Shara Nelson

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Shara Nelson is an English singer and songwriter, born in 1965. Her first record was the 1983 single Aiming at Your Heart, under the name Shara Nelson & The Circuit. In 1986 her first solo single, Can't Get Over You, appeared under the name Shara. In the late 1980s she began working with The Wild Bunch, the Bristol DJ and production collective from which Massive Attack emerged.

Music and breakthrough

With Massive Attack she released the single Daydreaming in 1990. She did not only sing, but also co-wrote songs, such as Unfinished Sympathy, which appeared in 1991 on the debut album Blue Lines. The single reached number thirteen in the British chart and is ranked highly in lists by, among others, MTV2 and NME. In 1993 she began a solo career again with Down That Road, followed by the album What Silence Knows. That album was shortlisted for the 1994 Mercury Prize, and she was nominated for two Brit Awards. The second album, Friendly Fire, appeared in 1995. Later she worked with, among others, Charles Webster and Air Cuba.

Influence

Her voice is warm and sensitive, and she fits well with the slow, dark trip-hop of Bristol. In School of Rock she appears in the chapter on the jazz festivals, as the voice in Unfinished Sympathy: a string orchestra over a hip hop beat.

Listening

Discography

Studio albums

• 1993What Silence Knows
• 1995Friendly Fire

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

• Mixtape 5: Jazz Festival^NL Reader