The early years (1959–1988) Nad Sylvan was born Hugh Erik Stewart on June 4, 1959 in
West Covina, California (USA) to the tennis player Hugh Wright Stewart and 19 year old Swedish socialite Agnete Sylvan. The couple settled in Sweden, but soon Hugh’s father returned to California. After the divorce of his parents, Hugh was renamed Erik Christopher by his mother (1966) and, after adopting his mother's surname too (Sylvan), began the evolution of his artistic name that would later become Nad Sylvan. From his earliest years Nad was involved with music. At primary school, he often sat by the piano or at the classroom’s harmonium, discovering the cross hand technique and performing songs with the dream of recording and sending his own compositions to
Jimi Hendrix. During this period he was raised by his grandparents, Astrid and Erik Sylvan, who, despite being a little strict with him, encouraged his passion for music. When, aged eleven, he left his grandparents’ house, there was a two year gap in his contact with music and that was when Christopher discovered his love for horses and riding. He reconnected with music in 1973, becoming the lead singer of his first band, the short-lived and unsuccessful “White Lightning”. In 1975 he fronted “Envoys”, touring Sweden and singing
Uriah Heep covers, like “July Morning” and “Easy Living”. He was also influenced by
Alice Cooper. Between 1976 and 1979 Prog Rock became his realm. He could play every kind of keyboard (organ,
Minimoog, Elka string synthesiser,
Fender Rhodes and
Mellotron) without putting aside his deep fondness for singing. His band, “Avenue”, was influenced by
Genesis,
Yes,
Gentle Giant and
Camel.
Punk rock arrived also on the scene at this time and in 1980 he formed the “Chris Stewart Band”, writing music in the style of
Gino Vannelli and
Al Jarreau. His interest in various musical genres expanded considerably. He enriched his collection of keyboards with a Yamaha electric Grand Piano (
Yamaha CP-80) and a
Roland Jupiter-4. In 1983 Chris signed to Planet Records and released a Disco single, “Midnatt” (Midnight), sung in Swedish. He then joined “Hasse Carlson and the Tectives”, touring Sweden for a year with a repertoire in Swedish. When Hasse left the band, the remaining members changed the name to “One by One” and with Chris as lead singer, released two singles: “Dancing Mono” (written by Chris) and “Say You Never”. No album could be released at that time because the record company had put the band on hold. In Spring 1987 the offer to support two
Lionel Richie shows in
Stockholm and
Gothenburg arrived. However, as the band hadn’t played together for some time, the experience proved disappointing. album had been out for two months when Nad was contacted by another Swedish Prog guru
Roine Stolt from
The Flower Kings and they formed "Agents of Mercy”. Sadly, in the midst of recording their debut album, Nad’s mother died in February 2009, leaving him with the greatest sorrow of his life. He proceeded to finish a song that had been playing in his head for more than 10 years and understood then that it had a very special purpose all along. Nad went on to perform “Long Way from Home” at his mother’s funeral.
Steve Hackett's Genesis Revisited and recent solo albums On 16 April 2012 a call came from
Steve Hackett. Steve and Nad had met for the first time in 2009 at a “Night of the Prog” show in Europe. As well as recording several solo albums after he left
Genesis, Steve had released also two “Genesis Revisited” albums, in 1996 and 2012, the latter featuring extensive vocal contributions by Nad Sylvan. Rehearsals for a long “Genesis Revisited” tour started in London in March 2013. The tour covered the US, Europe, and Japan. This was followed by summer festivals in Europe and another tour of 19 shows covering the East coast of the US and back to England for 12 shows, including one at the
Royal Albert Hall on October 24. In October 2015 Nad’s solo album,
Courting the Widow, released by
Inside Out (Sony), was well received by critics and fans alike, featuring artwork by the painter Claude Martin. The lyrics of the songs also marked the introduction of the
Vampirate character. During the years to 2018, “Genesis Revisited” toured the US several times, performed extensively in South America, Europe and the UK and also appeared in Australia and New Zealand as well as participating in numerous Prog festivals and the “Cruise to the Edge”. In some shows the band was joined by a symphonic orchestra, rendering the Genesis experience even more authentic for the audience. Nad’s second solo album of the trilogy dedicated to the
Vampirate's story, “The Bride Said No”, emerged in May 2017 on the
Inside Out label to great success and critical acclaim. The album, with artworks by Marcela Bolivar and Claude Martin, included contributions by an array of famous musicians in the Prog world, such as
Steve Hackett,
Tony Levin,
Guthrie Govan,
Doane Perry,
Roine Stolt,
Nick D'Virgilio and some widely-respected female musicians and singers such as
Jade Ell, Tania Doko and Sheona Urquhart. Nad also began a collaboration with
Anders Wollbeck, as well as with his old friend
Jade Ell. In January 2018 Nad appeared on the fourth live album with
Steve Hackett. In Nad’s seventh year with “Genesis Revisited”, after two cruises for Prog and Rock fans and during an extensive concert tour started in April 2019,
Inside Out publishes “The Regal Bastard” (July 2019), third solo album concluding the tale of the
Vampirate. It features a collaboration with British guitarist
Guthrie Govan (on the track "I Am The Sea") and many other illustrious musicians from the world of Prog. == Discography==