FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Candace Avery
International Songwriting Competition
615.251.4441
info@songwritingcompetition.com
www.songwritingcompetition.com
UK and Irish Songwriters Shine
In 2008 International Songwriting Competition (ISC)
May 5, 2009 - The International Songwriting Competition (ISC), the world's leading global songwriting event, is pleased to announce its 2008 winners. Songwriters hailing from the UK and Ireland made a huge splash in ISC this year, winning First Place in the AAA, Instrumental, and Lyrics Only categories, Third Place in the Rock category, and many Honorable Mentions in multiple categories.
Renowned for its prestigious celebrity judges, ISC received over 15,500 songs from amateur and professional songwriters from 100 countries worldwide, confirming ISC's status as the leading global songwriting event. More than $150,000 in cash and prizes is shared among the 62 winners in 20 categories, including an overall Grand Prize of $25,000 (US) cash, the largest cash Grand Prize of any songwriting competition in the world, and over $20,000 in musical equipment and services. The 2008 Grand Prize is awarded to Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall of Brisbane, QLD, Australia for their song "Caught In The Crowd," a brilliantly quirky pop song with an emotional message about schoolyard bullying and peer pressure.
Many of this year's winners hail from all over the UK and Ireland, representing many different genres of music. Candace Avery, Founder and Director of ISC, says, "ISC receives many entries from the UK and Ireland, and it is always exciting to hear the songs of so many talented songwriters from this part of the world. The music is often so inventive and fresh."
First Place Winners
First Place in the AAA category is awarded to David A. Holland (Hiding In Public) (London, England) for his song "Worlds Away, Yards Apart." Holland plays guitar and writes songs for the group Hiding in Public, described as "snap crackle pop-rock." Their mature, thought-provoking songs are loaded with radio-friendly hooks and retro twists that prove as timely and timeless as they are fresh and familiar. David's songs have been played on radios and licensed from Australia and Brazil to South Africa and the US.
Winning First Place in the Instrumental category is Colin Steele (Colin Steele's Stramash) (Edinburgh, Scotland) for his song "The Bletherer." Since the release of his debut album Twilight Dreams in 2002, Colin Steele's highly original Scottish folk-influenced jazz has won just about every UK jazz plaudit there is, from BBC Jazz CD of the Year 2004 and Jazz Review International CD of the Year 2003, to CD of the Year accolades in The Guardian, Observer, Independent andThe New Statesman. Steele's latest project, Stramash, pushes the Scottish jazz folk envelope even further, which, along with his jazz quintet (trumpet, saxophone, piano, bass and drums), includes three of Scotland's finest folk fiddlers, classical cello and bagpipes. The Herald says: "What the trumpeter has created isn't some fusion of styles - it's a new genre of music in itself."
Bryan Tess from Kerry, Ireland, has been awarded First Place in the Lyrics Only category for "Your Available Heart." This is the second year in a row Tess has won the Lyrics Only category - a first in ISC history. Tess started writing lyrics just a few years ago and considers himself to be a folk/country lyricist. His influences include Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Tom Waits, Mark Everett, Prince, Bono, Sam Cooke, Robert Pollard, and more.
Third Place Winner
Third Place in the Rock category is awarded to Tony Villiers (Chrome Horse) (Dublin, Ireland) for his complex and inventive song "Reflections Of A Madman." Villiers began writing songs at the age of 13, shortly after he discovered the words and music of Bob Dylan. He formed Chrome Horse in 2006 with a desire to place more of an edge on the music he was creating. The band travelled to Poland last year to record their debut album, which has received incredible reviews from some of Ireland's most respected music publications, including Hot Press, who described the songs as "perfect slices of rock'n'roll." Their first single release, "Antifreeze," hit the #1 spot on Ireland's premier indie-rock station, Phantom 105.2.
UK and Irish ISC Honorable Mentions are as follows:
Honorable Mention
"Brighter Star" - Alan Steil (SUDDYN) - Skerries, Ireland - AAA
"Novacaine Sweetheart" - James Henderson (Indigo Joe) - London, England - AAA
"Sorry" - Sue McMillan - London, England - AAA
"Two Worlds Colliding" - Bruce Conlon - London, England -AAA
"Hello Hello Hello" - Massimo Sergio Martella - Sheffield, England - Americana
"What Do We Do?" - Laura Critchley, David Whitmey - London, England - Country
"Amnesia" - Steven Thompson (Blabbermouth) - London, England - Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"London Town" - Jonny Taylor - London, England - Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"Reason" - Bryan Downey - Liverpool, England -- Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"The Year Of The Horse" - Kevin Connolly (Herm) - Dublin, Ireland - Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"So Romantic" - Jim Tomlinson, Kazuo Ishiguro - London, England - Jazz
"Dancing Without Shoes" - Mike Fleming - Eastbourne, England - Lyrics Only
"Precarious" - Peter Farrell, Arlene Farrell - Glasgow, Scotland -- Lyrics Only
"1" - Pol Arida - Lasswade, Scotland - Music Video
"To My Ears" - Chris Bradley - Edinburgh, Scotland - Music Video
"Yes Nice" - General Twinz - London, England - Music Video
"GeneTone" - General Twinz - London, England - R&B/Hip-Hop
For a complete list of all ISC winners, please go to:
http://www.songwritingcompetition.com/winners.htm
Applauded for its high caliber of judges, ISC compiled a stellar panel of judges for the 2008 competition, including: Rob Thomas (Matchbox 20); Chaka Khan; Tom Waits; KT Tunstall; Robert Smith (The Cure); Ricky Martin; Loretta Lynn; Neil Finn (Crowded House); Buckcherry; T-Pain; James Cotton; Jerry Lee Lewis; Craig Morgan; Ray Davies (The Kinks); McCoy Tyner; Darryl McDaniels (Run DMC); Michael W. Smith; Chris Hillman (The Byrds); John Scofield; Mario; Black Francis (The Pixies); Youssou N'Dour; John Mayall; DJ Tiesto; Paul Van Dyk; Jon Secada; Natalie Grant; Jeremy Camp; Matt Thiessen (Relient K); Pittbull; Angelique Kidjo; "Weird Al" Yankovic; Sandra Bernhard; David Brenner; Monte Lipman (President, Universal Records); Nick Burgess (Head of A&R, Virgin Records UK); Angel Carrasco (Sr. VP of A&R, Latin America Sony BMG and President, Discos 605); Cameron Strang (President, New West Records); John Echevarria (President, Universal Music Latino); Rick Krim (Executive VP Talent and Programming, VH1); Amy Doyle (Sr. VP of Music and Talent, MTV); Kim Buie (VP of A&R, Lost Highway); Jon Pikus (Director of A&R, MySpace Records); Mitchell Cohen (VP of A&R, Verve Music Group); Bruce Iglauer (Founder/President, Alligator Records); Dan Storper (President, Putumayo World Music); Rene Bell (Executive VP A&R, Sony BMG Nashville); Peter Strickland (Senior VP, Jack Records/Warner Bros.); Steve Lillywhite (Producer - credits include U2, The Rolling Stones, Morrissey, Peter Gabriel, and more); Douglas C. Cohn (Sr. VP, Music Marketing & Talent, Nickelodeon); Cory Robbins (Founder/President, Robbins Entertainment); Betty Pino (DJ, WAMR Miami); Paul Majors (CEO/Founder Majors Music); Leib Ostrow (CEO, Music for Little People); and Dr. Demento (Radio Host of The Dr. Demento Show)
Sponsors included: Luna Guitars, Berklee College Of Music, Shure, D'Addario, M-Audio, Griffin Technology, Hear Technologies, Po Boy Drums, Thayers, Disc Makers, ASCAP, Phase One Studios, Stuph Merch, Sonicbids, Sam Ash, Alphabet Arm Design, Shari's Berries, Taxi, George Stein, Esq., The Music Business Registry, SongU.com,
Sibelius, and Onlinegigs.
ISC is now accepting entries for 2009. The 2009 competition will feature a new Adult Contemporary category, the return of the Music Video category, and many new judges. Go to www.songwritingcompetition.com for more information and an entry form.
International Songwriting Competition
1307 Eastland Ave
Nashville, TN 37206
Phone: 615.251.4441
Fax: 615.251.4442
songwritingcompetition.com
