Tanya Donelly

  • Newport, RI
    hometown
  • Rock
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  • 1981
    started
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About Tanya Donelly

Official Site: http://tanyadonelly.com/


A founding member of three of the most successful bands of the post-punk era, singer/songwriter Tanya Donelly was born July 14, 1966, in Newport, RI. At the age of 16, she and stepsister Kristin Hersh formed Throwing Muses, which in 1985 became the first American band ever signed to the influential British label 4AD; not only did the Muses' dreamy, swirling guitar sound prove highly influential on many of the alternative acts to emerge in their wake, but they also made any number of unprecedented advances into the male-dominated world of underground rock. The group was primarily Hersh's project, however, and in 1989 Donelly sidelined with Pixies bassist Kim Deal in the Breeders, appearing on their debut LP, Pod. While originally designed as a forum for both Donelly and Deal, the latter soon assumed control of the group, and by 1991 Donelly had exited both the Breeders and Throwing Muses to form her own band, Belly. After issuing a pair of well-received EPs, Belly released their 1993 full-length debut, Star -- a superb collection of luminous, fairy tale-like guitar pop songs -- and for the first time in her career, Donelly earned commercial success commensurate to her usual critical accolades; not only did the record go gold on the strength of the hit single "Feed the Tree," but the band even garnered a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist. However, when 1995's King failed to live up to high expectations, Donelly disbanded Belly to pursue a career as a solo artist; Lovesongs for Underdogs, her debut LP, appeared in 1997. After a tour in support of the album, she and husband Dean Fisher took a break and traveled to Central America. Two years later, she and Fisher welcomed a daughter whom they named Gracie. Motherhood was now Donelly's focus, but she still found time for music. In between raising a child and weekend trips to the studio, she issued the Storm EP in 2002. A month later, her long-awaited sophomore effort, Beautysleep, was released. Whiskey Tango Ghosts followed in 2004. For her fourth album, Donelly and a host of musicians gathered at an old hotel in Bellows Falls, VT, to record This Hungry Life before a small club audience. The ten-song set arrived on Eleven Thirty Records in October 2006. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

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Music

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    • The Lovecats
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    • Heart of Gold
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/0/6/6/2/3/160932660.mp3
    • Littlewing
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/3/2/8/4/3/136134823.mp3
    • Breathe Around You
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/2/3/1/5/3/154935132.mp3
    • The Night You Save My Life
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/9/2/9/0/8/110080929.mp3
    • Bum
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/6/0/1/5/3/154935106.mp3

Photos

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  • Tanya Donelly
    Courtesy of 4AD/Beggars Banquet
  • 4AD/ The Beggars Group
    Tanya Donelly
    4AD/ The Beggars Group
    Dana Tynan

News

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  • Tanya Donelly
    Cure to receive tribute from Tanya Donnelly, the Wedding Present, and Black Francis
    prefixmag.com
    Pioneering new wave the Cure is receiving the full tribute treatment, with sixteen of their most well known songs being covered by the likes of Casset...
    Read More
  • Tanya Donelly
    Watch The Breeders Reunite With Tanya Donelly In Boston
    stereogum.com
    When the Breeders started, they were a side project for two great college-rock supporting players: Pixies' Kim Deal and Throwing Muses' Tanya Donelly....
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  • Tanya Donelly
    Watch: The Breeders Reunite With Tanya Donelly
    pitchfork.com
    Photo via Instagram user bsilcio/Slicing Up Eyeballs Last night, the Breeders hit Boston with their reunited Last Splash lineup, part of their current...
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Discography

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  • This Hungry Life (2006)
    Tanya Donelly
    This Hungry Life (2006)
    Eleven Thirty Records
  • Whiskey Tango Ghosts (2004)
    Tanya Donelly
    Whiskey Tango Ghosts (2004)
    4AD
  • Beautysleep (2002)
    Tanya Donelly
    Beautysleep (2002)
    4AD
  • Lovesongs for Underdogs (1997)
    Tanya Donelly
    Lovesongs for Underdogs (1997)
    Reprise
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