As you may have gathered by now, I'm a great Shawn Harvey fan (and have been for many years, since I first encountered him performing as Ricky Fentone with his band The Flat Top Cats in the '80s - more about that in future blog entries) - But you may possibly be wondering "WHO?", "WHAT?", "WHY?" and even "WHEN?" and "WHERE?"
Well, as someone once said, I'm here to tell you ...
(Although I'd like to, I can't credit for writing what follows - I 'pinched' most of it from Shawn's website, but I'm sure he won't mind as I'm acknowledging it or attributing it or whatever it's called)
So - About SHAWN HARVEY:
Shawn Harvey, talented singer, songwriter, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist and producer, was born in Plymouth, England, and grew up in a small tin-mining town in Cornwall to the sounds of Rock'n'Roll, Blues, Country, Rock and Glam, a love for which shines through in his music to this day. He started playing guitar and writing songs at the age of 13.
Shawn has developed his own distinctive style, taking bits from his early influences and adding a dose of his own personality. The result is Rock'n'Roll as original as a 50's original and every bit as exciting. His live performances are electric and show his musical talent as a singer and guitarist. Years of working on the road with a Rock'n'Roll band from as early as 14 have made him a true pro and it shows at gigs. But when in the studio, Shawn's biggest talent of all shines through: the ability to write exciting, catchy songs and produce potentially chart topping tunes.
Being a competent photographer and video editor, Shawn has a clear idea of his image and gets involved in the art direction of all his projects. Several UK TV and Radio stations have already noticed his talent and featured him. His music and photos have been included in a special demo version of the popular Strip Kittens MP3 player programme. Shawn's international chart success on the internet, repeated Top 20 chart positions, with several worldwide No. 1's on sites such as Besonic and Soundclick, indicate the commercial viability and universal appeal of his music.
Some of the highlights of Shawn's career so far:
1995: Recorded first album "Night Of Passion" with his band The Flat Top Cats on a Prince's Trust grant
1997: Shawn and The Flat Top Cats were made honorary members of the Cynon Valley Cancer Research Committee after raising nearly 700 pounds in one year for charity from album sales, signings and performing at the local carnival 1997: Launch of Flat Top Cats Fan Club 1998: Wrote space musical "Zog", an ongoing project to date
1998: Featured on Valleys Radio, an hour long program about Shawn with live interview
1999: Launched
www.shawnharvey.com due to ever- growing demand of fans
2000: Several songs from latest album "Cyberoxin" included in playlist of Falmouth FM
2001: Recording of Wild Wild Woman demo CD at Monroe's Studios, London
2001: Performance at the launch party of Popshow, the popular London showcase
2001: Featured on the Chris Young Show, Taunton TV, a 45 minute special on Shawn with live interviews and performances of Wild Wild Woman and Don't Leave Me Baby
2001: Performance of Wild Wild Woman on the Blue Whale Show, Men And Motors TV
2002: Filmed by ATIT Productions for the C4 pilot "Thank You For The Music". A film crew of 7 travelled to Cornwall for 2 days of location shooting
2003: Returned to perform at Popshow on the same bill with Gina G; was voted 3rd most popular act on the night 2004: Signed by Kissy Music
2004: Wrote film soundtrack to American movie Deadly Desires
2004: Wild Wild Woman was pre-released at Cannes Film Festival with good response
2004: Released Wild Wild Woman CD on the Kissy Music label
2004: Wild Wild Woman hits No.2 in France and No.7 in the USA in the Besonic internet charts
2004: 1st December, recording session at Mill Hill Studios, London, for the album "In The Hills", featuring famous session guitarist Albert Lee and produced by Boz Boorer (Morrissey's band)
2004: Endorsement of Shine guitars. Shawn is the official face for Shine in 2005
2004: 25th December, gig at the Millennium Dome, London for the homeless charity Crisis Open Christmas
2005: 10th March, recording session at Berry Hill Studios for "In The Hills". Produced by John David (ex Dave Edmunds band and Love Sculpture)
2005: Several of the "In The Hills" tracks hit the Soundclick charts and internet radio stations began to include them in their playlists
2005: September 5th, release of Country/Rockabilly album "In The Hills" on Kissy Music label & distributed through HMV Digital and Virgin Digital
2005: Dutch Country artist Shannah records a cover version of "Haystack Life" from the "In The Hills" album.
Plans for the future:
2006: Filming of several videos for the album
2006: Filming of "Shawn", documentary
2006: Release of video collection on DVD
2006: International Radio and TV promotion
2006: Several live appearances, dates t.b.c.
2006: Negotiations with major record labels regarding large scale distribution and promotion
2006+: UK and European tours, international promotion, second album release
Some interesting facts about Shawn:
-Shawn's great great grandfather, Jack Rowling, deep sea diver from Falmouth, Cornwall, was the favourite subject of the painter Henry Scott Tuke. His painting "The Promise", depicting Jack and a young girl, features on the 12" cover of the 1980's hit "The Back Of Love" by Echo And The Bunnymen
- As a young boy, Shawn went along to the first ever audition for "Stars In Their Eyes". Not realising it was a show for impersonators, he brought his guitar and played a Rock'n'Roll tune. The producer was so impressed with his performance that he advised Shawn to go out there and develop his own act instead
- Shawn's favourite guitar is his Shine SH-943 WH
- Shawn's musical inspirations are as diverse as Dave Edmunds, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Blondie, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Dwight Yoakam, Shania Twain, Pink, Aqua, Billy Idol, Transvision Vamp....
- Shawn's song catalogue at Kissy Music stands at over 450 selfwritten works to date, and growing....
- As a teenager, Shawn was an extra in a pop video by Shakin' Stevens, "What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For", also featuring the-then-not so famous Vic Reeves
- In 2001, Shawn was a film extra in the BBC Films production "Pandaemonium", starring John Hanna and Linus Roache. You can catch a brief glimpse of Shawn as a sailor in the opening scene.
(Once I get my scanner to talk to my PC, which seems to be hibernating, I'll be able to put some early photos of Shawn in my blog and album - For now there are some 'official ones' which Shawn and Kissy Music have kindly let me use in my tribe.net album)
