Conway Savage

Conway Savage (born 27 July 1960) is an Australian rock musician best known as pianist/organist/backing vocalist for Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.

Savage joined the group in 1990[1] for their The Good Son tour of that year, and has since appeared on albums such as Henry’s Dream, Let Love In, Murder Ballads, The Boatman’s Call, No More Shall We Part and Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus. One of his more noticeable performances is on the song «The Willow Garden», a b-side of «Where the Wild Roses Grow», where in a rare occasion for the Bad Seeds, Conway does lead vocals. Due to the overall minimal piano parts on the band’s 14th release, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, Conway was featured on backing vocals and hand claps.

He began playing piano in his early teens in the dining room of one of the pubs his parents owned in country Victoria. In the 1980s he played in the Melbourne-based country-rock band Dust On The Bible, with his sister-in-law Jane (wife of rock cabaret performer/builder Frank Savage) as lead vocalist, and in the rock band The Feral Dinosaurs.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, he also guested on numerous albums and singles for various leading Australian musicians, including Kim Salmon, Dave Graney, Robert Forster, Spencer P. Jones, and David McComb.

Savage has also produced his own critically acclaimed solo material. In 1993 he released a self-titled mini-album. In 1998 he linked up with singer/songwriter Suzie Higgie for the collaborative album, Soon Will Be Tomorrow.

In 2000 Conway Savage released his debut full-length album Nothing Broken on his own label Beheaded Communications, featuring fellow Bad Seeds Mick Harvey, Martyn P. Casey, together with Charlie Owen. In 2004, Conway Savage’s third solo release Wrong Man’s Hands, was recorded in Australia on an 8-track in a room above the Union Club Hotel, Fitzroy, with members of Melbourne band The Stream, Amanda Fox and Robert Tickner. Conway Savage’s 2005 release Rare Songs & Performances 1989-2004 traced his various studio and live material recorded in Australia and Europe. Guest musicians include Mick Harvey, Martyn P Casey, Jim White, Spencer P Jones, Amanda Fox and Robert Tickner.