Richey James Edwards
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Richey Edwards | ||
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Richard James Edwards | |
| Born | 22 December 1967 | |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock | |
| Occupation(s) | lyricist and guitarist | |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar | |
| Years active | 1989-1995 | |
| Label(s) | Sony | |
Richey James Edwards (born Richard James Edwards, 22 December 1967 – ?) was the co-lyricist and guitarist of the Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers. Edwards has been missing since 1995, but has not yet been declared legally dead.
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[edit] Biography
Richey Edwards grew up in Blackwood, South Wales, where he attended Oakdale Comprehensive. Between 1986-1989 he attended University of Wales, Swansea and graduated with a 2:1 degree in political history. He has one sister named Rachel.
Edwards was initally a driver and roadie for Manic Street Preachers, but he soon became accepted as the band's main spokesman and fourth member. Richey showed little musical talent - his real contribution to the Manic Street Preachers was in the words and design. More often than not he was miming on the guitar during early live performances, but was, along with bassist Nicky Wire, principal lyricist. Richey is said to have written approximately 75% of the lyrics on The Holy Bible. Both are credited on of all songs written before Edward's disappearance, with Edwards receiving sole credit on three tracks from the 1996 album Everything Must Go, and co-writing credits on another two.
In 1991 he gained notoriety following an argument with NME journalist Steve Lamacq after a gig at the Norwich Arts Centre. Edwards responded by carving the words "4 Real" into his forearm with a razor blade he was carrying. The injury required hospitalisation and seventeen stitches.
Edwards suffered severe bouts of depression[1] throughout his life, and was open about it in interviews: "If you're hopelessly depressed like I was, then dressing up is just the ultimate escape. When I was young I just wanted to be noticed. Nothing could excite me except attention so I'd dress up as much as I could. Outrage and boredom just go hand in hand." [2]
"Gets to a point where you really can’t operate anymore as a human being – you can’t get out of bed, you can’t…make yourself a cup of coffee without something going badly wrong or your body’s too weak to walk." [3]
He also self-harmed, mainly through stubbing cigarettes on his body, and cutting himself ("When I cut myself I feel so much better. All the little things that might have been annoying me suddenly seem so trivial because I'm concentrating on the pain. I'm not a person who can scream and shout so this is my only outlet. It's all done very logically." [4]). His problems with eating and alcohol were well documented, and he was, according to Nicky Wire, "on the verge of anorexia" when he was at his worst. After the release of the band's third album The Holy Bible, he checked into The Priory psychiatric hospital, missing out on some of the promotional work for the album and forcing the band to appear as a three piece at the Reading Festival.
Following release from the Priory, Manic Street Preachers toured Europe with Suede and Therapy? for what was to be the last time. Edwards final live appearance with the band was at the London Astoria, on the 21st December, 1994. The concert ended with the band infamously smashing their equipment and damaging the lighting system, prompted by Richey's violent destruction of his guitar towards the end of set closer You Love Us.
According to James Dean Bradfield one quarter of all the performing rights for the Manic Street Preachers songs are kept for Edwards should he return.
[edit] Disappearance
Edwards disappeared on February 1, 1995, on the day that he and James Dean Bradfield were due to fly to the U.S. on a promotional tour (this is one of the numerous parallels drawn between Edwards's disappearance and Ian Curtis's suicide).
In the two weeks before his disappearance, Edwards withdrew £200 a day from his bank account, which totaled £2800 by 1 February. He checked out of the London Embassy hotel at seven in the morning, and it has been proved that he then drove to his apartment in Cardiff, Wales. In the two weeks that followed he was apparently spotted in the Newport passport office, and the Newport bus station. On the 7 February, Anthony Hatherhall, a taxi driver from Newport, supposedly picked up Edwards from the King's hotel in Newport, and drove him around the valleys, including Blackwood (Edwards’ home as a child). The passenger got off at the Severn View service station and paid the £68 fare in cash.
On the 14 February Richey's Vauxhall Cavalier arrived at the Severn View service station, the car was then reported abandoned on the 17 February, and it's battery was flat.
Since then he has purportedly been spotted in a hippie market in Goa, India, and has been spotted on the islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. There have been other alleged sightings of Edwards, especially in the years immediately following his disappearance. However none of these has proved conclusive, and all have been rejected by investigators. While his family had the option of declaring him legally dead in 2002, they choose not to, and his status remains open as a missing person.
[edit] Literature and other cultural influences
As well as an interest in music, Edwards's other love was literature. He chose many of the quotes that appear on Manics records and would often refer to writers and poets during interviews. This interest in literature has remained as integral to the band's appeal as their music. Albert Camus, Philip Larkin and Fyodor Dostoevsky were amongst his favourite authors.
Edward's lyrics have often been of a highly poetic nature, particularly on the band's third album The Holy Bible, and they have often reflected his knowledge of political history.
His icons/heroes had a profound effect on him and his work. Many of them, like Kurt Cobain, Ian Curtis and Sylvia Plath, committed suicide at a young age following a short but exceptionally productive life; J.D. Salinger became a recluse, living a hermit-like existence after releasing his novel, The Catcher in the Rye, now recognised as a classic. It was this interest in the unusual that helped shape Edward's own career, particularly during the early days, with the promise of releasing one classic album and then burning out.
[edit] Footnotes
[edit] External links
| Manic Street Preachers |
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Band members: James Dean Bradfield - Nicky Wire - Sean Moore |
| Former members: Flicker (Miles Woodward) - Richey James Edwards |
| Discography |
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| Albums: Generation Terrorists - Gold Against the Soul - The Holy Bible - Everything Must Go - This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours - Know Your Enemy - Lifeblood |
| EPs: New Art Riot - Life Becoming a Landslide - God Save the Manics |
| Compilations: Forever Delayed - Lipstick Traces |
