Christopher Henry Difford (born 4 November 1954) is an English musician. He is a founding member and songwriter of the rock group Squeeze.

Early life

Difford was born in

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

, London, on 4 November 1954, the youngest of three sons. His mother, Isabel (née Hamilton) was from Northern Ireland and met Difford's father Sidney Lewis Difford (1919–2001) while he was stationed in Belfast during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Music career

Difford has written lyrics for over 50 years, most notably in partnership with Glenn Tilbrook. The two were primary members in Squeeze and Difford & Tilbrook. According to Difford, he stole 50p from his mother's purse to put a card in a local sweetshop window advertising for a guitarist to join his band, although he did not have one at the time. Tilbrook was the only person who responded to the advert and they met for the first time shortly afterwards. Some of their best-known songs are " Tempted", " Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)", " Black Coffee in Bed", " Cool for Cats", " Up the Junction" and " Annie Get Your Gun". ChrisDifford2009

After the break-up of Squeeze in 1983, Difford continued writing songs for artists such as Jools Holland,

Helen Shapiro Helen Kate Shapiro (born 28 September 1946) is a British Pop music, pop and jazz singer and actress. While still a teenager in the early 1960s, she was one of Britain's most successful female singers. With a voice described by AllMusic as poss ...

Billy Bremner William John Bremner (9 December 1942 – 7 December 1997) was a Scottish professional Association football, footballer who played for Leeds United F.C., Leeds United, Hull City A.F.C., Hull City, and the Scotland national football team, Scot ...

and

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...

. He has also written lyrics for music by Jools Holland,

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, Wet Wet Wet, Marti Pellow and others. He was involved with Tilbrook and John Turner in the creation of a musical, ''Labelled with Love'', which was created using the songs of Squeeze. The 1983 musical performed in

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...

was short-lived. In 1984, the pair released the album ''Difford and Tilbrook'' and had a minor hit in the UK with "Love's Crashing Waves" which reached 57 in the UK Singles Chart. In 1985, Squeeze reunited, having hits in the US with the album '' Babylon and On'', plus the singles "

Hourglass An hourglass (or sandglass, sand timer, or sand clock) is a device used to measure the passage of time. It comprises two glass bulbs connected vertically by a narrow neck that allows a regulated flow of a substance (historically sand) from the ...

" and " 853-5937". Difford left the group in 1999 launching a solo career in 2003 with his album ''I Didn't Get Where I Am''. Difford was also manager of

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...

and The Strypes. Squeeze reunited again in 2007, and Difford maintained a concurrent solo career alongside his work with the band. In March 2010, Difford curated ''Songs in the Key of London'', an evening of music dedicated to the capital at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London, England, and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings a ...

, London. In 2017, Difford published his autobiography, ''Some Fantastic Place: My Life In and Out of Squeeze''. Since 2014, Difford has been running the annual Chris Difford Songwriting Retreat, under the auspices of the Buddy Holly Educational Foundation, providing an opportunity for artists to collaborate with one another to write new songs and create new friendships in a relaxed setting in the English countryside. In August 2021, Difford launched a podcast series, ''I Never Thought It Would Happen'', with the charity Help Musicians, a charity he is an ambassador for, speaking to guests including Sting,

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, ''Life thru a Lens'', was re ...

and

KT Tunstall Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained attention with a 2004 live solo performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on ''Later... with Jools Holland'', and h ...

about the highs and lows of life in music.

Personal life

Difford was raised in Greenwich. He lived in New York with his first wife and their two children. He then lived in Rye, Sussex, with the mother of his two youngest children. Currently, he lives just outside

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, Sussex, with his wife, Louise, whom he married in April 2013.

Solo discography

* ''I Didn't Get Where I Am'', 2003 * ''South East Side Story'', 2007 * '' The Last Temptation of Chris'', 2008 * ''Cashmere if You Can'', 2011, (SMMC Media SMMC1) * ''Fancy Pants'' ''(with Boo Hewerdine), 2016 (Obvious Productions) * ''Let's Be Combe Avenue'' (Demos 1972), 2017 (Edsel Records – EDSL 0017) * ''Chris To... The Mill'', 2017 (Compilation) * ''Pants'', 2018

References

External links

Chris Difford official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Difford, Chris 1954 births Living people English baritones English record producers English lyricists English new wave musicians English male songwriters British male new wave singers Musicians from the Royal Borough of Greenwich People from Greenwich Squeeze (band) members Ivor Novello Award winners Musicians from Kent Singers from the Royal Borough of Greenwich