Wesley Stace

Wesley Stace recorded 19 albums under the name John Wesley Harding. His latest, Self-Titled, was the first released under his own name. He has also written four novels: the most recent, Wonderkid, was published by Overlook Press in March. His series of Cabinet of Wonders is ongoing in NYC. You can follow him on Twitter here. (Photo credit: Ebet Roberts)

 

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Bio

John Wesley Harding (b. 22 October 1965) is a folk/pop singer-songwriter who has called his style of music "folk noir" and "gangsta folk". He was born Wesley Stace in Hastings, East Sussex, England. His given name, Wesley, comes from John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who preached one of his last sermons in the town where Harding was born. His stage name may be seen as an almost inevitable nickname for a folk-pop musician, in that his first name overlaps with the Bob Dylan album (and song) "John Wesley Harding". The American gunfighting historical figure John Wesley Hardin was largely forgotten before 1965, when Johnny Cash wrote and recorded the song "Hardin Wouldn't Run". His education included the boarding schools St. Andrews School (Pangbourne, Berkshire); Milbourne Lodge (Claygate, Surrey); The King's School (Canterbury, Kent); and university at Jesus College, Cambridge. He left Cambridge with a First in English Literature, but left before completing his Ph.d. in Social and Political Science. Musical influences include Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Ray Davies, and Phil Ochs. He has been frequently compared to Elvis Costello probably fueled, in part, by the fact that two members of his early band The Good Liars (Pete and Bruce Thomas) had been members of The Attractions. Harding was chosen by Bruce Springsteen as his first opening act in 20 years for his solo shows at the Berkeley Community Theatre in 1995. Harding Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

Talks

Wesley Stace (John Wesley Harding) Talks Opeth’s Pale Communion

By Wesley Stace | August 26, 2014

Wesley Stace (John Wesley Harding) Talks Opeth’s Pale Communion

The acclaimed singer-songwriter outs Opeth's prog-metal mastermind Mikael Åkerfeldt as… a singer-songwriter.