Beth Orton: Difference between revisions

'''Elizabeth Caroline Orton''' (born 14 December 1970) is an English musician, known for her "[[folktronica]]" sound, which mixes elements of [[folk music|folk]] and [[electronica]].<ref>{{cite web | work = ASCAP ACE | title = Search results | url = http://www.ascap.com/ace/search.cfm?requesttimeout=300&mode=results&searchstr=1556896&search_in=c&search_type=exact&search_det=t,s,w,p,b,v&results_pp=30&start=1 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070220191743/http://www.ascap.com/ace/search.cfm?requesttimeout=300&mode=results&searchstr=1556896&search_in=c&search_type=exact&search_det=t,s,w,p,b,v&results_pp=30&start=1 | url-status = dead | archive-date = 20 February 2007 | access-date = 11 September 2006 }}</ref> She was initially recognised for her collaborations with [[William Orbit]], [[Andrew Weatherall]], [[Red Snapper (band)|Red Snapper]] and [[the Chemical Brothers]] in the mid-1990s. Her UK/US first solo album, ''[[Trailer Park (album)|Trailer Park]]'', received much critical acclaim in 1996. Orton developed a devoted audience with the release of the [[Brit Awards|BRIT]] Award-winning album ''[[Central Reservation (album)|Central Reservation]]'' (1999) and the 2002 UK top 10 album, ''[[Daybreaker (Beth Orton album)|Daybreaker]]''. Her 2006 album, ''[[Comfort of Strangers]]'', was followed by a break during which Orton gave birth to her daughter and collaborated with the British guitarist [[Bert Jansch]]. Orton returned with ''[[Sugaring Season]]'' in 2012, which moved towards a purer acoustic sound, followed by a return to electronic music with ''[[#Kidsticks|Kidsticks]]'', released in 2016.

Orton was born in [[Dereham]], Norfolk, but moved to [[Dalston]], East London, at age fourteen. Her father, a public relations consultant and journalist, left her mother when Orton was eleven, and she lived with her mother, a journalist and political activist, and her two brothers, her father dying shortly afterwards.<ref>''Q'', issue 56, page 202</ref><ref>"Emotional Rescue", ''The Daily Telegraph'', 28 January 2006, page 32</ref> Orton studied A-levels at [[City College Norwich]].<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/student/into-university/az-uni-colleges/city-college-norwich-459008.html City College Norwich], ''The Independent'', 1 July 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2019.</ref> Her mother died from cancer in 1989, when Orton was aged 19,<ref>"Emotional Rescue", ''Daily Telegraph'', 28 January 2006, p35</ref> which led to her travelling to Thailand for a short period, living with Buddhist nuns. On returning to London, Orton worked at jobs such as a waitress at [[Pizza Hut]], and she even briefly owned her own catering company.<ref>"An Interview With Beth Orton", Heavenly Recordings, BETH002, 1999</ref> Orton was an actress before becoming a musician, initially enrolling at the [[Anna Scher Theatre|Anna Scher Theatre School]]. She toured in an experimental stage adaptation of ''[[Une Saison en Enfer]]'' with a theatre company touring throughout the UK, Russia and Ukraine, playing [[Arthur Rimbaud]]'s lover.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bethorton.mu |title=Firstmagazine's Blog |website=Bethorton.mu |access-date=1 October 2012}}</ref><ref name="Quietus">{{cite web | url=http://thequietus.com/articles/01327-beth-orton-on-william-orbit-and-the-birth-of-trailer-park | work=The Quietus | title=In their own words: Beth Orton tells the untold story of the birth of Trailer Park | date=18 March 2009 |access-date=20 March 2009}}</ref>

Orton began working with [[William Orbit]] on an LP together as [[Spill (band)|Spill]], entitled ''Burn Blind''. "Don't Wanna Know 'Bout Evil" was the first track on the album that ended up being released in just Orton's name. ''[[Superpinkymandy]]'' was named after a rag doll which she bought at a [[jumble sale]] at the age of six.<ref>''Morning Becomes Eclectic'', first broadcast 30 May 1997</ref> This rare album was released only in Japan, in extremely limited numbers (popularly quoted{{by whom|date=November 2019}} as between 1,000 and 5,000 copies). The sound is very much Orbit's, but all of the songs (except "Don't Wanna Know 'Bout Evil" written by John Martyn) were co-written by Orton and Orbit, and some tracks were later recycled, in very different versions. "She Cries Your Name" later appeared on ''Trailer Park''. "Yesterday's Gone" became "Montok Point" on the fourth Strange Cargo release, ''[[Strange Cargo Hinterland|Hinterland]]'' (1995). ''Hinterland'' had Orton's vocals on several tracks, and also included an alternative version of "She Cries Your Name".

It was roughly at this time that she met Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands of [[The Chemical Brothers]] and began the first in a series of collaborations, providing vocals for the track "Alive Alone" on ''[[Exit Planet Dust]]'' (1995). She would later provide vocals for the tracks "Where Do I Begin" on ''[[Dig Your Own Hole]]'' (1997) and "The State We're In" on ''[[Come with Us]]'' (2002). In 2018 she and [[The Chemical Brothers]] released a long-lost cover of [[Tim Buckley]]'s "I Never Asked to Be Your Mountain", a collaborative effort dating back from the late '90s, when the three were sharing space in London’s Orinoco studios. According to [[Mixmag]] "Orton said she rediscovered the tune after it fell out of an unread copy of War and Peace."

Orton was criticised over her music video for the song "1973" in which she is shown spray painting a federally protected [[Joshua tree]] and other desert plant life. After an outcry from the local community, which included a petition on [[change.org]], the music video was removed online.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Beth Orton Under Fire For Spray Painting Joshua Tree in '1973' Video |date=29 May 2016 |author=Mitchell Peters |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7386080/beth-orton-spray-painting-joshua-tree-1973-video-shorefire-publicity-marilyn-laverty-change-org |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=15 September 2016}}</ref> Orton publicly apologised<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stereogum.com/1879884/beth-orton-removes-1973-video-with-spray-painted-joshua-tree/video/|title=Beth Orton Removes "1973" Video With Spray-Painted Joshua Tree|date=29 May 2016|work=Stereogum}}</ref> and the Mojave Desert Trust responded positively to her outreach, stating, "We appreciate that Beth Orton regrets her prior actions, and that she intends to educate others about the natural beauty of the Mojave Desert, and the responsibility we collectively share for protecting this unique environment from vandalism and harm."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/2016/06/07/beth-orton-joshua-tree-spraypaint/85558890/|title=Musician didn't get OK to film on Joshua Tree property|first=Denise|last=Goolsby|website=The Desert Sun|access-date=11 April 2023}}</ref>