Kalpana Kalpana (Editor)

The Tiger Lillies

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Origin
  
London

Years active
  
1989–present

Website
  
tigerlillies.com

Genres
  
Dark cabaret

Labels
  
Misery Guts Music

The Tiger Lillies httpsweirdestbandfileswordpresscom201307t

Past members
  
Phil Butcher Adrian Huge Mike Pickering

Members
  
Martyn Jacques, Adrian Stout, Adrian Huge

Profiles

YouTube

The tiger lillies danced all night circus songs


The Tiger Lillies are a cult British musical trio formed in 1989 by singer-songwriter Martyn Jacques. Often described as the forefathers of Brechtian Punk Cabaret, the Tiger Lillies are well known for their unique sound and style which merges the macabre magic of pre-war Berlin with the savage edge of punk.

Contents

The Tiger Lillies The Tiger Lillies REDCAT

The tiger lillies crack of doom live thessaloniki 8 12 2013


Formation and recent activity

The band's name is rumoured to have been inspired by a murdered Soho prostitute called Lillie who used to dress up in animal print. Jacques, however, has stated that he named the band after a painting he had on his wall. The band formed in 1989 when Martyn Jacques placed an ad on Loot looking for a drummer and a bass player for a new band. Adrian Huge and Phil Butcher (the band's first bassist who was succeeded by Adrian Stout in 1995) were the only musicians that got in touch with him and therefore became the original Tiger Lillies' drummer and bassist respectively.

The Tiger Lillies News The Tiger Lillies

In Spring 2012 Adrian Huge decided to take a leave of absence and was replaced by drummer Mike Pickering who toured with the Tiger Lillies from 2012. In early 2015 Pickering was in turn replaced by band's current drummer, Jonas Golland.

Musical style

The Tiger Lillies the tiger lillies russians YouTube

The Independent has described The Tiger Lillies as "a provocative and avant- garde three-piece band that combines cabaret, vaudeville, music-hall and street theatre", while Tim Arthur of Time Out has given a more imaginative description: "Imagine Kurt Weill conjuring up images of prewar Berlin while a falsetto vocalist screams, squeaks and squawks his way through every number like some rambling madman, and you've got the picture". Notorious for singing controversial songs involving bestiality, prostitution, blasphemy and all other vice imaginable, The Tiger Lillies are undoubtedly not for the easily offended. Their musical style is mainly influenced by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's masterpiece The Threepenny Opera and pre-war Berlin cabaret but other influences such as gypsy and circus music, French chanson and British music hall tunes are also evident,.

Awards and nominations

The Tiger Lillies The Tiger Lillies perform HAMLET Republique Theatre Copenhagen DK

  • In 2002 their cult hit musical Shockheaded Peter was nominated for five Olivier Awards. The show won the Olivier for Best Entertainment and Martyn Jacques won the Olivier for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical or Entertainment.
  • In 2003 their album The Gorey End (in collaboration with the Kronos Quartet and writer, illustrator Edward Gorey) was nominated for Dominique de Rivaz's Luftbusiness (2008) a Grammy Award for Best Classical Crossover Album.
  • In 2012 their show The Tiger Lillies Perform Hamlet, produced by Copenhagen's Republique Theatre and directed by acclaimed Danish director Martin Tulinius, was nominated for a Reumert Award in the category Music Theatre/Show of the Year 2012.

    • Members

    Current
    The Tiger Lillies Interview with Martyn Jacques The Tiger Lillies YouTube

  • Martyn Jacques – accordion, lead vocals, piano, guitar, harmonica, ukulele, banjolele (1989–present)
  • Adrian Stout – double bass, backing vocals, jaw harp, musical saw, theremin (1995–present)
  • Jonas Golland – drums, backing vocals, percussion (2015–present)
    • Past
  • Phil Butcher – bass (1989–95)
  • Adrian Huge – drums (1989–2012)
  • Mike Pickering – drums (2012–15)

    • Soundtrack

  • Goosebumps (2016)

    • Live albums

  • Live in Russia 2000–2001 (2003)
  • Live in Soho (2007)
  • Sinderella (with Justin Bond) (2009)
  • Live at the New Players Theatre – London 2009 (2009)

    • Compilation albums

  • Bouquet of Vegetables The Early Years (2000)

    • Video albums

  • Shockheaded Peter and Other Songs – Live in Concert in New York (2000)
  • Mountains of Madness (with Alexander Hacke (Einstürzende Neubauten) and drawings by Danielle de Picciotto) (2006)
  • The Tiger Lillies – The Early Years (2009)
  • The Tiger Lillies Live in Prague (2011)

    • Collaboration

  • The Gorey End (with Kronos Quartet) (2003)
  • Huinya (with Leningrad) (2005)
  • Sinderella (and Justin Bond) (2008)
  • The Ballad of Sexual Dependency (with Nan Goldin) (2011)

    • Extended plays

  • Goodbye Great Nation (with Contrastate) (1996)

    • Books

  • 1998 – The Ultimate Shockheaded Peter Book – ISBN 3-932909-99-2
  • 2003 – Farmyard Fantasy Book – made by b7UE
  • 2007 – "The Tiger Lillies Book" – b7UE 02
  • 2007 – "The Tiger Lillies – Selected illustrations of songs" – by Anne Sophie Malmberg
  • 2008 – "The inquisitorial skeleton shooting" – limited edition shot by b7UE

    • Shows and films

    Shows

    The Tiger Lillies have appeared in numerous shows, the following are listed according to their premiere date:

  • 1998: Shockheaded Peter
  • 1998: The Tiger Lillies Circus
  • 2004: Punch & Judy
  • 2005: The Little MatchGirl
  • 2006: Die Weberischen
  • 2006: The Mountains of Madness with Alexander Hacke
  • 2008: 7 Deadly Sins
  • 2008: Sinderella with Justin Bond
  • 2009: The Tiger Lillies' Freakshow
  • 2010: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency
  • 2010: Cockatoo Prison
  • 2010: Here I Am Human
  • 2011: Tom Waits' Rain Dogs Revisited
  • 2011: Woyzeck & The Tiger Lillies
  • 2012: Rime of the Ancient Mariner
  • 2012: The Tiger Lillies Perform Hamlet – nominated for a Reumert Performing Arts Award
  • 2013: Either/Or Cabaret
  • 2013: Lulu – A Murder Ballad – With Opera North
  • 2015: Die Geschichte vom Franz Biberkopf – Schauspiel Frankfurt
    • Films
  • Jake Scott's Plunkett & Macleane (1999)
  • Sergey Bodrov's The Quickie (2001) – a music band in celebrations.
  • Sergei Bodrov's Drunken Sailor (2007) – a documentary on The Tiger Lillies by the director of Oscar-nominated epic Mongol
  • Penny Woolcock's The Margate Exodus (2007) – a contemporary re-telling of the Book of Exodus. Martyn Jacques appears in the film as Shebeen Singer performing "Hailstones".
  • Dominique de Rivaz's Luftbusiness (2008)
  • Valdís Óskarsdóttir's Country Wedding (2008)
  • Troma's Return To Nuke 'Em High (2013)
  • Andrey Proshkin's Orlean (Russian name Орлеан) (2015) – soundtrack.

    • Songs

    Bully BoysShockheaded Peter: A Junk Opera · 1999
    Flipper BoyFreakshow · 2008
    FreakshowCircus Songs · 2000

    References

    The Tiger Lillies Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA