Beck - Biography

Last Editor: Marketas18				Beck Biography -   Name : Beck Date of birth : 8 July 1970 Place of birth : Los Angeles, California, USA Birth name : Beck David Campbell Height : 5' 7½

Beck Trivia -

Award-winning singer Son of Bibbe Hansen Grandson of Fluxus artist 'Al Hansen' Split up with his girlfriend stylish Leigh Limon after being together since 1991. [2000] Took his mother's maiden name upon his parents' divorce. Brother of third generation fluxus artist Channing Hansen. Son of string musician David Campbell, with whom he has collaborated several times. Stepson of Sean Carrillo. In the early 90s, Beck frequently played gigs at the Troy, a coffee shop owned by his mother and stepfather. Won "Best Alternative Performance" Grammies for back-to-back albums: Odelay (1996) and Mutations (1998) This video for his song "Devil's Haircut" was modeled after the movie 'Midnight Cowboy.' Is expecting first child with wife, Marissa Ribisi, in May 2004. The album "Sea Changes" was allegedly inspired by his heartbreak from the end of his relationship with longtime girlfriend Leigh Limon. The Dust Brothers, the famous producing team who worked with Beck on "Odelay," require a writing credit on all songs they produce, but they admitted that (more so than any collaborator they've had) Beck was responsible for the sound of "Odelay" and wrote virtually all of the words and music. Up until Beck did the album "Mutations," he played virtually all the instruments on almost all of the songs on his recordings. From "Mutations" on, he continued to produce and write the material, but recorded it with a band. Son, Cosimo Henri Hansen, born May 2004, with Ribisi. His mother, Bibbi Hansen, was the youngest member of Andy Warhol's entourage of stars, debuting in his unreleased 1965 film "Prison" at age 13 and appearing in a handful of other Warhol films of the mid-1960's, including "Restaurant" with Edie Sedgwick, before being sent to reform school, where she would remain until she was 18. His father was the son of Presbyterian minister, while his mother was from a family of Jewish hippie/beatnick artists. Son-in-law of Gay Ribisi. Brother-in-law of Giovanni Ribisi, and Gina Ribisi. Tom Petty covered his song "Asshole" and Johnny Cash covered his song "Rowboat". During his childhood, he pretty much had no friends, which gave him time to discover and practice his musical talent. On the song "E-Pro" from the album "Guero" he gave a co-writing credit to the Beastie Boys, as the backing beat to the song came from the Beastie's "So What'cha Want". Although he was not required to give them a writing credit (he could have merely given the "contains a sample from" credit), he did so out of respect and friendship for that group. Six songs from Guero were featured on the hit teen drama The O.C.

Beck Detailed Biography -

Beck Hansen (born Bek David Campbell, July 8, 1970) is an American musician, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Beck Hansen was born in Los Angeles, California, to David Campbell (a musician, Scientologist and son of a Presbyterian minister) and Bibbe Hansen (a visual artist of half Norwegian, as well as Swedish and Jewish descent). When his parents separated, Beck stayed with his mother and brother in Los Angeles, where he was influenced by that city's diverse musical offerings—everything from hip hop to Latin music—and his mother's art scene – all of which would later reappear in his recorded and published work. He didn't have many friends in his childhood, which gave him time to develop his musical talent. Like his father, Beck is a Scientologist. (See below for a longer discussion of the role Scientology plays in Beck's life.) Beck's music--with its pop-junk culture collage of musical styles, obtuse, ironic lyrics, and post-modern arrangments incorporating samples, drum machines, live instrumentation and heady sound effects--was among the most idiosyncratic of 90s alternative rock. Although Beck's work defies easy description, his eclecticism and genre experiments have sparked comparisons with Prince, though Beck was undoubtedly a less prolific artist, and drew on an absurdist, free-flowing lyrical style totally original when first exposed to mainstream audiences (indeed, some critics labeled him and his breakthrough single "Loser" as novelties-see below). Despite this individualism, Beck's music was very much a product of the 90s and the media age in general, with hip hop, indie/underground rock, electronic music and genre-benders like the Beastie Boys as notable touchstones; in addition, some critics could not resist likening his head-spinning lyrical aesthetic to a post-modern Bob Dylan sensibility. After dropping out of high school in the mid-1980s, Beck educated himself and traveled widely. In Germany, he spent time with his maternal grandfather, fluxus artist Al Hansen. The late-80's found him in New York City as part of the punk-influenced anti-folk music movement. Beck returned to Los Angeles at the turn of the decade, destitute but motivated. To support himself, he took a variety of low-paying, dead-end jobs, and even lived in a shed, all the while continuing to develop his music. During this time, Beck sought out (or sneaked onto) stages at venues all over Los Angeles, from punk clubs to coffee shops. In the spirit of an artist struggling to make a name for himself, his shows were memorable for their mix of humor and eccentricity. Some of his earliest and most thought provoking recordings were achieved by working with Tom Grimley at Poop Alley Studios, a part of WIN Records. In this atmosphere of heady creativity the founders of Bong Load Custom Records discovered Beck. Their 1993 12" vinyl "Loser", from an initial run of 500 copies, created a sensation on alternative radio that led to a furious bidding war between labels to sign Beck. Eventually, he chose Geffen Records, who offered him terms that included an allowance for the release of independent albums while under contract. In 1994, Geffen's official debut release of Mellow Gold made Beck a mainstream smash success; it also led to his iconic status as the "slacker" representative of the alternative rock scene, although the title of the song had been ironic. At the same time, he released Stereopathetic Soulmanure on Flipside Records and One Foot in the Grave on independent K Records. Beck took his act on the road with the 1995 Lollapalooza tour. Still, some critics panned him as a one-hit wonder. Audiences' (especially at Lollapalooza) familiarity with "Loser" only, and their general disinterest in his other work only reinforced his image as a one-hit wonder. The one-hit wonder label was put to rest with the release of 1996's Odelay, a collaborative effort with the Dust Brothers, producers of the Beastie Boys' album Paul's Boutique. The lead single, "Where It's At," received heavy airplay and its video was in constant rotation on MTV. Within the year, Odelay had received perfect reviews in Rolling Stone and Spin magazines, having been listed on countless "Best of" lists (it topped the Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 'Album of the Year'), receiving double-platinum status, and earning an impressive number of industry awards, including two Grammies. Odelay was followed in 1998 by Mutations. Produced by Nigel Godrich of Radiohead fame, it was intended as a stopgap measure before the next album proper. Recorded over two weeks, during which Beck recorded one song a day, the sessions produced 14 songs. Mutations was a departure from the electronic density of Odelay, and was filled with folk and blues influences. Songs on the album consisted of older tracks, some even dating back as far as 1994. Track 10, "Sing It Again", was written for Johnny Cash, but Beck never submitted it, considering it "rubbish." Cash would go on to record "Rowboat," a song that originally appeared on Beck's Stereopathetic Soul Manure. During 1998, Beck's art collaborations with his grandfather Al Hansen were featured in an exhibition entitled Beck & Al Hansen: Playing With Matches and showcased solo and collaborative collage, assemblage, drawing and poetry works. The show toured from the Santa Monica Museum of Art to galleries in New York City and Winnipeg, Canada. A catalogue of the show was published by Plug In Editions/Smart Art Press. In 1999, Geffen released the much-anticipated Midnite Vultures, an orgy of sexual and culinary innuendo supported by a world tour. For Beck, it was a return to the high-energy performances that had been his trademark as far back as Lollapalooza. The live stage set included a red bed that descended from the ceiling for the song "Debra" and the touring band was supplemented by a brass section. After Midnite Vultures came Sea Change in 2002, another airy and emotional album with producer Nigel Godrich, which became Beck's first U.S. Top 10 album, reaching # 8. The album was also met with critical acclaim, earning five stars from Rolling Stone and later placing second in the Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 2002. Sea Change was conceptualized as an album with one unifying theme—the stages following the end of a relationship. The album also featured string arrangements by Beck's father David Campbell and a sonically dense mix reminiscient of Mutations. Although some radio singles were released, no commercial singles were made available to the public. The Sea Change tour featured The Flaming Lips as Beck's opening and backing band. Beck has a number of B-sides and soundtrack-only songs as well, including "Midnite Vultures" (curiously, not on the album of the same name), a cover of The Korgis' "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime" which appeared in the 2004 movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and David Bowie's Diamond Dogs from Moulin Rouge In September 2003, Beck returned to the studio to work on his sixth major-label album. The record, Guero, was produced by the Dust Brothers and Tony Hoffer and features a collaboration with Jack White of The White Stripes; it marked a return to Odelay-era sound. The album was released in March 2005 and enjoyed critical acclaim from most mainstream press, earning four stars from Playboy and Rolling Stone, as well as a "Critic's Choice" recognition from The New York Times. However, the album received a more lackluster response from Beck's indie-oriented fanbase, as shown by the low 6.6 (out of 10) score given by Pitchfork. Nonetheless, the album debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts, pushing 162,000 copies in the first week and giving Beck his best week ever in terms of commercial sales and chart position. Since the release of Guero, the first single, E-Pro has been well received by the mainstream rock community, and has seen a large amount of play time. The second single, titled simply "Girl", is a bright, upbeat song appearing at first to be about summer love; however, a closer look at the lyrics reveals a darker side to the song. "Girl" received heavy airplay on various college radio stations. The third, and current single, is "Hell Yes". Beck married Marissa Ribisi in April 2004, shortly before the birth of their son, Cosimo Henri Hansen.