Alison Moyet
(born Genevieve Alison Jane Moyet
, 18 June 1961), is an English pop singer-songwriter noted for her bluesy voice. [1]
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Early life
Moyet was born in
Billericay,
Essex,
England, to a
French father and
English mother. She grew up in
Basildon, where she attended Nicholas School. After leaving school at 16, she worked as a shop worker and trained as a
piano tuner. She was involved in a number of
punk rock,
pub rock and
blues bands in the South East Essex area during the late 1970s and early 1980s, including
The Vandals and
the Screamin' Ab Dabs, The Vicars and The Little Roosters (the latter featuring Gary Lammin formerly of
Cock Sparrer).
Yazoo
Her mainstream pop career began in 1981 when she formed the
electropop duo
Yazoo with former
Depeche Mode member
Vince Clarke. In the
United States, the band became known as
Yaz, as there was a record label in the region already operating as
Yazoo Records that presented
trademark issues. Yazoo had several hits, including "
Only You", "
Don't Go", "
Situation" and "
Nobody's Diary", and recorded two albums,
Upstairs at Eric's
and
You and Me Both
.
In 1983 Moyet and Clarke decided to disband Yazoo. While Clarke went on to form
The Assembly (another duo, this time with former
Undertones vocalist
Feargal Sharkey) and then
Erasure (a duo again, with Andy Bell), Moyet signed to
CBS (in part because it had been
Janis Joplin's label), and began her solo career.
Mute Records released a remixed version of "Situation" as a single in 1990 to moderate success. In 1999, a compilation was released, entitled Only Yazoo - The Best of and was preceded by a re-release of Yazoo's debut single, "Only You", featuring a new remix of the title track and several more of "Don't Go". The band's output was bookended with yet another release of "Situation", accompanied by many remixes.
Moyet reunited with Clarke as Yazoo for a series of live dates during the summer of 2008.
Solo career
In 1984, Moyet released her debut solo album
Alf
(titled after her punk-era nickname).
Alf
was produced by the noted UK producing/songwriting team of
Swain and Jolley. The album was co-written by the duo and Moyet, with the exception of "Invisible", which was written specifically for her by
Motown legend
Lamont Dozier. The record was a huge hit in Britain, reaching #1 in the album charts.
Alf
spawned three international hit singles, "Love Resurrection" (UK #10), "Invisible" (UK #21) and "All Cried Out" (UK #8). In the US, "Invisible" was a Top 40 hit (something Yazoo had never achieved). In some European territories, a fourth single, "For You Only", was also released.
In 1985, Moyet performed at the historic
Live Aid concert alongside
Paul Young, and later returned unscheduled to the stage (alongside
Bob Geldof,
David Bowie and
Pete Townshend) to provide emergency vocals on
Let It Be
when the microphone on
Paul McCartney's
piano failed, leaving him unable to be heard. Moyet also released a single not featured on
Alf
, a cover of the standard "That Ole Devil Called Love", which climbed to #2 on the UK singles chart (it remains Moyet's highest-charting UK single).
Moyet had another big UK hit the following year with "Is This Love?" (co-written by the
Eurythmics'
David A. Stewart under the pseudonym Jean Guiot), followed in 1987 by her second LP,
Raindancing
.
Raindancing
spawned further hit singles, including a cover of Floy Joy's "Weak In The Presence of Beauty" and "Ordinary Girl". In 1987, she scored another cover hit with "
Love Letters", which peaked at UK #4. The video for the song featured comedy duo
French & Saunders.
Following a period of personal and career evaluation,
Hoodoo
was released in 1991.
Hoodoo
took several steps away from the glossy pop sheen of
Raindancing
and was a far earthier and more personal album. Compared to her earlier releases,
Hoodoo
received little label support and only minimal promotion. The album sold respectably in Britain, and Moyet was nominated for a
Grammy for the single "It Won't Be Long". However, the release of
Hoodoo
marked the beginning of what was to become a long fight for Moyet to secure complete control of her artistic direction. Like many similar artists of Moyet's calibre (including
Aimee Mann and the late
Kirsty MacColl), Moyet was reluctant to record a radio-friendly "pop" album simply for the sake of creating chart hits.
Moyet's next album,
Essex
(1994), was also a source of controversy for her; in order for the album to be released, her label (now
Sony) insisted that certain
Essex
tracks be re-recorded and re-produced, and that there be additional material remixed to create a more 'commercial' package. The video for the single "Whispering Your Name" again featured
Dawn French.
Following the release of
Essex
, Sony released a greatest hits compilation of Moyet's work.
Singles
entered the UK charts at #1 and, following a UK tour, was re-issued as a double CD set which included "Live (No Overdubs)", a bonus live CD. Upon re-issue,
Singles
charted again, this time in the Top 20.
Due to prolonged litigation with Sony, Moyet did not record or release a new studio album for over eight years after the release of
Essex
. During this time, however, she recorded vocals for
Tricky, Sylk-130,
Ocean Colour Scene,
The Lightning Seeds, and
King Britt, and was featured on the British leg of the
Lilith Fair tour. 2001 saw the release of
The Essential Alison Moyet
CD, and in 2002
The Essential Alison Moyet
DVD.
Moyet is a fan of legendary British soul singer
Dusty Springfield (1939-1999) and when Springfield in 1995 made what was to become one of her very last television appearances, singing "Where Is a Woman to Go?" on the music show
Later With Jools Holland
(BBC), she had vocal back-up by
Sinéad O'Connor and Moyet.
In August 2002, after years of holding out and refusing to compromise, Moyet was finally released from her Sony contract. Moyet signed to
Sanctuary Records and released her first studio album in eight years,
Hometime
, an album which Sony had refused to release.
Hometime
was produced by
The Insects, who had also produced works by
Massive Attack and
Madonna. The release of the CD launched Moyet into the top five best-selling female UK artists of 2002
[2] and resulted in a
BRIT Awards nomination for Best Female Vocal
[3] as well as a nomination for the
Mercury Music Prize [4]
Voice
, an eclectic collection of covers, was released on 6 September 2004 and entered the UK charts at #7. Scored and produced by Moyet's neighbour (and
Academy Award winner)
Anne Dudley, the album was later re-issued with a bonus track, "Alfie". A companion DVD,
One Blue Voice
, was released in 2006.
December 2006 saw Moyet signing a
recording contract with W14 Music,
[5] the new
Universal Music Group imprint. The deal sees Moyet reunited with label head John Williams, who was her
A&R man for her last two albums,
Hometime
and
Voice
.
Moyet's album,
The Turn
, was released on 15 October 2007, preceded by the single "One More Time" a week earlier. The album features an eclectic mix of self-penned songs, including the three numbers she wrote for the stage play,
Smaller
. Again, Moyet worked alongside producer/songwriter and frequent Moyet collaborator Pete Glenister.
The Turn
debuted at #21 on the
UK Album Chart on 22 October, 2007. Alison left
W14
shortly after the release of
"The Turn"
Sony Music will release
Revisited: The Very Best of Alison Moyet
on 30 October 2009 (As confirmed by her Website http://www.alisonmoyet.com/). The track listing has been personally compiled by Alison drawing material from her seven solo albums over 25 years and will include hits such as
All Cried Out
,
Invisible
,
Is This Love?
and
Windmills of Your Mind
. In support of the release Alison will be touring the UK and Ireland during November and December.
Theatre
Moyet made her critically acclaimed stage debut in the West End production of the musical
Chicago
in 2001. She played the part of Matron ‘Mama’ Morton, and although initially planned to be a short run, Moyet enjoyed the experience so much that the run was extended to six months.
In 2006, Moyet appeared in the play
Smaller
, which undertook a regional tour before a
West End stint at London's
Lyric Theatre. As well as co-starring with
Dawn French, Moyet also composed three new songs for the production, which feature on her album
The Turn
.
Personal life
Moyet was first married to hairdresser Malcolm Lee, with whom she has a son, Joe. The marriage ended in divorce. She then had a short-lived relationship with tour manager Kim McCarthy with whom she has a daughter, Alex, and is now married to her second husband, teaching assistant David Ballard, with whom she has a daughter, Caitlin.
[6] Alison now lives in Hertfordshire.
Moyet supports
Southend United Football Club and can be occasionally found in the West Stand at
Roots Hall. Part of the video for "Is This Love?" was filmed at the ground. In addition, the song "Blue" - originally released as a B-side, but later re-recorded and used as the theme tune of the British TV series
Playing the Field
- is the singer's ode to her love of football and of Southend United.
Discography
Albums
| Year
| Album
| UK Albums Chart [7]
| U.S.
| Additional information
|
| 1984
| Alf
| 1
| 45
| Debut solo album.
|
| 1987
| Raindancing
| 2
| 94
| Second studio album, originally titled Chasing Rain
.
|
| 1991
| Hoodoo
| 11
| -
| Third studio album
|
| 1994
| Essex
| 24
| 194
| Fourth studio album
|
| 1995
| Singles
| 1
| -
| Greatest hits package, Sony Music.
|
| 1996
| Singles/Live
| 20
| -
| Greatest hits package, Sony Music.
|
| 2000
| Best of The Best - Gold
| -
| -
| Greatest hits package, Sony Music.
|
| 2001
| The Essential Alison Moyet
| 16
| -
| Greatest hits package, Sony Music.
|
| 2002
| Hometime
| 18
| -
| Comeback album, released after 8 year delay.
|
| 2004
| Voice
| 7
| -
| Album of cover versions.
|
| 2007
| The Turn
| 21
|
| Seventh studio album, UK release date: 15 October 2007.
|
Singles
| Year
| Song
| UK Singles Chart | U.S. Billboard Hot 100
| Album
|
| 1984
| "Love Resurrection"
| 10
| 82
| Alf
|
| "All Cried Out"
| 8
| -
|
| "Invisible"
| 21
| 31
|
| 1985
| "That Ole Devil Called Love"
| 2
| -
| -
|
| "For You Only"
| -
| -
| Alf
|
| 1986
| "Is This Love?"
| 3
| -
| Raindancing
|
| 1987
| "Weak in the Presence of Beauty"
| 6
| -
|
| "Ordinary Girl"
| 43
| -
|
| "Sleep Like Breathing"
| 80
| -
|
| "Love Letters"
| 4
| -
| -
|
| 1991
| "It Won't Be Long"
| 50
| -
| Hoodoo
|
| "Wishing You Were Here"
| 72
| -
|
| "This House"
| 40
| -
|
| "Hoodoo"
| -
| -
|
| 1993
| "Falling"
| 42
| -
| Essex
|
| 1994
| "Whispering Your Name"
| 18
| -
|
| "Getting into Something"
| 51
| -
|
| "Ode to Boy"
| 59
| -
|
| 1995
| "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
| -
| -
| Singles
|
| "Solid Wood"
| 44
| -
|
| 2002
| "Should I Feel That It's Over"
| -
| -
| Hometime
|
| "Do You Ever Wonder"
| -
| -
|
| 2003
| "More"
| -
| -
|
| 2004
| "Almost Blue" / "Alfie"
| -
| -
| Voice
|
| 2007
| "One More Time"
| -
| -
| The Turn
|
| "A Guy Like You"
| -
| -
|
See also
- List of best-selling music artists
References
- allmusic (((Alison Moyet > Overview)))
- Alison Moyet.com
- BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Brit Awards 2003: Winners
- BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Debut stars scoop Brits nominations
- Alison Moyet (ex-Yazoo) joins W14 Music
- The Scotsman
- British Hit Singles & Albums