Ian Stanley
Encyclopedia
Ian Stanley is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He was previously a member of the English band Tears for Fears
for most of the 1980s, and played a key role in the making of their multi-platinum selling second album Songs from the Big Chair
.
on their first three albums. He also co-wrote (with Roland Orzabal
) many of their songs from the period 1983-85, and was a vital part of the production team during this era as the band worked with producer Chris Hughes
at their studio base, The Wool Hall, in Bath.
He has appeared in several Tears for Fears promotional videos, including "Change
" (in which he plays one of the two masked musicians), "Mothers Talk
" (version 1 and version 3), "Shout
", "Everybody Wants to Rule the World
", "Head over Heels
" and "I Believe (A Soulful Re-Recording)
", and has performed with the band on countless television performances. He also appeared in the 1983 Tears for Fears live concert video recording In My Mind's Eye
, and the 1985 Tears for Fears documentary film Scenes from the Big Chair
, as well as completing two world tours with the band.
on the 1986 side project Mancrab, releasing a single, "Fish for Life," which was made for the soundtrack of the film The Karate Kid, Part II
. Stanley also began working on Tears for Fears' third album, The Seeds of Love
, but (along with producer Chris Hughes) left the project due to creative differences. His more prominent contributions to this album, however, can be heard on the hit single "Sowing the Seeds of Love
" and the B-sides "Always in the Past" and "My Life in the Suicide Ranks."
Since the 1980s, Stanley has produced such artists as Lloyd Cole and the Commotions
, A-ha
, The Pretenders
, Howard Jones
, Ultra
, Republica
, Naimee Coleman
, Stephanie Kirkham
, Natalie Imbruglia
, Propaganda
, The Human League
and Tori Amos
. He also contributed to The Sisters of Mercy
re-recording of "Temple of Love". Stanley also did A&R
for Warners
East West Records
but left in 1998.
Stanley's most recent work was producing The Beautiful South
's album Superbi
(2006), in part at his studio in Enniskerry
, County Wicklow
.
Tears for Fears
Tears for Fears are an English new wave band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith.Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesiser bands of the early 1980s but later branched out into...
for most of the 1980s, and played a key role in the making of their multi-platinum selling second album Songs from the Big Chair
Songs from the Big Chair
Songs from the Big Chair is the second album by the British rock band Tears for Fears. It was released in 1985 on Phonogram Records, and remains their highest selling album to date. The album peaked at no.2 in the UK and reached no.1 in the US...
.
Career
After offering them free use of his recording facility, Stanley became a background member of Tears for Fears and played keyboardsMusical keyboard
A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
on their first three albums. He also co-wrote (with Roland Orzabal
Roland Orzabal
Roland Jaime Orzabal de la Quintana is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is known mainly as a co-founding member of Tears for Fears, of which he is the main songwriter and joint vocalist, but he has also achieved success as a producer of other artists.- Early career :Orzabal...
) many of their songs from the period 1983-85, and was a vital part of the production team during this era as the band worked with producer Chris Hughes
Chris Hughes (record producer)
Chris Hughes is a music producer and a former drummer for Adam and the Ants....
at their studio base, The Wool Hall, in Bath.
He has appeared in several Tears for Fears promotional videos, including "Change
Change (Tears for Fears song)
"Change" is a song by the British band Tears for Fears. Written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith, it was the band's fourth single release. It would eventually become the second hit from their debut LP The Hurting and second UK Top 5 chart hit, following the success of "Mad World"...
" (in which he plays one of the two masked musicians), "Mothers Talk
Mothers Talk
"Mothers Talk" is a song by the British band Tears for Fears.Written by Roland Orzabal and Ian Stanley and sung by Orzabal, it was the band's seventh single release and fifth UK Top 40 chart hit...
" (version 1 and version 3), "Shout
Shout (Tears for Fears song)
"Shout" is a song by the British band Tears for Fears.Written by Roland Orzabal and Ian Stanley and sung by Orzabal , it was the band's eighth single release and sixth UK Top 40 hit, peaking at #4 in January 1985...
", "Everybody Wants to Rule the World
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is a song by the British New Wave band Tears for Fears.It was the band's ninth single release in the United Kingdom and seventh UK Top 40 chart hit, peaking at number two in April 1985...
", "Head over Heels
Head over Heels (Tears for Fears song)
"Head over Heels" is a song by the British New Wave band Tears for Fears.It was the band's tenth single release in the United Kingdom and eighth UK Top 40 hit, peaking at #12 in July 1985...
" and "I Believe (A Soulful Re-Recording)
I Believe (A Soulful Re-Recording)
"I Believe " is a single by the British band Tears for Fears. It was the band's eleventh single release and ninth UK Top 40 hit...
", and has performed with the band on countless television performances. He also appeared in the 1983 Tears for Fears live concert video recording In My Mind's Eye
In My Mind's Eye
In My Mind's Eye is a concert performance video released by the British pop group Tears For Fears. It was recorded in December 1983 at the London Hammersmith Odeon , and released on home video in late 1984....
, and the 1985 Tears for Fears documentary film Scenes from the Big Chair
Scenes from the Big Chair
Scenes from the Big Chair is a documentary film about the British pop band Tears For Fears. Released on home video in 1985, the 75 minute documentary was made at the height of the band's global success following the release of their multi-platinum selling album Songs from the Big Chair.The...
, as well as completing two world tours with the band.
Post Tears for Fears & production
Following the success of Songs from the Big Chair, Stanley collaborated with Curt SmithCurt Smith
Curt Smith is an English musician. He is best known for forming the band Tears for Fears, along with childhood friend Roland Orzabal. Also a solo artist, he released his third album Halfway, Pleased in May 2008....
on the 1986 side project Mancrab, releasing a single, "Fish for Life," which was made for the soundtrack of the film The Karate Kid, Part II
The Karate Kid, Part II
The Karate Kid, Part II is a 1986 American martial arts film and is a sequel to 1984's The Karate Kid. Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita reprise their roles as Daniel LaRusso and Mr. Miyagi, respectively. The original music score was composed by Bill Conti...
. Stanley also began working on Tears for Fears' third album, The Seeds of Love
The Seeds of Love
-Bonus tracks:Note: A remix of "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams" was also released as a separate single in the UK and reached #70 on the charts.-Personnel:* Drums - Manu Katché, Chris Hughes, Phil Collins, Simon Phillips* Bass - Pino Palladino, Curt Smith...
, but (along with producer Chris Hughes) left the project due to creative differences. His more prominent contributions to this album, however, can be heard on the hit single "Sowing the Seeds of Love
Sowing the Seeds of Love
"Sowing the Seeds of Love" is a 1989 song and single by the British group Tears for Fears from their 1989 album The Seeds of Love.A worldwide hit, it reached the top five in the UK, Canada , Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and the Netherlands. In the US, it peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot...
" and the B-sides "Always in the Past" and "My Life in the Suicide Ranks."
Since the 1980s, Stanley has produced such artists as Lloyd Cole and the Commotions
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions were a British pop band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1982. Between 1984 and 1989, the band scored four Top 20 albums and five Top 40 singles in the UK...
, A-ha
A-ha
A-ha were a Norwegian pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. The band was founded by Morten Harket , Magne Furuholmen , and Pål Waaktaar...
, The Pretenders
The Pretenders
The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...
, Howard Jones
Howard Jones (musician)
Howard Jones is a musician, singer and songwriter. According to the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums, "Jones is an accomplished singer-songwriter who was a regular chart visitor in the mid 1980s with his brand of synthpop. Jones, who was equally popular in the U.S., appeared at Live...
, Ultra
Ultra (boy band)
Ultra is an English male pop band, which was most successful in the late 1990s. The original line-up consisted of James Hearn , Michael Harwood , Jon O'Mahony and Nick Keynes .-Musical history:Although sometimes mistakenly described as a...
, Republica
Republica
Republica are an English alternative rock band formed in 1994. The height of their popularity spanned from 1996 to 1999. The Republica sound was described by the band as "techno-pop punk rock"...
, Naimee Coleman
Naimee Coleman
Naimee Coleman is a singer/songwriter from Dundrum Dublin, Ireland.After signing with EMI she recorded her first solo album Silver Wrists in Abbey Road Studios. The follow-up Bring Down the Moon came 4 years later....
, Stephanie Kirkham
Stephanie Kirkham
Stephanie Kirkham is an English singer-songwriter.- Biography :Stephanie grew up in the Ribble Valley in Lancashire with two brothers and two sisters listening to Joni Mitchell, The Beatles and Johnny Cash, secretly dreaming of being a songwriter. She went to Blackpool Art College, modelled in...
, Natalie Imbruglia
Natalie Imbruglia
Natalie Jane Imbruglia is an Australian singer-songwriter, model and actress. In the early 1990s, Imbruglia was known to audiences as Beth Brennan in the popular Australian soap Neighbours. Three years after leaving the programme, Imbruglia launched a singing career with the international hit,...
, Propaganda
Propaganda (band)
Propaganda is a German synthpop group, formed in 1982. They were one of the initial roster of acts signed to Trevor Horn's ZTT label, between 1984 and 1986, during which they released the critically acclaimed album A Secret Wish....
, The Human League
The Human League
The Human League are an English electronic New Wave band formed in Sheffield in 1977. They achieved popularity after a key change in line-up in the early 1980s and have continued recording and performing with moderate commercial success throughout the 1980s up to the present day.The only constant...
and Tori Amos
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
. He also contributed to The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy are an English rock band that formed in 1980. After achieving early underground fame in UK, the band had their commercial breakthrough in mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasing new recorded output in protest against their record company...
re-recording of "Temple of Love". Stanley also did A&R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
for Warners
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
East West Records
East West Records
East West Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group, and operates under WMG's Independent Label Group.-History:...
but left in 1998.
Stanley's most recent work was producing The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South
The Beautiful South were an English alternative rock group formed at the end of the 1980s by two former members of Hull group The Housemartins, Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway. The duo were initially joined by Sean Welch , Dave Stead and Dave Rotheray , all of whom stayed with the group throughout...
's album Superbi
Superbi
Superbi is the tenth and final album by the British group The Beautiful South, released on 15 May 2006 by SonyBMG. The album entered the British chart at No. 6 before dropping to No. 20 and No. 37 in its second and third weeks respectively...
(2006), in part at his studio in Enniskerry
Enniskerry
Enniskerry is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It had a population of 2,672 at the 2006 census.- Location :...
, County Wicklow
County Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
.