Ed Harcourt
- Composer
- Soundtrack
- Music Artist
Quirky, talented and distinctive British singer/songwriter Ed Harcourt
was born on August 14, 1977 in Lewes, East Sussex, England. The son of
a diplomat, Harcourt moved around a lot when he was a kid and first
learned to play the piano when he was around nine or ten. (Besides the
piano, Ed also plays drums, bass and guitar.) He was the keyboardist
and bass player for the indie pop-punk band Snug. After the group broke
up, Harcourt briefly worked as a chef at a French restaurant prior to
embarking on a solo musical career. Ed released his debut CD EP
"Maplewood" in 2000. This was immediately followed by the albums "Here
Be Monsters," "From Every Sphere," "Strangers," and "The Beautiful
Lie." Among the artists Harcourt has performed as an opening act in
concerts for are the Gutter Twins, R.E.M., Snow Patrol, Wilco, Beth
Orton, Norah Jones, Neil Finn, and Supergrass. A prolific songwriter,
Ed has co-written songs for such artists as The Langley Sisters, Sam
Beeton, Lisa Mitchell, Paloma Faith, Alice & the Majesty, Liam Frost,
Kristina Train, and Josephine Oniyama. He recorded several tracks with
the French jazz quartet Erik Truffaz for their 2007 album "Arkhangelsk"
and performed on stage at the 2005 Meltdown music festival in London,
England. In 2007 Harcourt released the CD compilation album "Until
Tomorrow Then: The Best of Ed Harcourt." His wife Gita is a singer and
musician who plays violin with Ed both in concert and on several of his
albums.