Ward Thomas are an English modern country-pop duo, composed of twin sisters Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas from Hampshire.[1] The band has been called "Britain's first country stars".[2] Cartwheels, their second studio album, became the first album by a UK country act to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart. surpassing the previous record by the Shires. It has since gone gold in the UK.
Ward Thomas | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Petersfield, Hampshire, England |
| Genres | Country pop, Americana |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Labels |
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| Members |
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Early life
editCatherine and Lizzy are twins, born two minutes apart,[3] who grew up on a farm in rural Hampshire, England, and were educated at Alton School, a Roman Catholic private day school, where they acquired the nicknames "Scruff 1" and "Scruff 2" because they were "so bad at being neat and tidy".[3]
Their father is Anthony Ward-Thomas, who in 1985 founded his own eponymous removals business, now with an annual turnover of £22 million (2015).[4][5][6] Their mother Amanda Ward Thomas is an artist.
Career
edit2014–2015: From Where We Stand
editThey co-wrote the songs for their debut album From Where We Stand, which was released on 20 July 2014. It peaked at number 41 on the UK Albums Chart, number 1 on the UK Country Chart, number 7 on the UK Indie Chart and number 36 in Scotland. The album won UK Album of the Year at the British Country Music Awards and sold over 25,000 copies.[1] They have toured the UK multiple times, with shows at venues including Islington Assembly Hall and The New Adelphi Club in Hull, East Yorkshire.[7][non-primary source needed] In 2014, they performed on the BBC Introducing stage at the BBC Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park festival,[8] returning to the festival in 2015 to perform on the main stage alongside The Shires; a performance which was broadcast live on BBC Radio 2.[9]
2016–2017: Cartwheels and A Shorter Story
editIn June 2016, Ward Thomas announced a joint venture with Sony Music and that their second album, Cartwheels, would be released in September 2016.[10][non-primary source needed] Lead single "Carry You Home", described by The Times as "chirpy country pop" was released in June, followed by the singles "Guilty Flowers" and "Cartwheels", all of which were added to the Radio 2 playlist. Cartwheels reached number 1 in the UK Albums Chart, making Ward Thomas the first UK country act to top the charts and officially making them the most successful UK country act. It has since gone gold in the UK.[11] In September 2016, Ward Thomas were confirmed to play at the 31st edition of Eurosonic Noorderslag in Groningen[12] and in March 2017, Ward Thomas were announced as the official opening act for the Country to Country 2017 festival.
On 28 October 2016, Ward Thomas released the single version of "Cartwheels", featuring a cover of Lenny Kravitz's song "Fly Away" which was also featured on the TV show "Countrywise".[13] On 31 March 2017, Ward Thomas released their first EP, A Shorter Story, which features the duo covering five of their favourite songs.[14] In 2017, they supported American country superstar Miranda Lambert on the UK leg of her Highway Vagabond Tour.
2017–present: Restless Minds
editIn July 2018, Ward Thomas announced that they will release their third album, Restless Minds. The announcement coincided with the release of lead single "Lie Like Me", a biting indictment of lives faked online. During the 2019 C2C: Country to Country festival, the duo were surprised by Cam at the CMA Songwriter's Event with the Jeff Walker Global Achievement Award from the Country Music Association, making them only the second UK country act to receive the award.[15]
Discography
editAlbums
edit| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [16] |
UK Country [17] |
UK Indie [18] |
SCO [19] | ||||||||||||||||
| From Where We Stand |
|
41 | 1 | 7 | 36 | ||||||||||||||
| Cartwheels |
|
1 | 1 | — | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Restless Minds |
|
8 | 1 | — | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| Invitation |
|
29 | 2 | — | 10 | ||||||||||||||
| Music in the Madness |
|
31 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes an album that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||||||||
Extended plays
edit| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| A Shorter Story |
|
| The Space Between |
|
Singles
edit| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCO [21] | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | "Push for the Stride" | — | From Where We Stand | ||||||||||||||||
| "The Good & the Right" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| "Town Called Ugley" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| "Guest List" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | "Carry You Home" | 59 | Cartwheels | ||||||||||||||||
| "Guilty Flowers" | 88 | ||||||||||||||||||
| "Cartwheels" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | "Boomerang" | — | |||||||||||||||||
| "Material" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | "Lie Like Me" | — | Restless Minds | ||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | "No Filter" | — | |||||||||||||||||
| "One More Goodbye" | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | "Someday"[22] | — | Invitation | ||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||||||||
Music videos
edit| Year | Video |
|---|---|
| 2014 | "Footnotes (Happy Endings)" |
| "The Good And The Right" | |
| "Push For The Stride" | |
| "Way Back When" | |
| 2016 | "Carry You Home" |
| "Guilty Flowers" | |
| "Cartwheels" | |
| 2017 | "Boomerang" |
| "Material" | |
| 2018 | "Lie Like Me" |
| 2019 | "No Filter" |
| "One More Goodbye" | |
| 2020 | "Halfway" (with James Blunt) |
| "Sweet Time" |
References
edit- ^ a b Wilson, Simon (4 February 2015). "Country music stars Ward Thomas head for the Rescue Rooms". Nottingham Post. Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ "Ward Thomas export style from our country to USA". The Northern Echo. 19 November 2014. Archived from the original on 2 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.</ref, their music has been described as written "from a British perspective". While people have been able to appreciate the American sound, they can connect with the themes of British lyrics.
- ^ a b "Catherine Ward Thomas: 'Mum told us don't swear or talk politics or religion'". TheGuardian.com. 15 September 2016. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
- ^ Ward-Thomas, Anthony. "Who we are | Anthony Ward Thomas | UK and London Removals". Archived from the original on 21 February 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
- ^ "Who we are | Anthony Ward Thomas | UK and London Removals". Archived from the original on 21 February 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
- ^ Natalie Graham, Financial Times, February 20, 2015, My First Million — Anthony Ward Thomas, A moving story of success from small beginnings[1] Archived 3 July 2020 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Under The Influence presents Ward Thomas". Facebook. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
- ^ "Ward Thomas – Push For the Stride at Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park 2014". YouTube. 15 September 2014. Archived from the original on 16 October 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
- ^ "The Shires & Ward Thomas – Everywhere (Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park 2015)". YouTube. 13 September 2015. Archived from the original on 16 September 2015. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
- ^ "Ward Thomas on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
- ^ "Country duo Ward Thomas top UK album chart". BBC News. 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 4 November 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
- ^ "First European Artists Confirmed for Eurosonic Noorderslag – Eurosonic Noorderslag". Eurosonic Noorderslag. Archived from the original on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
- ^ "Ward Thomas Release Lenny Kravitz's 'Fly Away' Cover". 28 October 2016. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
- ^ "A Shorter Story - EP by Ward Thomas on Apple Music". iTunes. 31 March 2017. Archived from the original on 1 April 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
- ^ Ward Thomas Receive Prestigious CMA Jeff Walker Global Artist Award Archived 5 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine, Music News, March 7, 2019, by Laura Klonowski
- ^ "Ward Thomas". Officialcharts.com/. Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 13 September 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
- ^ Peak positions for albums on the UK Country Chart:
- For From Where We Stand: "Chart Archive > 27 July 2014 – 2 August 2014". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
- For Cartwheels: "Chart Archive > 9 September 2016 – 15 September 2016". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
- For Restless Minds: "Chart Archive > 15 February 2019 – 21 February 2019". Official Charts Company.
- For Invitation: "Chart Archive > 23 October 2020 – 29 October 2020". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- For Music in the Madness: "Chart Archive > 17 March 2023 – 23 March 2023". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ Peak positions for albums on the UK Indie Chart:
- For From Where We Stand: "Chart Archive > 27 July 2014 – 2 August 2014". Officialcharts.com/. Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
- For Music in the Madness: "Chart Archive > 17 March 2023 – 23 March 2023". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ Peak positions for albums in Scotland:
- For From Where We Stand: "Chart Archive > 27 July 2014 – 2 August 2014". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 13 September 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
- For Cartwheels: "Chart Archive > 9 September 2016 – 15 September 2016". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
- For Restless Minds: "Chart Archive > 15 February 2019 – 21 February 2019". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 31 May 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
- For Invitation: "Chart Archive > 16 October 2020 – 22 October 2020". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- For Music in the Madness: "Chart Archive > 17 March 2023 – 23 March 2023". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
- ^ Bardsley, Miranda (8 March 2023). "Ward Thomas on finding 'moments of joy' in their new album and the state of UK country music". Music Week. Archived from the original on 13 March 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
- ^ Peak positions for singles in Scotland:
- For "Carry You Home": "Chart Archive > 9 September 2016 – 15 September 2016". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
- For "Guilty Flowers": "Chart Archive > 16 September 2016 – 22 September 2016". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
- ^ Ellwood-Hughes, Pip (27 September 2020). "Ward Thomas Unveil New Track 'Someday'". Entertainment Focus. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.