William D. Drake
| William D. Drake | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Derek Drake |
| Born |
7 February 1962 Chelmsford, Essex, England |
| Genres | Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, art rock, alternative rock, neo-classical |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, composer |
| Instruments | Vocals, piano, harmonium, organ, Fender Rhodes electric piano, mellotron, keyboards, |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Associated acts | Cardiacs, The Sea Nymphs, North Sea Radio Orchestra, Nervous, Wood, Lake of Puppies, The Grown-Ups, Honour Our Trumpet, Lefaye, Rachel Goswell, The Loose Salute, Stars in Battledress, Here and Now |
| Website | William D. Drake homepage |
William Derek Drake (born 7 February 1962 in Chelmsford) is an English musician, keyboardist, pianist, composer and singer-songwriter. He is best known as a former member of the cult English rock band Cardiacs, whom he played with for nine years between 1983 and 1992. He has also been a member of The Sea Nymphs, North Sea Radio Orchestra, Nervous, Wood, Lake of Puppies and The Grown-Ups, as well as pursuing a career as a solo artist. He is a distant cousin of the English singer-songwriter Nick Drake.
Drake's music draws on a wide variety of sources including psychedelic rock (such as the work of Syd Barrett and Peter Hammill), sea shanties, Early Music (such as madrigals), and both classical and modernist solo piano music (including that of Dmitri Shostakovich). He has also displayed a taste for composing poetry settings featuring Jacobean and Romantic sources.
William D. Drake was born in Chelmsford, Essex and began playing the harmonium as soon as he was able to stand. He began learning the piano at the age of five, training by playing duets with his grandmother before taking formal lessons. He went on to play with numerous bands during his schooldays
On leaving art college, Drake took a telesales job where he met punk singer/trumpet player Little Sue. He played a gig with her band Honour Our Trumpet at The Grey Horse in Kingston-upon-Thames in 1983. The sound engineer for the concert was Tim Smith, otherwise known as the leader of the Kingston-based band Cardiacs, a rapidly developing cult act with a taste for complex compositions. Intrigued by Drake's skills, Smith immediately wrote out a complicated piece of sheet music and challenged him to play it. Drake performed it with ease. Smith then immediately recruited Drake into Cardiacs, apparently by telling him that he was now a member of the band whether he liked it or not.
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