Johnny Greenwood British musician, lead guitarist for Radiohead Date of Birth: 05.11.1971 Country: Great Britain

1. Johnny Greenwood: A Multi-talented Musician
2. Early Life and Career
3. Solo Career and Compositions
4. Personal Life
5. Other Collaborations

Johnny Greenwood: A Multi-talented Musician

Johnny Greenwood is a British musician and the lead guitarist of the band Radiohead. Apart from playing the guitar, he is also proficient in other instruments such as the violin, organ, piano, Ondes Martenot, banjo, harmonica, and several others. Rolling Stone magazine ranked Greenwood 59th on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.

Early Life and Career

Greenwood, the youngest member of Radiohead, dropped out of university shortly after the band (then known as On A Friday) signed a contract with EMI in 1991. Unlike the other band members, he never pursued higher education. In Radiohead, Greenwood serves as the lead guitarist. Additionally, he is skilled in playing the Ondes Martenot synthesizer, which he used in the recording of songs such as "The National Anthem" and "How to Disappear Completely" (Kid A), "Pyramid Song" and "Dollars and Cents" (Amnesiac), and "Where I End and You Begin" (Hail to the Thief). The latter composition was dedicated to the memory of Jeanne Loriod, one of the first performers on the Ondes Martenot. Greenwood's interest in the Ondes Martenot arose after he became acquainted with the music of French composer Olivier Messiaen, one of the instrument's early popularizers.

Solo Career and Compositions

In 2003, Greenwood released a solo album called "Bodysong," which served as the soundtrack for a documentary film of the same name. Colin Greenwood, who played the bass guitar, also participated in the album's recording. In May 2004, Greenwood became the resident composer for the BBC. He composed several symphonic works for BBC Radio 3, including "smear," "Piano for Children," and "Popcorn Superhet Receiver." On April 23, 2005, Greenwood performed live with the BBC Concert Orchestra, featuring compositions he had written for the BBC. Greenwood received the Radio 3 Listener's Award for "Popcorn Superhet Receiver" at the 2006 BBC British Composer Awards ceremony. In 2007, he composed the soundtrack for Paul Thomas Anderson's film "There Will Be Blood," which included excerpts from "Popcorn Superhet Receiver." Greenwood was honored with the VH1 Critics' Choice Award for this soundtrack.

Personal Life

Johnny Greenwood is married to Sharona Greenwood. They have a son named Tamir, born in 2002, and a daughter named Omri, born in 2005. Greenwood is colorblind and cannot differentiate between red and green colors. Like Thom Yorke, Greenwood is a vegetarian.

Other Collaborations

In 1998, Yorke, Greenwood, Bernard Butler from Suede, Andy Mackay, and Paul Kimble formed a group called "The Venus in Furs," named after the famous song by The Velvet Underground. They recorded five songs for the soundtrack of Todd Haynes' film "Velvet Goldmine." Greenwood played the harmonica on two songs on Pavement's album "Terror Twilight" (1999). Nigel Godrich, who has worked with Radiohead for many years, produced this album. In the film "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," Greenwood played the guitar in the fictional band "The Weird Sisters." His bandmates in the film included Phil Selway (Radiohead), Jarvis Cocker, Steve Mackey (both from Pulp), and electronic music specialists Jason Buckle and Steve Claydon.