Tricky

Solo Artist

Photo: alterna2 · CC BY 2.0
Active 1985-present
Origin Bristol, England
Albums 12
Tracks 148
Most frequent collaborator The Antlers · 15 tracks
Genres Trip HopExperimentalElectronic
Collaborator
51%
Authorship

Holds writing credit on 76 of 148 tracks

Does Tricky write his own songs?

On the albums where anyone is credited, yes. He is on 76 of the 85 tracks that carry a writing credit and is the only writer on 30. Five of his twelve albums publish no credits for anybody.

By the Numbers

12
Studio Albums
148
Tracks Credited
51%
Self-Written
41
Years Active
72
Collaborators

Authorship Breakdown 76 / 148 self-written

Who wrote the songs?

Across all 148 tracks: how many Tricky wrote alone, how many they co-wrote, and how many were written by others. The bracket marks every track they hold any writing credit on.

Tricky has a writing credit51%
20%
31%
49%
Sole author30tracks20%
Co-written46tracks31%
Outside writers72tracks49%

Role Fingerprint how they contribute

Lyricist Performer Composer Producer
Tricky's roles across the catalogue

Share of all 148 tracks where they are personally credited, by role.

Lyricist (words)45%
Composer (music)51%
Producer88%
Performer100%

Authorship Over Time writing credit per album

Tricky's writing credit per album, in release order. Hover any bar for the album.

avg 51%
0%
0%
0%
100%
0%
0%
92%
90%
87%
69%
92%
100%
1995Maxinquaye
1996Pre-Millennium Tension
1998Angels with Dirty Faces
1999Juxtapose
2001Blowback
2003Vulnerable
2008Knowle West Boy
2010Mixed Race
2013False Idols
2014Adrian Thaws
2017Ununiform
2020Fall to Pieces
Early · 100% written
Mid · 75% written
Late · 87% written

Authorship by Decade track-weighted

100%
1990s
Maxinquaye, Pre-Millennium Tension +2 more
67%
2000s
Blowback, Vulnerable +1 more
84%
2010s
Mixed Race, False Idols +2 more
100%
2020s
Fall to Pieces

Authorship Spectrum pure performer to complete author

Where Tricky sits on the scale from a pure performer (0%, sings songs written by others) to a complete author (100%, writes everything). The bright marker is their catalogue authorship score, plotted against other artists on the site.

Tricky
Other artists on the site

Reference artists spread across the scale, closest by genre and era.

Katseye0%
Selena13%
Ricky Martin25%
Salt-N-Pepa35%
Rihanna44%
Rick Astley73%
Björk96%
51%Tricky
Pure Performer0%
Songwriter~50%
Complete Author100%

Discography 12 albums

Twelve studio albums released under the name Tricky. The discography also lists records credited to Nearly God, Skilled Mechanics, Lonely Guest, Theis Thaws and Tricky Meets South Rakkas Crew, plus Different When It's Silent, which has no article. Those sit outside this catalogue.

Collaborator Network who they worked with most

Tricky148 tracks
TA15The Antlers, 15 tracks FR15Fifi Rong, 15 tracks 13Bernard Butler, 13 tracks M9Marta, 9 tracks MS8Mark Saunders, 8 tracks on Florence and the Machine's page FB8Francesca Belmonte, 8 tracks DG5Dame Grease, 5 tracks DM5DJ Muggs, 5 tracks on Cypress Hill's page DB5Damon Blackmon, 5 tracks JT5Jeff Tetteh, 5 tracks MD4Mad Dog, 4 tracks S4Scriptonite, 4 tracks OL3Oh Land, 3 tracks KW2Kioka Williams, 2 tracks VC2Veronika Coassolo, 2 tracks FC2Francesca Cherry Belmont, 2 tracks N2Nneka, 2 tracks T2Tirzah, 2 tracks MR2Mina Rose, 2 tracks HB1Howie B, 1 track KP1Kevin Petrie, 1 track RK1Richard Keller, 1 track RK1Rich Keller, 1 track D1D'NA, 1 track AM1Alanis Morissette, 1 track EK1Ed Kowalczyk, 1 track on Live's page GH1Garrison Hawk, 1 track AK1Anthony Kiedis, 1 track on Red Hot Chili Peppers's page JF1John Frusciante, 1 track on Red Hot Chili Peppers's page CL1Cyndi Lauper, 1 track AM1Alex Mills, 1 track JF1Joseph Franklin Hunt, 1 track KM1Kylie Minogue, 1 track DC1Dan Carey, 1 track ET1Emilíana Torrini, 1 track MD1Mr. Dan, 1 track DE1David Essex, 1 track TB1Thomas Bangalter, 1 track on Daft Punk's page GD1Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, 1 track on Daft Punk's page RH1Russell Hergert, 1 track TW1Theresa Williams, 1 track HH1Hakim Hamadouche, 1 track NA1Noel Anthony Phillips, 1 track BG1Bobby Gillespie, 1 track MT1Marlon Thaws, 1 track OB1Ochoa Blackman, 1 track PS1Patti Smith, 1 track NL1Nneka Lucia Egbuna, 1 track RR1Richard Rodgers, 1 track LH1Lorenz Hart, 1 track SS1Sharon Shy, 1 track HF1Henry Frost, 1 track DS1David Sylvian, 1 track MB1Mykki Blanco, 1 track B1Bugle, 1 track AJ1Alan Johnson, 1 track RP1Rodney Panton, 1 track BG1Bella Gotti) (, 1 track BD1Blue Daisy, 1 track KD1Kwesi Darko, 1 track NL1No Lay, 1 track BG1Bella Gotti, 1 track DB1Dennis Bovell, 1 track NØ1Nanna Øland Fabricius, 1 track ST1Silver Tongue, 1 track AA1Asia Argento, 1 track TL1Terra Lopez, 1 track CL1Courtney Love, 1 track AL1Avalon Lurks, 1 track SM1Smoky Mo, 1 track MT1Martina Topley-Bird, 1 track

Bubble size = tracks worked on together. TA The Antlers · FR Fifi Rong · M Marta · MS Mark Saunders · FB Francesca Belmonte

Photo credits

Portraits in the web and the rail come from Wikimedia Commons. The artist's own photo carries its credit under the picture.

The Authorship Story

Data Insight

He is credited on 76 of his 148 studio tracks and is the only writer on 30. Five albums publish no writing credit at all, which accounts for 63 of the 72 tracks he is not on. On the seven that do carry credits, he is on 76 of 85, and the singers who front the songs take most of the rest.

Quick Facts

  • Self-writtenCredited on 76 of the 85 tracks that carry any writing credit
  • Written alone30 tracks carry his name and no other
  • UndocumentedFive of the twelve albums publish no writing credit for anyone
  • Biggest albumMaxinquaye sold 222,000 in the United States
  • Where he startedRapping on the first two Massive Attack albums
  • Who singsMartina Topley-Bird and a rotating cast after her

Creative Fingerprint

A producer who writes almost everything and hands the singing to somebody else, on records that often forget to say who wrote them.

The Story

Adrian Thaws rapped on the first two Massive Attack albums before making Maxinquaye in 1995, which sold 222,000 in the United States and is still the record he is known for. Twelve studio albums have followed under the name Tricky, plus a run of records credited to other aliases.

Frequently Asked Questions Tricky

Does Tricky write his own songs?
On the albums where anyone is credited, yes. He is on 76 of the 85 tracks that carry a writing credit and is the only writer on 30. Five of his twelve albums publish no credits for anybody.
How many albums has he released?
Twelve studio albums under the name Tricky, from Maxinquaye in 1995 to Fall to Pieces in 2020.
Which album sold the most?
Maxinquaye, at 222,000 in the United States. Pre-Millennium Tension sold 218,000.
Was he in Massive Attack?
He rapped and wrote on five tracks across Blue Lines and Protection before leaving in 1994.
Who is Martina Topley-Bird?
The singer who fronts most of Maxinquaye and the two albums after it. She was seventeen when they made the first one.
Why are so many albums uncredited?
Maxinquaye, Pre-Millennium Tension, Angels with Dirty Faces, Blowback and Vulnerable all publish track listings with no writer column and no blanket credit line.
Which album does he write most of himself?
Ununiform and Fall to Pieces, where twelve and eleven tracks carry only his name.
What are the other names he records under?
Nearly God, Skilled Mechanics, Lonely Guest and Theis Thaws all have albums in the discography. Those are credited to those names and sit outside this catalogue.
Did his singles chart in America?
No single from any of his albums entered the Billboard Hot 100.
Is he still recording?
Fall to Pieces came out in 2020 and is the most recent album under the name Tricky.

Sources

Wikipedia: Tricky File:Tricky - Sala Bikini, Barcelona - Wikimedia Commons