Guitarist for Joe O’Donnell(East of Eden,Woods Band,Rory Gallagher,Mushroom), also guitar player and founder member of live dnb band 91db, double bassist for The Verity Pabla Band, and recently applied his upright bass services to singer-songwriter Andrew Buckley.
Si picked up a guitar at age 10, gigged with numerous bands from age 15, solo guitar shows from age 22, recorded, performed, toured as musical director for plays, composed theatre scores, soundtracks and instrumentals for the likes of the Belgrade Theatre, bbc Radio 4, various compilations, featured on many albums, singles and along with 5 solo instrumental guitar albums, has been performing, recording, collaborating and composing ever since.
Si is currently composing the music for The Mystery Plays
Live Reviews
"amazing guitarist..."(Peter Lang, fingerstyle pioneer)"simply blew us away with his intricate finger skills..."(BBC C&W)
"one-man musical magician fusing funk, jazz and a splash of drum'n'bass in a single flamenco styled nylon-stringed guitar"(Warwick Core)
"Si’s fantastic technique and style on the guitar always goes down a storm at the festival and it was great to welcome him back!"(Chris Davis/CoventryJazzFestival)
"His solo classical-Spanish style guitar playing, peppered with pepper, funk and drumnbass, takes your breath away like a sledgehammer to the chest"(The Shiznit Magazine)
"Si Hayden left members of the audience in wonder of how anyone could deliver such harmony and rhythms of complexity using a six string, steel strung acoustic guitar"(Alvin Leon, AquiredTaste)
"A classical Spanish style guitarist, who will blow you away with his jazz, latin and funk infused songs. How he manages it all on just a 6 string guitar still amazes us. You will have to see him to believe it!(AcousticLounge, Clapham)
Discography/Album Reviews
Sabaca©2009 SilveryRecords
1. Walnut Bridge (Hayden)
2. The Tyrants Tale away (Hayden)
3. The Soto Verses (Hayden/Pickin)
4. Subway (Hayden)
5. Dressing Room Blues (Hayden)
6. Parkfield Days(Hayden)
7. 1942 (Hayden)
8. As it comes (Hayden)
All music produced, composed and performed by Si Hayden. Mastered by Si Hayden and Rich Evatt. All tracks solo guitar, recorded with no overdubs at IrvCabin, UK. April 2009. Guitar used: Breedlove Atlas strung with gauge 12 D'Addario strings. Cover artwork©2009 SiHayden(Original photo by Leighton Joskey) ©2009 Si Hayden, ©2009 SilveryRecords, Format: Compact Disk, Cat no: SRCD024, Packaging: Jewel Case, Release Date: 25.05.2009, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 5050521006215
The apparent rules of thumb
©2009 SilveryRecords
1. Pass it on Joe (Hayden)
2. May you never Frisell away (Hayden)
3. Foam boogie (Hayden)
4. Subway (Hayden)
5. Alexandre avenue (Hayden)
6. Cloudspinning (Hayden)
7. Soweto groove (Hayden)
8. Afterburner (Hayden)
9. Lazy rain (Hayden)
10. The return of Rosie Templeton (Hayden)
11. Acca Bella (Hayden)
All music produced, composed and performed by Si Hayden. All tracks solo guitar, recorded with no overdubs in standard tuning at IrvCabin, UK. Winter 2008. Instruments used: 1993 USA Fender Stratocaster, 90's Aria TA65 fretless semi-acoustic, Gorden Smith electric. All guitars strung with gauge 12 Flat Wound, .012 - .052 D'Addario strings. Cover photograph ©2009 Kris Connelly/ Inside sleeve and back ©2009 John Gate/ Format: Compact Disk, Cat no: SRCD022, Packaging: Jewel Case, Release Date: 06-04-09, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 88450206095
BACKRA MeN
©2008 SilveryRecords
1. Fabula (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
2. For Lee Miller (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
3. Map: i.Spon, ii.Ball Hill, morning, iii.Anglia to Mercia(Morley/Hayden/Haines)
4. From the Spanish Gypsy (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
5. Duskfall (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
6. Bomb (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
7. Sistah (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
8. Deciphering the Eucalypts (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
9. On First Looking into Cecily Jones’s... (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
10. Disillusion (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
11. Loki’s Song (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
12. On the Macclesfield Psalter (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
13. Iberian Baroque (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
14. Dobeš’ Snail (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
15. the new romanian poems* (Morley/Hayden/Haines)
"It's really nice to hear new music with real musicians, I do a lot of programmed music, but there is something organic about poetry and well tuned musicians. And Si's work is just great, the double bass playing is spot on... it really sounds like the musicians overstood the poetry. Nice one."(Performance Poet Benjamin Zephaniah
"Poet laureate in waiting goes all the way to fusion and back - Ra."
"They're a rare breed, great poets crossing over to music, and with only a couple of names springing to mind, Jonathan Morley, an Eric Gregory Award winner who researches T. S. Elliot's stamp over Carribean literature at the University of Warwick, stands closer to Gil Scott-Heron rather than Leonard Cohen. His lines chime with jive, so Morley teams up with guitarist and composer Si Hayden and drummer Ben Haines to deliver them in style. Cue this album, a companion piece to "Backra Man" the book (note the singular as opposed to the plural in the record's title), a jazzy experience which starts creepingly with Hayden's piano rippling over Haines' shadowy cymbals and Morley's gloomy voice reciting strange images.
It resonates on many levels when the "Da Da dada dada" sets alliteration apace in "For Lee Miller", spanky bass brings funk into the "Loki's song" Gothic texture, and baroque country picking paints the "grass glares white" picture of "Spon". The music feels as strange as the poems but one fits the other perfectly. "Backra" means the evil white man, and this fusion of poetry and sparse melodies seems sinister indeed, yet it's not aggressive at all, save for the Rasta talk of "Sistah" that sounds melodius even without ragged accompaniment, whereas the "Duskfall" lace is pure elegance and "Iberian Baroque" gently takes a listener on an Indiana Jone-like adventure to the Indian pyramids. That's where the whiter shade of face re-appears. Haunting!" ****(Dmitry M. Epstein, Let it Rock)
"‘Backra Man’ by Morley Hayden Haines has certainly came in from the left-field... no doubt there will be people who appreciate whats going on here..."(Andy Reilly - Is this music)
"..the freshest sound i've heard in years..."(bbc's John Butler)
Poetry by Eric Gregory Award winner Jonathan Morley. All music produced, composed and performed by Si Hayden. All drum parts by Ben Haines. All poems except* available in the book Backra Man First edition 2008 © Jonathan Morley 2008 All rights reserved ISBN 978-1-906038-33-5 Published in the UK by The Heaventree Press. Recorded at IrvCabin, UK. Autumn 2008. Instruments used: (Ben Haines) Sonar acoustic drum kit, Zildjian cymbals, Vic Firth sticks. (Si Hayden) Zeller upright double bass, Kawai MP5 piano, Aria TA65 semi-fretless/semi-acoustic, Gorden Smith electric. (Jon Morley) AKG mics, Focusrite pre-amps. No 'MIDI' (Multi-Instrument-Digital-Interface) was used in the production of this album. Cover photographs courtesy of the Old Windmill, Medieval Spon Street, Coventry © Paul Blakemore 2008/ Format: Compact Disk, Cat no: SRCD021, Packaging: Jewel Case, Released: 08-12-08, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 5060051619120 /Length:49:51
Scenes from the City
©2008 SilveryRecords
1. Orphan Child Lullaby (Hayden)
2. Beginning (Hayden)
3. Unknown Urban Entity (Hayden)
4. Rain Mans Groove (Hayden)
5. Homeless Girl (Hayden)
6. Wet Mans Cleaners (Hayden)
7. Bird Woman (Hayden)
8. Wet Mans Office (Hayden)
9. Orphan Child (Hayden)
Original Theatre Score produced, composed and performed by Si Hayden. A Belgrade Theatre Production 'Scenes from the City' (soundtrack) No 'MIDI' (Multi-Instrument-Digital-Interface) was used in the production of this album. Cover Artwork: Barry Jobson, ©2007 SilveryRecords, Format: Compact Disk, Cat no: SR019, Packaging: Jewel Case, Release Date: 03/03/08, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 884502061048 /Length:
Live Like Us
©2007 SilveryRecords
1. Kelvin (Hayden)
2. The lift (Hayden)
3. Car park (Hayden)
4. But the voices (Hayden)
5. Angels (Hayden)
6. Jess (Hayden)
7. A leathal toaster (Hayden)
8. Shrine (Hayden)
Original Theatre Score produced, composed and performed by Si Hayden. A Belgrade Theatre Production 'Live Like Us' (soundtrack) No 'MIDI' (Multi-Instrument-Digital-Interface) was used in the production of this album. Cover shot: Paul blakemore, ©2007 SilveryRecords, Format: Compact Disk, Cat no: SR018, Packaging: Jewel Case, Release Date: 05/03/07, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 884502061215 /Length: 45:36
Steel Roots
©2007 SilveryRecords
1. Ellya (Hayden)
2. Confessions of a tractor thief (Hayden)
3. Folsom prison blues (J.Cash)
4. Golden fictitious (Hayden)
5. Flat spot (Hayden)
6. Hats off to Pete Townshend (Hayden)
7. Jd 'n' coffee (Hayden)
8. Just a bit o' fun (Hayden)
9. Moondance (V.Morrison)
10. Cowstalker (Hayden)
11. Planet of the grapes (Hayden)
12. Steel roots (Hayden)
"its a ripper cd... very, very good!"(Steve Passiouras, PBS FM)
"gives a fine display of Americana.. and there is some finger lickin’ pickin’ going on here.."(Is this music magazine)
"fast killer chops on most tracks.. “Moondance”.. a true piece of art.. at times he reminds me of Tuck Andress in his jazzy approach with a lot of rhythm and bass runs going on"(Bridge Guitar Reviews)
"a lot of jazz influence... walking bass lines, tapping, ..blazing scale work... great bluesy... funky groove, jazz chording's, some Spanish guitar flourishes, and lots of quick arpeggios... Si does have some chops..."(©Kirk Albrecht, minor7th)
"Hayden’s trademark supersonic picking is present.. the six-string virtuosity shown on this album is irrefutable.. an album that stuns with its technical brilliance, then later endears you to the soul and depth behind the flashiness"(Peter Clayton, cdreviews)
"About a year and a half ago, I reviewed Si Hayden’s Nylon … for Now. I was very impressed by his solo acoustic guitar virtuosity. I still am, and I like Steel Roots even more. Hayden is still firing off dizzying runs, punctuated by percussive slaps against his guitar. His chord work is full and propulsive. The 12 tracks here are concise, melodic, often rocking. Hayden delivers toe-tapping bluesy jazz (the original “Flat Spot” and his smoking take on Van Morrison’s “Moondance”), folk-country (the leap-out-of-the-speakers opener “Ellya” and Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues”), Townshend-like power (“Hats Off to Pete Townshend” and “Just a Bit of Fun”) and flights of frenetic fancy (the dizzying “JD and Coffee” and the closing title cut). Hayden often deftly shifts genres several times within songs, and with only one track over four minutes long, Steel Roots delivers wallop after wallop of solo guitar goodness with no time for boredom to set in."(© Chip Withrow, musesmuse)
"...You might find a methodology to Hayden's playing, but every composition is so tailored with its own voice that it negates everything you have ever learned about method playing. These are not finger moves that are taught in school. They are moves with such imagination and independent thinking that they make you feel honored to hear them. The music has a striking star quality that few artists can achieve. Hayden uses no special effects or overdubs. His playing is divinely pure... Hayden's music falls between the lines that separate jazz from country, and his compositions certainly show that the two have more common factors than most music fans ever knew. You'll never believe that all of these movements are coming out of one acoustic guitar. There is a dreamy quality in Si Hayden's melodies that keeps your head floating up above the clouds while the country aspects in his music keeps everything feeling open and homey... A native of Coventry, England, Hayden's sonic vistas seem to come natural as he plays to the beating pulse of life with total abandonment of conventional methodology. Speaking of unconventional, Si Hayden is left handed and plays right-handed guitars.(Susan Frances, jazzreview.com)
All tracks produced, composed and performed by S.Hayden exept 3 and 9. Recorded with no overdubs in standard tuning except title track 12 (drop-D tuning) /Produced by Si Hayden /Mastered by Andrew Tulloch, The Blue room, London. Guitars used: Tracks 1,2,3,5,6,7,11 ~ Standard tuned Avalon AS acoustic, Tracks 4,8,10,12 ~ Cort CJ acoustic, track 9 - 1992 Gibson j-160e acoustic. All Photography: Paul Blakemore, Location 'Jacks Barber', Coventry, UK. /Format: Compact Disc /Genre(s): POP/Jazz Label: SilveryRecords /Cat.No: SR015 /Packaging: Jewel Case (Sealed) /Release Date: August 27th 2007 /Sound Format: Stereo /UPC:5050521006215/ AMG Album ID: R 1188066 /Length: 38.20
The Alchemists vol II
©2007 LiquidNoteRecords
1. Unruly Elements (Chris Brooks ft. Joe Chawki)
2. One Legged Chicken (Pascal Vigné ft.Christophe Godin)
3. Threehunderdpointtwentyone (Terry Syrek ft.Bumblefoot)
4. Under The Influence (Richard Hallebeek & Antti Kotikoski)
5. Space Antz (Carlos Creator ft.Robert Rodrigo)
6. Stratosphere (William Stravato ft.Brett Garsed)
7. At Last (Stefan Rosqvist ft.Bo Eriksson)
8. The Puffball That Ate My Village (Phi Yaan-Zek ft.Chanan Hanspal)
9. Last Minute Call/The Saviour (Milan Polak & Marco Sfogli)
10.Fumble Fingers (Dave Martone & Chris Buono)
11.Tango Schizophrenia (Si Hayden ft.Michael Berk)
12.Warp Drive (Gianluca Ferro ft.Scott McGill)
13.In The Beginning (Sven Stichter ft.Thorsten Koenhe)
14.Butterfly/Free Love/Fruit Frenzy (Geoff Tyson ft.Doug Doppler)
15.Georgia In My Heart (Dr Ika & Temur Kvitelashvili)
"Si Hayden with Michael Berk deliver an acoustic pearl called Tango Schizophrenia"(Dmitry M. Epstein, Let it Rock)
"The album then takes on a the Spanish acoustic delights of “Tango Schizophrenia” from Si Hayden and Michael Berk is a great piece of 2 classical guitars with the right blend of mystical Mediterranean qualities and speedy fretwork in some of the solos and is another highlight, all this coming from gloomy Coventry in the UK! "(©2007 VIRTUOSITYONE)
The Alchemists II is the sequel to LNR's highly popular "The Alchemists" (double) compilation CD, which was released in 2002. The primary difference between the two compilations is that The Alchemists II features 2 guitar players per tune. Some of the original Alchemists have returned for the new CD, including Bumblefoot, Terry Syrek, Brett Garsed and Richard Hallebeek. Over 75 mins of guitar bliss. All tracks are original to this compilation. Instrumental Guitar (Electric (Heavy) /Shred /Fusion), total running time, 79:47
Nylon... For Now
©2006 SilveryRecords
1. Like Fire (Hayden)
2. One Weekend (Hayden)
3. Are you going to eat all that? (Hayden)
4. Armitage (Hayden)
5. Black Magic Nylon (Hayden)
6. Symphony Solo (Hayden)
7. Sounds Better in Red (Hayden)
"solo guitar mastery of U.K. based Si Hayden... The music may sound vintage but on his CD Hayden puts a new spin on a timeless art form. As he points out in his liner notes, all tracks were recorded with one guitar and no overdubs and all percussion is from the right hand on the guitar body while playing. A modern flamenco master, Hayden makes excellent use of his Ivor Maraints and Jose Ramirez guitars."(Robert Silverstein, 20th Century Guitar)
"This album is refreshingly honest - UK-based composer/guitarist Hayden plays the entire program solo and with no overdubs... flawlessly executes the genre's characteristic strums, descending single-string runs and soundboard taps... Yet he typically makes things more interesting by weaving more complex harmonies and smooth jazz elements into each of the tunes. Si Hayden's appeal comes from successfully melding flamenco with more modern sounds, and doing so without gimmicks or artifice. Both guitarists and general listeners will enjoy this CD; turn it up and enjoy."(©Patrick Ragains, Minor7th)
"...such an impressive guitar player and Nylon ... for Now is full of interesting music... dizzying flamenco-style runs... pretty, ringing arpeggios. He’s even better when he leans into some meaty rhythmic chording. Then there’s his unique percussion, which is him tapping on the guitar’s wood body. I wish he’d do it more often on this album, but these tracks were recorded in single takes, and providing all that rhythm on top of breakneck picking is, I’m sure, hard work. Fans of guitar virtuosity should check out Si Hayden... a few listens made me appreciate it on a heart-and-soul level as well as a technical one."(©Chip Withrow, musesmuse)
All tracks written & performed by S.Hayden, no overdub's. All percussion from the guitar soundboard whilst playing. Length: 44:40 /Produced by Si Hayden /Mastered by Donal Whelan, Hafod /MasteringWorld. Guitars used: Tracks 1,3,4,5,6~ Standard tuned 1981 Ivor Mairants R.E.Spain No. 188F Tracks 2,7~ Standard tuned 2004 Jose Ramirez FL2. Cover photo: Paul Blakemore (2005 Coventry Jazz Festival) Guitar in photo: Godin Grand Concert Nylon Duet (live use) SilveryRecords /Format: Compact Disc /Genre(s): POP/Jazz /Label: SilveryRecords /Cat.No: SR011 /Packaging: Jewel Case (Sealed) /Release Date: April 24, 2006 /Sound Format: Stereo /UPC: 5060080790388 /AMG Album ID: R 858573 /Length: 44:40
Steel Happenings
©1998 RayCra/Silvery
1. Its Happening (Hayden)
2. Walking the dog (Hayden)
3. Seventeen (Hayden)
4. Lil' Diddy (Hayden)
5. Inspired by the First (Hayden)
6. Something I Saw (Hayden)
7. Its Happening Again (Hayden)
Si's first solo guitar album recorded in 1998 at the age of 23 'Steel Happenings' . All tracks written and performed by S. Hayden recorded with no overdubs in various alternate tunings at RAYCRAIGSTUDIOS. Guitars used: Tracks: 1.2 & 7 Washburn jumbo (mic /magnetic neck pick-up) Tracks: 3,4,5 & 6 Takemine sante fe (mic /piezzo bridge pick-up) Cover shot: Wilson Pickin, guitar in photo: Washburn Jumbo. ©1998 RAYCRARECORDS /SilveryRecords /RC23, Format: Compact Disk, Genre(s): Pop/Jazz, Cat no: RC23, Packaging: Jewel Case (sealed), Release Date: 12/12/1998, Sound Format: Stereo, UPC: 5060080790456 /AMG Album ID: R 936690 /Length: 31:10
Full Discography
Trust Again - Label: Silvery/INAMP - June 2009Sabaca - Label: Silvery - May 2009
The apparent rules of thumb - Label: Silvery - April 2009
Backra Men - Label: Silvery/HeavenTree - April 2008
Scenes from the City - Label: Silvery - March 2008
Live Like Us - Label: Silvery - March 2007
Steel Roots - Label: Silvery - August 2007
The Alchemists vol II - Label: Liquid Note - Jan 2007
Nylon... For Now - Label: Silvery - April 2006
Steel Happenings - Label: RCR/Silvery - December 1998
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Film
DockersBelgrade Theatre Production (2008) Composed Soundtrack
Radio
Tonight I WriteA BBC Radio 4 play written by Manjinder Virk '2003' (Composed track 'Barcelona')
Theatre
Live Like UsBelgrade Theatre Production (2007) Composed, performed and recorded soundtrack (5 nights)
Scenes from the City
Belgrade Theatre Production (2007) Composed, performed and recorded soundtrack (4 shows)
The first time I saw snow
Belgrade Theatre Production (2008) Acted, composed and performed live score (16 shows)
Now you see me, now you dont
Belgrade Theatre Production (2008) Acted, composed, performed live score (4 nights)