White Town - Career

Career

Mishra was born in Rourkela, Orissa, India on 30 July 1966 and has lived in England since the age of three. White Town is often regarded as a one-hit wonder for its 1997 song "Your Woman," which reached #1 in the UK Singles Chart in January of that year, and No. 23 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

"Your Woman" is a reworking of the 1932 Bing Crosby song "My Woman," composed by Crosby (lyrics), Irving Wallman, and Max Wartell (music and lyrics). Al Bowlly, who was a vocalist in the Ray Noble Orchestra, recorded a version of "My Woman" on 29 November 1932 with the Lew Stone and the Monseigneur Band in London. The Bowlly version was featured in the Pennies from Heaven film and soundtrack, and it was this version that White Town sampled for "Your Woman."

White Town was formed by Mishra in 1989 after he saw Pixies play. Initially there were other members on guitar, bass and drums playing support gigs for various bands including Primal Scream. In 1990 he released his first self financed record, White Town EP, on 7" vinyl. This featured Nick Glyn-Davis on drums and Sean Deegan on bass with Mishra on guitar and vocals. Glyn-Davis left and was replaced live by a drum machine and Leon Wilson on guitar. The rest of the band drifted away in Autumn 1990 and from then on Mishra mainly worked on his own, using other musicians to record with, including Gary Thatcher on guitar of the Derby band The Beekeepers.

Mishra, a straight edger and ex-Marxist, often incorporates political concerns in his songs veiled in terms of personal relationships. After a troubled working relationship with EMI, Mishra was dropped from the label in 1997. Since then, he has gone back to working with indie labels such as Parasol Records. His album, 2000's Peek & Poke, received moderately enthusiastic reviews but sold poorly compared to his major label work.

In 2005, White Town contributed the song "The PNAC Cabal" to the charity album, Voyces United for UNHCR.

A New Surprise EP was released in September 2006 by the Swedish indie label Heavenly Pop Hits, and was followed up by the album Don't Mention the War, which launched Mishra's own Bzangy Records label. Mishra currently lives in Derby.