His name may not be the first one people say. But it is on records they have been listening to for thirty years.
In 1998, Orbit co-produced Madonna‘s Ray of Light, a record that arrived at the exact moment electronic music was moving from the underground into the mainstream and pulled both worlds into the same room. The album won four Grammys. Frozen, the title track, and The Power of Good-Bye are still in rotation. It remains one of the most significant crossover records electronic music has produced.
The following year he produced Blur’s 13. Harder, more abrasive, equally important. Tender alone is reason enough for the credit. In 2000 he wrote and produced All Saints’ Pure Shores and Black Coffee, both UK number ones. Three years. Three entirely different artists. Consistent across all of them.
The production reputation tends to overshadow the solo work, which ran longer and reached further. Orbit began the Strange Cargo series in 1987, building atmospheric ambient electronic records that were influencing the genre well before the mainstream caught up. In 2000, Pieces in a Modern Style reinterpreted classical compositions through his production approach and became a genuine commercial hit. Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings reached a new audience entirely. The Ferry Corsten trance remix became a club anthem.
He started earlier than most people remember. In 1980 he co-founded Torch Song, a synth and ambient trio operating out of a squatted school in Notting Hill. In the 1990s he launched Bassomatic, whose Fascinating Rhythm reached the UK Top 10, and founded Guerilla Records, one of the defining labels of the UK progressive house explosion. He was building the infrastructure of electronic music before that infrastructure had a name.
In his final decade he released Pieces in a Modern Style 2, worked on orchestral live projects, and completed The Painterin 2022, folding his visual art practice into the music. He was still making things.
William Orbit was born in London on 15 December 1956. He was 69.
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