Jamie Cullum biography
Jamie Cullum (born 20 August 1979) is an England pop music and jazz singer, songwriter, pianist, guitarist and drummer.
Biography
Cullum was born at Romford Hospital in Essex, and educated at the independent fee-paying Grittleton House School and the sixth form at Sheldon school. Both are near Chippenham in Wiltshire. His mother, Yvonne, is a secretary of Anglo-Burmese people origin, whose family settled in Wales after Burma's independence; his father, John Cullum, worked in finance. His paternal grandfather was a British Army officer, while his paternal grandmother was a Jewish refugee from Prussia who sang in Berlin nightclubs; Cullum has said that he sees her as his "cultural icon". He was brought up in Hullavington, Wiltshire but currently lives in North West London.
Musical career
Cullum released his first album,
Jamie Cullum Trio—Heard it All Before, in 1999, of which 500 copies were made. Due to their rarity, original copies have sold for as much as £600 on Ebay.
The success of
Heard It All Before resulted in Cullum being invited to appear on Geoff Gascoyne's album
Songs of the Summer. After graduating from the University of Reading in 2001, Cullum released a best-selling album,
Pointless Nostalgic, which stirred interest from Michael Parkinson and Melvyn Bragg. (Cullum made his first television appearance on Parkinson's BBC chat show and was the last musician to perform on the Michael Parkinson Show 'Final Conversation' recorded on 26th November and broadcast on 16th December 2007.)
In April 2003, Cullum signed a contract for three albums with Universal Music Group, who beat Sony Music Entertainment in a bidding war. Cullum's third album,
Twentysomething (album), released in October 2003, went platinum and became the 1 selling studio album by a jazz artist in the United Kingdom.
Although primarily a jazz musician, Cullum performs in a wide range of styles and is generally regarded as a "crossover" artist with his musical roots firmly based in jazz. Cullum draws his inspiration from many different musicians and listens to a very eclectic mix of music from Miles Davis to Tom Waits and many more.
Cullum has belonged to several bands, ranging from banging drums in a hip hop music group to playing guitar in rock bands such as Raw Sausage and The Mystery Machine, in his teenage youth. Cullum names his elder brother, Ben Cullum, as his biggest musical influence, and the two have collaborated extensively.
Jamie Cullum is well known not only for his abilities on the piano, but also for his unique entertainment style and charisma. One of the many things that features in Jamie's concerts is the "stompbox" (not to be confused with an effect pedal for guitars), made from a small wooden block. The stompbox is used to amplify a musician's tapping foot. Jamie found this in Australia and uses it to enhance upbeat and fast-paced songs such as
Seven Nation Army originally by the White Stripes and "Gold Digger", originally by Kanye West. He is also often found using a looping machine. This plays a heavy part in Cullum's versions of Seven Nation Army and Teardrop (song) by Massive Attack. Cullum is also often found beatboxing at nearly every gig.
As well as White Stripes and Kanye West, Cullum has performed work by Massive Attack, Pussycat Dolls, Radiohead,Gnarls Barkley, Elton John, Justin Timberlake, John Legend, Joy Division and many others. Cullum rarely works to a set list and on average his gigs last just over two hours. The gigs are largely improvised, rooted in jazz but not solely consisting of jazz music.
Cullum has played at many large music festivals, including Glastonbury Festival, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival 2005, 2006 South by Southwest, North Sea Jazz Festival and the 2006 Playboy Jazz Festival.
On the April 29, 2006, Cullum played his biggest ever crowd on Queensday in The Netherlands.
On August 20th, 2008, Jamie celebrated his 29th Birthday (his last as a “Twentysomething”) at the Hollywood Bowl, performing with the Count Basie Orchestra.
Jamie Cullum in the news
Jamie Cullum's Spinal Tap Nirvana - The Press Association
Jamie Cullum's Spinal Tap NirvanaThe Press AssociationJamie Cullum considered his guest appearance with Spinal Tap one of the highlights of his career. The jazz star played keyboards as he jammed with the band ...and more »
read moreJarvis Cocker and Jamie Cullum join Spinal Tap onstage at Glastonbu...
Xfm OnlineJarvis Cocker and Jamie Cullum join Spinal Tap onstage at GlastonburyNME.comThe 'comedy band', whose 1984 mock "rockumentary" 'This Is Spinal Tap' will be re-released later this year, wowed the Pyramid Stage with a host of ...Spinal Tap Team With Unlikely Guests for Glastonbury One-Show ...SpinnerSpecial guests join Spinal Tap at Glastonbury ..read moreVirtual FestivalsDerek Smalls: 'Spinal Tap Wouldn't Exist Without Michael Jackson'Festivalwiseall 8 news articles »
read moreThe Piano Man Who Hops Atop His Instrument - New York Times
New York TimesThe Piano Man Who Hops Atop His InstrumentNew York TimesThe British pianist and singer Jamie Cullum, 29, performing at Carnegie Hall, where he also stood on seats in the audience. By STEPHEN HOLDEN The brash ...and more »
read moreJamie Cullum opens Jazz Aspen June Festival - Aspen Times
Jamie Cullum opens Jazz Aspen June FestivalAspen TimesASPEN — On a video posted on Youtube, Jamie Cullum appears in concert with Burt Bacharach, singing the latter's 1962 hit, “Make It Easy on Yourself. ...and more »
read moreWesthampton Beach Performing Arts Center To Host Jamie Cullum - Ham...
Hamptons.comWesthampton Beach Performing Arts Center To Host Jamie CullumHamptons.comJamie Cullum was born on Aug. 20, 1979. He's played guitar and piano since age eight and developed an avid interest in jazz passed down from his older ...and more »
read moreJazz Aspen June Festival overcomes myriad obstacles for memorable ....
Jazz Aspen June Festival overcomes myriad obstacles for memorable ...Aspen TimesThe artists — in particular Jamie Cullum, the 29-year-old British pop-jazz singer and pianist — did their share. The crowds turned out in respectable ...New home suits JAS June just fineAspen Daily Newsall 4 news articles »
read moreEvent was a huge hit - Sleaford Today
Event was a huge hitSleaford Today... Steve Hawkins (Steve also provided the same professional service for Jamie Cullum when he appeared at this venue in 2004), Tom Creasey, ...and more »
read moreLittle and large: Why Sophie Dahl and Jamie Cullum think their ... ...
Daily MailLittle and large: Why Sophie Dahl and Jamie Cullum think their ...Daily MailSophie Dahl was elegant in black chiffon while her fiance, Jamie Cullum, was decked out in modish silver. She wore high heels; so did he. ...and more »
read moreMichael Jackson: online tributes - Web User
Michael Jackson: online tributesWeb UserJamie Cullum tweeted: "Just came off stage from a fabulous Orleans gig and found out that Michael Jackson died. Very, very sad. A music legend gone too soon ...and more »
read moreGlastonbury festival hit by swine flu - guardian.co.uk
guardian.co.ukGlastonbury festival hit by swine fluguardian.co.ukDizzee Rascal played a number of his songs during his packed Pyramid stage performance yesterday, Jamie Cullum covered Thriller and Little Boots played a ...Glastonbury Festival ends this weekend with news of Jackson fresh ...Examiner.comJackson Tributes Pour in at GlastonburySpinnerBest of the fest: the great big Glastonbury music roundupguardian.co.ukall 426 news articles »
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