Tim Wheeler

Catapulted to worldwide fame while still in his teens, Ash frontman Tim Wheeler already had a remarkable string of accomplishments under his belt by the time he recorded his debut solo album in 2014. Born on January 4, 1977 in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, Wheeler was exposed to music at an early age, his father George playing the piano to unwind after work. After taking up the piano himself, he switched to guitar before forming Ash with friends Mark Hamilton and Rick McMurray while they were all still at school. Before Wheeler even turned 21, Ash had enjoyed a U.K. number one album with their debut full-length, 1977, and become the youngest band ever to headline Glastonbury. They went on to score three more U.K. Top Ten albums, including another number one with 2001′s Free All Angels. That year Wheeler won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Pop Song with “Shining Light.” He later went on to write or co-write several film and television soundtracks, including that for the mini-series Fleming, about the James Bond creator. Wheeler’s debut solo album, Lost Domain, was inspired by the tragic death in 2011 of his father from Alzheimer’s disease. The emotionally raw and extremely personal record, played almost entirely by Wheeler himself with help from a few friends, featured a broad palette of styles and some of his richest, lushest music. It was released in November 2014. ~ John D. Buchanan