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Cerys Matthews (pronounced 'Kerris') (born April 11, 1969, in Cardiff, Wales, UK) is a Welsh singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer of the Welsh rock band Catatonia, from 1992 to 2001.

Contents 1 Life and career 2 Discography 2.1 Albums 2.2 Singles 3 External links

The daughter of a surgeon, Matthews was brought up in Swansea and Pembrokeshire and is a fluent Welsh speaker. She has cited her childhood heroes as being Pippi Longstocking and The Wombles, due to their love of re-cycling. She had a reputation of being a bit of a troublemaker and loudmouth, but at the same time generous and loyal, and always ready to stick up for her friends.^{[citation needed]}

She learned to play the guitar in her early teens - a period where she described herself as being "a bit of an obnoxious bitch" - teaching herself blues and rude Irish folk songs. After a stint in Spain as a nanny, where she learned to speak Spanish and Catalan, Matthews worked as a cleaner on a beach. She later became involved with the local music scene, befriending, amongst others, Mark Roberts, with whom she would later move in and form a relationship.

The band Catatonia was formed in 1992, reputedly after Roberts heard Matthews busking in a street in Cardiff city centre (this later turned out to be a story fabricated by the band's press officer, as Matthews had known Roberts for some time, although they did often go busking). She subsequently sang lead vocals on the band's hits, including "You've Got A Lot To Answer For", "Mulder and Scully", "Dead From The Waist Down", and "Road Rage", and played guitar on the earlier material before second guitarist Owen Powell joined the band. She also performed a single with the band Space named "The Ballad of Tom Jones", which tells the story of two lovers who want to kill each other, but then hear a Tom Jones song that defuses their homicidal feelings. In addition, she collaborated with Tom Jones himself to record a version of Frank Loesser's "Baby, It's Cold Outside" on Jones' album Reload.

Matthews was once voted the Sexiest Female in Rock by the now defunct magazine, Melody Maker. She also became a lesbian icon.^{[citation needed]}

In September 2001 Matthews announced her departure from Catatonia after reported bouts of "exhaustion and anxiety brought on by excessive smoking and drinking". She spent a spell at The Priory and said in a recent interview that she was "having problems with heroin" at the time. (August 2006)

Matthews moved to Nashville in early summer 2002 in search of a new beginning after she received telephone calls from industry legends Bob Dylan and Cat Stevens urging her to kick the drugs and get herself sorted out.^{[citation needed]} She had already collected seventy six traditional folk songs with the idea of making an album of folk covers, but meeting Bucky Baxter changed all that. On her arrival in America in June, Matthews handpicked Baxter, who had played lap steel guitar for Bob Dylan and Ryan Adams. Her debut album, Cockahoop, was recorded in seven months and appeared on Blanco y Negro in the UK in May 2003. She toured the album around Britain but with minimal promotion as she was heavily pregnant at the time. Its Stateside release followed in October 2004.

Until July 2006 Matthews lived in Nashville with her husband Seth Riddle, whom she married in February 2003, and their two children, Glenys Pearl Y-Felin and Johnny Tupelo Jones. The family have now moved back to Pembrokeshire for the foreseeable future, Matthews saying that they chose to move to Wales as her daughter was developing a Southern twang in her accent, and Matthews wanted to show her children the traditions and ways of her homeland.

In December 2005, Matthews recorded a new version of the 1960s hit "1-2-3" in Nashville, Tennessee. She released it as a single with all profits going to a children's charity.[1]

In the spring, Matthews (with a new band in tow) introduced material from her upcoming album at SXSW in Austin, Texas. The gig was so well attended that many had to watch from the street outside.

In July and August 2006 Matthews conducted a short tour of the UK to promote her new second solo album titled Never Said Goodbye (released in the UK by Rough Trade on 21 August 2006). The new album was preceded by the single "Open Roads" (released 7 August 2006). Band members included K. Teel on guitar, Ben Elkins playing keyboards, Mason Neely on drums, and Jeff Irwin playing bass.

To coincide with the re-launch of her solo career, Matthews redesigned her official website, and added a page to the ever-popular MySpace web directory. (/cerysmatthewsofficial)

She headlined Cardiff's Big Weekend festival on 6 August 2006.

To celebrate the release of her long-awaited sophomore solo album, Matthews conducted a signing of Never Said Goodbye at the Virgin Megastore in Cardiff. The signing was notable in that fans were not rushed along but were able to spend time talking to Matthews, who was willing to engage in conversation, pose for pictures and sign any items (Catatonia or Solo) for her fans.^{[citation needed]}

During September and October 2006, Matthews embarked on an extensive UK and Ireland tour, during which she played tracks from her first two solo albums, as well as three Catatonia hits. She also embarked upon a short acoustic Welsh tour in November 2006, before returning to Nashville for Christmas.

Cerys appeared at the live 'Guilty Pleasures' concert at the Hackney Empire, London on the 20th March 2007, performing the Bonnie Tyler hit 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' and the Dolly Parton/Kenny Rogers duet 'Islands In The Stream' along with Terry Hall and the BBC concert orchestra.

Cerys has recently announced that she is moving back to Wales permanently.

Cockahoop UK #30 (5 weeks on Chart) (Blanco Y Negro - 2003)
1. "Chardonnay"
2. "Caught In The Middle"
3. "Louisiana"
4. "Weightless Again"
5. "Only A Fool"
6. "La Bague"
7. "...Interlude..."
8. "Ocean"
9. "Arglwydd Dyma Fi"
10. "If You're Lookin' For Love"
11. "The Good In Goodbye"
12. "Gypsy Song"
13. "All My Trials"

Never Said Goodbye (Rough Trade - 2006)
1. "Streets Of New York"
2. "A Bird In Hand"
3. "Oxygen"
4. "Open Roads"
5. "This Endless Rain"
6. "Blue Light Alarm"
7. "Morning Sunshine"
8. "Seed Song"
9. "What Kind Of Man"
10. "Ruby"
11. "Elen"

• 1998 "The Ballad of Tom Jones" (with Space) UK #4
• 1999 "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (with Tom Jones) UK #17
• 2003 "Caught In The Middle" UK #47
• 2006 "Open Roads" UK #53

• www.CerysMatthews.co.uk
• www.myspace.com/cerysmatthewsofficial
• Read a detailed interview with Cerys Matthews (August 2006) on ilikemusic.com
• Cerys Matthews interview on musicOMH.com