William Orbit 225040 223525393 2008-07-04T13:15:55Z Lightbot 7178666 Units/dates/other {{unreferenced|date=September 2007}} {{Infobox musical artist | Name = William Orbit <!-- Commented out because image was deleted: | Img = Williamorbit.jpg --> | Img_capt = | Img_size = | Landscape = | Background = solo_singer | Birth_name = William Mark Wainwright | Alias = William Orbit | Born = {{birth date and age|1956|12|15|df=y}} | Died = | Origin = [[Shoreditch]], [[London Borough of Hackney|Hackney]] | Instrument = | Genre = | Occupation = [[Electronic musician]] | Years_active = | Label = | Associated_acts = | URL = }} '''William Orbit''' (born on [[15 December]] [[1956]] as '''William Mark Wainwright''' aka '''''Billy Bubbles''''' in [[Shoreditch]], [[London Borough of Hackney|Hackney]]) is an [[England|English]] [[musician]] and [[record producer]], perhaps best known to most for his work on [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]]'s album ''[[Ray of Light]]'', which received four [[Grammy Award]]s and sold 4 million copies in the US.<ref>[http://www.discogs.com/artist/William+Orbit William Orbit<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He has also co-produced several [[Unreleased Madonna Songs|unreleased Madonna songs]] originally recorded for other albums that were never used. In addition, he produced "[[13 (Blur album)|13]]" by [[Blur (band)|Blur]], and remixed some of the songs on the album. More recently he has turned to orchestral compositions. ==Biography== In addition to being a producer, William is also a composer and multi-instrumentalist who has specialised in keyboard electronica and much of his work also features accomplished [[guitar]] playing. He has also recorded several largely instrumental solo albums under the name [[Strange Cargo]] which features vocals by [[Beth Orton]], [[Laurie Mayer]] and [[Joe Frank]], among others. "Water from a Vine Leaf" was a chart success from the album ''[[Strange Cargo III|Strange Cargo 3]]''. Prior to that he formed the group [[Torch Song]], with Laurie Mayer, in the 1980s. At that time the band first developed Guerilla Studios in an abandoned school on the Harrow Road. They shared the premises with a group of Spanish anarchists and it became known as [[El Centro Iberico]]. They were later joined by a third member, [[Rico Conning]]. Orbit was the musical force behind [[Bassomatic (band)|Bassomatic]] in the early 1990s. Their hit in 1990 was "Fascinating Rhythm". He has also produced and remixed songs by numerous other artists, such as French pop star [[Étienne Daho]]. Along with producer Rico Conning they produced the Pop Satori album, Scottish act [[One Dove]], and [[Seal (musician)|Seal]]. He also remixed Prince's #1 hit song movie tie-in, "[[Batdance]]", from ''[[Batman (1989 film)|Batman]]'' in 1989. Orbit's remixes carry his signature electronic sounds and techniques, making them sought after by fans of his solo work. Orbit also produced a version of [[Samuel Barber]]'s "[[Adagio for Strings]]" (the original arrangement of which features as the main theme of the soundtrack to ''[[Platoon (film)|Platoon]]''). Adagio was lifted from the successful album ''[[Pieces in a Modern Style]]'' which was a compilation of classical re-workings. Orbit's version of the track was itself remixed in 1999 by [[Ferry Corsten]] and became a big club music hit as well as reaching #4 in the [[UK Singles Chart]]. He has worked with [[girl group]]s [[All Saints (band)|All Saints]] ("[[Pure Shores]]", "[[Black Coffee (2000 song)|Black Coffee]]") and [[Sugababes]] and [[Pink]] ("[[Feel Good Time]]" from ''[[Charlie's Angels 2]]''). He produced "Dice" for [[Finley Quaye]] in collaboration with Beth Orton; Quaye also played guitar and sang on Orbit's tracks including the unreleased 'Arioso' featuring Madonna. Some of Orbit's remixes include the song "[[Electrical Storm]]" by [[U2]] in the album ''[[The Best of 1990-2000]]''. His remix is called "[[Electrical Storm (William Orbit Mix)]]." He has also worked with Swedish duo [[Roxette]] in the song "Entering Your Heart." Orbit has also created several radio shows. In the late 1990s, he had a series on Los Angeles-based [[KCRW]], called ''Stereo Odyssey''. Orbit's song, "Time To Get Wise" was used in the 2004 film [[What the Bleep Do We Know!?]], and the song's title was used as a tag line for the film. In 2005, Orbit's most recent album, ''[[Hello Waveforms]]'' was released on the [[Sanctuary Records|Sanctuary]] label. Subsequently he produced two tracks — "Louise" and "Summertime" — for [[Robbie Williams]]' 2006 album, ''[[Rudebox]]''. At this time, he also mixed several tracks on [[Laurie Mayer]]'s most recent album, ''[[Black Lining]]''. In the fall of 2006, "Purdy," a track Orbit co-composed with Laurie Mayer and Rico Conning, was used as the soundtrack in a television ad campaign for [[H&M]] which starred Madonna and was directed by her and Dan Cadan. In 2007, Orbit composed his first orchestral suite for a full orchestra. The composition was performed for the first time on July 8, 2007, by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in the Bridgewater Hall at the Manchester International Festival. ==Discography== More complete discographies can be found when exploring [[William Orbit#External links|external links]]. ===Torch Song=== * ''[[Wish Thing]]'' * ''Ecstasy'' * ''Exhibit A'' * ''Toward the Unknown Region'' ===Bassomatic=== * ''Set the Controls for the Heart of the Bass'' * ''Science & Melody'' ===Solo=== * ''[[Orbit (album)|Orbit]]'' * ''[[Strange Cargo (album)|Strange Cargo]]'' * ''[[Strange Cargo II]]'' * ''[[Superpinkymandy]]'' ** Released in Japan only as a ''[[Beth Orton]]'' album, but the sound was characteristically Orbit, making this possibly his most sought after rarity. * ''[[Strange Cargo III]]'' * ''[[Strange Cargo Hinterland]]'' * ''[[The Best of Strange Cargos]]'' ** A compilation from Orbit's first three ''Strange Cargo'' albums, highlighted by two versions of "Water From A Vine Leaf", another collaboration with Beth Orton * ''[[Pieces in a Modern Style]]'' ** Original release, withdrawn * ''Pieces in a Modern Style'' ** Altered re-release, minus uncleared tracks from first release, although with additional tracks in their place * ''[[Hello Waveforms]]'' (released on Sanctuary records, 20th February in UK, and February 21st 2006 for USA). * ''[[Cellcloud]]'' ** Working title to a Strange Cargo album due to be released on 2008 on the Theomorph label. ==Equipment Used== Used on Madonna's ''Ray of Light'': *[[Waldorf Wave]] *[[Roland Juno-106]] *[[Roland JD-800]] *[[Roland JP-8000]] *[[Yamaha DX7]] *[[Novation Digital Music Systems|Novation]] [[Novation BassStation|BassStation]] *[[Korg MS-20]] *[[Akai]] [[Akai S3200|S3200]] sampler *Sherman Filterbank *[[Atari ST]] Computer running [[Steinberg Cubase|Cubase]] II *[[Pro Tools]] TDM Uses/Has Used: *Trident 80A Mixing Desk *Roland Dimension D Chorus *[[Yamaha SY-99]] (on Torch Song's Into The Unknown Region) *[[Roland SH-101]] *[[Roland D-50]] or [[Roland D-10]] (has either used or used samples from; various jam loops are heard in Strange Cargo 2 and 3) Used with Torch Song/Guerilla Studio in the 1980s: *AMS Digital Reverb *AMS Digital Delay *[[Roger Linn|Linn]] [[LinnDrum]] *[[Minimoog]] *Movement II Drum Computer *Otari 24-track recorder *Roland CSQ600 Sequencer *[[Roland Jupiter-8]] *[[Roland SH-2]] *[[Roland TR-808]] *[[Roland TR-909]] *[[Roland RE-201]] Space Echo *[[Sequential Circuits Prophet-5]] *[[Simmons (electronic drum company)|Simmons]] SD5 Drum Brain *[[Yamaha DX7]] Used in Torch Song's live performance at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in 1995: *[[Yamaha SY-99]] (played by William Orbit) *[[Roland Juno-106]](played by William Orbit) *[[Roland JD-800]](played by William Orbit) *[[Akai S1000]] series samplers various [[Roland]] drum-pads *[[Atari ST]] computer *[[Yamaha KX88]] (controller played by Laurie Mayer) *[[Yamaha SY77]] (played by Rico Conning) *Unknown 76-key keyboard, most likely *[[Roland MKB-300]] or *[[Yamaha KX-76]] (controller keyboard played by Rico Conning) *Unknown 61-key keyboard, possibly a *[[Roland JV80]] (3rd keyboard played by Rico Conning) == External links ==<!-- This section is linked from [[William Orbit]] --> * [http://www.williamorbit.com/ Official Website] * [http://www.discogs.com/artist/William+Orbit Discography] * [http://www.myspace.com/williamorbit Official Myspace] * [http://www.torchsongonline.com TorchSong Online] * [http://www.lauriemayer.com Laurie Mayer Official Website] * [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/williamorbit William Orbit] at [[Rolling stone|Rolling Stone]] Recent Interview Links * [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/89920928-20be-11dc-8d50-000b5df10621.html Financial Times, June 22nd 2007] * [http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2007/06/08/080607_mif_orbit_feature.shtml BBC, June 2007] * [http://music.guardian.co.uk/classical/story/0,,2086196,00.html Guardian, May 23rd 2007] ==References== {{reflist}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Orbit, William}} [[Category:1956 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:English record producers]] [[Category:English electronic musicians]] [[Category:Ableton Live users]] [[Category:Grammy Award winners]] [[bg:Уилям Орбит]] [[de:William Orbit]] [[es:William Orbit]] [[fr:William Orbit]] [[it:William Orbit]] [[ka:უილიამ ორბიტი]] [[nl:William Orbit]] [[pl:William Ørbit]] [[fi:William Orbit]] [[sv:William Orbit]]