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Andrew Bird (born July 11 , 1973 ) is an American musician, songwriter, and Multi-instrumentalist . He was born in Illinois and currently splits his time between Chicago and a farm near the town of Elizabeth in northwest Illinois. His musical proficiency includes Violin , Whistling , Guitar , Mandolin , and Glockenspiel . HISTORY Trained in the Suzuki Method from a young age, Bird first attended Illinois Wesleyan University but graduated from Illinois' Northwestern University with a Bachelor's Degree in Violin performance. He released his first solo album, '' Music Of Hair '', in 1996. Vastly different from his later releases, this first album showcases his violin skills and pays tribute to his fascination with both American and European Folk traditions, as well as Jazz and Blues . His initial commercial exposure was in collaborative work with the band Squirrel Nut Zippers . He quickly was associated with the Swing Revival that swept the US music industry in the mid '90s, an affiliation that he is still working to shed. Taking on the role of band leader in 1997, he released '' Thrills '' with his band Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire. This was followed by '' Oh! The Grandeur '' in 1998. Both albums were heavily influenced by traditional folk, pre-war jazz and Swing , with Bird relying on the violin as his primary Musical Instrument . In 2001, Bird released '' The Swimming Hour '', his third release with the Bowl of Fire and a dramatic departure from previous recordings. ''The Swimming Hour'' featured a mixture of styles, from the Zydeco -influenced "Core and Rind" to more straightforward rock songs. He has often referred to this CD as his " Jukebox album". The Bowl of Fire unofficially disbanded in 2003, but featured many skilled Chicago musicians including Kevin O'Donnell , Nora O'Connor , Andy Hopkins (aka Mr. Rudy Day ), Jimmy Sutton , Colin Bunn and Ryan Hembrey . Bird released two subsequent solo albums distributed through the label operated by Ani DiFranco , Righteous Babe Records . The two CDs, 2003's '' Weather Systems '' (originally released on Grimsey records) and 2005's '' The Mysterious Production Of Eggs '' continue a progression towards an eclectic Indie / Folk sound that is challenging to classify. In addition to the Guitar , Bird's songs often feature Violin , Glockenspiel , and his very proficient whistling. The artist's live solo shows have been notable in that he uses a multi-track system to sample and loop his own performance. For example, he may record a snippet of his performance on violin, then play a "loop" of that sound. This provides a more full-bodied sound and aurally suggests a band performance, rather than the sound of a solo artist. Once, at a gig in Amsterdam, at the Paradiso, he needed more movement on his feet in order to work the loop pedals, so he kicked off his shoe and hit a person in the audience. He later said "I should have simply twiddled my toes at her". His live performances are highlighted in a series of self-released live compilations, ''Fingerlings'', ''Fingerlings 2'', and ''Fingerlings 3''. Each ''Fingerlings'' EP was released prior to a studio release and presents live versions of old tracks, cover songs, songs penned by Bird that do not appear on studio albums, and live versions of future tracks. ''Fingerlings 3'', released in October 2006, also features studio outtakes. In January 2007, Andrew Bird made an appearance on the '' Noggin '' television network's Jack's Big Music Show . He played character "Dr. Stringz" and sang a brief song written specifically for the episode and not found on any albums. On April 10 , 2007 , Bird made his Network Television debut, performing "Plasticities" from '' Armchair Apocrypha '' on the '' Late Show With David Letterman ''. He also made an appearance on '' Late Night With Conan O'Brien '' on June 14, 2007 performing "Imitosis" from the same album. On April 20, 2007, NPR aired a live concert with Andrew Bird & Band 1 . He worked with Reverb , a non-profit Environmental organization, for his 2007 spring tour.http://www.reverbrock.org/site/ Four of his songs — "Banking on a Myth" from '' The Mysterious Production Of Eggs '', a medley of "I" from '' Weather Systems '' and "Imitosis" from '' Armchair Apocrypha '', and "Skin" and "Weather Systems" from '' Weather Systems '' — have been licensed for use by Marriott Residence Inn. {Link without Title} INSTRUMENTATION
DISCOGRAPHY Albums
EPs and singles
Other album appearances see also albums by Squirrel Nut Zippers .
REFERENCES 3. Tom Lynch, "Bizarre Pop Scientist: Charting Andrew Bird's unconventional path toward rock stardom," Newcity cover story, March 15, 2007 EXTERNAL LINKS
Listening
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