Edwyn Collins

Trivia

• In 1976, he formed the Nu-Sonics, which resurfaced three years later as Orange Juice; the leading proponent of the Glasgow neo-pop scene, the band earned a devoted cult following but little commercial success.
• In 1980s Collins was the only remaining founding member.
• After a self-titled 1984 release failed to chart, Orange Juice disbanded, and Collins was freed from his contract with the group's label, Polydor.
• A solo career seemed imminent, but the singer struggled; dogged by a reputation as a stubborn, difficult perfectionist unmoved by prevailing commercial attitudes, Collins found no one willing to offer him a contract, and only after a pair of sold-out London performances did Creation's Alan McGee sign him to the label's Elevation subsidiary in 1986.
• The singles "Don't Shilly Shally" (produced by Cocteau Twin Robin Guthrie) and "My Beloved Girl" followed, but both failed to chart; in 1987, Elevation folded, and after Collins and McGee had a falling out, the singer was again left without a contract.
• Some months later, Collins accepted the opportunity to record at a small German studio run by a group of devoted Orange Juice fans; cut with the aid of producer Dennis Bovell as well as Aztec Camera frontman Roddy Frame, the resulting LP Hope and Despair -- a brooding, ambitious collection spotlighting Collins' smooth, soulful baritone -- was eventually picked up by the Demon label, and issued in 1989.
• The album proved quite successful on the independent charts, and soon Collins returned to the studio to record 1990's spartan Hellbent on Compromise.
• When the LP failed to repeat its predecessor's good fortune, Demon dropped him from their ranks, and another long sabbatical followed.
• After spending much of the decade's first half in the producer's seat, overseeing sessions from artists including longtime pal Paul Quinn, the Rockingbirds, A House and the Frank & Walters.
• Collins finally earned another shot as a performer: after signing with the tiny U.K. indie Setanta, he recorded 1994's Gorgeous George, a scathing, shimmering set of retro-pop highlighted by the single "A Girl Like You."