William Orbit

Early life

Orbit (Wainwright) was raised in Palmers Green, a suburb of London. His parents were both schoolteachers; he was the elder of two sons. He left school at the age of 16, and subsisted for a number of years in various low-paying jobs, while seeking an outlet for his creativity. Around this time, while rooming with a friend who was trying to start a recording studio, Orbit found his musical calling.

Torch Song and Bassomatic

In 1980, Orbit teamed up with electronic musician Laurie Mayer and Grant Gilbert to form the electronic/synth group Torch Song. They released their recordings in an audio cassette series, generated from their home-built studio in a squatted disused school, nicknamed the Centro Iberico, in Notting Hill, in London, next to the Grand Union Canal. Richard Law, who was A&R for IRS Records, was a follower of their music and aesthetic; in 1981, Law took it to Miles Copeland, who had discovered and managed the Police and the Bangles. When Copeland signed them to the label, the deal enabled them to build their ideal studio. There they recorded two albums and four singles, the most successful being the dance chart hit "Prepare to Energize", which was featured in the film Bachelor Party. Orbit and Mayer also composed the soundtrack to the ice hockey movie Youngblood,starring Rob Lowe and Patrick Swayze and recorded "White Night", written by colleague Rico Conning of The Lines, which was used in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. The band reunited briefly when Orbit worked with Laurie Mayer and Rico Conning. They released their final album, Toward the Unknown Region in 1995.

This first incarnation of Guerilla Studios had a Trident 80B mixing desk and Otari MTR90 MKII 24 track (2 inch tape) multitrack housed in a back garden on the canals of Little Venice in Paddington, and they also ran it as a commercial enterprise.

Bassomatic was another of Orbit's group projects. The band recorded house music in the 1990s. The band included vocalist Sharon Musgrave and rapper Steve Roberts, also known as MC Inna Onestep among others. For the second album, singer Sindy Finn replaced Musgrave on vocals. Both albums were released by Guerilla Studios, founded by Orbit with Laurie Mayer and Grant Gilbert. Bassomatic's first album was 1990's Set the Controls for the Heart of the Bass, the title track derived from Pink Floyd's "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun". This album was re-released in 1997. A subsequent album, Science and Melody, was released in 1991. Bassomatic's biggest hit single was "Fascinating Rhythm" in 1990, which reached No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart, and performed well on the UK Dance Chart.

Around this time, Orbit's studio chiefly consisted of a pair of Akai S1000 samplers and a Roland Juno-106 synthesiser.

Productions and remixes

Collaborations and productions included Madonna, Prince, Belinda Carlisle, Britney Spears, Mel C, Pink, U2, Katie Melua, Ricky Martin, Beth Orton, Sarah McLachlan, Queen, The Joy Formidable, Robbie Williams, All Saints, Kraftwerk, Harry Enfield and Sugababes. When working with Beck, the two of them wrote a song for Pink, "Feel Good Time," which Orbit then produced for the soundtrack for the 2003 film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle.

He produced the album 13 by Britpop group Blur, in London and Reykjavík, Iceland.

Orbit had created remixes for Madonna previously such as those of "Justify My Love" and "Erotica" but did not meet her personally until 1997. That summer and autumn, they worked together and produced her multi-Grammy/award-winning seventh album Ray of Light. The album took four months to record and it was the longest she ever spent recording an album. It was released on 22 February 1998.

In 2000, Orbit continued working for Madonna on her album Music, recorded at The Hit Factory in New York.

At this time, he also co-wrote and performed with her on the song "Beautiful Stranger". In 2011, he worked with a team of writers including Jean-Baptiste Kouame, Julie Frost and Klas Ahlund and brought their compositions and his production work to contribute to the twelfth studio album by Madonna, MDNA, released on 23 March 2012, by Interscope Records. He co-produced 6 tracks on the album, including "Masterpiece" which won a Golden Globe for Best Original Song in the Miramax film W.E., at the 69th Golden Globe Awards. After the release of the album, Orbit openly expressed in various media sources his dissatisfaction and disappointment with this Madonna project.

In 2013, Orbit worked with Britney Spears and will.i.am on the album Britney Jean, with fellow songwriters Ana Diaz and Dan Traynor with whom he wrote and produced the track "Alien". He was one of the writers and one of the producers on the Chris Brown song "Don't Wake Me Up" which was recorded at Record Plant in LA and for which he received an ASCAP award in 2013.

This was followed by a production of the Queen track "There Must Be More to Life Than This", which featured archive vocals by Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson. Orbit went on to produce another Queen song, "Let Me in Your Heart Again". In 2015, his composition "The Name of the Wave" was used in the Oscar winning documentary Amy directed by Asif Kapadia.

In 2018, he worked on "After All", a song by English-Canadian girl group All Saints from their fifth studio album, Testament (2018). Written by group member Shaznay Lewis along with Peter Hutchings and Orbit, whilst produced by the latter, it was released as the album's second single on 26 July 2018.

Classical work

Inspired and encouraged by Rob Dickins, Orbit's first commercial release in the classical sphere was Pieces in a Modern Style. It was originally released in May 1995 on Orbit's N-Gram Recordings label, and then again in 2000 by Warner Music in the UK and Europe, and on Maverick in the U.S. The album reached No 2 in the UK album charts. The first single release from the album was "Barber’s Adagio for Strings", and a trance remix of the track by Dutch DJ Ferry Corsten was hugely successful. The single reached number 4 in the national singles chart. In 2010 he teamed with Rico Conning and Laurie Mayer to make a follow-up album, Pieces in a Modern Style 2, which was released as a two-disc set on the Decca label. The album featured German countertenor Andreas Scholl on an interpretation of Henry Purcell's "Dido’s Lament".

In 2007, he took part in Alex Poots’ Manchester International Festival, and composed a symphonic work in nine movements, "Orchestral Suite" which was performed by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, augmented by additional harps, pianos and percussion, and with The Manchester Chorale, conducted by Alexander Shelley at Bridgewater Hall.

Live performance/media/DJ work

In the early '90s, Orbit briefly developed a new label which he called N'Gram. During the N'Gram period, he co-directed a showcase of the label at Queen Elizabeth Hall on London's Southbank. The acts included The Electric Chamber (which performed the Pieces album), Strange Cargo, and Torch Song.

In 2001, he took part in the Stockhausen Electronic Festival at the Barbican Theatre.

In 2013, he took part in the London Electronic Arts Festival.

He participated in the Liberatum International Cultural Festival in Russia, during which he performed DJ sets in Moscow and Novosibirsk, Siberia.

He performed in 2015 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and at a gala at Banqueting House in London's Whitehall for the charity Together for Short Lives, a group that sponsors and supports children with terminal illnesses and their families. Orbit has deejayed at various clubs in London and Ibiza, and at Buckingham Palace for Her Majesty The Queen's annual staff and family Christmas party, in 2015.

Orbit joined Hawkwind on stage on 29 September 2023 at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Space Ritual album.

Solo discography

Studio albums

• A The original 1995 release was credited to the Orbit alias 'The Electric Chamber', but was withdrawn from sale almost immediately. Re-released in 2000 with additional tracks taking the place of un-cleared tracks from the first release.
• B CD release has 4 additional tracks which are not available as a digital download
• C Released on single CD and double CD including notable remixes, and a digital version with a bonus track
• D Available for free download from SoundCloud

Compilations

• The Best of Strange Cargos (1996, I.R.S.) – 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
• Strange Cargo Vol.1–3 (2000, EMI Records) – 3-CD Box Set
• William / Orbit (2002, Universal) – U.S. two-disc publishing CD set to support William Orbit's publishing catalogue

Singles

Ensemble discography

With Bassomatic

With Torch Song

DNV 2012

Production and songwriting credits

Awards and nominations

References

1. "William Orbit." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 30. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2000. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 7 May 2017. Available online [http://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/orbit-william via ''Encyclopedia.com''].
2. Paine, Andre. (19 August 2021). "Sentric Music signs William Orbit".
3. Snelling, Holly. (2022-06-19). "Back on top: music producer William Orbit on his return to music".
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6. (1983). "Torch Song - Prepare To Energize".
7. [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086927/soundtrack "Bachelor Party (1984) Soundtracks"]. [[IMDb]]. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
8. YouTube clip: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWabOW6fVyw "William Orbit - Opening Score(from Youngblood Soundtrack)"], ''[[YouTube]]'', 12 September 2012.
9. YouTube clip: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOH5yXA5mgI "Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 Soundtrack White Night By Torch Song"], ''[[YouTube]]'', 12 September 2012.
10. "Guerilla Studios".
11. (2000). "[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music". [[Virgin Books]].
12. Goodyer, Tim. (November 1990). "The Heart Of The Bass".
13. Tingen, Paul. (October 1991). "William Orbit: Urban Guerilla".
14. (18 May 2012). "'Perfume Ranges and Teen Fashion Contests' Took up All Madonna's Time: Producer Sounds off on 'MDNA' Flop".
15. ASCAP Awards. [http://www.ascap.com/eventsawards/awards/prs/2013/songawards.aspx "ASCAP Awards 2013"], 'ASCAP', 2013.
16. Amy (soundtrack). [[Amy (soundtrack). "Amy"]], 'Amy (soundtrack)', Oct 2015.
17. UK Official Singles Charts [http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19991212/7501/ "Official Singles Chart Top 100, 12th Dec 1999"], ''[http://www.officialcharts.com/]''
18. Andreas Scholl Discography. [http://www.andreasschollsociety.org/discography.htm "Andreas Scholl Discography"], ''[http://www.andreasschollsociety.org/] {{Webarchive. link. (8 February 2020 '')
19. Aspden, Peter (June 22 June 2007). "[https://www.ft.com/content/89920928-20be-11dc-8d50-000b5df10621 Alluring echoes of Hoxton]". ''[[Financial Times#FT Weekend. Financial Times: FT Weekend, Life & Arts]]''. www.ft.com. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
20. Performance: WILLIAM ORBIT Royal Festival Hall, London. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/performance-william-orbit-royal-festival-hall-london-1593122.html "Performance: WILLIAM ORBIT Royal Festival Hall, London"], 'Independent', Monday 24 July 1995.
21. The sound of discord. [https://www.theguardian.com/education/2001/sep/29/arts.highereducation3 "William Orbit, who appears alongside Stockhausen in next month's Elektronic Festival "], 'The Guardian', 29 September 2001.
22. William Orbit confirmed for first London Electronic Arts Festival. [http://www.indielondon.co.uk/Music-Review/georgio-moroder-and-william-orbit-confirmed-for-first-london-electronic-arts-festival "Georgio Moroder and William Orbit confirmed for first London Electronic Arts Festival"], 'Indie London', Nov 2013.
23. Carrera Presents Liberatum Hong Kong International Festival of Culture. [http://www.lisabakerltd.com/blog/liberatum-hong-kong/ "Carrera Presents Liberatum Hong Kong International Festival of Culture"], 'Lisa Baker Associates Limited', 22 March 2012.
24. The midsummer ball. [https://web.archive.org/web/20150707070932/http://www.togetherforshortlives.org.uk/get_involved/the_midsummer_ball "Together for Short Lives’ Midsummer Ball"], 'The Midsummer Ball', 3 June 2015.
25. (4 June 2015). "William Orbit played the national anthem at Buckingham Palace party". Irish Examiner.
26. Ewing, Jerry. (2023-09-26). "William Orbit to perform with Hawkwind at the Royal Albert Hall".
27. Orbit, William. (2023-09-29). "William Orbit on the 'pure joy' of playing with his heroes Hawkwind".
28. "The Official Charts Company: William Orbit". [[Official Charts Company]].
29. Tobias Zywietz. "The Official Zobbel Homepage". Zobbel.de.
30. "Discography William Orbit". Australian-Charts.com.
31. "William Orbit > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". [[AllMusic]].
32. Cardew, Ben. (26 August 2022). "William Orbit: The Painter Album Review".
33. "Orbit Symphonic". SoundCloud.
34. "Strange Cargo 5". SoundCloud.
35. "William Orbit - William / Orbit".
36. "William Orbit > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". [[AllMusic]].
37. {{cite certification
38. https://www.grammy.com/artists/william-orbit/5572
39. https://web.archive.org/web/20111115072809/http://wintermusicconference.com/idmaballot/nominees/archived/index.php?year=2000