Stan Ridgeway

Multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Stan Ridgway (born Stanard Q. Ridgway 5 April 1954 in Barstow, California) was the original lead singer for the band Wall of Voodoo, singing on their debut EP and first two albums, including their only hit song, "Mexican Radio". Ridgway left the band in 1983, shortly after the band's appearance at the US Festival. After collaborating on the song "Don't Box Me In" with Stewart Copeland for the soundtrack to the film Rumble Fish (1983), he released his first proper solo album, The Big Heat (1986), which included the top 5 European hit "Camouflage". Since the early days of Wall of Voodoo (which was originally conceived as a venture to create music for low-budget horror movies) Ridgway has been interested in music for cinema. A list of films for which Ridgway has written scores and/or original songs is included below. Ridgway's album Holiday in Dirt was a quasi-cinematic project, with the release of the album accompaned by a showing of 14 short films by various independent film makers, each film corresponding to one of the songs on the album. A compilation DVD of the films was released in February 2005. In 1994, Ridgway began work on a new project in the form of a trio called Drywall, the other members of the trio being Ridgway's wife, keyboardist/vocalist Pietra Wexstun (who had previously worked with Ridgway on "Mosquitos" and "Partyball"), and former Rain Parade drummer Ivan Knight. In 1995, Drywall released its first album (first of a "trilogy of apocalyptic documents"), titled Work The Dumb Oracle. A short film directed by Carlos Grasso titled The Drywall Incident was released the same year. An extended, instrumental soundtrack album for The Drywall Incident was released in 1996. Drywall regrouped in 2005 to release the album Barbeque Babylon, the third "apocalyptic document". The new Drywall lineup features Rick King on guitars and bass and Bruce Zelesnik on drums and percussion. Ridgway and Wexstun also collaborated on a suite of short pieces to accompany an exhibition of artist Mark Ryden's paintings, which was released as the album Blood in 2003. Ridgway plays banjo and harmonica in Wexstun's group Hecate's Angels. Ridgway has also contributed to albums by Frank Black and the Catholics, The Flesh Eaters, The Divine Horsemen, The Ray Campi Quartet, The Fibonaccis, and Roger McGuinn. *From Wikipedia*