Editing Portishead (band) (section)

=== Formation and ''Dummy'' (1991–1995)===
[[Geoff Barrow]] and [[Beth Gibbons]] formed the band after meeting during a coffee break at an [[Enterprise Allowance Scheme|Enterprise Allowance]] course in [[Bristol]] in February 1991. Taking their name from the nearby town of [[Portishead, Somerset|Portishead]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://maps.google.com/maps?ll=51.46513,-2.684784&spn=0.096249,0.251999&z=12|title=Google Maps|website=[[Google Maps]]|access-date=3 November 2018}}</ref> they soon recorded "It Could Be Sweet", their first song for their debut album.<ref name=mojo>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YjJpGhYC1GsC&pg=PA610 |title=The Mojo Collection: The Ultimate Music Companion |page=610 |publisher=Canongate Books|date= 2007|isbn= 978-1841959733 }}</ref> They then met [[Adrian Utley]] while they were recording at the Coach House Studios in Bristol, and Utley heard the first song Barrow and Gibbons had recorded, and began to exchange ideas on music.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/aug/24/portishead-dummy-wasnt-a-chillout-album-25th-anniversary-geoff-barrow-adrian-utley-beth-gibbons |title='Dummy wasn't a chillout album. Portishead had more in common with Nirvana' |first=Jude|last= Rogers|date= 24 August 2019 |work=The Guardian }}</ref> The resulting first album by Portishead, ''[[Dummy (album)|Dummy]]'', was released in 1994. The cover features a still from the band's own short film ''[[To Kill a Dead Man]]''. At this time, Portishead was a duo of Barrow and Gibbons. Adrian Utley (who co-produced the album, performed on nine of the songs, and co-wrote eight) became an official band member shortly after its release.

Despite the band's aversion to press coverage, the album was successful in both Europe and the United States (where it sold more than 150,000 copies even before the band toured there).<ref name="amg">[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p45223|pure_url=yes}} Biography] ''AllMusic''. Retrieved 28 December 2007</ref> ''Dummy'' was positively described by the ''[[Melody Maker]]'' as "musique noire for a movie not yet made".<ref>{{cite journal |last=O'Connell|first= Sharon |title=Portishead Dummy - Review |journal=[[Melody Maker]] |date=3 September 1994 |page=45}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' praised its music as "[[Gothic Rock|Gothic]] hip-hop".<ref>{{cite magazine|author=Evans, Paul |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/dummy-19950309 |title=Dummy review |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=5 March 1995 |access-date=29 April 2014}}</ref> ''Dummy'' spawned three singles: "[[Numb (Portishead song)|Numb]]", "[[Sour Times]]", and "[[Glory Box]]", and won the [[Mercury Prize|Mercury Music Prize]] in 1995.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/guides/456900/456975/html/nn1page5.stm Mercury Music Prize Winners] [[BBC]]. Retrieved 28 December 2007</ref> The success of the album saw the band nominated for Best British Newcomer at the 1995 [[Brit Awards]].<ref name="Brits">[http://www.brits.co.uk/artist/portishead Portishead BRITs Profile] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130204075727/http://www.brits.co.uk/artist/portishead |date=4 February 2013 }} BRIT Awards Ltd. Retrieved 21 November 2012</ref> ''Dummy'' was ranked number 419 on ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of the [[Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time|500 Greatest Albums of All Time]].<ref>{{cite magazine| url = https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time/5| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090430073251/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time/5
 | archive-date = 30 April 2009
 | title = The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
 | magazine=Rolling Stone
 | date = 18 November 2003
 | url-status = dead| access-date =30 May 2009
}}
</ref> The album is often considered one of the greatest [[trip hop]] albums to date and is a milestone in the definition of the genre.