PJ Harvey
PJ Harvey is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose work spans alternative rock, poetry, theatre and television scores.
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Polly’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Overview
- Name
- Polly Jean Harvey
- From
- Dorset, England
- First band
- Automatic Dlamini, joined in 1988
- Breakout
- Dress (1991) and debut album Dry (1992)
- Creative worlds
- Songs, poetry, visual art and scores
Mini bio
How it started.
Polly’s early musical life grew out of the West Dorset scene, playing pub back rooms and local gatherings. She joined John Parish’s band Automatic Dlamini in 1988, beginning a collaboration that would run through decades of recordings.
Finding her own voice.
In 1991 she formed the PJ Harvey trio in Dorset and released Dress on Too Pure. Dry followed in March 1992, then Rid of Me in 1993. After the trio split, she continued as a solo artist, exploring a more theatrical sound and stage presence on To Bring You My Love.
Songs that look outward.
Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea brought her first Mercury Prize in 2001. Let England Shake, an album concerned with war, history and human lives, brought a second in 2011. She became the first artist to win twice.
Beyond the album.
Her poetry collection Orlam helped inspire I Inside the Old Year Dying, recorded with John Parish and Flood. Alongside her records, she writes music for theatre and television, including Othello and Bad Sisters.
Creditschronological, newest first
Music
- 2026VoyagerSinger and songwriter
- 2023I Inside the Old Year DyingSinger and songwriter
- 2000Stories From The City, Stories From The SeaSinger, songwriter and co-producer
Theatre and television
- 2025OthelloComposer
- 2024Bad Sisters, season 2Score co-composer with Tim Phillips
Poetry
- 2022OrlamAuthor and special-edition illustrator
- 2015The Hollow of the HandPoet, collaborating with photographer Seamus Murphy
Awards
Quotes
The three of us come together and we all want the same thing – to challenge ourselves and not repeat ourselves.PJ Harvey, Partisan Records
On making I Inside the Old Year Dying with John Parish and Flood.
Trivia
- She paints, draws and makes sculptures alongside her music.
- Thom Yorke appears on three songs on Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea.
- Her tour drawing dress collected 55 drawings, one for each city visited across 71 shows.
- Orlam’s special edition includes 24 of her own illustrations.
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