Duke Special (born Peter Wilson; 4 January 1971) is an Irish songwriter and performer based in
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, Northern Ireland. A piano-based songwriter with a romantic style and a warm, distinctly accented voice, he was previously known for his distinctive long dreadlocks, eyeliner and outfits he describes as "hobo chic". Nowadays, he performs mostly out of makeup and desires to be more like his true self. His live performances have a theatrical style inspired by
Vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
and
music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...
, and often incorporate
78s played on an old-fashioned
gramophone
A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding physic ...
, or sound effects from a
transistor radio
A transistor radio is a small portable radio receiver that uses transistor-based circuitry. Previous portable radios used vacuum tubes, which were bulky, fragile, had a limited lifetime, consumed excessive power and required large heavy batteri ...
. He is most often accompanied by percussionist "Temperance Society" Chip Bailey, who plays cheese graters and egg whisks, a
Stumpf fiddle and a
Shruti box, as well as the more typical drums and cymbals. Other musicians who perform with Wilson from time to time include
Paul Pilot (guitar), Réa Curran (trumpet, backing vocals, accordion),
Ben Castle (clarinet, saxophone), Ben Hales (bass guitar),
Gareth Williams, "Professor" Ger Eaton (keyboards),
Dan Donnelly (mandolin, backing vocals) and Serge Archibald III (saxophone, "ethereal background sounds", vibes).
His albums include ''
Adventures in Gramophone'' (2005), ''
Songs from the Deep Forest'' (2006),
both of which were nominated for the
Choice Music Prize
The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to music from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish passport. ...
, ''
I Never Thought This Day Would Come'' (2008),
''
Little Revolutions'' (2009), ''
The Silent World of Hector Mann'' (2010), ''
Mother Courage and Her Children
''Mother Courage and Her Children'' () is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical productions were produced in Switzerland and ...
'' (2010), ''
Under the Dark Cloth'' (2011), ''
Oh Pioneer'' (2012),
''
Look Out Machines!'' (2015)
and ''Hallow'' (2017).
Background
Wilson was born in
Lisburn
Lisburn ( ; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with t ...
and grew up in
Coleraine
Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...
,
Downpatrick
Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Down Cathedral, Its cathedral is sai ...
and
Holywood with his mother, father and three sisters. Wilson's grandmother, Mary Groves, taught his mother and her brothers and sisters to play the piano. This tradition of playing the piano was passed on to Wilson's three sisters and eventually to him also. He attended
Down High School
Down High School is a controlled co-educational grammar school located in Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland. The school has students from the ages of eleven to eighteen in the senior school — of which there are 953 students (2024/25 ...
,
Downpatrick
Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Down Cathedral, Its cathedral is sai ...
and later
Sullivan Upper School in
Holywood.
After leaving school and a brief stint with a community arts project in Swindon, England he returned home and played piano for Brian Houston (a Belfast songwriter influenced by
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...
,
Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...
,
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...
,
Johnny Cash
John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...
and
Elvis
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's sexuall ...
) under whom Wilson apprenticed, picking up a hunger for performing and a knack of winning over an audience in the process. Several band mutations on the musical journey followed and saw Wilson front other acts composed of Belfast musicians but he was yet to hit his stride.
He lives in Belfast and has three children.
Solo work
In 2002, he went solo, adopting the name Duke Special, and began building up a following as a live performer. He released three EPs on Medieval Haircut Records, the first two of which, ''
Lucky Me'' and ''
My Villain Heart'', were collected as an album, ''
Adventures in Gramophone'', released by Hag Records in 2005. The album was nominated for the 2006
Choice Music Prize
The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to music from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish passport. ...
. In 2006, he signed to
V2 Records
V2 Records (or V2 Music and V2 Benelux; V2 being an abbreviation for Virgin 2) is a record label that was purchased by Universal Music Group in 2007, sold to PIAS in 2013 and partially acquired by Universal in 2022 (as part of larger PIAS 49% ...
and released a second album, ''
Songs from the Deep Forest''. He featured on
Later... with Jools Holland alongside
Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. With over 30 million records sold worldwide, she was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix ...
and
John Legend
John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...
the following November and the album was nominated for the 2007 Choice Music Prize. Duke Special was nominated for three 2007
Meteor Music Awards, for best Irish male, best newcomer, and best album for ''Songs from the Deep Forest''. In 2007, he headlined a concert with the
Ulster Orchestra
The Ulster Orchestra is a full-time professional orchestra in Northern Ireland. Based in Belfast, the orchestra plays the majority of its concerts in Belfast's Ulster Hall and Waterfront Hall. It also gives concerts across the United Kingdom ...
at Belfast's
Waterfront Hall
Belfast Waterfront is a multi-purpose conference and entertainment centre, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by local architects' firm Robinson McIlwaine. The hall is located in Lanyon Place, the flagship development of the Laganside Corp ...
, "Orchestral Manoevres". The concert was supported by
Julie Feeney and
Foy Vance
Foy Best Vance (born 18 November 1974) is an Irish musician and singer-songwriter from Northern Ireland, signed to Ed Sheeran's Gingerbread Man Records, Gingerbread Man record label. Vance has toured as a support act to British singer-songwrite ...
, who sang on "This Could Be My Last Day". 2007 also saw him perform at
Greenbelt festival
Greenbelt Festival is a festival of arts, faith and justice held annually in England since 1974. Greenbelt has grown out of an evangelical Christian music festival with an audience of 1,500 young people into its current form, a more inclusive f ...
, Glastonbury, Guilfest, Summer Sundae, Haldern Festival and the Electric Picnic. Additionally in 2007, he performed as part of the
BBC Electric Proms, supporting former
Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies, and Pete Quaife. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...
lead singer
Ray Davies
Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and primary songwriter for the Rock music, rock band the Kinks, which he led, with his younger brother Dave Davies, Dave pro ...
, and he supported
Crowded House
Crowded House are an Australian-New Zealand rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Paul Hester (drums), who were both for ...
during ten tour dates, culminating with a concert at
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272.
Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
in December.
Duke Special's third album, ''
I Never Thought This Day Would Come'', was released in Ireland in October 2008 on
Universal, who had acquired V2 in 2007. In August 2008, he appeared on the
BBC Northern Ireland
BBC Northern Ireland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcasting, public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
BBC Northern Ireland is one of the four BB ...
television show ''
Sesame Tree'' with his band, having also written the theme music for the show. Later in 2008, he won the Meteor Music Award for Best Irish Male.
In 2009, he played on the O2 stage at
Oxegen
Oxegen was a List of music festivals#Ireland, music festival in Ireland, first held from 2004–2011 as a rock and pop festival and again in 2013 with dance and chart acts only. The event was regularly cited as Ireland's biggest music festiva ...
and between September and December 2009 appeared on stage at the
Royal National Theatre
The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...
in London as part of a new production of
Bertolt Brecht
Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...
's play
Mother Courage and Her Children
''Mother Courage and Her Children'' () is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical productions were produced in Switzerland and ...
, for which he wrote music for a number of songs. The production was directed by
Deborah Warner
Deborah Warner (born 12 May 1959) is a British director of theatre and opera, known for her interpretations of the works of Shakespeare, Bertolt Brecht, Benjamin Britten, and Henrik Ibsen, and for her collaborations with Irish actress Fiona ...
and starred
Fiona Shaw in the title role. In January 2010, he launched a campaign on Pledge Music (see
Fan-funded music
Fan-funded music is crowdfunding for music. Often, fan-funded music occurs in conjunction with direct-to-fan marketing. Fans of music have the option to donate and collectively raise money with the goal of jump-starting the career of a given musica ...
) whereby fans pledged for items to help fund the promotion and touring of his triple CD, ''The Stage, A Book & The Silver Screen''
(comprising ''Mother Courage and Her Children'', ''The Silent World of Hector Mann'' and ''Huckleberry Finn'').
On 11 September 2010, Duke Special played at the
Last Night of the Proms for the BBC at
Hillsborough Castle
Hillsborough Castle is an official British government, government residence in Northern Ireland. It is the official residence of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, . In January 2011, he presented a documentary on the life and songs of Belfast's
Ruby Murray and released ''
Duke Special Sings the Songs of Ruby Murray''. In March 2011, he performed songs based on the photographs of
Alfred Stieglitz
Alfred Stieglitz (; January 1, 1864 – July 13, 1946) was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. In addition to his photography, Stieglitz was k ...
,
Edward Steichen
Edward Jean Steichen (; March 27, 1879 – March 25, 1973) was a Luxembourgish American photographer, painter and curator and a pioneer of fashion photography. His gown images for the magazine ''Art et Décoration'' in 1911 were the first modern ...
and
Paul Strand at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
in New York. These songs were subsequently released in November 2011 as the album ''
Under the Dark Cloth'' performed alongside The RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by David Brophy, with leader Joanne Quigley and arranged for orchestra by Michael Keeney.
In July 2012, Duke Special released ''
Oh Pioneer'' on his own label, Adventures in Gramophone,
with the help of digital distributor
AWAL
AWAL (shortened from Artists Without A Label) is a global recording business that claims to serve as an alternative to the traditional record label, offering deal structures that provide artists with the resources and expertise of a global label ...
. It was featured on
iTunes
iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
, reaching No. 3 on the Singer / Songwriter chart in Ireland and No. 7 in the UK. He appeared at
Camp Bestival, performing live sets in both and also debuting as a 78rpm record DJ, as a guest of the Shellac Collective.
In 2013, he collaborated with Celtic supergroup
Clannad
Clannad () were an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal, by siblings , and (Moya) (in English, Brennan) and their twin uncles Noel and (Duggan). They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history. Beginn ...
, appearing on the album ''Nádúr'' and performing on Irish television chat show ''
The Late Late Show'' and on
Terry Wogan
Sir Michael Terence Wogan (; 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016) was an Irish radio and television broadcaster who worked for the BBC in Britain for most of his career. Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in 2009, his BBC Radio 2 weekday brea ...
's
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...
show. On Friday 6 December 2013, he finished a year-long residency of six concerts at Belfast's Empire Hall with 'A Victorian Christmas', performing Christmas songs solo with featured guests.
In July 2017, his official website announced an upcoming album named ''Hallow'', based on the poetry of
Michael Longley
Michael George Longley (27 July 1939 – 22 January 2025) was a Northern Irish poet. In his later years Longley observed: "It's a mystery where poems come from. If I knew where poems came from I would go there ... When I write a poem I am movi ...
, with songs from the album to be featured in an October tour of venues in Ireland.
On 3 November 2023, Duke Special released ''Blood for Ghosts''
which comprises 10 songs based on old songs discovered in an archive of sheet music in the
Princess Grace Irish Library,
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
.
Discography
Early work
*''
Bathroom Floor'' as Booley (Medieval Haircut/ICC, 1999)
*''Garçon Pamplemousse'' as Benzine Headset (Medieval Haircut, 2001)
Albums
*''
Adventures in Gramophone'' (Hag, 2005) (collects the EPs ''Lucky Me'' and ''My Villain Heart'')
*''
Songs from the Deep Forest'' (Izumi – Vinyl / V2 – CD, 2006 / V2 Special Edition CD, 2007)
*''
I Never Thought This Day Would Come'' (Universal, 2008)
*''
Mother Courage and Her Children
''Mother Courage and Her Children'' () is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical productions were produced in Switzerland and ...
'' (Reel to Reel Recordings, 2010)
*''
The Silent World of Hector Mann'' (Reel to Reel Recordings, 2010)
*''
Under the Dark Cloth'' (2011)
*''
Oh Pioneer'' (Adventures in Gramophone, 2012)
*''
Look Out Machines!'' (2015)
*''Hallow'' (2017)
*''A Note Let Go'' (with Ulaid) (2017)
*''Blood for Ghosts'' (2023)
Compilations
*''
Little Revolutions'' (Reel to Reel Recordings, 2009):)
*''
Little Revolutions Two'' (Reel to Reel Recordings, 2011)
EPs
*''
Lucky Me'' (Medieval Haircut Records, 2002)
*''
My Villain Heart'' (Medieval Haircut Records, 2004)
*''
Your Vandal'' (Hag Records, 2005)
*''
Huckleberry Finn
Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...
'' (Reel to Reel Recordings, 2009)
*''Duke Special Sings the Songs of Ruby Murray'' (Charity three-Track EP, 2011)
Live albums
*''
Orchestral Manoeuvres in Belfast'' (V2, 2008)
Singles
*"
Freewheel
image:Freewheel en.svg, Freewheel mechanism
In mechanical engineering, mechanical or automotive engineering, a freewheel or overrunning clutch is a device in a transmission (mechanics), transmission that disengages the driveshaft from the driv ...
" (Hag / Izumi Records, 2005)
*"
Portrait
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...
" (V2, 2006)
*"Last Night I Nearly Died (But I Woke Up Just in Time)" (V2, 2006)
*"Wake Up Scarlett" (V2, 2006) (iTunes download only)
*"Freewheel" (V2, 2007) IRE No. 15
*"Last Night I Nearly Died (But I Woke Up Just in Time)" (V2, 2007)
*"Our Love Goes Deeper Than This" (V2, 2007) (featuring
Neil Hannon
Edward Neil Anthony Hannon (born 7 November 1970) is a singer and songwriter from Northern Ireland. He is the founder and frontman of the chamber pop group the Divine Comedy, and is the band's only constant member since its inception in 1989. H ...
and
Romeo Stodart, download only)
*"No Cover Up" (V2, 2007)
*"Sweet Sweet Kisses" (Universal Music, 2008)
*"Condition" (2012)
*"1969" (Visual Independent Productions, 2013)
*"Nail On The Head" (2015)
Other contributions
*''One'' (Myrrh, 2000) – "Peace Has Broken Out" – ''duet with
Moya Brennan
Moya Brennan (born Máire Philomena Ní Bhraonáin on 4 August 1952), also known as Máire Brennan, is an Irish folk singer, songwriter, harpist, and philanthropist. She is the sister of the musical artist known as Enya. She began performing pr ...
''
*''Acoustic 07'' (V2, 2007) – "This Could Be My Last Day"
*''Ceol '09'' – "Tochailt Uaighe go Róluath" (a version of "Digging an Early Grave" in the Irish language)
*Theatre production of
Mother Courage and her Children
''Mother Courage and Her Children'' () is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical productions were produced in Switzerland and ...
2009 at the
Royal National Theatre
The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...
*Music from
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
TV's ''
Sesame Tree'', 2008–2011
References
External links
*
Punch of a Friend – The Art of Duke Special
{{Authority control
Pianists from Northern Ireland
Male singer-songwriters from Northern Ireland
Musicians from Lisburn
People educated at Sullivan Upper School
Living people
1971 births
Writers from Lisburn
20th-century singer-songwriters from Northern Ireland
21st-century singer-songwriters from Northern Ireland