Zoë Johnston

Zoë Johnston
Born c. 1976
Origin Nottinghamshire, England, United Kingdom
Genres Electronic music, Electronic dance, Vocal trance, Folk, Acoustic
Occupation(s) Singer, composer, lyricist, performer
Instruments Vocals
Years active 1999-present
Associated acts Faithless, Above & Beyond, Bent, Delerium, sleepthief

Zoë Johnston is a British singer-songwriter (born c. 1976), who grew up in Nottinghamshire.[1] Johnston is best known for her vocal contributions to Faithless, Above & Beyond, Bent, and Delerium.

Early career

Johnston made her debut in 1999 when she was featured on a number of tracks from Neon Heights' house album A View from the Heights.[2][3] At the same time, Johnston was writing for Bent's debut album Programmed to Love. She wrote the song "Private Road" on which she performs guitar and vocals and co-wrote the song "Swollen", which the British actor Michael Caine later proclaimed to be "one of the most romantic songs in chill music I've ever heard".[4] He included the track on a self-made chill-out compilation CD entitled Cained and chose it for the BBC Radio 4 programme "Desert Island Discs" which aired on 20 December 2009.[5] Almost without exception Johnston has written all of her own lyrics and vocal parts even when collaborating with other acts. She has a 1st Class BA Hons degree in Journalism and Film. She is also a photo-realist painter.[6]

Touring with Faithless

Her vocal contribution to "Swollen" caught the attention of Faithless member Rollo Armstrong who initially believed her voice had been sampled from a recording in the 1940s. This led to Johnston singing on the Faithless album Outrospective, released by BMG in 2001.[7] She performed for eighteen months with the group throughout their world tour to promote the album.

With other artists

Johnston has written and performed with Paul Heaton of The Beautiful South. She sang 'Poems' with him on his first solo venture as 'Biscuit Boy' (2002) and later again as his partner on 'Little Red Rooster' in 2008. Similarly Johnston has written and recorded all vocal parts for Sleepthief, Delerium, and Above & Beyond on their singles "Good For Me", "Alchemy", "No One On Earth", "You Got To Go", "Love Is Not Enough" and "We're All We Need" on the record label Anjunabeats. She has been featured heavily in Above & Beyond's albums Group Therapy (2011) and We Are All We Need (2015).[8]

Solo album

Johnston has released a solo album Happenstances (2006). The album includes an original version of one of Johnston's best known tracks — "Crazy English Summer", from Faithless album Outrospective. The album is currently available on iTunes.

References

  1. ↑ Nottingham Evening Post, 29 June 2001, Arts & Entertainment: Music – Rock & Pop, Pg.2.
  2. ↑ "Are We Thru?". Allmusic. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  3. ↑ "Neon Heights (United Kingdom)". Megamind Magazine. 31 July 2002. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  4. ↑ "BBC radio", 10 October 2009, interview with Julie Cullen.
  5. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk
  6. ↑ Elliot, R. W. (31 August 2009). "Zoë Johnston | Sleepthief Labyrinthine Heart". Musical Discoveries. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  7. ↑ Carlson, Dean. "Outrospective – Faithless". Allmusic. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  8. ↑ O'Brien, Jon. "Group Therapy – Above & Beyond". Allmusic. Retrieved 21 November 2011.

External links

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