Colin Moulding

Colin Moulding
File:XTC Band.jpg Moulding (second from left) with XTC
Background information
Also known as	The Red Curtain, The Colonel
Born	(1955-08-17) 17 August 1955 Swindon, Wiltshire, England
Genres	Rock, pop
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter, singer
Instruments	Bass, vocals, guitar, keyboards
Years active	1977–present
Labels	Cooking Vinyl, Geffen, Idea, Virgin
Associated acts	XTC, The Dukes of Stratosphear

Colin Ivor Moulding (born 17 August 1955, Swindon, Wiltshire, England) is a bassist, songwriter and vocalist. He is a founding member of the band XTC. Though less prolific than bandmate Andy Partridge, Moulding wrote many of the group's most popular songs, including their first three UK hit singles: "Life Begins At The Hop", "Making Plans For Nigel", and "Generals and Majors". "Making Plans For Nigel" was also a Top 20 hit in Canada, and "Generals and Majors" was the band's first U.S. chart entry, peaking at #104 in 1980. Moulding's songs tended to differ from those of Partridge, in some cases having more political overtones.

Life and career

Moulding's bass playing is self-taught, learning 1970s rock riffs at 15 years old. He cites Andy Fraser of Free as an early musical influence and has stated a preference for an intuitive approach to writing and playing rather than study. When writing songs Moulding has used guitars and keyboards rather than the bass guitar.

Outside his work with XTC (and their alter-ego side project The Dukes of Stratosphear), Moulding released a non-charting solo single ("Too Many Cooks In The Kitchen" b/w "I Need Protection") in 1980 under the pseudonym "The Colonel". He later played bass and co-produced one track on the 1994 Sam Phillips album Martinis and Bikinis, and in 2005, he contributed to Billy Sherwood's Pink Floyd tribute album Return to the Dark Side of the Moon, playing bass and singing lead vocal on "Brain Damage." It has also been announced that Moulding will be appearing on Sherwood's next album.

In February 2007, Partridge told music website Pitchfork Media that Moulding was "not interested in music any more, and doesn't want to write." Moulding concurred in having a recent loss of interest in music. In November 2008 Moulding emerged for an interview about "Making Plans For Nigel" for an instalment in the series of interviews by Todd Bernhardt. He also gave a two-hour interview in December 2008 on the Todd Rundgren fansite, Rundgren Radio.

Moulding made vocal contributions to a Billy Sherwood Progressive Rock album (The Prog Collective, August 2012), combining forces with Rick Wakeman on "Check Point Karma". He performed a lead vocal for the song "The Man Who Died Two Times" from the album "In Extremis" by the Progressive Rock band Days Between Stations (released 15 May 2013) and appears in the video for the song, released in June 2014.

Discography

Studio albums

• White Music (1978)
  • "Crosswires"
  • "Do What You Do"
  • "I'll Set Myself on Fire"
  • "Dance Band" (CD bonus track)
  • "Heatwave" (CD bonus track)
  • "Instant Tunes" (CD bonus track)

• Go 2 (1978)
  • "Buzzcity Talking"
  • "Crowded Room"
  • "The Rhythm"
  • "I Am the Audience"

• Drums and Wires (1979)
  • "Making Plans for Nigel"
  • "Day In Day Out"
  • "Ten Feet Tall"
  • "That is the Way"
  • "Life Begins at the Hop" (CD bonus track)
  • "Limelight" (CD bonus track)

• Black Sea (1980)
  • "Generals and Majors"
  • "Love at First Sight"
  • "Smokeless Zone" (CD bonus track)

• English Settlement (1982)
  • "Runaways"
  • "Ball and Chain"
  • "Fly on the Wall"
  • "English Roundabout"

• Mummer (1983)
  • "Wonderland"
  • "Deliver Us from the Elements"
  • "In Loving Memory of a Name"

• The Big Express (1984)
  • "Wake Up"
  • "I Remember the Sun"
  • "Washaway" (CD bonus track)

• 25 O'Clock (1985)
  • "What in the World??..."

• Skylarking (1986)
  • "Grass"
  • "The Meeting Place"
  • "Big Day"
  • "Dying"
  • "Sacrificial Bonfire"

• Psonic Psunspot (1987)
  • "Vanishing Girl"
  • "Shiny Cage"
  • "The Affiliated"

• Oranges and Lemons (1989)
  • "King for a Day"
  • "One of the Millions"
  • "Cynical Days"

• Nonsuch (1992)
  • "My Bird Performs"
  • "The Smartest Monkeys"
  • "War Dance"
  • "Bungalow"
  • "Didn't Hurt a Bit" (CD bonus track)

• Apple Venus Volume 1 (1999)
  • "Frivolous Tonight"
  • "Fruit Nut"

• Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2) (2000)
  • "In Another Life"
  • "Boarded Up"
  • "Standing in for Joe"

• Return to the Dark Side of the Moon (2006)
  • "Time" (3# - with members of Yes, The Doors, Hurricane...)
  • "Brain Damage" (8# - with members of Yes/Asia, The Doors, Mothers of Inventions...)
  • (produced by Billy Sherwood)

• Songs of the Century - An All-Star Tribute to Supertramp (2012)
  • "It's Raining Again" (5# - with Geoff Downes)
  • (produced by Billy Sherwood)

• The Prog Collective (2012)
  • "Chek Point Karma" (7# - with Rick Wakeman - CD1)
  • "Check Point Karma" (7# - instrumental - CD2)
  • (produced by Billy Sherwood)

• In Extremis by Days Between Stations (2013)
  • "The Man Who Died Two Times" (5# - with Days Between Stations)

Compilation albums

• Rag and Bone Buffet: Rare Cuts and Leftovers (1990)
  • "Ten Feet Tall" (US Single Version)
  • "Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen"
  • "Looking for Footprints"
  • "The World is Full of Angry Young Men"
  • "I Need Protection"
  • "Officer Blue"
  • "Blame the Weather"

• A Testimonial Dinner: The Songs of XTC (1995)
  • "The Good Things"

• Coat of Many Cupboards (2002)
  • "Let's Have Fun"
  • "Sleepyheads"
  • "Find the Fox"
  • "Didn't Hurt a Bit"

Non-album songs

• "Down a Peg"
• "Say It"
• "Skeletons"
• "Where Did the Ordinary People Go?"

External links

• Chalkhills: Foremost XTC fan site