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Jessica Greenfield

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Jessica Greenfield
Greenfield performing with Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds in 2023
Greenfield performing with Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds in 2023
Background information
Birth nameJessica Leonie Rose Greenfield
BornLondon, U.K
Occupation(s)Musician, songwriter, producer
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • keyboards
  • percussion
Years active2003–present
Member ofNoel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Spouse
Gavin Conder
​
(m. 2017)​
Websitejessgreenfieldmusic.com

Jessica Greenfield is a London-born singer/multi-instrumentalist and songwriter.[1] She is best known as a member of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds as well as for being a musician in her own right - as a member of English jazz hip-hop group The Herbaliser under a pseudonym of Jessica Darling, recording vocals on their album Same as It Never Was; as one half of The Kondoors;[2] and as part of London-based soul ensemble Wonder 45.[3]

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds

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Greenfield has been a member of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds in recent years, providing backing vocals, keyboard and tambourine on the Stranded on the Earth world tour which commenced in February 2018 in support of the Who Built The Moon LP, eventually totalling 123 shows.

Noel_Gallagher_-_April_12,_2018_-_Munich_35
Greenfield, Russell Pritchard and Noel Gallagher performing in 2018.

In support of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds' subsequent Council Skies LP, on which she contributed backing vocals to 10 tracks including singles Pretty Boy, Dead To The World, Council Skies, and Open The Door, See What You Find,[4] Greenfield joined the band for further touring, starting with Stateside dates which saw them co-headlining with Garbage from June 2023.[5]

Greenfield's other High Flying Birds studio credits include the band's This Is The Place EP.[6]

In 2019, she told Rolling Stone magazine that "Noel and the guys are amazing. Getting to travel the world and play in front of thousands of people is a real dream come true."[7]

Work with other artists

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Across the past two decades, Greenfield has worked with many artists including Paul Weller, John Illsley (Dire Straits), Rod Stewart, Steve Van Zandt (E Street Band), Rudimental, and Take That.[8]

Own compositions

[edit]

Greenfield is also one half of Indie soul duo The Kondoors alongside husband Gavin Conder.[9] While they first met in 2003 through mutual friends,[10] the couple later became a performing duo. Mick Brown of Telegraph Magazine called them: "Two voices pitched in perfect harmony to create blue-eyed soul and sophisticated, grown-up pop that echoes Michael McDonald and Hall & Oates."[11]

Greenfield and Conder funded both their first EP and the recording of their debut album at Monnow Valley studios in Monmouthshire, Wales.[12]

Their debut single released in 2018 was called "Postcards"[13] and their debut four-track EP Fallen Angel followed in 2019,[14] launched on 25 September at St Pancras Old Church, London.[15] According to Greenfield: “We wrote it about how love can set you free from feeling lost. It’s a song about hope really.”[16]

After signing to UK label Fabyl Records, The Kondoors' debut album Glorious was given a five-star review and named Album of the Month by Music Republic Magazine in October 2021.[17]

The album, produced by long-term Noel Gallagher collaborator Paul Stacey and recorded live with a nine-piece band in three days,[18] was preceded by lead-off single Good Times which Rolling Stone India said "blends together the best of rock, funk and soul."[19]

Alongside her husband, Greenfield is also part of retro soul collective Wonder 45, a six-piece soul and rhythm & blues band.[20] Their debut single Wonderland was released in May 2022.[21] Blues & Soul Magazine called it, "A slow building, supreme slice of vintage soul washed in reverb and adorned with heavy, fat and imperious horns."[22]

Second single Cry was released in November 2023 and received airplay on the Zoe Ball Breakfast Show on 4 December 2023. The show's host called it "gorgeous" and said that an album entitled Wonderland will follow in 2024.[23] It was also played on the Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show on BBC Radio 6 on 9 December 2023 as part of a tribute to Benjamin Zephaniah. The host said he would be "keeping a close eye on this London outfit."[24] Cry was then added to BBC Radio 2's New Music Playlist for early 2024.[25]

Wonder 45 played their debut gig on 29 January 2024 at London's 606 Club.[26]

Rolling Stone India reviewed subsequent single Superman, calling it "a masterclass in musical dynamics, effortlessly blending the earthy grit of blues with the driving force of rock" including "powerhouse" vocals from Greenfield delivered with "a raw intensity".[27]

House of Coco further called Make It Happen "an effervescent, groove-laden track that is steeped in liberation and self-belief".[28]

Everything Flows said debut LP Wonderland will be released on 31 May via Big-AC Records and the band's singles so far were "culminating in what is already sure to be an instant classic debut LP".[29]

Greenfield has various other songwriting credits including TV productions Love Island and The X Factor.[30]

She was nominated in the Best Wildcard Production Music Track category of the Production Music Awards 2022 for This Is It/The Home of Happy alongside Holley Gray.[31]

Awareness raising

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Greenfield has been vocal on a few issues - the treatment she received for post-natal depression after giving birth to her daughter at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic; the challenges of being a mother and balancing a career; what needs to change across the highly competitive music industry; and how High Flying Birds bandmates support each other when separated from their children during touring.

She told the StageLeft Podcast that the industry "either fuels ego or fuels depression" but believes that if you work in music and are struggling to cope, then Music Minds Matter - a free, 24/7 charity - can provide invaluable support.[32]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Podcast".
  2. ^ Best, Nick (14 August 2023). "The Kondoors: Glorious (Fabyl) 1st October 2021". Music Republic Magazine. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  3. ^ Giulia (3 May 2022). "LONDON SOUL OUTFIT WONDER 45 DROP DEBUT SINGLE 'WONDERLAND'". Will Work 4 Funk. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Council Skies - Noel Gallagher / Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds". All Music. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds & Garbage - North American Co-Headline Tour Announced". noelgallagher.com. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  6. ^ "This Is the Place Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds". All Music. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  7. ^ Britto, David (21 August 2019). "U.K. Pop Duo The Kondoors Talk New Single and Prep Debut EP". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  8. ^ Binns, Tiana (6 February 2020). "The Kondoors are coming - Bringing great music to Whelan's". Echo.ie. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  9. ^ "The Kondoors". Whelan's Live. 6 December 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  10. ^ Britto, David (21 August 2019). "U.K. Pop Duo The Kondoors Talk New Single and Prep Debut EP". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  11. ^ "The Kondoors". Spotify. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  12. ^ "The Kondoors return to Coolham Live Music Club". Sussex World. 11 January 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  13. ^ "Postcards - The Kondoors".
  14. ^ Smith, Gary (23 September 2019). "The Kondoors - Fallen Angel". Laurel Canyon Music. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  15. ^ "LCM Song Of The Day: 'Fallen Angel' - The Kondoors". Laurel Canyon Music. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  16. ^ "U.K. Pop Duo The Kondoors Talk New Single and Prep Debut EP". 21 August 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  17. ^ Best, Nick (20 September 2021). "The Kondoors: Glorious (Fabyl) 1st October 2021". Music Republic Magazine. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  18. ^ "Essential Advent Calendar: The Kondoors – 'Mr Rain". Essentially Pop. 16 December 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  19. ^ Britto, David (21 May 2020). "The Kondoors Return with Fiery New Track 'Good Times'". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  20. ^ "LONDON SOUL OUTFIT WONDER 45 DROP DEBUT SINGLE 'WONDERLAND'". Will Work 4 Funk. 3 May 2022. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  21. ^ "Wonder 45 - Wonderland". Golden Rules. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  22. ^ "WONDER 45 : WONDERLAND". Blues and Soul Magazine.
  23. ^ "Zoe Ball Breakfast Show, BBC Radio 2". www.bbc.co.uk. 4 December 2023.
  24. ^ "The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show, BBC Radio 6". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  25. ^ "Radio 2 New Music Playlist". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  26. ^ "Wonder 45". 606club.co.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  27. ^ Britto, David (19 May 2024). "Wonder 45 soars with new single 'Superman'". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  28. ^ Harrison, Emma (18 May 2024). "Why 'Wonder 45' needs to be on your playlist this summer". House of Coco. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  29. ^ Thomas, William (19 May 2024). "Introducing Wonder 45". Everything Flows. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  30. ^ Greenfield, Jessica. "BIO". www.jessgreenfieldmusic.com/. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
  31. ^ "The Production Music Awards - Previous Winners". Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  32. ^ Simpson, Chris (15 November 2023). "Jessica Greenfield on experiencing postpartum depression & touring as a new parent". The StageLeft Podcast. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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