Sixpence None the Richer | |
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Background information | |
Origin | New Braunfels, Texas, U.S. |
Genres | Alternative rock |
Years active | 1992–2004, 2007–present |
Labels | |
Members |
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Past members |
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Website | http://www.sixpencenonethericher.com/ |
Sixpence None the Richer (also known as Sixpence) is an American alternative rock band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, and eventually settled in Nashville, Tennessee. They are best known for their songs "Kiss Me" and "Breathe Your Name" and their covers of "Don't Dream It's Over" and "There She Goes".
The band received two Grammy Award nominations, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "Kiss Me" and Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album for Sixpence None the Richer (1997). [1]
The name of the band is inspired by a passage from the book Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis discussing how children buying gifts for their parents with the parents' money means the parents are "None the Richer" monetarily but yet clearly there is value in the act. (Mirroring the Christian God/human dynamic, and notably pointing out the responsibilities of the child/humans to have humility about their offerings.) [2] [3] [4]
Guitarist/songwriter Matt Slocum met Leigh Nash in the early 1990s and recorded a demo, circulated as "The Original Demos", with bassist T.J. Behling at Verge Music Works recording studio in Dallas, and eventually an album, The Fatherless and the Widow , for the independent label REX Music in 1993. After adding more members, the band toured in support of The Fatherless and The Widow. The band released This Beautiful Mess in 1995.
In 1997, the group signed to Steve Taylor's label Squint Entertainment and released a self-titled album, which slowly began garnering attention from a wider audience in the mainstream industry.
In 1998, "Kiss Me" was released as a single, propelling Sixpence None the Richer into the national pop spotlight. The next year, the band followed up "Kiss Me" with a cover of The La's' "There She Goes". Sixpence appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman , The Tonight Show with Jay Leno , and numerous morning talk shows.
The band had a follow-up album ready to release, but their label Squint Entertainment started to fall apart, leaving the band in limbo for several years. Finally, Squint Entertainment folded, and the album, Divine Discontent , was released in October 2002.
On February 26, 2004, Matt Slocum announced that the group had disbanded.
In November 2007, Sixpence None the Richer reunited. They released the EP My Dear Machine on the website NoiseTrade in 2008, the band's first official release since The Best of Sixpence None the Richer in 2004.
In October 2008, they released a Christmas album titled The Dawn of Grace .
Sixpence signed to Credential Recordings and played a headline slot at the 2009 Greenbelt Festival in the UK. According to Nash, the band began recording a new album in January 2010. [5] [ better source needed ] The album, Lost in Transition, was released on August 7, 2012.
On November 12, 2016, the band performed at the Love Love Rock Festival in Taipei, Taiwan, playing the hits "Don't Dream It's Over", "Kiss Me" and "There She Goes". [6] [ better source needed ]
In September 2023, Leigh Nash released a single, The Tide, that additionally credited Sixpence None the Richer, making it their first new song in 11 years. Additionally, Matt and Leigh announced a new tour with 10,000 Maniacs, playing songs from both bands, [7] but in January 2024, Matt and Leigh left the tour early, noting the duo "had other commitments arise". [8] [9]
In January 2024, it was announced that drummer Dale Baker was returning to the band and that they had signed a management deal with Deep South Entertainment with plans to re-release their self-titled album on vinyl. [10] In June, they announced a new 25th Anniversary tour with all the original members for the first time since Baker left. [11] In August 2024, they announced a new single, We are Love, and a new EP, Rosemary Hill, to be released in October 2024. [12]
Current members
Former members
Year | Awards | Work | Category | Result |
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1996 | Dove Awards | This Beautiful Mess | Best Alternative/Modern Rock Album | Won |
1998 | Sixpence None the Richer | Nominated | ||
Recorded Music Packaging of the Year | Nominated | |||
"Love" | Modern Rock/Alternative Recorded Song of the Year | Nominated | ||
Billboard Music Video Awards | "Kiss Me" | Best New Artist Clip, Contemporary Christian | Nominated | |
1999 | Grammy Awards | Sixpence None the Richer | Best Rock Gospel Album | Nominated |
Teen Choice Awards | "Kiss Me" | Choice Music: Love Song | Nominated | |
Dove Awards | Short Form Music Video of the Year | Nominated | ||
Billboard Music Awards | Top Hot 100 Airplay Track | Nominated | ||
Top Adult Top 40 Track | Nominated | |||
Top Soundtrack Single | Won | |||
Themselves | Top Hot 100 Artist - Duo/Group | Nominated | ||
Top Adult Top 40 Artist | Nominated | |||
2000 | Grammy Awards | "Kiss Me" | Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated |
APRA Music Awards | Most Performed Foreign Work | Nominated | ||
Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards | Themselves | Favorite Band | Nominated | |
Dove Awards | Group of the Year | Won | ||
2001 | Young Hollywood Awards | "Kiss Me" | Best Song | Won |
BMI Pop Awards | "There She Goes" | Award-Winning Song [13] | Won | |
2003 | Dove Awards | "Breathe Your Name" | Modern Rock/Alternative Recorded Song of the Year | Won |
Divine Discontent | Best Alternative/Modern Rock Album | Nominated | ||
Themselves | Group of the Year | Nominated | ||
BDSCertified Spin Awards | "Kiss Me" | 600,000 Spins | Won | |
2006 | 700,000 Spins | Won |
Roland Stephen Taylor is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, music executive, film maker, assistant professor, and actor. A figure in what has come to be known as Christian alternative rock, Taylor enjoyed a successful solo career during the 1980s, and also served in the short-lived group Chagall Guevara. In contrast to many Christian musical artists, his songs have often taken aim at Christian hypocrisy or "error" with the use of satirical, sardonic lyrics. In 1997, he founded the record label Squint Entertainment, which fueled the careers of artists such as Sixpence None the Richer, Chevelle, and Burlap to Cashmere. Despite this success, Taylor was ousted from the label by its parent, Word Entertainment, in 2001. He has produced and written for numerous musical acts, one of the most consistent being Newsboys. As a film-maker, Taylor co-wrote, directed, and produced the feature films Down Under the Big Top, The Second Chance, and Blue Like Jazz. After a decade and a half of hiatus, Taylor returned to performing music in 2010 as the front-man for Steve Taylor & The Perfect Foil, a supergroup he founded with Peter Furler, Jimmy Abegg, and John Mark Painter. Along with a university residency and continued filmmaking, Taylor would resume work on unfinished Chagall Guevara material into the 2020s.
Leigh Anne Bingham Nash is an American singer and songwriter who is the lead vocalist for the Christian alternative rock band Sixpence None the Richer and was also a member of Fauxliage. Her debut solo album, Blue on Blue, was released in August 2006. Nash has released two other solo albums in 2011 and 2015. Nash has two Grammy nominations: "Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal" in 1999 and "Best Rock Gospel Album" in 1998.
Matt Slocum is a guitarist, cellist, pianist and composer, known for his work as the principal songwriter and lead guitarist of Sixpence None the Richer.
10,000 Maniacs is an American alternative rock band founded in 1981. They have released nine studio albums, six EPs, and five live albums. They achieved their most significant success between 1987 and 1993, when they released four albums that charted in the top 50 in the US: In My Tribe (1987), Blind Man's Zoo (1989), Our Time in Eden (1992), and the live album MTV Unplugged (1993). After the recording of MTV Unplugged, original lead singer and songwriter Natalie Merchant left the band to pursue a solo career, while the remaining members continued the band.
The Fatherless and the Widow is the debut studio album by American band Sixpence None the Richer, released in 1994.
This Beautiful Mess is the second studio album by American band Sixpence None the Richer, released in 1995. The recording was produced by Armand John Petri, who also managed the band from 1993 to 1997. This Beautiful Mess surpassed 50,000 copies sold during its first year of release and laid the foundation for Sixpence's self-titled breakout album two years later. This Beautiful Mess won the 1996 Dove Award for "Alternative/Modern Rock Album of the Year." The songs "Within a Room Somewhere" and "I Can't Explain" were both minor hits on the Christian music charts.
Sixpence None the Richer is the third studio album by American band Sixpence None the Richer, released in 1997. It was certified platinum by the RIAA on February 9, 2000, for a million certified units in the United States and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album.
Divine Discontent is the fourth studio album by American band Sixpence None the Richer, released on October 29, 2002.
PFR is a Christian rock group from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Although the group initially disbanded in 1997, they periodically reunited from 2001 to 2013 and recorded two albums in that time. They reunited again in 2022. Their name was originally "Pray for Rain", but was changed to "PFR" to avoid a conflict with another musical group.
"There She Goes" is a song by English rock band the La's, written by the band's frontman, Lee Mavers. First released in 1988, the song reached number 13 on the UK Singles Chart when it was re-issued in 1990.
Love Coma is a Christian rock/alternative group in the early 1990s based in the San Antonio area of Texas. The group disbanded in 1997 following the bankruptcy of its record label.
The Best of Sixpence None the Richer is a greatest hits album of American band Sixpence None the Richer, released in 2004. It contains all their most successful songs as well as various rarities, covers and three new tracks that had originally been intended to be released on Divine Discontent but were shelved.
"Kiss Me" is a song by American pop rock band Sixpence None the Richer from their self-titled third album (1997). The ballad was released as a single on August 12, 1998, in the United States and was issued in international territories the following year. Several music critics compared the song to works by English alternative rock band the Sundays, and it was nominated for a Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 42nd Grammy Awards.
Blue on Blue is Leigh Nash's debut solo album and consists of pop songs. Nash began working on the album a year after Sixpence None the Richer disbanded. Produced by Pierre Marchand who is best known for his collaborations with Sarah McLachlan.
"Breathe Your Name" is a song by the American pop rock band Sixpence None the Richer. It was released in 2002 on Reprise Records and Squint Entertainment as the debut radio single and as well as the opening track from their fourth studio album, Divine Discontent (2002). It is a pop song that was produced by Paul Fox and Matt Slocum and written by the latter.
The Dawn of Grace is a Christmas album by the alternative rock and indie pop band Sixpence None the Richer. The record was released on October 14, 2008.
American pop rock band Sixpence None the Richer has released six studio albums, three compilation albums, five extended plays, and fourteen singles. They gained mainstream popularity in 1997 with their self-titled album, producing the hit single "Kiss Me", which was an international hit. The song topped the Australian charts, and reached the top five in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the band's native United States.
"Out of My Hands" is a song by Christian rock act Jars of Clay that appears on their 2010-released album, The Shelter. The song, which was the first radio single released in support of the album, features vocal contributions from Mike Donehey of Tenth Avenue North and Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer. The single peaked at No. 27 on Billboard's Christian Songs chart on September 25, 2010. "Out of My Hands" was co-written by two members of the band's touring ensemble, Gabe Ruschival and Jeremy Lutito.
Lost in Transition is the sixth studio album by the band Sixpence None the Richer released on August 7, 2012, via Tyger Jim label. It is the first album full of mostly original material since 2002's Divine Discontent. The interim period included several new tracks for a greatest hits album, several solo projects for lead singer Leigh Nash, a 2008 album containing mostly Christmas standards, and the My Dear Machine EP. "My Dear Machine", "Sooner Than Later," and "Give It Back" all appeared on the EP, although the latter two were completely re-recorded. Although not classified as country, a few songs are noted to have a country style in their sound, particularly the tracks "Sooner Than Later" and "Go Your way" in the latter half of the album. Nash, who grew up in Texas, would go on to release a solo country album in 2015 titled The State I'm In.
"Moonlit Floor" is a song by Thai rapper and singer Lisa. It was released through Lloud and RCA Records on October 4, 2024, as the third single from her upcoming debut studio album. It is a nu-disco and dance-pop track whose chorus interpolates Sixpence None the Richer's "Kiss Me". Lisa debuted the song before its release at the Global Citizen Festival 2024, and also performed it at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2024.