Bleu (musician)

Last updated

Bleu
Bleu (musician).jpg
Bleu in Los Angeles
Background information
Birth nameWilliam James McAuley III
Also known asBleu
Born (1975-07-18) July 18, 1975 (age 49)
OriginUnited States
Genres
Occupation(s)
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • piano
  • bass
Years active1999–present
Labels
Website www.bleutopia.com

William James McAuley III (born July 18, 1975), alias Bleu, is an American musician and a record producer. [1] He has written and produced songs for Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, John Oates, Michelle Branch, Hey Violet, Big Freedia, and the Jonas Brothers, and has won multiple Independent Music Awards for his work with Air Traffic Controller. [2] [3]

Contents

In addition to his solo act, for which he was signed to Columbia Records, McAuley has been in a number of bands over the years, including a duo with Alexz Johnson called Johnson & McAuley, Electric Light Orchestra-style power pop band LEO, and a Mutt Lange homage super-group called LoudLion with Taylor Locke of Rooney and Allison Robertson of The Donnas. [4] [5]

McAuley's songs have been featured on soundtracks like Spider-Man and The Hills Have Eyes 2 . In 2014, he wrote and produced all the soundtrack songs for Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast , one of which is a duet featuring himself and KT Tunstall on vocals. [6] [7] [8]

Career

Early career

Bleu graduated from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Bleu was known in the local Boston music scene for his live shows and work with other musicians, and received some local fame for his debut effort A Bing Bang Holidang, which was a charity benefit for the Boston Institute for Arts Therapy. A single from that record, "Boston All Star 12 Dayz," received some local airplay, featuring famous local musicians and acts from Guster and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones as well as Kay Hanley of Letters to Cleo and Bill Janovitz.

Bleu would soon follow with his Workaday Day EP before releasing his first proper album, Headroom. Released via Lunch Records, it received generally positive reviews, but did not take off until Bleu's entry into the WBCN Rock & Roll Rumble, which he won in 2001. This led him to local opening slots with Jump, Little Children and Ben Folds. He would later win a Boston Music Award for "Best Boston Band" (as well as be nominated for 5 in his career), and land a major label contract.

Redhead

Bleu's next album, Redhead (called "an all around power pop treat" by music critic Aidin Vaziri), [9] was released in 2003 on Aware Records. Two versions were released; both featured the song "Somebody Else," which was also on the Spider-Man soundtrack. The first version of the album featured a song, "Sayonara," which had backing vocals from Puffy AmiYumi, and the latter version (released on Columbia Records) contained the single "Get Up," which received moderate national airplay. The album was also released in Japan with the Puffy AmiYumi guest spot featured, followed by a short tour in Japan.

Departure from label, Alpacas Orgling, and other projects

Bleu parted ways with Aware Records after a public dispute about the direction of submitted demos, and his third studio album, tentatively titled A Watched Pot, was not released by the label.

In 2006, a side project with Matt Mahaffey of Self called L.E.O. was released. Featuring contributions from Mike Viola, Andy Sturmer (formerly of Jellyfish), Hanson, and Jason Scheff of Chicago, Alpacas Orgling was meant to be similar to 1970s AM radio pop music, and is described by the band as an "alt-pop version of the Traveling Wilburys." [10]

In July 2007, Bleu released two EPs on iTunes. One is a collection of songs he wrote for friends and family members for their birthdays, simply titled Happy Birthday. The other is credited to the band Blizzard of '05 (also the name of the album). The 7-song EP was recorded by Bleu, some friends, and some former bandmates when they converted the basement of one of their houses into a recording studio, and holed up there during the Blizzard of '05, which swept across New England and shut down the city of Boston for five days.

In July 2008, Bleu and frequent collaborators Mike Viola and Ducky Carlisle released Aquavia as a band called The Major Labels.

Also in 2008, Bleu regained the rights to A Watched Pot. It was released on July 14, 2009, through Artist Garage and Fontana Distribution.

Another side project is a take on 80s rock called LoudLion (plays covers and originals), which planned to release a CD in 2011.

Bleu is also an in-demand songwriter and producer, working with such artists as Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Big Freedia, the Jonas Brothers, Boys Like Girls, and Michelle Branch among many more major label and independent acts.

Four

In August 2010, Bleu made the decision to use Kickstarter [11] to fund the release of his already recorded fourth album in the US. (UK label Lojinx had agreed to release the album in Europe.) Fan contributions reached the target of $8000 within 10 hours and went on to raise a total of $39,645 to support the release and marketing of the album in America. Kickstarter named the campaign Best Music Project in the 2010 Kickstarter Awards. [12]

The new album, titled Four, was released on CD in Europe on October 25 on Lojinx and on November 2 in North America on Bleu's own "The Major Label" imprint. The European digital release date was November 29.

To Hell With You

In November 2012, a crowdfunding for Bleu's fifth record started at pledgemusic.com. The campaign ended October 24, 2013, and was even more successful than Four. One of the many offers from the campaign was the Redhead Record Club. It consisted of re-recorded songs from Redhead for its 10th anniversary. The songs were released individually in digital form. In 2014, the re-recorded collection on CD was made available exclusively for pledgers.

The official release of To Hell With You was January 28, 2014.

Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast

In 2014, McAuley wrote and produced all of the soundtrack songs for Disney's Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast . [6] KT Tunstall performed vocals on each song, with McAuley lending his vocals for a duet with Tunstall on "1000 Years." [13] The director of the film, Steve Loter, had been listening to McAuley's music on his commute to the studio, and ended up approaching McAuley after one of his shows to ask him to work on the film. [14]

SiX TAPE

Bleu's sixth studio album SiX TAPE arrived in August 2021. Featuring his popular single “Love You So,” SiX TAPE finds the “Boston in LA” artist opening up about fatherhood, religion, and “growing up,” while building a collage of mostly upbeat pop sounds. With songs inspired by ELO, Prince, Dire Straits, and Carl Carlton, SiX TAPE plays like a well-worn 90's cassette mixtape.

Another self-produced album, SiX TAPE features collaborations with Lindsey Ray – Nashville based indie ingénue and sync queen, on the album's must-listen duet “Chasin’,” plus co-writers Taylor Locke (Rooney/Sparks/Train) on “Never Believe It” and Isaac Bolivar aka Izzy Fontaine (Seal/Banks) on “My Emo GF.” Mr. McGinty (Jesse McGinty), one of LA's most sought-after session players (Pharrell, Lizzo), makes multiple appearances as a co-writer and instrumentalist on some of the album's most upbeat tracks “Baby By Your Side,” “Love You So,” & “A Crazy Life!”

SiX TAPE, mostly written well before 2020 and originally meant to be an album of collaborations, has taken its time to come together, and morphed into something new and more personal than it was originally meant to be. Fatherhood put the kai-bosh on the constant collaborations, and from this new stage of life comes the intimate immediacy of “Kid Someday,” which encapsulates all the excitement of someone who just found out they're about to have their first child. No less personal though is the record's energetic highlight track “A Crazy Life!” written and recorded with Mr. McGinty entirely remotely during the pandemic. Bleu describes in detail the high and low-lights of living “a crazy life” and following your family on that journey even if it's “psycho.”

The kaleidoscopic soundscapes presented on this collection reflect Bleu's musical journey, which includes past albums of power-pop (Redhead, on Columbia Records), homage (the Jeff Lynne obsessed collective L.E.O.), and electro indie-pop on his last self-release “To Hell With You.”

Discography

Songwriting and production discography

YearArtistTitleLabelRole
2022 NCT Dream "Fire Alarm" SM Entertainment Producer
2018 Jesse Saint John "Fake It"We Are the Guard RecordsWriter, producer, mixer
Big Freedia "Rent" Asylum Records Writer
Addie Hamilton"Hell or Highwater"Self-releasedProducer, writer, mixer [15]
2017 Air Traffic Controller Echo Papa EPSelf-releasedProducer, writer, mixer [2]
Michelle Branch "Heartbreak Now" {(Hopeless Romantic) Verve Label Group Writer [16]
Addie Hamilton"Judge and Jury"Self-releasedProducer, writer
"La La La"Position MusicProducer, writer
2016 Josh Kaufman Josh Kaufman EPSelf-releasedProducer, mixer; writer (all songs except "Avalanche")
Johnson & McAuley Johnson & McAuley EPSelf-releasedArtist, producer, mixer; writer (all songs except "The Promise") [17]
Air Traffic Controller Black BoxSelf-releasedProducer, mixer (all songs), writer ("People Watching," "Phantom," "The House," "Warrior," "Water Falls")
2015Bleu (ft. guest vocalists Justin Tranter, Alexz Johnson, and more)To Hell With YouSelf-releasedArtist, producer, writer, mixer
Hey Violet "Smash into You" (I Can Feel It EP) Capitol Records Writer [18]
Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast soundtrack"Float," "1000 Years," "Strange Sight," "Strange Sight Reprise," (all featuring KT Tunstall) additional score Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast soundtrack Walt Disney Records Producer, writer, instrumentalist; featured artist ("1000 Years") [13]
John Oates "Dirty Business" (Another Good Road) Elektra Nashville Producer, writer [19]
2014LoudLionDie ToughSelf-releasedProducer, writer, mixer
Alexz Johnson "Thank You For Breaking My Heart" (Heart EP)Laydee Spencer MusicWriter [20]
2013Mike Taylor"DWNTWN KDS"Self-releasedProducer, writer, mixer
Marc Martel "Our Love Remains," "Perfect World," "8th Wonder" (The Prelude EP)Be Music & EntertainmentCo-producer, writer
Happy Endings soundtrack"Ordinary Extraordinary Love" Madison Gate Records Producer, writer, mixer [3]
2012 Daniel Powter "Crazy All My Life" (Turn on the Lights) EMI UK Writer [16]
Ryan Beatty "Simple Song" (Because of You EP)OcSkee EntertainmentWriter
Air Traffic Controller NORDOSugarpop RecordsProducer, mixer; writer ("You Know Me")
After School "Rip Off" ( Playgirlz ) Avex Trax Producer, writer [21]
Meat Loaf "Fall From Grace" ( Hell in a Handbasket ) Sony Music Writer [21]
Chris Mann "Unless You Mean It" ( Roads ) Universal Republic Producer, writer, engineer [20]
Chris Mann "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" (Home For Christmas EP) Universal Republic Producer, engineer [20]
Tristan Prettyman "Unconditionally," "Come Clean" ( Cedar + Gold ) Capitol Records Writer [16]
2011 Demi Lovato "In Real Life" ( Unbroken ) Hollywood Records Producer, writer, mixer [20]
Drake Bell "Terrific," "Big Shot," "Speak My Mind" (A Reminder EP)Drake Bell EntertainmentCo-producer
2009 Selena Gomez & the Scene "I Won't Apologize" (Kiss and Tell) Hollywood Records Writer [21]
Selena Gomez "Disappear" ( Wizards of Waverly Place (soundtrack) ) Walt Disney Records Writer, co-producer [18]
Kate Voegele "Say Anything" ( A Fine Mess ) Interscope Records Writer
Ace Enders & a Million Different People "When I Hit The Ground" (title track) Vagrant Records Writer [18]
2007 Jonas Brothers "That's Just the Way We Roll" ( Jonas Brothers ) Hollywood Records Writer [5] [22]
LoudLionTheme song, The Hills Have Eyes 2 soundtrack Bulletproof RecordsProducer, writer, mixer [8]
Hanson "Go," "Running Man" ( The Walk ) 3CG, Cooking Vinyl Writer; producer ("Running Man")

Artist discography

EP's

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Taylor</span> American singer

Roland Stephen Taylor is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, music executive, film maker, assistant professor, and actor. A figure in what has come to be known as Christian alternative rock, Taylor enjoyed a successful solo career during the 1980s, and also served in the short-lived group Chagall Guevara. In contrast to many Christian musical artists, his songs have often taken aim at Christian hypocrisy or "error" with the use of satirical, sardonic lyrics. In 1997, he founded the record label Squint Entertainment, which fueled the careers of artists such as Sixpence None the Richer, Chevelle, and Burlap to Cashmere. Despite this success, Taylor was ousted from the label by its parent, Word Entertainment, in 2001. He has produced and written for numerous musical acts, one of the most consistent being Newsboys. As a film-maker, Taylor co-wrote, directed, and produced the feature films Down Under the Big Top, The Second Chance, and Blue Like Jazz. After a decade and a half of hiatus, Taylor returned to performing music in 2010 as the front-man for Steve Taylor & The Perfect Foil, a supergroup he founded with Peter Furler, Jimmy Abegg, and John Mark Painter. Along with a university residency and continued filmmaking, Taylor would resume work on unfinished Chagall Guevara material into the 2020s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chumbawamba</span> British alternative rock band (1982–2012)

Chumbawamba were a British anarcho-punk band who formed in 1982 and disbanded in 2012. They are best known for their 1997 single "Tubthumping", which was nominated for Best British Single at the Brit Awards 1998. Other singles include "Amnesia", "Enough Is Enough", "Timebomb", "Top of the World ", and "Add Me". Their anarcho-communist political leanings led them to have an irreverent attitude toward authority, and to espouse a variety of political and social causes including animal rights and pacifism and later regarding class struggle, Marxism, feminism, and anti-fascism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macy Gray</span> American singer (born 1967)

Natalie Renée McIntyre, known by her stage name Macy Gray, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday.

RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonatha Brooke</span> American singer-songwriter and musician

Jonatha Brooke is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a performer, writer, and artist since the late 1980s, and her songs have been used in television shows and movies.

William Mark Wainwright, known professionally as William Orbit, is an English musician and record producer who has sold 200 million recordings worldwide of his own work, his production and song-writing work. He is a recipient of multiple Grammy Awards, Ivor Novello Awards and other music industry awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loreena McKennitt</span> Canadian musician

Loreena Isabel Irene McKennitt is a Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer who writes, records, and performs world music with Celtic and Middle Eastern influences. McKennitt is known for her refined and clear soprano vocals. She has sold more than 14 million records worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aimee Mann</span> American singer-songwriter (born 1960)

Aimee Elizabeth Mann is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released ten studio albums as a solo artist. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyrics about dark subjects, and her work with the producer Jon Brion in the 1990s was influential on American alternative rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Shins</span> American indie rock band

The Shins is an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's current line-up consists of Mercer, alongside Yuuki Matthews, Mark Watrous, Patti King (keyboards), and Jon Sortland (drums). They are based in Portland, Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blonde Redhead</span> American alternative rock band

Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino and twin brothers Simone and Amedeo Pace that formed in New York City in 1993. The band's earliest albums were noted for their noise rock influences, though their sound evolved by the early 2000s with the releases of Misery is a Butterfly (2004) and 23 (2007), which both incorporated elements of dream pop, shoegaze and other genres. They have released ten studio albums and have toured internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paula Cole</span> American singer (born 1968)

Paula Dorothy Cole is an American singer-songwriter and producer. After gaining attention for her performances as a vocalist on Peter Gabriel's 1993–1994 Secret World Tour, she released her first album, Harbinger, which suffered from a lack of promotion when the label, Imago Records, folded shortly after its release. Her second album, This Fire (1996), brought her worldwide acclaim, peaking at number 20 on the Billboard 200 album chart and producing two hit singles, the triple-Grammy nominated "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?", which reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1997, and "I Don't Want to Wait", which was used as the theme song of the television show Dawson's Creek. Cole was a featured performer in the 1996 prototype mini-tour for Lilith Fair, and also was a headliner for Lilith Fair in 1997 and 1998. She won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1998, and also became the first woman ever to be nominated for "Producer of the Year" in her own right in that same year.

Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its roster of pop, teen pop, and country artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Lee</span> Australian actor and singer (born 1978)

Benjamin Michael Lee is an Australian musician and actor. Lee began his career as a musician at the age of 14 with the Sydney band Noise Addict, but he focused on his solo career when the band broke up in 1995. He appeared as the protagonist in the Australian film The Rage in Placid Lake (2003). He has released eleven solo studio albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexz Johnson</span> Canadian musician and actress

Alexzandra Spencer Johnson is a Canadian singer and actress. Known for her distinctive sound since her debut in 2010, her first album, Voodoo, was independently released with her brother, Brendan Johnson, setting the stage for a prolific career. Over the years, she has released several albums and EPs, including The Basement Recordings series (2011–2013), Skipping Stone (2012), and her sophomore album Let ’Em Eat Cake (2014). She continued to evolve with subsequent albums A Stranger Time (2017), Still Alive (2020), and her fifth album, Seasons, released in 2023. Seasons was titled by fan vote via her Patreon and was promoted during her 2023 Europe/US tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MC Lars</span> American rapper (born 1982)

Andrew Robert Nielsen, known professionally as MC Lars, is an American record producer, rapper, cartoonist, podcaster and educator. He is one of the self-proclaimed originators of "lit-hop", and is the founder and CEO of the independent record label Horris Records. He has been cited as the creator of the term "iGeneration", which he was credited with doing in 2003. He has released five studio albums, five EPs, four collaborative releases, and two books.

Cherry Red Records is a British independent record label founded in Malvern, Worcestershire by Iain McNay in 1978. The label has released recordings by Dead Kennedys, Everything but the Girl, The Monochrome Set, and Felt, among others, as well as the compilation album Pillows & Prayers. In addition to releasing new music, Cherry Red also acts as an umbrella for individual imprints and catalogue specialists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lori McKenna</span> American musician

Lorraine McKenna is an American folk, Americana, and country music singer-songwriter. In 2016, she was nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year and won Best Country Song for co-writing the hit single "Girl Crush" performed by Little Big Town. In 2017, she again won Best Country Song at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for writing "Humble and Kind" performed by Tim McGraw. McKenna along with Lady Gaga, Natalie Hemby and Hillary Lindsey wrote the second single off the soundtrack to the 2018 film A Star Is Born called "Always Remember Us This Way.” McKenna performed backing vocals along with Lindsey and Hemby, and the song received a nomination for Song of the Year at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.

The Spill Canvas is an American alternative rock band from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Known for their hits "All Over You," "All Hail the Heartbreaker" and "Polygraph, Right Now!", as well as several emo classics like "Our Song," "The Tide" and "This Is for Keeps."

"All the Way" is a song published in 1957 by Maraville Music Corporation. The music was written by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Sammy Cahn.

L.E.O. is a 2006 project by Boston musician Bleu and collaborators which produced Alpacas Orgling, a 2006 album of original songs similar in style to Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), the Traveling Wilburys, and 1970s AM radio pop music.

References

  1. ↑ "Gold & Platinum search: the Jonas Brothers". RIAA.com. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 "The 16th Independent Music Awards Winners". IndependentMusicAwards.com. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Dreilinger, Danielle (September 8, 2011). "Bleu: Serious about Songwriting" . Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Premiere: Johnson & McAuley, 'Heartbeat (Beatin' You Up)'". Buzzbands.la. March 30, 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Q&A with Bleu". Magnet Magazine. November 1, 2010. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast soundtracks". IMDb. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Spider-Man: Music From And Inspired By". Amazon. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  8. 1 2 "The Hills Have Eyes II soundtrack". IMDb. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Aidin Vaziri, Editorial Reviews, "Redhead"". Amazon.
  10. ↑ Sullivan, Kate (November 1, 2006). "E.L.O. Is For Lovers!". LA Weekly . Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  11. ↑ "The best BLEU CD release (of all time?) because of YOU!".
  12. ↑ McGregor, Michael (January 11, 2011). "Best Music Project". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
  13. 1 2 "Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast". Amazon. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  14. ↑ V., Ruth (March 2, 2015). "Exploring the Music of Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast – An Interview with Music Supervisor Brett Swain and Musician Bleu". VivaVeltoro.com. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Hell or Highwater (LYRIC VIDEO) Addie Hamilton". March 21, 2018. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved August 1, 2018– via YouTube.
  16. 1 2 3 "Bleu McAuley credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  17. ↑ Marotta, Michael (February 18, 2016). "Song Premiere: Johnson & McAuley arrive with a blissful cover of '80s classic 'The Promise'". Vanyaland. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  18. 1 2 3 "Bleu credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  19. ↑ "John Oates: A Good Road To Follow". Americanmustacheinstitute.org. June 4, 2013. Archived from the original on November 2, 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  20. 1 2 3 4 "Bleu McAuley discography". discogs. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  21. 1 2 3 "William James McAuey III discography". discogs. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
  22. ↑ "The Jonas Brothers". CBN.com. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  23. ↑ Staff, PopMatters (July 15, 2003). "Bleu: Redhead, PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  24. ↑ Staff, PopMatters. "Bleu: Redhead, PopMatters". PowerPopSquare. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  25. ↑ "Boston Music Awards 2002". BostonMusicAwards.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Boston Music Awards 2010". BostonMusicAwards.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  27. ↑ "11th Annual Independent Music Awards Winners Announced!" Independent Music Awards, May 2, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  28. 1 2 "15th Independent Music Awards Winners". independentmusicawards.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.