A musician is an artist who writes, performs, or creates music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music.

An instrumentalist plays a musical instrument.

A multi-instrumentalist plays a diverse range of instruments such as different forms of percussion, plucked strings, vocals etc.

A singer is a vocalist.

Composers, songwriters and arrangers create musical compositions, songs and arrangements. These may be transcribed in music notation, performed or recorded.

A conductor leads a musical ensemble. A conductor can simultaneously act as an instrumentalist in the ensemble.

A recording artist creates recorded music, such as CDs and MP3 files.

There are many forms of musicians. From classical artist to rock artist. The spectrum is so diverse that there is no limitation to a musician's qualifications.

See also

American Federation of Musicians

External links

Category:Occupations in music

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Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Joshua Bell
background	non_vocal_instrumentalist
birth date	December 09, 1967
origin	Bloomington, Indiana, United States
instrument	Violin
genre	Classical music
occupation	Violinist
years active	1980s–present
website	http://www.joshuabell.com/
notable instruments	Gibson Stradivarius }}

Joshua David Bell (born December 9, 1967) is an American Grammy Award-winning violinist.

Childhood

Bell was born in Bloomington, Indiana, United States, the son of a psychologist and a therapist. Bell's father is the late Alan P. Bell, Professor Emeritus of Indiana University, in Bloomington, a former Kinsey researcher.

Bell began taking violin lessons at the age of four after his mother discovered her son had taken rubber bands from around the house and stretched them across the handles of his dresser drawer to pluck out music he had heard her play on the piano. His parents got a scaled-to-size violin for their then five-year-old son and started giving him lessons. A bright student, Bell took to the instrument but lived an otherwise normal midwest Indiana life playing video games and excelling at sports, namely tennis and bowling, even placing in a national tennis tournament at the age of ten.

Bell studied as a boy first under Donna Bricht, widow of Indiana University music faculty member Walter Bricht. His second teacher was Mimi Zweig, and then he switched to the violinist and pedagogue Josef Gingold after Bell's parents assured Gingold that they were not interested in pushing their son in the study of the violin but simply wanted him to have the best teacher for his abilities. Satisfied that the boy was living a normal life, Gingold took Bell on as his student. By age 12, Bell was serious about the instrument, thanks in large part to Gingold's inspiration.

At the age of 14, Bell appeared as a soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Muti. He studied the violin at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, while managing to graduate from Bloomington High School North in 1984, In 1989, Bell received an Artist Diploma in Violin Performance from Indiana University. His alma mater also honored him with a Distinguished Alumni Service Award only two years after his graduation. He has been named an “Indiana Living Legend” and received the Indiana Governor’s Arts Award.

Career

Joshua Bell made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1985 with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. He has since performed with almost all of the world's major orchestras and conductors. As well as the standard concerto repertoire, Bell has performed new works—Nicholas Maw's violin concerto is dedicated to him, the recording of which won Bell a Grammy and gave the world premiere of the work in 1993. He performed the solo part on John Corigliano's Oscar-winning soundtrack for the film ''The Red Violin'' and was also featured in ''Ladies in Lavender''. Bell also made an appearance in the movie ''Music of the Heart'', a story about the power of music, with other notable violinists.

Bell's instrument is a 300-year-old Stradivarius violin called the Gibson ex Huberman, which was made in 1713 during what is known as Antonio Stradivari's "Golden Era." This violin had been stolen twice from the previous owner, Bronisław Huberman; the last time the thief confessed to the act on his deathbed. Bell had held and played the violin, and its owner at the time jokingly told Bell the violin could be his for four million dollars. Shortly thereafter, by chance, Bell came across the violin again and discovered it was about to be sold to a German industrialist to become part of a collection. According to the Joshua Bell website, Bell "was practically in tears." Bell then reportedly sold his current Stradivarius, the Tom Tyler, for a little more than two million dollars and made the purchase of the Gibson ex Huberman for a little under the four million dollar asking price. As with his previous Stradivarius violin, Bell entrusts the upkeep of the Gibson ex Huberman to expert luthier Emmanuel Gradoux-Matt. His first recording made with the Gibson ex Huberman was ''Romance of the Violin'' (under Sony Classical) in 2003. It sold more than 5 million copies and remained at the top of classical music charts for 54 weeks. Joshua Bell's most recent CD is called ''Vivaldi: The Four Seasons'' and was released near the end of summer in 2008. It features The Four Seasons, four concerti written by the baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi.

Bell is an artistic partner for the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (starting in the 2004–2005 season) and a visiting professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He also serves on the artists selection committee for the Kennedy Center Honors and is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Bell was awarded the Avery Fisher Prize on April 10, 2007, at Lincoln Center in New York City. The prize is given once every few years to classical instrumentalists for outstanding achievement. On May 3, 2007, the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music announced that Bell had joined the faculty as a senior lecturer.

Bell collaborated with film composer Hans Zimmer by providing violin solos for the soundtrack for the 2009 film, ''Angels and Demons'', based on Dan Brown's 2000 novel of the same name.

On May 27, 2011, Joshua Bell was named Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.

Washington Post experiment

In an experiment initiated by ''Washington Post'' columnist Gene Weingarten, Bell donned a baseball cap and played as an incognito street busker at the Metro subway station L'Enfant Plaza in Washington, D.C. on January 12, 2007. The experiment was videotaped on hidden camera; among 1,097 people who passed by, only seven stopped to listen to him, and only one recognized him. For his nearly 45-minute performance, Bell collected $32.17 from 27 passersby (excluding $20 from the passerby who recognized him). Weingarten won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing for his article on the experiment.

Personal life

Bell resides in Gramercy Park, Manhattan.

Selected discography

{|class="wikitable" |- !Year !Album !''Billboard'' Classical !Billboard 200 |- |1988 |''Bruch Mendelssohn Violin Concertos'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1989 |''Faure Debussy Franck Violin Sonatas'' with Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Decca Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1990 |''Presenting Joshua Bell'', Polygram Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1991 |''Chausson Concerto, Ravel Piano Trio'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1992 |''Saint-Saens: Violin Concerto #3 /Chausson: Poeme, London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1995 |''Prokofiev: Violin Concertos & Sonatas'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1995 |''Brahms /Schumann Violin Concertos'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1996 |''The Kreisler Album'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1997 |''Barber / Walton/ Bloch Violin Concertos'', Decca Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1997 |''Shostakovich Piano Trio No. 2'', London Records | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1999 |''Nicholas Maw Violin Concertos'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |1999 |''Gershwin Fantasy'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2000 |''Jean Sibelius & Karl Goldmark: Violin Concertos'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2000 |''Short Trip Home'', with Edgar Meyer, Sam Bush, Mike Marshall, Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|7 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2001 |''Leonard Bernstein West Side Story Suite'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|3 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2002 |''Ludwig van Beethoven & Felix Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|18 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2004 |''Romance of the Violin'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|2 | style="text-align:center;"|176 |- |2005 |''Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto, Op. 35; Melodie; Danse Russe from ''Swan Lake'' (Act III)'', Sony Classical | style="text-align:center;"|9 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2006 |''Voice of the Violin'', Sony | style="text-align:center;"|2 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2007 | ''Corigliano The Red Violin'', Sony | style="text-align:center;"|7 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2007 |''The Essential Joshua Bell'', Sony BMG Masterworks | style="text-align:center;"|19 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2008 |''Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons'', Sony BMG Masterworks | style="text-align:center;"|1 | style="text-align:center;"|134 |- |2009 |''The Best of Joshua Bell'', Sony BMG Masterworks | style="text-align:center;"|12 | style="text-align:center;"|— |- |2009 |''At Home with Friends'', Sony BMG Masterworks | style="text-align:center;"|1 | style="text-align:center;"|118 |}

''Soundtrack Albums''

''Angels & Demons Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'', 2009

: Joshua Bell, featured violinist

: Music composed by Hans Zimmer

''''Defiance'' OST, 2008

''Ladies in Lavender Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'', 2005: Joshua Bell, featured violinist

''The Red Violin featured violinist

References

External links

Official Website

"Bell Man", by Mandy Katz; in-depth profile in ''moment'' magazine

Interview on ''The Diane Rehm Show'' radio program

Recording of Bell's performance in L'Enfant Plaza.

BACH & friends Documentary

Classical Archives Interview

Category:1967 births Category:Academics of the Royal Academy of Music Category:American classical violinists Category:Columbia Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Jacobs School of Music alumni Category:Indiana University faculty Category:Jewish American musicians Category:Jewish classical musicians Category:Jewish violinists Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Indiana Category:People from Bloomington, Indiana Category:Honorary Members of the Royal Academy of Music Category:Performing arts pages with videographic documentation

ar:جوشوا بيل ca:Joshua Bell cs:Joshua Bell de:Joshua Bell es:Joshua Bell eo:Joshua Bell fa:جاشوا بل fr:Joshua Bell it:Joshua Bell he:ג'ושוע בל ka:ჯოშუა ბელი nl:Joshua Bell ja:ジョシュア・ベル oc:Joshua Bell pl:Joshua Bell pt:Joshua Bell ru:Белл, Джошуа simple:Joshua Bell fi:Joshua Bell sv:Joshua Bell zh:約夏·貝爾

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Keaton Simons
background	solo_singer
origin	Los Angeles, California
genre	Rock, Acoustic, Singer/Songwriter
label	CBS Records
website	http://www.keatonsimons.com }}

Keaton Simons (born 20 July 1978) is a Los Angeles recording and performing artist. He is signed to CBS Records and his music has been featured on shows such as ''NCIS: Los Angeles'', ''Crash'', ''American Dad!'', ''Harper's Island'', and ''The Cleaner'' to name a few. Recent performances have included performing for Desmond Tutu at a United Nations event with members of Toto, Paul Simon, and John Mayer's band.

Keaton's multifaceted talents are not just in music, they have landed him appearances on television and film. He has made guest appearances on shows such as ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'', ''Malcolm in the Middle'', and ''American Dreams''. Keaton also appeared in the feature film ''Hollywood Dreams''.

Keaton has shared the stage with many independent singer/songwriters including Tony Lucca, Curtis Peoples, Joe Firstman and Tyrone Wells. In the summer of 2010, Keaton was the opening act on a national tour for REO Speedwagon and Pat Benatar. In 2009 and 2010, Keaton performed at Hotel Carolina, an annual two-day singer-songwriter festival held in South Carolina.

The music video of his song "Good Things Get Better" parodies the documentary ''An Inconvenient Truth'', featured on ''Strictly Global'' VII.

He is the stepson of Eric Roberts.

References

Category:Living people Category:American performance artists Category:1978 births

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Imelda May
background	solo_singer
birth name	Imelda Mary Clabby
birth date	July 10, 1974
origin	Dublin, Ireland
spouse	Darrell Higham (2002-present)
instrument	Vocals, bodhrán, guitar
genre	Rockabilly, blues, jazz
occupation	Singer, songwriter-composer
years active	2003–present
label	Foot Tapping, Ambassador (Universal Ireland)), Decca
website	}}

Imelda Mary Higham, Clabby (born 10 July 1974), known as Imelda May, is an Irish vocalist and musician. She began her career in music at 16 and released her debut album in 2005. She also plays the bodhrán and guitar. She won the Best Female Artist of the Year award at the 2009 Meteor Awards.

Early life and career

May was born in Dublin on 10 July 1974 in an area known as The Liberties. She is the youngest of five siblings, with sisters Edel Foy and Maria O'Reilly, and brothers Brendan Clabby and Fintan Clabby. Her early musical influences were Folk and Rock & Roll, especially the music of Buddy Holly, Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent. By the age of nine, she was a fan of Rockabilly and Blues, particularly Elmore James and Billie Holiday. At fourteen, she sang in an advertisement for Findus Fish Fingers. However, her career began at age 16 when she began touring the Dublin club circuit and she was occasionally barred from her own shows at Dublin's Bruxelles club for being underage. "I was getting tips from the best musicians in Dublin," May said. "One of them said, 'your voice is great, but it needs to roughen.'" It was around this time, when driving a tearful Imelda to a gig after a boyfriend break-up her father asked her, "Is your heart broken? Excellent. Now you can sing the blues." After moving to the UK in 1998, May began singing with Blue Harlem and Mike Sanchez.

Professional career

May began her professional career in 2003, forming her band and releasing ''No Turning Back'' (Foot Tapping Records) under her maiden name, Imelda Clabby. Specializing in rockabilly music, the album was later re-recorded and re-issued by Foot Tapping Records under her married name in 2005.

In 2007, she joined a recording contract with Ambassador Records (a subsidiary of Foot Tapping Records), and recorded her second album. ''Love Tattoo'' reached No. 1 in Ireland and received wide critical acclaim. It caught the attention of Jools Holland, whom she later supported on tour, which led him to request that she appear on his well-known music show ''Later... with Jools Holland''. She was well received in the United Kingdom, performing to an audience that included Jeff Beck, Elbow, and Roots Manuva. Her first two singles, ''Johnny Got a Boom-Boom'' and ''Big Bad Handsome Man'', were released on 23 January 2009. She performed on Ireland's most popular television show, ''The Late Late Show''. She won Female Artist of the Year at the 2009 Meteor Awards. May has also toured the United States including, most recently, a tour with Jamie Cullum. On 14 August 2009, she appeared on RTÉ's ''Other Voices'' singing ''Johnny Got a Boom Boom'' and an unplugged version of ''Big Bad Handsome Man.'' thumb|250px|May at the Azkena Rock Festival, Spain, 2010 }}

On 31 January 2010, she performed at the 52nd Grammy Awards with Jeff Beck in tribute to Les Paul. After some promotional performances at festivals, such as the Eurosonic Festival in Groningen, Netherlands, she released her third studio album, ''Mayhem'', in Ireland on September 3, 2010 — again reaching No. 1 in the Irish Album Charts — and in the United Kingdom on 4 October 2010. On July 18, 2011, May made her network television debut on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', performing "Mayhem," in promotion of the album's recent release in the U.S. and later appeared on ''Conan'' on August 8.

Imelda May has recently contributed a cover of Buddy Holly's "I'm Looking For Someone To Love" for the upcoming tribute album, Listen to Me: Buddy Holly to be released on September 6, 2011.

Performances with other artists

May has shared the stage with Wanda Jackson, Alison Moyet, Lou Reed, David Gilmore, Sharon Corr, The Supremes, Brian Setzer, The Dubliners, Madeleine Peyroux, Matt Bianco, Elvis Costello, Jools Holland, Jeff Beck and Meat Loaf . She has worked with producers Tony Visconti and Peter Asher. She also sings in The Candy Box Burlesque Club in Birmingham. She has appeared alongside The World Famous Palookaville! Burlesque Orchestra at every Candy Box show since it started in February 2006.

May has sung for the Flashmonkey burlesque band, a popular night at Cafe De Paris in London, also featuring trumpeter/composer Eacott.

In 2009, she recorded the official Children In Need single alongside Cara Dillon, Terry Wogan, Hayley Westenra, and others at Abbey Road Studios. In 2010, she participated on ''Emotion & Commotion'' by Jeff Beck, singing on the track ''Lilac Wine'' and also on the Japanese CD bonus track ''Poor Boy.'' On 11 November 2010, she appeared as a guest on BBC2's comedy panel music show, ''Never Mind The Buzzcocks''.

In 2010, she performed with Meat Loaf as part of the UK leg of his Hang Cool Tour. During 2011, she and her band toured with Jeff Beck.

In August 2011 she performed on Jay Leno, Conan O’Brien and the Craig Ferguson show

Personal life

May is married to her guitarist and band member, Darrel Higham. She is a vegetarian.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions
		! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"
2005		* Released: 2002 as Imelda Clabby, re-released in 2005 as Imelda May.	* Label: Foot Tapping Records	* Formats: CD	—	—
2008		* Released: October 20, 2008	Universal Records>Universal	* Formats: CD, Download	1	58
2010	style="text-align:left;"	* Released: October 4, 2010	* Label: Universal	* Formats: CD, Download	1	7

Singles

Year	Single	Chart positions
!style="width:4em"	!style="width:4em"
	"Johnny Got a Boom Boom"
"Big Bad Handsome Man"
	style="text-align:left;"

Band members

Imelda May – vocals, bodhrán

Al Gare – double bass, bass guitar

Steve Rushton – drums

Darrel Higham – guitar

Dave Priseman – trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion, guitar

Awards and nominations

style="background:#B0C4DE;"	Year	Organisation	Nominated work	Award	Result
	2009 Meteor Awards		Imelda May	Best Irish Female
	RTÉ Radio 1	rowspan="2"	Album of the Year
	Choice Music Prize	Choice Music Prize

References

External links

Imelda May Album Review

No Turning Back (Imelda Clabby) Review

Blue Harlem (featuring Imelda May) Reviews

Music On-Air Interview

Liberation Frequency interview

Category:1974 births Category:Living people Category:Irish female singers Category:Irish jazz singers Category:Music from Dublin (city) Category:People from Dublin (city) Category:Irish musicians Category:Rockabilly musicians

de:Imelda May es:Imelda May fr:Imelda May pt:Imelda May ru:Имельда Мэй

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Joseph Arthur
background	solo_singer
birth name	%7C alias
birth date	September 28, 1971
origin	Akron, Ohio, United States
instrument	Vocals, guitar, harmonica, bass
genre	Alternative rock, folk rock
years active	1996–present
label	Lonely Astronaut Records
associated acts	The Lonely Astronauts, Fistful of Mercy
website	www.josepharthur.comwww.lonelyastronautrecords.com }}

Joseph Arthur (born September 28, 1971) is an American singer-songwriter and artist from Akron, Ohio. Combining poetic lyrics with a layered sonic palette, Arthur has built his reputation over the years through critically acclaimed releases and constant touring; his unique solo live performances incorporate the use of a number of distortion and loop pedals, and his shows are recorded live at the soundboard and made available to concertgoers immediately following the show on recordable media. Arthur was discovered by Peter Gabriel in the mid-'90s, and signed to Gabriel's Real World label as the first North American artist on the label's roster. Arthur released his debut album ''Big City Secrets'' (1997) and follow-up ''Come to Where I'm From'' (2000) on Real World before signing with various independent labels between 2002 and 2006. He established his own record label, Lonely Astronaut Records, in 2006.

Arthur is also an acclaimed painter and designer. His artwork has graced the sleeves of his entire discography; the sleeve design for his 1999 extended play ''Vacancy'' was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording Package.

Musical history

Early life and ''Big City Secrets''

Joseph began writing and playing music in his early teens, after inheriting an electronic keyboard from his aunt. At age 16, he played bass in a blues band called Frankie Starr and the Chill Factor, which disbanded by 1995. Joseph graduated from Firestone High School in 1990 and continued developing his music. In the early '90s, Arthur relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, continuing to record home demos, playing local clubs and working as a guitar salesman at Clark Music Store.

In 1996, Peter Gabriel's A&R; associate Harvey Schartz presented Gabriel with a demo of Arthur's first EP, ''Cut and Blind''. Gabriel and Schwartz arranged a live audition at ''The Fez'' nightclub in New York City, and Arthur flew up from Atlanta. The night was a success; not only was Lou Reed a guest in the audience, but within a few months Arthur was officially signed, Arthur recorded his debut album at Gabriel's Real World Studios in England with producer Markus Dravs (Björk, Coldplay, Arcade Fire). The debut album ''Big City Secrets'' was released worldwide in spring 1997, and Arthur joined Gabriel's WOMAD tour in Europe. ''Big City Secrets'' displayed Arthur's often angsty and emotionally-wrought lyrics coupled with diverse instrumentation, which he himself described as "someone struggling to heal over experimental folk-rock", but went virtually unnoticed by the mainstream. Two years later, he recorded an EP called ''Vacancy'', which earned him a Grammy nomination in 2000 for best recording package.

2000–2003: ''Come to Where I'm From'' and ''Redemption's Son''

In April 2000, Arthur released his sophomore studio album ''Come to Where I'm From'', which was co-produced with T-Bone Burnett and Tchad Blake. The album exhibited a more polished and accessible sound, and received positive accolades from Pitchfork Media and ''Entertainment Weekly''. Arthur began playing for larger audiences, opening for Ben Harper and Gomez. During that same period, he released a promotional live album recorded at the Gypsy Tea Room bar in Dallas, Texas.

After releasing a series of four EPs called ''Junkyard Hearts'', which were only available to purchase at his live shows, his third album, ''Redemption's Son'', came out in May 2002 in the UK. The American release was delayed until November 2002 since Arthur had been dropped by EMI in North America, having been picked up by Universal Music Group imprint Enjoy Records. The double album furthered the themes of emotional and spiritual dislocation found on ''Come to Where I'm From'', and was described by Allmusic reviewer Thom Jurek as a "sleeper hit."

While on tour, Arthur regularly released recordings of his performances soon after each show. He also recorded an album with alternative rock side project Holding the Void, featuring himself on vocals and guitar, Pat Sansone on vocals and bass, and Rene Lopez on vocals and drums. In Summer 2003, he toured with Tracy Chapman in the US.

2004–2006: ''Our Shadows Will Remain''

Arthur signed a new recording contract with Vector Recordings and began recording his fourth studio album, ''Our Shadows Will Remain'' across New Orleans, New York City, London, and Prague. The album was released in September 2004, and was Arthur's first album to feature string arrangements, provided by the City of Prague Philharmonic. The album was released to widespread critical acclaim; Allmusic's Thom Jurek awarded the album 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising that, "Arthur is in a class of his own and ''Our Shadows Will Remain'' is a monstrous, memorable outing, his finest moment in a career that is thus far full of them." ''Entertainment Weekly'' gave the album an A rating, hailing the album as "especially forceful and cohesive"; ''The Guardian'' hailed that Joseph "might just be a genuine mad genius"; ''Stylus Magazine'' gave the album an A– rating; and Chris Rubin of ''Rolling Stone'' named ''Our Shadows Will Remain'' as the number 1 album of the year 2004 in the year-end critics' pick list.

Arthur toured the US alone and with Joan Wasser to promote the album, and a new EP called ''And the Thieves Are Gone'', which collected unreleased tracks from the ''Shadows'' recording sessions, came out in December. Shortly afterward, Arthur went on a brief tour of Europe with R.E.M.. ''Our Shadows Will Remain'' was picked up by 14th Floor Records for distribution in the United Kingdom in 2005, which yielded the release of four singles: "Can't Exist" in July, "Even Tho" in September, "Devil's Broom" in February 2006 to coincide with his first headlining appearance at London's Shepherds Bush Empire, and a reissue of "Can't Exist" in May 2006, although none of the singles charted on the UK Singles Chart.

In August 2006, Joseph was invited to help launch the project A River Blue, where a group of young people in northern Uganda were brought together to participate in a music, drama, and art festival. Joseph also recorded the song "A River Blue" for the foundation.

2006–2007: Lonely Astronaut Records, ''Nuclear Daydream'', and ''Let's Just Be''

Also in 2006, Arthur started the record label Lonely Astronaut Records with longtime professional partner Lauren Pattenaude. He released a book entitled ''We Almost Made It'', a visual collection of his artworks, along with an accompanying instrumental CD titled ''The Invisible Parade'' in May 2006. In September 2006, Arthur released his fifth studio album, ''Nuclear Daydream'', which was recorded in Berlin and Los Angeles. The album would be the first release on his new label. Joseph then embarked on a worldwide tour with his new backing band, The Lonely Astronauts.

His song "In the Sun" was covered by Michael Stipe of R.E.M. and Chris Martin of Coldplay in 2006 for a Hurricane Katrina relief EP. The EP includes six versions of the song, one featuring Arthur himself singing with Stipe and another remixed by Justin Timberlake, and is available only on iTunes. On March 26, 2007, Joseph's then-UK label 14th Floor Records released a re-recorded version of his 2002 song "Honey and the Moon" as a special single in the UK only. In April, he released his sixth studio album, ''Let's Just Be'', and embarked on an extensive US tour. This was Joseph's first album with The Lonely Astronauts; the band recorded as many as 80 songs in late 2006, with only sixteen appearing on the album. The album was released to lukewarm critical reception, with Pitchfork Media calling the album "unfocused" and "sloppy," summarizing that the album "sounds like it came together on the fly, in jam sessions that didn't stem from any kind of solid idea."

2008–present

In 2008, Arthur released four EPs in a four-month span: ''Could We Survive'' on March 18, ''Crazy Rain'' on April 15, ''Vagabond Skies'' on June 10, and ''Foreign Girls'' on July 8. Regarding these releases, Arthur noted, "I have so much music piled up, like strange animals in a cosmic cage begging for release. The jails were overcrowded. I had to let some of them go." He played seven solo shows during the SXSW 2008 Festival, six in Austin and one in Dallas. Live dates in Europe and an extensive US solo tour coincided with the new releases. ''Temporary People'', his seventh full-length studio album and second with The Lonely Astronauts, was released on September 30, 2008. The album was received warmly by critics, with ''The Times Online'' stating that it "evokes the loose, rocking swagger and country melancholy of early-1970s Stones", and Crawdaddy! noting that Arthur "treats his audience to a brawny and brooding rock album, notching his most fully realized LP to date in the process." The album came out in Europe in late October, and afterward Arthur embarked on a solo tour and opened for Tracy Chapman on her six-week "Our Bright Future" European tour, followed by tour dates in Canada.

Arthur recorded a cover of The Afghan Whigs's "Step Into the Light" from their 1996 album ''Black Love'' for the tribute album, ''Summer's Kiss: A Tribute to The Afghan Whigs''. Following UK tour dates with The Lonely Astronauts in July, Arthur embarked on a solo tour of France in October 2009. A reissue of his 2006 album ''Nuclear Daydream'' with six previously unreleased bonus tracks was released during this tour.

Arthur, Ben Harper, and Dhani Harrison formed the supergroup trio Fistful of Mercy in 2010, and their debut album ''As I Call You Down'' was released on October 5, 2010. Arthur's first solo studio album since ''Nuclear Daydream'', titled ''The Graduation Ceremony'',was released on May 23, 2011.

Visual art

Arthur has also received acclaim as a painter and designer. His artwork has graced the sleeves of his entire discography, notably the album covers for ''Come to Where I'm From'' and ''Our Shadows Will Remain'', which included a 36-page booklet featuring prints of his original artwork, and was released with a die-cut outer slipcase sleeve. Arthur and frequent graphic design collaborator Zachary Larner's sleeve design for the 1999 extended play ''Vacancy'' was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Recording Package. He staged his first art exhibition in 2006 at the Vertigo Gallery in London from February 10 to February 12, and released a 110-page book entitled ''We Almost Made It'', a visual collection of his artworks, along with an accompanying instrumental CD titled ''The Invisible Parade'' in May 2006.

He set up his personal art gallery ''The Museum of Modern Arthur'' in June 2007 as a brick and mortar location in Brooklyn's DUMBO District. According to an article on Stereogum.com, Joseph and the MOMAR were evicted from the building. Joseph held a record release party for ''Temporary People'' before the closing of the gallery in September 2008. The MOMAR gallery soon morphed into an online gallery.

Live performances

Arthur's one man band live performances incorporate looping techniques and several distortion techniques. His live performances are recorded through to the last note and then burnt to CD-R. They are sold immediately to fans after the concert. Beginning with his fall 2006 tour, Arthur incorporated a full band, The Lonely Astronauts. They are no longer together.

The Lonely Astronauts were:

Joseph Arthur – vocals, guitar

Kraig Jarret Johnson – guitar, keyboards, vocals

Jennifer "Jen" Turner – guitar, vocals

Sibyl Buck – bass, vocals

Greg "G. Wiz" Wieczorek – drums, vocals

Instruments and loops

Of the guitars that Joseph utilizes, his primary acoustic guitar is an Irish Lowden 012C. Some of Joseph's other guitars include a Garrison G-50-CE, a Gibson ES-335, and a '70s Fender Strat.

To incorporate his looping techniques, Arthur uses a myriad of rackmounted units of the Lexicon JamMan. He plays his guitars through an impressive floor of effects pedals. When performing solo live, he often records a sample of guitar, percussion, or vocals which he can then loop periodically throughout a song, allowing him to perform verses with the added effect of harmonizing with himself.

Discography

Studio albums

''Big City Secrets'' (1997)

''Come to Where I'm From'' (2000)

''Redemption's Son'' (2002)

''Our Shadows Will Remain'' (2004)

''Nuclear Daydream'' (2006)

''Let's Just Be'' (2007) (with The Lonely Astronauts)

''Temporary People'' (2008) (with The Lonely Astronauts)

''The Graduation Ceremony'' (2011)

EPs

''Cut and Blind'' (August 1996)

''Vacancy'' (May 11, 1999)

''Junkyard Hearts I'' (February 15, 2002)

''Junkyard Hearts II'' (February 28, 2002)

''Junkyard Hearts III'' (March 15, 2002)

''Junkyard Hearts IV'' (March 28, 2002)

''And the Thieves Are Gone'' (December 7, 2004)

''Could We Survive'' (March 18, 2008)

''Crazy Rain'' (April 15, 2008)

''Vagabond Skies'' (June 10, 2008)

''Foreign Girls'' (July 8, 2008)

References

External links

Joseph Arthur's official website

Joseph Arthur's Tumblr blog

Lonely Astronauts – fan website

Lonely Astronaut Records website

Category:Living people Category:American male singers Category:American rock singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:Songwriters from Ohio Category:1971 births Category:People from Akron, Ohio Authur, Joseph Category:People self-identifying as alcoholics

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