Nikki Sudden (born Adrian Nicholas Godfrey in London on 19 July 1956; died 26 March 2006) was a prolific English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He co-founded the post-punk band Swell Maps with his brother, Epic Soundtracks, while attending Solihull School in Solihull and subsequently Jacobites.

After the post-punk band Swell Maps dissolved in the early '80s, lead singer Sudden began a diverse and maddening solo career, during which he performed with a number of different bands and side projects. Sudden released his first solo record, Waiting on Egypt, in 1982, followed closely by The Bible Belt in 1983; both records recalled Swell Maps. Mike Scott and Anthony Thistlewaite of The Waterboys both played on the album, Scott writing the track Road of Broken Dreams - later covered by Sudden in the Jacobites.

In 1984, Sudden formed Jacobites with drummer Epic Soundtracks and guitarist/vocalist Dave Kusworth, who co-wrote the material with Sudden. The band developed a laid-back pop style, driven by acoustic guitars and a rolling rhythm section reminiscent of the Velvet Underground. Jacobites released four albums and three EPs between 1984 and 1986, when Kusworth left the band. Sudden continued with the Jacobites name, releasing Texas on the Creation label in 1986.

During the late '80s, Sudden ditched Jacobites and began making music that strongly recalled early Rolling Stones. While none of his albums ever attracted a large audience, Sudden remained a cult favourite throughout his career. High-profile guests began appearing on his albums with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy lending a hand to 1999's Red Brocade and the Faces' keyboardist Ian McLagan playing on the 2004 release Treasure Island, whilst members of REM appeared and produced Sudden's The Jewel Thief. On March 26, 2006, Sudden passed away after a gig in New York City. He had just finished a new album, The Truth Doesn't Matter, which was released in October of that year.
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