Dianne Swann vs. Radiohead
This Weeks Featured Audio Slideshow:
Dianne Swann is a New Zealand musician who was once a member of the Kiwi female super-group “When The Cats Away”.
Dianne left New Zealand – and the band – at the height of its success in the early nineties and headed to London to establish herself in the flourishing UK indie scene. It was there her band “The Julie Dophin” attracted the attention of Radiohead.
In 1994 guitarist Ed O’Brien asked them to open for Radiohead on two tours. Dianne was also invited to sing backing vocals on Radiohead’s B side release “How Can You Be Sure” which was recorded at the same time as the landmark album “The Bends”.
Dianne and her songwriting partner Brett Adams returned to New Zealand in 2002 – and recorded the excellent album “Earth From Space” under the name “The Bads”.
I originally recorded this interview for RNZ in 2004 for a 26 minute documentary on Dianne’s career, as part of the ongoing “Musical Chairs” series.
In this section, Dianne discusses the “Julie Dolphins” early success – as well as playing keyboards live on stage with Radiohead the first time they played “Street Spirit”. A note for those die-hard Radiohead fans; Dianne is the female silhouette seen playing keyboards in the Radiohead Live at the Astoria video.
For more info about “The Bads” visit
Title: “Musical Chairs: Dianne Swann”
Commissioned by: Radio New Zealand
First broadcast: Sept. 2004
Equipment:
Sony MZ-R50 minidisc recorder
Sony ECM-MS907 Stereo Microphone
Cool Edit Pro Digital Editor
