Biography
Keyboard player Roger O'Donnell built his reputation primarily through years spent alongside the Cure, though his résumé also includes stints with several other prominent groups before he launched a solo path. Born in East London during 1955 as the youngest of four siblings, he grew up in a household steeped in music and art. He maintains that he entered the world beside the family piano in the living room, and his oldest brother introduced him to the instrument by showing him several 12-bar blues progressions. During adolescence he developed a strong interest in jazz fusion, funk, and progressive rock, eventually taking an after-school job to buy his first electric piano. Shortly after beginning art school he landed his initial paid engagement, supporting the flamboyant performer Arthur Brown at a local pub. Music soon demanded so much of his time that he abandoned his studies and started a band with acquaintances.
In 1983 a former bandmate, Boris Williams, put O'Donnell forward for a touring role with the Thompson Twins; he remained with them for two years before moving into a comparable position with the Psychedelic Furs. By 1987 Williams was drumming for the Cure, and when Lol Tolhurst departed the lineup Williams urged the group to audition O'Donnell as the new keyboardist. He secured the post and joined in time for the American leg of the Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me tour. He contributed to the next two Cure releases, Disintegration and the live compilation Entreat, yet internal friction prompted his departure in 1990. He returned in 1996 for the Wild Mood Swings sessions and stayed another decade until Robert Smith reduced the Cure to a three-piece in 2006.
That same year O'Donnell issued his largely instrumental solo debut, The Truth in Me, followed several months later by the remix EP Half Truths. In 2008 he unveiled Songs from the Silver Box, a project recorded solely on the Moog Voyager, an instrument he has long favored. During the autumn of 2009 he finished the debut album by Charlie Crow, a side venture he characterized as “Jazz/Electro.” He also maintains an ongoing collaboration with vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Erin Lang while serving as manager for the punk outfit the Machetes.
In 1983 a former bandmate, Boris Williams, put O'Donnell forward for a touring role with the Thompson Twins; he remained with them for two years before moving into a comparable position with the Psychedelic Furs. By 1987 Williams was drumming for the Cure, and when Lol Tolhurst departed the lineup Williams urged the group to audition O'Donnell as the new keyboardist. He secured the post and joined in time for the American leg of the Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me tour. He contributed to the next two Cure releases, Disintegration and the live compilation Entreat, yet internal friction prompted his departure in 1990. He returned in 1996 for the Wild Mood Swings sessions and stayed another decade until Robert Smith reduced the Cure to a three-piece in 2006.
That same year O'Donnell issued his largely instrumental solo debut, The Truth in Me, followed several months later by the remix EP Half Truths. In 2008 he unveiled Songs from the Silver Box, a project recorded solely on the Moog Voyager, an instrument he has long favored. During the autumn of 2009 he finished the debut album by Charlie Crow, a side venture he characterized as “Jazz/Electro.” He also maintains an ongoing collaboration with vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Erin Lang while serving as manager for the punk outfit the Machetes.
Albums
Singles
