Stuart Crichton

Stuart Crichton is a music producer and songwriter from Ayr, Scotland, currently based in Los Angeles, California. Starting out in 1989 under the name Solo, Stuart self-released the Sample Free EP in 1990 which featured the song "Rainbow", using the theme tune from the children's show of the same name. It became a cult classic, with copies of the 12-inch vinyl selling for £150 plus at Eastern Blok record shop in Manchester, England. Follow-up records include "Come On" and "So Beautiful" in the early 1990s. In the mid-'90s, he formed the electronic/house music groups Umboza and Narcotic Thrust, the latter an anagram of Crichton's name. They released several singles, including "Safe from Harm", which reached number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart in 2002, and "I Like It", which reached number 16 on the chart in 2004. At this time, Crichton was primarily producing dance tracks, releasing music on early progressive house labels such as FFRR, ZTT and Mushroom, and helping make Limbo Records a big part of the early '90s progressive house scene. In 1998, Crichton had a No. 17 UK Dance hit with the UK garage track "Happy Day", under the alias SJC. Crichton has since written for and produced artists in a variety of genres, including Kylie Minogue, Backstreet Boys, Pet Shop Boys, Selena Gomez, Toni Braxton, Sugababes, DNCE and Kygo. He produced three songs on Stan Walker's 2010 album From the Inside Out, including the singles "Homesick" and "Choose You" (which he also co-wrote). He co-wrote and co-produced Kesha's single "Learn to Let Go", from her 2017 album Rainbow, as well as the track "Let 'em Talk" featuring Eagles of Death Metal. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, and was nominated for the 2018 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album. Three songs he wrote and produced were nominated at the 2019 Grammy Awards: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" by the Backstreet Boys (Best Pop Duo/Group Performance); "Stargazing" by Kygo (Best Remixed Recording); and the album Sex & Cigarettes by Toni Braxton (Best R&B Album). He wrote and produced six songs on the 2019 Backstreet Boys album DNA, which debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 charts. Rolling Stone called Crichton the "common thread on DNA" and Vulture.com called the songs Crichton wrote for the album "the meat of DNA, a breezy collection of three-minute love songs that apply the singers’ airtight melodies to the sound of modern pop radio." Crichton wrote and produced Louis Tomlinson's 2019 single "Don't Let It Break Your Heart". He wrote and produced Kesha's 2019 single "Rich, White, Straight Men", and he wrote and produced four songs on her 2020 album High Road. Crichton lived in London for 18 years, relocated to Sydney, Australia in 2008, and then in 2015 to Los Angeles, California. Stuart Crichton, Native Tongue Music Publishing. Retrieved 23 August 2017. "Top Dance Producer Stuart Crichton and sE in Dance Floor Heaven!" Music Tools, 12 August 2008. Narcotic Thrust Chart History, Billboard. Retrieved 23 August 2017. Elias Leight, "See Kesha Exorcise Her Demons in 'Learn to Let Go' Video," Rolling Stone, 27 July 2017. Gabriel Wilder, "Inside the tropical hideway where hits are made," The Sydney Morning Herald, 25 June 2016. Peter Vincent, "What will Jessica Mauboy sing at Eurovision?" The Sydney Morning Herald, 4 May 2014. Mike Wass, "Ferras, Tarot Cards & A Metaphysician: A Different Kind Of Q&A,"[dead link] Idolator, 4 October 2016. Cameron Adams, "Stan Walker's first original offering," The Daily Telegraph, 18 August 2010. Kesha, "Learn To Let Go," HuffPost, 27 July 2017. Marissa Lorusso, "Kesha Walks Us Through Her 'Rainbow', Track By Track", All Songs Considered, NPR, 11 August 2017. Keith Caulfield, "Kesha's Rainbow Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart," Billboard, 20 August 2017. "Best Pop Vocal Album". grammy.com. Retrieved 14 December 2018. "Artist: Backstreet Boys". grammy.com. Retrieved 14 December 2018. Bein, Kat. "Zedd, Porter Robinson & More DJs React to 2019 Grammy Nominations". billboard.com. Retrieved 14 December 2018. "Best R&B Album". grammy.com. Archived from the original on 22 March 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2018. Leight, Elias (3 February 2019). "The Backstreet Boys Were Hitless for Years. Then They Met Stuart Crichton". rollingstone.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. Caulfield, Keith. "Backstreet Boys Score First No. 1 Album in Nearly 20 Years on Billboard 200 Chart With 'DNA'". billboard.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. Kirkland, Justin (29 January 2019). "I Had to Convince The Backstreet Boys They Were Cool". esquire.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. Dolan, Jon (7 February 2019). "Review: Backstreet's Back With Contemporary-Pop Magic on 'DNA'". rollingstone.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. Jenkins, Craig (5 February 2019). "The Rise and Fall and Rise of the Backstreet Boys". vulture.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. "Louis Tomlinson's new single 'Don't Let It Break Your Heart' is sure to motivate you". radioandmusic.com. Retrieved 31 January 2020. Zemler, Emily (4 June 2019). "Kesha Rids the World of 'Rich, White, Straight Men' on New Track". rollingstone.com. Retrieved 12 June 2019. Kenneally, Cerys. "Kesha pushes back High Road album release date". thelineofbestfit.com. Retrieved 31 January 2020. "Screen Awards". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 30 July 2010. Retrieved 27 August 2010. "Narcotic Thrust – I Like It," europlus.us, 28 May 2016. 2015 APRA Music Awards, 2015. Brandle, Lars (20 May 2026). "Sarah Aarons, Amy and George Sheppard Among Australian Songwriters Saluted With Billion Awards". Billboard. "Nominees and hosts announced for 2026 APRA Music Awards". apraamcos.com. 31 March 2026. "NARCOTIC THRUST | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 July 2020. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40 | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 July 2020. Stuart Crichton at AllMusic