Russell Senior

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Russell Senior (born 18 May 1961, in Sheffield, England) is the former guitarist and violinist of the band Pulp.

Russell grew up in Sheffield. Whilst at University in Bath, he formed the "Dada Society" (also known as the New Wave Society) and appeared as the lead role (Joseph K) in a dramatic adaptation of Kafka's "The Trial". He also had a band called 'The Nightmares' and arranged for a gig at the University featuring his mates from Sheffield - Pulp. Although he obtained a first class honours degree in Business Administration, he went back to Sheffield to join Pulp. During the Miner's strike of 1984 he acted as a Flying picket.

Senior first met Pulp in 1980 when he reviewed a show of theirs for his fanzine. He joined the third line-up of the band in 1983, the other members being Jarvis Cocker (vocals/guitar), Magnus Doyle (drums) and Peter Mansell (bass). During the mid 1980s he was a central member of the group, often taking vocal duties. He also played the violin on a number of tracks. [1]

As the band changed direction in the mid-1990s, however, Senior's contribution became often less apparent, and on January 20, 1997 he left Pulp to work on other projects.[2] He commented that he did not like the song Something Changed, and the release of this as a single made him consider his future. In an interview he said that "I was very proud of being in Pulp. I thought it was the best band in the world when I was in it, but I want to be able to move on from it at some point."

In 1999 he formed Venini with Debbie Lime (vocals), Nick Eastwood (bass - later with Dolly TV and Hiem), Bob Barton (Drums - later with The Human League), and Danny Hunt (keyboards - later with Ladytron). They released three singles before splitting in 2000.

Russell has also worked as a producer with Baby Birkin and more recently The Long Blondes.[3] In March 2006, British indie band Art Brut invited Russell Senior to produce their second album.

He continues to live in Sheffield with his girlfriend and has two children. [4] Aside from the music world he is also a dealer in antique glassware.