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John Wesley Harding Information
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'John Wesley Harding' (b. 22 October 1965) is a folk/pop singer-songwriter who has called his style of music "folk noir" and "gangsta folk".
He was born 'Wesley Harding Stace' in Hastings, East Sussex, England. His given name, Wesley, comes from John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who preached one of his last sermons in the town where Harding was born. His stage name may be seen as an almost inevitable nickname for a folk-pop musician, in that his first and middle name overlap with the Bob Dylan album (and song) "John Wesley Harding".
The name is coincidental; Harding's birth preceded the album's release by two years. The American gunfighting historical figure John Wesley Hardin was largely forgotten before 1965, when Johnny Cash wrote and recorded the song "Hardin Wouldn't Run".
His education included the boarding schools St. Andrews School (Pangbourne, Berkshire); Milbourne Lodge (Claygate, Surrey); The King's School (Canterbury, Kent); and university at Jesus College, Cambridge. He left Cambridge before earning his Ph.d. in Humanities.
He has been dogged by comparisons to Elvis Costello which probably was fueled, in part, by two members of his early band (Pete and Bruce Thomas) having been members of The Attractions.
Influences on him include Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Ray Davies, and Phil Ochs.
His writings include chapbooks for some of his albums, and essays for various music publications from Creem to Raygun. His essay "Listerine: The Life And Opinions Of Laurence Sterne", published in Post Road #5, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.
In 2004, he published his first novel, Misfortune, under the name Wesley Stace.
Since 1991, Harding has lived in the United States, most recently in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.
Discography
* It Happened One Night (live)
* God Made Me Do It, the Christmas EP
* Here Comes The Groom
* The Name Above The Title
* Why We Fight
* Pett Levels (EP)
* John Wesley Harding's New Deal
* Dynablob (studio outtakes, fan club release)
* Dynablob 2 (live recordings, fan club release)
* Awake
* Trad Arr Jones (a tribute to Nic Jones)
* The Confessions of St. Ace
* Dynablob 3 (live, fan club release)
* The Man with No Shadow (unreleased, said to be the same as Adam's Apple)
* Dynablob 4 (studio, new material, fan club release)
* Garden of Eden (EP)
* Adam's Apple
* Songs of Misfortune (with the Love Hall Tryst)
Singles
| 'Year' | 'Title' | 'Chart positions' | 'Album' | | US Modern Rock | | 1990 | "The Devil in Me" | #17 | Here Comes the Groom | | 1991 | "The Person You Are" | #8 | The Name Above the Title | | 1991 | "The People's Drug" | #29 | The Name Above the Title |
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