Stuart Lee Murdoch (born 25 August 1968) is a Scottish musician, writer and filmmaker, and the lead singer and songwriter for the indie pop band Belle and Sebastian. He also suffers from ME.
Murdoch with Belle and Sebastian in 2010 at the Wang Theatre in Boston
Murdoch's parents made him take piano lessons during his childhood, and he claims not to have enjoyed them at the time but now "appreciates this decision vastly".[citation needed] Apart from early musical activities at secondary school (at age 12 he formed a band with fellow pupils, in which he played piano), Murdoch first became publicly involved in music as a radio DJ for Subcity Radio at the University of Glasgow.
While at university at the end of the 1980s, he became ill with myalgic encephalomyelitis, or chronic fatigue syndrome, and was unable to work for seven years. Murdoch said that the isolation of these years led to his becoming a songwriter: "That was a big desert at the time, a kind of vacuum in my life. From that, these songs started coming out, these melodies where I could express what I was feeling." By early 1995 Murdoch had largely recovered from his illness and began to look for fellow musicians to form a band, which became Belle & Sebastian. Murdoch's struggle with chronic fatigue syndrome is the subject of the song "Nobody's Empire" on Belle & Sebastian's album Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance.[2]
Influence of religion
This was also when he began living above a church hall and working as its caretaker, a position he maintained until 2003. In 2004 Murdoch told The Guardian, "I'm not actually a Christian with a capital C. I'm still asking questions. But I had this time when I found myself singing all these old hymns in my kitchen and I couldn't work out why I was doing it. Then one Sunday morning I got up, looked at my watch, and thought, 'I wonder if I could make it to a church service?' It was so welcoming. It just felt like you were coming home. Twelve years later, I've never left".[3]
Murdoch's interest in faith has been perceptible in his lyrics. Belle and Sebastian's first album included lines about "reading the Gospel to yourself," and on the second Murdoch sang of "the pain of being a hopeless unbeliever." Religious references became more confident and direct on later albums, including "If You Find Yourself Caught in Love" (which continues "say a prayer to the man above"; this line becomes a refrain) on the album Dear Catastrophe Waitress and the two-part "Act of the Apostle" on The Life Pursuit. Of "If You Find Yourself Caught in Love," Murdoch told Gross, "At the time I was writing it I thought, well, should I be so overt? Because I've often couched any religious overtones within characters in the past, but this is a bit more out there. And then I just thought, come on, you've been doing this for years, why not? Why not just be a bit more straightforward?"[4]
Sexually ambiguous lyrics in Belle & Sebastian's music have prompted Murdoch to confirm his heterosexuality in the press, calling himself "straight to the point of boring myself".[5]
Personal life
Murdoch ran the Glasgow Marathon in 1986, and finished with a time of three hours.[6]
Murdoch is a vegetarian.[7] He married longtime girlfriend Marisa Privitera on 26 November 2007 in New York City. Privitera is on the cover of Belle and Sebastian's DVD Fans Only and LP The Life Pursuit.[8] Their eldest son, Denny (named after his goddaughter), was born in May 2013.[9] Their second son Nico was born in November 2016.[10]
Murdoch was diagnosed with colour blindness at an early age and does not drink. "I like a Scotch whisky but I'm allergic to alcohol, would you believe, which is a tragedy in itself," he has said. "It's only in the last couple of years. I got eczema and one of the things I had to do to get rid of it was give up alcohol."[citation needed]
In 2010 Murdoch published his first memoir, The Celestial Café. In 2012–2013 he wrote and directed the musical feature film God Help the Girl, released internationally and online in 2014.[citation needed]
Murdoch has been diagnosed with ME, an extremely debilitating and medically neglected condition.[13]
References
^"Stuart Murdoch". belleandsebastian.com. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
^Parkhouse, Will. "Didn't See It Coming: An Interview With Belle And Sebastian". The Quietus.
^"Raising their game". The Guardian. 17 July 2004. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
^Stuart Murdoch on Fresh Air, NPR circa 'The Life Pursuit', 2006
^Frizzelle, Christopher, The Sun in Glasgow, retrieved 4 November 2007
^"Pop stars running marathons: Belle and Sebastian". Run and Jump. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
^"Denny Alexander Murdoch". Herald Scotland. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
^stuart murdoch [@nee_massey] (5 November 2016). ""Reasons to be Cheerful, Part 2" - Nico Robert Salvatore Murdoch. Born Nov 4th at 0345. Mum and child all well. X" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
^Rodrick, Stephen (26 June 2009). "More Songs About Feelings and Women". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
^"Scotland 'a pioneer for good' on climate". BBC News. 5 December 2009. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
^Neil Pooran (28 September 2022). "Belle and Sebastian singer: Living with ME makes me feel like a 'non-person'". The Independent. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
External links
Official biography
Online diary
January 07, 2023
stuart, murdoch, musician, stuart, murdoch, born, august, 1968, scottish, musician, writer, filmmaker, lead, singer, songwriter, indie, band, belle, sebastian, also, suffers, from, stuart, murdochmurdoch, performing, angeles, 2003background, informationalso, k. Stuart Lee Murdoch born 25 August 1968 is a Scottish musician writer and filmmaker and the lead singer and songwriter for the indie pop band Belle and Sebastian He also suffers from ME Stuart MurdochMurdoch performing in Los Angeles in 2003Background informationAlso known asStewpot 1 Born 1968 08 25 25 August 1968 age 54 OriginClarkston East Renfrewshire ScotlandGenresIndie popOccupation s MusicianInstrument s VocalsguitarPianoKeyboard Contents 1 Early life 2 Influence of religion 3 Personal life 4 References 5 External linksEarly life Edit Murdoch with Belle and Sebastian in 2010 at the Wang Theatre in Boston Murdoch s parents made him take piano lessons during his childhood and he claims not to have enjoyed them at the time but now appreciates this decision vastly citation needed Apart from early musical activities at secondary school at age 12 he formed a band with fellow pupils in which he played piano Murdoch first became publicly involved in music as a radio DJ for Subcity Radio at the University of Glasgow While at university at the end of the 1980s he became ill with myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome and was unable to work for seven years Murdoch said that the isolation of these years led to his becoming a songwriter That was a big desert at the time a kind of vacuum in my life From that these songs started coming out these melodies where I could express what I was feeling By early 1995 Murdoch had largely recovered from his illness and began to look for fellow musicians to form a band which became Belle amp Sebastian Murdoch s struggle with chronic fatigue syndrome is the subject of the song Nobody s Empire on Belle amp Sebastian s album Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance 2 Influence of religion EditThis was also when he began living above a church hall and working as its caretaker a position he maintained until 2003 In 2004 Murdoch told The Guardian I m not actually a Christian with a capital C I m still asking questions But I had this time when I found myself singing all these old hymns in my kitchen and I couldn t work out why I was doing it Then one Sunday morning I got up looked at my watch and thought I wonder if I could make it to a church service It was so welcoming It just felt like you were coming home Twelve years later I ve never left 3 Murdoch s interest in faith has been perceptible in his lyrics Belle and Sebastian s first album included lines about reading the Gospel to yourself and on the second Murdoch sang of the pain of being a hopeless unbeliever Religious references became more confident and direct on later albums including If You Find Yourself Caught in Love which continues say a prayer to the man above this line becomes a refrain on the album Dear Catastrophe Waitress and the two part Act of the Apostle on The Life Pursuit Of If You Find Yourself Caught in Love Murdoch told Gross At the time I was writing it I thought well should I be so overt Because I ve often couched any religious overtones within characters in the past but this is a bit more out there And then I just thought come on you ve been doing this for years why not Why not just be a bit more straightforward 4 Sexually ambiguous lyrics in Belle amp Sebastian s music have prompted Murdoch to confirm his heterosexuality in the press calling himself straight to the point of boring myself 5 Personal life EditMurdoch ran the Glasgow Marathon in 1986 and finished with a time of three hours 6 Murdoch is a vegetarian 7 He married longtime girlfriend Marisa Privitera on 26 November 2007 in New York City Privitera is on the cover of Belle and Sebastian s DVD Fans Only and LP The Life Pursuit 8 Their eldest son Denny named after his goddaughter was born in May 2013 9 Their second son Nico was born in November 2016 10 Murdoch dated Tracyanne Campbell the lead singer of the band Camera Obscura for three years in the 2000s 11 Murdoch was diagnosed with colour blindness at an early age and does not drink I like a Scotch whisky but I m allergic to alcohol would you believe which is a tragedy in itself he has said It s only in the last couple of years I got eczema and one of the things I had to do to get rid of it was give up alcohol citation needed In 2009 Murdoch contributed the song Another Saturday to the AIDS benefit album Dark Was the Night produced by the Red Hot Organization He was one of the most notable protesters attending a 5 December 2009 march in Glasgow supporting governmental intervention to combat climate change prior to the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 in Copenhagen 12 In 2010 Murdoch published his first memoir The Celestial Cafe In 2012 2013 he wrote and directed the musical feature film God Help the Girl released internationally and online in 2014 citation needed Murdoch has been diagnosed with ME an extremely debilitating and medically neglected condition 13 References Edit Stuart Murdoch belleandsebastian com Retrieved 10 April 2018 Parkhouse Will Didn t See It Coming An Interview With Belle And Sebastian The Quietus Raising their game The Guardian 17 July 2004 Retrieved 11 April 2011 Stuart Murdoch on Fresh Air NPR circa The Life Pursuit 2006 Frizzelle Christopher The Sun in Glasgow retrieved 4 November 2007 Pop stars running marathons Belle and Sebastian Run and Jump 12 September 2014 Retrieved 8 November 2017 The 2008 World s Sexiest Vegetarians Are peta2 com accessed 15 June 2015 MacLaverty Ciara M amp S S amp M Denny Alexander Murdoch Herald Scotland 31 May 2013 Retrieved 27 April 2016 stuart murdoch nee massey 5 November 2016 Reasons to be Cheerful Part 2 Nico Robert Salvatore Murdoch Born Nov 4th at 0345 Mum and child all well X Tweet via Twitter Rodrick Stephen 26 June 2009 More Songs About Feelings and Women The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 27 May 2022 Scotland a pioneer for good on climate BBC News 5 December 2009 Retrieved 24 May 2010 Neil Pooran 28 September 2022 Belle and Sebastian singer Living with ME makes me feel like a non person The Independent Retrieved 13 October 2022 External links EditOfficial biography Online diary Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Stuart Murdoch musician amp oldid 1128796374, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
