Album: Iechyd Da by Bill Ryder-Jones (2024)
Format: Album

Artist Background: "Bill Ryder-Jones". William Edward "Bill" Ryder-Jones (born 10 August 1983 in Warrington, Cheshire) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and film score composer from West Kirby, Merseyside. He co-founded the band The Coral with James Skelly, Lee Southall, Paul Duffy, and Ian Skelly, playing as their lead guitarist from 1996 until 2008. He has since pursued a solo career, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists and appearing as a session... Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Related Artists: Gruff Rhys, Marika Hackman, Nadine Shah, Jane Weaver

Music Scene: Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Tags: 2020s, Album


In April 2023, Bill Ryder-Jones was playing the second of two acoustic shows in the compact theatre space at East London’s Hoxton Hall. Halfway through, he asked the crowd of a couple of hundred if they had any requests. Song titles were volleyed back at him but no one bid for “Daniel”, despite it being one of his most popular songs. From 2016’s West Kirby County Primary album, it describes how Ryder-Jones and his family became unmoored by the loss of his older brother, aged just nine, during a family holiday in 1991. Tonight in that intimate room, it felt too invasive to ask for, perhaps, too searing a flame of grief and trauma to stand so close to. Nevertheless, Ryder-Jones played “Daniel” later in the show, his audience listening in damp-eyed stillness. As the song finished and applause erupted, Ryder-Jones gently raised his fist in salute and said thank you. 

Alongside the new songs he played that night, that moment offered a clue to where the former The Coral guitarist is on this fifth solo album, released nine months later. He’s still contending with difficult times and regrets, creating beautiful music in the gloaming, but he’s also pulling out moments of strength, gratitude and hope. As a solo artist, Ryder-Jones has proved satisfyingly restless, ricocheting from orchestral instrumentals (2011’s If…) and wistful bedroom folk (A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart, 2013) to the unkempt alt-rock of West Kirby… and the glacially paced sorrow of 2018’s Yawn. He’s been softly dismissive of those final two, despite their excellence, stating that he’s always been striving to match A Bad Wind…. Iechyd Da achieves this and more by returning to that album’s delicacy and melody and decorating them with magnetic layers of sound—including children’s choirs, disco samples and fellow Scouse singer-songwriter Michael Head reading from Ulysses.

The songs were written in lockdown, a difficult period for anyone—not least those like Ryder-Jones who live with depression and anxiety. It was also a time in his life when a relatively new relationship grew and then withered, and a prescribed course of Valium slipped into dependency. So there’s understandable vulnerability and self-doubt here. “While I’m too much, I’ll never be enough for you, I know,” he concedes on opener “I Know That It’s Like This (Baby)”. Despair reaches its depths on lead single “This Can’t Go On”. Its blend of disoriented fragility and night-sky expanse recalls Mercury Rev’s Deserter’s Songs as Ryder-Jones walks his coastal town of West Kirby after dark, listening to Echo & The Bunnymen and yearning for something more, something different, something everyday—kids, companionship, a driving licence. 

In these intimate songs, it’s the little things—biographical details, nuggets of sound—that pull you in. “I keep the good times closer than the bad/Running your baths before American Dad,” he tells a departed lover on “Christinha”. A sample of Brazilian tropicália pioneer Gal Costa’s “Baby” floats through “I Know That It’s Like This (Baby)” like a ghost from better times. And it’s flooring to hear Ryder-Jones’ brittle whisper crumble to a sigh at the final syllable of “Oh, how I loved you” on “A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart Pt. 3”.

The ambivalence of “There’s something great about life/But there’s something not quite right” (“It’s Today Again”) doesn’t suggest a man who’s found his peace but there’s also stoic acceptance of some things passed. “’Cause I don’t think I could’ve given any more/A sun just sank into some sea” he tells that absent lover on “Christinha”. One of the most difficult memories revisited is on “Thankfully for Anthony”, which recalls the day a bad dose of tranquillisers unfastened Ryder-Jones to the point that the song opens with “I’m thinking this might just be it/I’ve waited a lifetime for this”. 

Anthony is the friend who drives him to hospital to get checked out, and here in his oldest pal’s car—in his care—clarity and purpose arrives. “I felt loved/I’m still lost/But I know love/And I know loss/But I chose love,” sings Ryder-Jones amid a heart-bursting orchestral swell. When the music fades out, you can hear a faint voice from the studio say, “Thought that was pretty good,” before the album ends with “Nos Da”. Named after the Welsh for “goodnight”, it’s 90 seconds of soothing piano and strings—a soft landing, a gently raised salute.

Album: West Kirby County Primary by Bill Ryder-Jones (2015)
Genre: Indie Rock | Style: Folk
Format: Album

Description: "West Kirby County Primary"  is the third solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 06 November 2015 on the Domino Records label.
West Kirby County Primary has a heavier, more alternative folk rock sound, and was recorded with friends, to make a more "band-based sounding record". The track Wild Roses was co-written by Ryder-Jones and friends Emma Leatherbarrow (of MiNNETONKA), and Liam Power (of By the Sea). Half of the album was written at Ryder-Jones' home, before continuing to work on the material at his home studio, located in his old bedroom in his mother's house, and at Parr St. Studios in Liverpool.

Artist Background: "Bill Ryder-Jones". William Edward "Bill" Ryder-Jones (born 10 August 1983 in Warrington, Cheshire) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and film score composer from West Kirby, Merseyside. He co-founded the band The Coral with James Skelly, Lee Southall, Paul Duffy, and Ian Skelly, playing as their lead guitarist from 1996 until 2008. He has since pursued a solo career, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists and appearing as a session... Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Related Artists: Gruff Rhys, Marika Hackman, Nadine Shah, Jane Weaver

Music Scene: Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Tags: Indie Rock, Folk, 2010s, Album


"West Kirby County Primary"  is the third solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 06 November 2015 on the Domino Records label.
West Kirby County Primary has a heavier, more alternative folk rock sound, and was recorded with friends, to make a more "band-based sounding record". The track Wild Roses was co-written by Ryder-Jones and friends Emma Leatherbarrow (of MiNNETONKA), and Liam Power (of By the Sea). Half of the album was written at Ryder-Jones' home, before continuing to work on the material at his home studio, located in his old bedroom in his mother's house, and at Parr St. Studios in Liverpool.

Album: If... by Bill Ryder-Jones (2011)
Genre: Composer | Style: Classical
Format: Album

Description: " If..." is the debut solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 11 November 2011 on the Domino Records label.
The album was written as a musical adaptation of Italo Calvino's 1979 novel "If on a Winters Night a Traveler", with each composition representing a different chapter in the book. The idea for the album was first conceived after a meeting with Laurence Bell, the head of Domino Records, who had suggested Ryder-Jones record an "imaginary film score". Recording sessions for If... took place during 2010 at various locations on Merseyside, including Elevator Studios, the Scandinavian Church of Liverpool, The Friary in Everton and Ryder-Jones' mother's house in West Kirby. Most of the album's tracks were recorded with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic orchestra. Ryder-Jones' musical influences for the album came from film score composers such as Abel Korzeniowski, Michael Galasso and Clint Mansell and rock artists such as Syd Barrett, Nick Cave and Gorky's Zygotic Mynci.

Artist Background: "Bill Ryder-Jones". William Edward "Bill" Ryder-Jones (born 10 August 1983 in Warrington, Cheshire) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and film score composer from West Kirby, Merseyside. He co-founded the band The Coral with James Skelly, Lee Southall, Paul Duffy, and Ian Skelly, playing as their lead guitarist from 1996 until 2008. He has since pursued a solo career, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists and appearing as a session... Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Related Artists: Gruff Rhys, Marika Hackman, Nadine Shah, Jane Weaver

Music Scene: Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Tags: Composer, Classical, 2010s, Album

Additional Context: Based on 2 votes


" If..." is the debut solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 11 November 2011 on the Domino Records label.
The album was written as a musical adaptation of Italo Calvino's 1979 novel "If on a Winters Night a Traveler", with each composition representing a different chapter in the book. The idea for the album was first conceived after a meeting with Laurence Bell, the head of Domino Records, who had suggested Ryder-Jones record an "imaginary film score". Recording sessions for If... took place during 2010 at various locations on Merseyside, including Elevator Studios, the Scandinavian Church of Liverpool, The Friary in Everton and Ryder-Jones' mother's house in West Kirby. Most of the album's tracks were recorded with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic orchestra. Ryder-Jones' musical influences for the album came from film score composers such as Abel Korzeniowski, Michael Galasso and Clint Mansell and rock artists such as Syd Barrett, Nick Cave and Gorky's Zygotic Mynci.

Album: A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart by Bill Ryder-Jones (2013)
Genre: Indie Rock | Style: Folk
Format: Album

Description: "A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart"  is the second solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 08 April 2013 on the Domino Records label.
A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart is a departure from the orchestral nature of If..., though it retains the concept album theme ( focusing around Ryder-Jones' life, primarily his childhood). A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart is a collection of more traditional songs, influenced by Ryder-Jones' love of Bill Callahan as well as various other minimal and folk artists.

Artist Background: "Bill Ryder-Jones". William Edward "Bill" Ryder-Jones (born 10 August 1983 in Warrington, Cheshire) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and film score composer from West Kirby, Merseyside. He co-founded the band The Coral with James Skelly, Lee Southall, Paul Duffy, and Ian Skelly, playing as their lead guitarist from 1996 until 2008. He has since pursued a solo career, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists and appearing as a session... Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Related Artists: Gruff Rhys, Marika Hackman, Nadine Shah, Jane Weaver

Music Scene: Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Tags: Indie Rock, Folk, 2010s, Album

Additional Context: Rating score: 8. Based on 2 votes


"A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart"  is the second solo full length album from English singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, released 08 April 2013 on the Domino Records label.
A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart is a departure from the orchestral nature of If..., though it retains the concept album theme ( focusing around Ryder-Jones' life, primarily his childhood). A Bad Wind Blows in My Heart is a collection of more traditional songs, influenced by Ryder-Jones' love of Bill Callahan as well as various other minimal and folk artists.

Album: Yawn by Bill Ryder-Jones (2018)
Genre: Indie Rock | Style: Folk
Record Label: Domino
Format: Album

Description: "Yawn" is the fourth full-length solo release for the British singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, the album was self-produced and features guest vocals from The Orielles and Our Girl. Released November 2, 2018 on the Domino label.
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 81, based on 7 reviews, indicating "Universal acclaim ".

Artist Background: "Bill Ryder-Jones". William Edward "Bill" Ryder-Jones (born 10 August 1983 in Warrington, Cheshire) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and film score composer from West Kirby, Merseyside. He co-founded the band The Coral with James Skelly, Lee Southall, Paul Duffy, and Ian Skelly, playing as their lead guitarist from 1996 until 2008. He has since pursued a solo career, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists and appearing as a session... Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Related Artists: Gruff Rhys, Marika Hackman, Nadine Shah, Jane Weaver

Music Scene: Part of the West Kirby,England music scene. Emerged in the 1990s era. Associated with Indie Rock movement. Known for Folk style.

Tags: Indie Rock, Folk, 2010s, Album, Domino


"Yawn" is the fourth full-length solo release for the British singer-songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, the album was self-produced and features guest vocals from The Orielles and Our Girl. Released November 2, 2018 on the Domino label.
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 81, based on 7 reviews, indicating "Universal acclaim ".

Bill Ryder-Jones

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