | US #10 | |
| Josh Krajcik | ”Blindly, Lonely, Lovely” (2013) | ”Her Song” | Julian Emery, Josh Krajcik | ||
| Lee DeWyze | "Frames" (2013) | "You Don't Know Me" | Julian Emery, Lee DeWyze | (US #116) | |
| Alex Hepburn | "Together Alone" (2013) | "Get Heavy" | Julian Emery, Alex Hepburn | France #2 | |
| "Crown Of Thorns" | |||||
| Lana Del Rey | ”Born To Die” (2012) | This Is What Makes Us Girls | Tim Larcombe, Lana Del Rey | UK #1, US #2 | |
| Various Cruelties | ”Various Cruelties” (2012) | ”Beautiful Delerium” | Julian Emery, Liam O'Donnell | ||
| Jack Savoretti | ”Before the Storm” (2012) | "Lifetime" | Julian Emery, Jack Savoretti | ||
| Halestorm | "The Strange Case Of..." (2012) | "Rock Show" | Julian Emery, Lzzy Hale | US #15 | |
| "Don’t Know How To Stop" | |||||
| Audra Mae and The Almighty Sounds | ”Audra Mae and The Almighty Sounds” (2012) | "Jebidiah Moonshine's Friday Night Shack Party" | Julian Emery, Audra Mae | ||
| Simple Plan | "Get Your Heart On” (2011) | "Freaking Me Out" | Julian Emery, Chuck Comeau, Pierre Bouvier | CAN #2 | |
| "Astronaut" | |||||
| "Fire in My Heart" | |||||
| David Cook | "This Loud Morning" (2011) | "Paper Heart" | Julian Emery, David Cook | US #7 | |
| "We Believe" | |||||
| Lissie | "Catching a Tiger" (2010) | "When I'm Alone" | Julian Emery, Lissie | UK #12 GOLD | |
| "In Sleep" | |||||
| "Loosen The Knot" | |||||
| "Cuckoo" | |||||
| Boyzone | ”Brother” (2010) | ”Separate Cars” | Julian Emery, Jack McManus, Jon Green | UK #1 | |
| Zucchero Fornaciari | ”Chocabeck” (2010) | "Devil In The Mirror" | Zucchero Fornaciari | Italy #1 | |
| "Spirit / Together" | Zucchero Fornaciari, Iggy Pop | ||||
| David Guetta | ”Pop Life” (2007) | "Do Something Love" | Garraud, David Guetta, Ben Chapman, Juliet Richardson | France #2 | |
| Groove Armada | “Soundboy Rock” (2007) | “From The Rooftops” | Jack McManus, Andy Cato, Tom Findlay | UK #10 | |
| Michael Gray | “The Weekend” (Single 2004)” | “The Weekend” | Oliver Cheatham, Michael Gray, Sally Still | UK #7 | |
Bibliography
Essays and reporting
- Irvin, Jim (Dec 2014). "The birth & death of Pink Floyd : the long goodbye". Mojo. 253 (6): 74–84.
- — (Dec 2014). "Kismet, Hardy". File Under. Mojo. 253 (6): 112. Review of five albums by Françoise Hardy.
References
- ↑ brilliant minds – the furniture story. Gilest.org. Retrieved 2010-11-13.
- ↑ http://www.boohewerdine.net/haven/because.htm
- ↑ Jimirvin.com. Retrieved 2010-11-13.
- ↑ Articles, interviews and reviews from Jim Irvin: Rock's Backpages. Rocksbackpages.com. Retrieved 2010-11-13.
- ↑ Radius Music Ltd. – Music industry artist management | Imogen Heap | Jack McManus | Rogue States. Radiusmusic.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-11-13.