Neil Cowley (born 5 November 1972) is an English contemporary pianist and composer. He has also released music as part of Fragile State, the Green Nuns of the Revolution, and the Neil Cowley Trio. With his trio, he appeared on '' Later... with Jools Holland'' in April 2008 and won the 2007

BBC Jazz Award The BBC Jazz Awards were set up in 2001 and had the status of one of the premier jazz awards in the United Kingdom (among those presenting the awards were Denis Lawson, Sue Mingus, Humphrey Lyttelton, Ian Carr, Clive James, Mike Gibbs, Julian Jo ...

for best album for ''Displaced''. In 2018, Cowley announced he was working on a new electronic focused solo project. In 2020, Cowley announced his debut solo album, ''Hall of Mirrors''.

Biography

Cowley was born in London, England. He began as a classical pianist and performed a

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

piano concerto at the age of 10 at

Queen Elizabeth Hall The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts European classical music, classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by ...

. In his late teens Cowley moved into being a keyboardist for soul and funk acts Mission Impossible,

the Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies are an English band formed in 1985, consisting of Simon Bartholomew, Andrew Levy, and Jan Kincaid. After the addition of N'Dea Davenport in 1990, the group experienced mainstream success and pioneered a new genre called a ...

, Gabrielle and

Zero 7 Zero 7 is an English musical duo consisting of Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. Both of them began as studio engineers and in 1997 formed the group Zero 7. Their debut album, '' Simple Things'', was released in 2001; their song "Destiny" stayed in ...

. He also appeared as a co-composer and session musician with the jazz-rock group Samuel Purdey. An early album was ''Foxbury Rules'', released under the pseudonym Diamond Wookie. In 2002, he formed the duo Fragile State with Ben Mynott; after its end, the Neil Cowley Trio. In 2006, he released an album called ''Soundcastles'' under the name

Pretz Pretz (プリッツ, ''Purittsu'') is a Japanese snack made by Ezaki Glico. Like Ezaki Glico's other popular snack, Pocky, Pretz is stick-shaped and comes with a texture similar to pretzels. Unlike Pocky, Pretz is dusted with seasonings instead ...

. In 2008, the Neil Cowley Trio recorded cover versions of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' " Revolution 1" and "

Revolution 9 "Revolution 9" is a sound collage from the Beatles' 1968 self-titled double album (also known as the "White Album"). The composition, credited to Lennon–McCartney, was created primarily by John Lennon with assistance from Yoko Ono and George ...

" for ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi * '' ...

'' magazine. In 2012, he appeared as the session pianist on

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...

's album '' 21''. In 2013, he was Musician in Residence for

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

, when it was designated the inaugural

UK City of Culture UK City of Culture is a designation given to a local area (specifically a city before 2025) in the United Kingdom for a period of one calendar year, during which the successful bidder hosts cultural festivities through culture-led regeneratio ...

. On 16 September 2016, the album ''Spacebound Apes'' was released by Neil Cowley Trio. In 2018, Cowley announced that the trio was on hiatus and he was working on a new electronic focused project. The trio reunited in 2024 to release an album "Entity" which has been supported by UK and European tour dates in 2024 and 2025.

Discography

Solo albums

Diamond Wookie *''Foxbury Rules'' (1997) Pretz *''Soundcastles'' (2006) Neil Cowley *''Hall of Mirrors'' (2021) *''Battery Life'' (2023) *''Fragmented Recall'' (2023) *''Battery: Live'' (2023)

Solo EPs

Neil Cowley *''Grains & Motes'' (2019) *''Beat Infinitum'' (2019) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 1'' (2020) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 2'' (2020) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 3'' (2020) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 4'' (2022) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 5'' (2022) *''Myna Cycles'' (2022) *''Building Blocks, Pt. 6'' (2024)

As leader/co-leader

With Green Nuns of the Revolution *''Rock Bitch Mafia'' (1997) Fragile State *''Nocturnal Beats'' (2001) *''The Facts and the Dreams'' (2003) *''Voices From The Dust Bowl'' (2004) Cowley Trio *''Displaced'' (2006) *''Loud... Louder... Stop!'' (2008) *''Radio Silence'' (2010) *''The Face of Mount Molehill'' (2012) *''Touch and Flee'' (2014) *''Live at Montreux 2012'' (2013) *''Spacebound Apes'' (2016) *''Spacebound Tapes'' (2018) *''Entity'' (2024)

As sideman

-'' 19'' (2008) *

Stereophonics Stereophonics are a Welsh pop and rock music, Welsh rock band formed in 1992 in the village of Cwmaman in the Cynon Valley. The band consists of Kelly Jones (lead vocals, lead guitar, keyboards), Richard Jones (Stereophonics), Richard Jones (n ...

– ''

Keep Calm and Carry On ''Keep Calm and Carry On'' was a motivational poster produced by the Government of the United Kingdom in 1939 in preparation for World War II. The poster was intended to raise the morale of the British public, threatened with widely predic ...

'' (2009) *

– '' 21'' (2011) * Birdy – '' Birdy'' (2011) *

Professor Green Stephen Paul Manderson (born 27 November 1983), better known by his stage name Professor Green or simply Pro Green, is an English pop artist, rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, television personality and mental health activist from London. Gr ...

– '' At Your Inconvenience'' (2011) *

Emeli Sandé Adele Emily Sandé ( ; previously Gouraguine; born 10 March 1987), known professionally as Emeli Sandé, is a British singer and songwriter. Born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England and raised in Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, Sandé rose t ...

– ''

Our Version of Events ''Our Version of Events'' is the debut studio album by Scottish singer Emeli Sandé. The album was released on 13 February 2012 by Virgin Records, following Sandé's winning of the Critics' Choice Award at the BRIT Awards 2012. Though ''Our Ver ...

'' (2012) *

Sam Sallon Sam Sallon (born 6 January 1980) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Born in London and raised in Manchester, he is the fourth child of eight. His first release ''Kathy's Song EP'' was released on Indigo-Octagon in January 2013, follo ...

– ''One for the Road'' (2013) * Birdy – '' Fire Within'' (2013) *

Polly Paulusma Polly Paulusma (born 10 November 1976) is an English singer-songwriter. Career Paulusma's first album, ''Scissors in my Pocket'', was largely recorded and produced by herself at her home. Her second album, ''Cosmic Rosy Spine Kites'' (an anag ...

- ''Wildfires'' (2025)

References

External links

Neil Cowley at All About JazzNeil Cowley Trio Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowley, Neil 1972 births Living people English jazz pianists 21st-century English pianists British male jazz pianists English male pianists 20th-century male pianists 21st-century male pianists