Career
Along with Corinne Drewery, he is part of the duo that makes up Swing Out Sister. Born in Manchester, England, Connell played in the Manchester post-punk band The Immediates, before joining new wave funk pioneers, A Certain Ratio. A few years later he teamed up with former Magazine drummer Martin Jackson and Greg Wilson (DJ), and they released an inventive electronic album called United Kingdom Electro in 1984.
Swing Out Sister began in earnest in 1985, when Connell and Jackson teamed up with Corinne Drewery.
Since the band"s establishment, he has been the main composer and arranger for Swing Out Sister"s music, including the United Kingdom and United States top ten hit, "Breakout". Apart from his work with Swing Out Sister, Connell has produced and arranged music for other artists, and recently he wrote the musical score for a short film called The Knickerman, directed by Sonja Phillips.
He also contributed to Quando Quango"s album, Pigs & Battleships. Most recently, Connell and Drewery have been promoting their latest album, Beautiful Mess.