This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1998.
Lucinda Gayl Williams is an American singer-songwriter and a solo guitarist. She recorded her first two albums, Ramblin' on My Mind (1979) and Happy Woman Blues (1980), in a traditional country and blues style that received critical praise but little public or radio attention. In 1988, she released her third album, Lucinda Williams, to widespread critical acclaim. Regarded as "an Americana classic", the album also features "Passionate Kisses", a song later recorded by Mary Chapin Carpenter for her 1992 album Come On Come On, which garnered Williams her first Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 1994. Known for working slowly, Williams released her fourth album, Sweet Old World, four years later in 1992. Sweet Old World was met with further critical acclaim, and was voted the 11th best album of 1992 in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of prominent music critics. Robert Christgau, the poll's creator, ranked it 6th on his own year-end list, later writing that the album, as well as Lucinda Williams, were "gorgeous, flawless, brilliant".
Patricia Jean Griffin is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs have been covered by numerous musicians, including Emmylou Harris, Ellis Paul, Kelly Clarkson, Rory Block, Dave Hause, Sugarland, Bette Midler and The Chicks.
The Christians are a musical ensemble from Liverpool, England. They had the highest selling debut album of any artist at Island Records and international chart hits in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Ian Stephen McCulloch, is an English singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Echo & the Bunnymen.
Ocean Rain is the fourth studio album by the English post-punk band Echo & the Bunnymen. It was released on 4 May 1984 by Korova and reached number four on the UK Albums Chart, number 87 on the United States Billboard 200, number 41 on the Canadian RPM 100 Albums and number 22 on the Swedish chart. Since 1984 the album has been certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry. Ocean Rain includes the singles "The Killing Moon", "Silver" and "Seven Seas".
George Andrew McCluskey is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead singer and bass guitarist of the electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), which he founded alongside keyboard player Paul Humphreys in 1978: McCluskey has been the group's sole constant member. He has sold over 40 million records with OMD, and is regarded as a pioneer of electronic music in the UK. McCluskey is noted for his on-stage frenetic 'trainee teacher' dance.
Stephen Fretwell is an English singer-songwriter.
Siobhan Maher Kennedy is an English singer and songwriter. She was the lead vocalist of the Liverpool-based band River City People during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band released two albums, Say Something Good and This Is the World.
James Russell Lauderdale is an American country, bluegrass, and Americana singer-songwriter. Since 1986, he has released 31 studio albums, including collaborations with artists such as Dr. Ralph Stanley, Buddy Miller, and Donna the Buffalo. A "songwriter's songwriter," his songs have been recorded by dozens of artists, notably George Strait, Gary Allan, Elvis Costello, Blake Shelton, the Dixie Chicks, Vince Gill, and Patty Loveless.
Edgar William Jones, also known as Edgar Summertyme, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Jones was originally the bass player and singer-songwriter for the Stairs and has since formed and fronted the Isrites, The Big Kids, Edgar Jones & the Joneses and Free Peace. He has also played as a session musician for several artists including Ian McCulloch, Paul Weller, Saint Etienne and Ocean Colour Scene.
James Alexander Skelly is an English musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. Best known as the frontman of The Coral, he embarked on a solo career when the band went on indefinite hiatus in 2012. The band regrouped in 2015. Skelly is the cousin of fellow musician Miles Kane.
Michael Jason Isbell is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He is known for his solo career, his work with the band The 400 Unit, and as a member of Drive-By Truckers for six years, from 2001 to 2007. Isbell has won six Grammy Awards.
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros was an American folk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2005. The group was led by singer Alex Ebert. The band's name is based on a story Ebert wrote in his youth, about a messianic figure named Edward Sharpe. Drawing from roots rock, folk, gospel, and psychedelic music, the band's image and sound evoke the hippie movement of the 1960s and 1970s. The group's first show was played July 18, 2007, at The Troubadour in West Hollywood, California. Their first studio album, Up from Below, was released on July 7, 2009, on Community Records and featured the popular single "Home". The group released their second full-length album, Here, on May 29, 2012, and third album, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, on July 23, 2013. Their fourth studio album, PersonA, was released in April 2016.
Keefus Ciancia is an Emmy-nominated American film and television composer, music producer, and musician. He has won an Ivor Novello Award, BAFTA, and BMI Film & TV Award and composed and produced music for True Detective, Killing Eve, London Spy, The Fall, and Spider-Man 2, among others.
The Americana Music Honors & Awards is the marquee event for the Americana Music Association. Beginning in 2002, the Americana Music Association honors distinguished members of the music community. Six member-voted awards and several Lifetime Achievement Awards are handed out while over 2000 artists, music-loving fans and entertainment industry executives look on.
Grace Petrie is an English folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from Leicester, England. She was hailed in The Guardian as "a powerful new songwriting voice" in 2011.
Jade Elizabeth Bird is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Bird's music has been influenced by many folk and Americana artists. The media, when describing Bird's music, have drawn comparisons with pop, Americana, country and folk rock.
She Drew the Gun are a band from Wirral, England, fronted by singer/songwriter Louisa Roach. They won the Glastonbury Festival Emerging Talent competition in 2016. Their music is described as psych pop and is known for its often political lyrics.
