Badly Drawn Boy Wins Mercury Prize
September 12 -- British artist Badly Drawn Boy won the Mercury Prize for his debut full-length, Hour of Bewilderbeast, today. The prize was awarded to the singer-songwriter — real name Damon Gough — at a ceremony at London's Grosvenor Hotel. The album had been heavily favored to win the prize.
The Mercury, considered the United Kingdom's most prestigious music award, recognizes the Album of the Year from the U.K. or Ireland. Bewilderbeast beat out 10 other contenders for the title, including Coldplay's Parachutes (favored a close second for the honor), the Doves' Lost Souls, The Contino Sessions by Death in Vegas, Rhythm and Stealth by Leftfield, and Alone With Everybody, the solo debut from former Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft.
"Good things don't happen to good people," joked Gough, according to the BBC. After accepting the 20,000 pound ($28,120 U.S.) prize check from presenter Jools Holland, he playfully tossed the envelope on the ground.
Previous Mercury Prize recipients include Primal Scream's Screamadelica, Portishead's Dummy, Pulp's Different Class, Gomez's Bring It On, and Roni Size/Reprazent's New Forms. Last year, Talvin Singh took home the trophy for OK. "Talvin, how's your year been, mate — better or worse than before?" asked Gough after his name was announced.
If some of the aforementioned album titles sound unfamiliar, don't fear — they'll be in U.S. stores shortly. Hour of Bewilderbeast and the Doves' Lost Souls both drop Stateside on Oct. 3, while Coldplay's Parachutes is released domestically on Nov. 11.
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