World Cafe's guest today is Ben Watt from Everything But The Girl, the band he led with his partner (now wife) Tracey Thorn in the '80s and '90s. He has a new solo album called Hendra, which he recorded with Suede guitarist Bernard Butler.
Watt has had a fascinating career; he turned to underground DJing as Everything But The Girl disbanded, prompting him to eventually form his own house-music label. He's recently tabled pursuits and turned to writing instead. Watt's new book, Romany and Tom, is about his parents and the life he discovered they'd led. His first book, 1996's Patient, was written as he recovered from the rare Churg-Strauss Syndrome, which landed him in the hospital for two and a half months.
In this World Cafe session, Watt touches on these topics and performs songs from Hendra.
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