Ed Harcourt

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.