Nuno Duarte Gil Mendes Bettencourt (born September 20, 1966) is a Portuguese-American[1] guitarist. He became known as the lead guitarist of the Boston rock band Extreme. Bettencourt has recorded a solo album and has founded rock bands including Mourning Widows, DramaGods, and Satellite Party.[2]
After playing in the Boston-based hair metal act Sinful,[4] Bettencourt rose to fame as a guitarist for the Boston-area group Extreme,[5][6] which he joined in 1985.[7] The band released its debut record, Extreme, in 1989.[8] The final track on the album, "Play with Me", was used as the "mall chase" song in the film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.[9]
In 1990, Extreme released its next album, Pornograffitti, which included the hits "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted". The acousticballad "More Than Words" entered the Hot 100 on March 23, 1991, at No. 81. It later became a huge smash, hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.[9] "Hole Hearted" was also successful, rising to No. 4 on the same popular music chart.[10]Pornograffitti garnered admiration for Bettencourt from rock guitar enthusiasts. He was voted "Best New Talent" in a 1991 readers' poll by Guitar World magazine,[11][12] and that magazine later named him "Most Valuable Player" of 1991.[13]Queen guitarist Brian May has called Bettencourt's solo from the song "Get the Funk Out" "a landmark in rock history that I think should have its own little medal struck and awarded to Nuno Bettencourt and Extreme."[14]
The band followed up with III Sides to Every Story in 1992. The album featured brass and string sections, as well as a full orchestra, whose parts were composed and arranged by Bettencourt. In 1995, Extreme released the album Waiting for the Punchline, but the band broke up in 1996 when Bettencourt decided to pursue a solo career.[3]
In 2007, Extreme reformed with its original lineup (with the exception of Paul Geary) to begin work on a new album, Saudades de Rock. The album was released on August 12, 2008.[15]
In 1993, Bettencourt co-wrote and produced "Where Are You Going" for the Super Mario Bros. movie. He also joined Robert Palmer in the studio to record Palmer's album Honey. According to former Journey lead singer Steve Perry, Bettencourt has teamed with him to write and arrange songs.[citation needed] He also has written and recorded with Tantric (Bettencourt co-wrote Tantric's hit single "Hey Now"), BB Mak, and Toni Braxton.
In 1997, Bettencourt released his first solo effort, Schizophonic,[3] which he had been working on for five years. The album was well-received critically, but was not a commercial success.[3]
On December 16, 1997, Bettencourt's new band Mourning Widows (whose name was inspired by writing he had seen on a church wall in Portugal) released their self-titled debut album in Japan on Polydor Records. It sold 45,000 in the first month. The band featured his nephew Donovan Bettencourt on bass and New York drummer Jeff Consi. In 2000, Mourning Widow's follow-up, Furnished Souls for Rent, originally released in Japan, and then in the U.S. Both Mourning Widows releases cultivated a strong following in Japan and New England.
Bettencourt has also collaborated with singer Suze DeMarchi and with all of her Baby Animals bandmates. On Baby Animals' second release, Shaved and Dangerous, he produced a few songs and co-wrote "Because I Can". He also contributed to the writing, recording, and production of DeMarchi's solo debut from 1999, Telelove. In 1999, Bettencourt produced the album Magnolia, for the Portuguese singer and actress Lúcia Moniz. He also featured as singer and guitarist in the song "Try Again", which was included in Magnolia.
Bettencourt formed the recording entity Population 1 and released the self-titled and self-produced 2002 release, Population 1, on Universal/Japan and YBM/Korea. In 2004, Population 1 released Sessions from Room Four. Due to legal issues, the band was renamed to Near Death Experience in 2005. The band was then renamed DramaGods. DramaGods released its first album in December 2005 as an import; it was made available as a digital download in 2006. In 2006, DramaGods contributed their song "S'OK" to the album project Artists for Charity—Guitarists 4 the Kids, produced by Slang Productions to assist World Vision Canada in helping children in need.[18]
Bettencourt's playing has been featured at 2004 on the Universal/Japan CD and DVD release of Guitar Wars featuring solo and collective performances of Bettencourt with many others, including Steve Hackett (Genesis, GTR), Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones and Mr. Big/Racer X guitarist Paul Gilbert.
Bettencourt was the lead guitarist for Satellite Party, which is a band formed by Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell. Bettencourt played with the band at the 2005 Lollapalooza festival. Bettencourt helped produce Ultra Payloaded, the debut album by Satellite Party released on May 29, 2007, on Columbia Records. In late July 2007, Bettencourt departed Satellite Party due to concerns about the direction of the band's live show.
In 2008, Bettencourt was featured on the soundtrack for the motion picture Smart People. The soundtrack also features the Gary Cherone track, "Need I Say More", and Baby Animals selections. The following year, Bettencourt was featured in a song and video called "Best Night Ever"[19] by Marshall Eriksen, a character on How I Met Your Mother. The video was a parody of Extreme's "More Than Words" video, in which the entire main cast of How I Met Your Mother made appearances.
Bettencourt performing in 2015
In November 2009, Bettencourt toured with singer Rihanna on her Last Girl on Earth Tour as lead guitarist, having appeared alongside her in several TV shows and other performances. He has since performed as Rihanna's lead guitarist on every subsequent tour, including her Loud (2010), 777 (2012) and Diamonds World (2013) tours.
In July 2011, Steel Panther reported to Loud magazine that Nuno would be "coming in to do something" on their then-upcoming release Balls Out.[20] The collaboration resulted in the track "It Won't Suck Itself", which also featured Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger.[21]
In April 2022, Bettencourt joined Julian Lennon on an acoustic cover of Julian's father John Lennon's hit "Imagine" to benefit Global Citizen's Stand Up For Ukraine.[22]
In 2016, Bettencourt founded media production company Atlantis Entertainment (of which he is CEO) with Rene Rigal and Steven Schuurman.[citation needed]
Personal life
Bettencourt married Australian singer Suze DeMarchi in 1994. They have two children together, actress Bebe Bettencourt (born in 1996) and Lorenzo Aureolino Bettencourt (born in 2002). The couple divorced in 2013. Bettencourt's long term girlfriend is dancer Christina Chandler, although there have been unsubstantiated rumors in September 2024 that they may have recently married in secret.
Extreme is an American rock band formed in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1985, that reached the height of their popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They have released six studio albums, two EPs and two compilation albums since their formation. The band was one of the most successful rock acts of the early 1990s, selling over 10 million albums worldwide.
Gary Francis Caine Cherone is an American rock singer and songwriter. Cherone is known for his work as the lead vocalist of the Boston rock group Extreme and Van Halen.
Baby Animals is an Australian hard rock band active from October 1989 to 1996 and reformed in 2007. The original line-up was Frank Celenza on drums; Suze DeMarchi on lead vocals and guitar; Dave Leslie on guitar and backing vocals; and Eddie Parise on bass guitar and backing vocals. They recorded two studio albums, Baby Animals – which peaked at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, and Shaved and Dangerous – which reached No. 2. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1992 the group won three trophies: Album of the Year and Breakthrough Artist – Album for Baby Animals and Breakthrough - Single for "Early Warning". Baby Animals was listed in 100 Best Australian Albums. The reunited line-up are DeMarchi, Leslie, Dario Bortolin on bass guitar and Mick Skelton on drums and percussion. Their fourth studio album, This Is Not the End, was issued in May 2013, which reached the top 20.
Extreme II: Pornograffitti is the second studio album by the heavy metal band Extreme, released on August 7, 1990, through A&M Records. The album title is a portmanteau of pornography and graffiti.
Patrick John Badger is a musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the bass guitarist in the band Extreme.
III Sides to Every Story is the third studio album by the American rock band Extreme, released on September 14, 1992, through A&M Records. It was the follow-up to the very successful Pornograffitti album. It was the last album that fully featured the band's original line-up: Gary Cherone, Nuno Bettencourt, Pat Badger and Paul Geary; Geary later left, but after touring this album, and before the tour of the fourth album.
Schizophonic is the 1997 debut solo album by the American guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, the lead guitarist in the band Extreme. Bettencourt is credited on the cover simply as "Nuno". Schizophonic is Bettencourt's first and, so far, only solo effort after the group disbanded.
Extreme is the first studio album by the American glam metal band Extreme, released in 1989 by A&M Records. The album reached No. 80 on the Billboard 200, and produced the minor Mainstream Rock hit "Kid Ego". The single "Play with Me" is featured on the soundtrack for the comedy film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, an opening episode of season 4 of Stranger Things, and the 2007 rhythm game, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s.
"More Than Words" is a song by American rock band Extreme. It is a ballad featuring acoustic guitar work by Nuno Bettencourt and the vocals of Gary Cherone. They both wrote the song, which was produced by Michael Wagener and represented a departure from the band's usual funk metal style. "More Than Words" was released as the third single from the band's second album, Pornograffitti (1990), on March 12, 1991 by A&M Records. It was a number one hit in the United States, where it was certified gold, as well as in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands and New Zealand. The music video for the song was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris.
Waiting for the Punchline is the fourth album by American band Extreme, released in 1995. It is known by fans as a distinctively raw-sounding record with a significant influence from grunge, especially when compared to the big production of the two previous albums. Due to its lyrics focused heavily on social matters it is often cited as a concept album. It is also the only Extreme record to feature drummer Mike Mangini. After the album's tour, Extreme disbanded in 1996 when Bettencourt informed the band that he was leaving to pursue a solo career. After the breakup, singer Gary Cherone joined Van Halen in the same year as their new singer, but left three years later.
Suze DeMarchi is an Australian singer-songwriter, best known for fronting the band Baby Animals.
Population 1 is the debut studio album of the project of the same name. The project is led by Nuno Bettencourt, formerly of Extreme. Some of the songs feature former Mourning Widows bandmates Donovan Bettencourt (bass) and Jeff Consi (drums).
DramaGods was a rock band led by Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt.
Mourning Widows was a musical project led by Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt. The band was formed in 1997, and they released two albums during their career. Despite not being widely released in the United States, both albums were successful in Japan. Bettencourt formed the band after the moderate success of his 1996 solo album, Schizophonic. The band's sound went back to a funkier guitar-driven rock reminiscent of Extreme, while still having post-grunge and alternative influences. After the end of the Furnished Souls For Rent tour, in 2001, Nuno decided to dismiss the band and released a record as Population 1, mostly recorded by himself. That became the name of his new band too, which would later become DramaGods.
Love is the second and final studio album from DramaGods, a project led by guitarist Nuno Bettencourt. Bettencourt is most remembered for being the guitarist in the band Extreme. Originally conceived as a double-album entitled "Love/Hate", the songs were combined into one album. It is not known what happened to the rest of the songs from these recording sessions, if they were ever fully recorded and produced, or just left as demos.
Saudades de Rock is the fifth album by the American rock band Extreme. Released on August 12, 2008, it was the band's first album of new material since 1995's Waiting for the Punchline, and also their first release with new drummer Kevin Figueiredo.
Shaved and Dangerous is the second studio album by Australian band the Baby Animals, released in August 1993.
Telelove is the debut solo album by Suze DeMarchi, lead singer of Australian band the Baby Animals, released in March 1999.
Hurtsmile is a band fronted by Extreme singer Gary Cherone.
Il Grande Silenzio is the third studio album by Australian band the Baby Animals, released in January 2008. The album peaked at number 78 in Australia. The band appeared live on the Australian breakfast TV program Sunrise on 22 January 2008.
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