Heidi Berry
Encyclopedia
Heidi Berry is an American
singer-songwriter
who recorded for Creation Records
and 4AD
in the late 1980s and 1990s.
singer with French-Canadian roots, and her father was an actor. Her mother re-married and the family moved to London
in 1973. While studying print-making at college, she recorded a demo tape in 1985, which eventually found its way to Creation Records
boss Alan McGee
via her then boyfriend Pete Astor. She signed to Creation in 1987, releasing Firefly, a six-song mini-album, recorded with Martin Duffy of Felt
on keyboards and members of Astor's band The Weather Prophets
. A full-length album, Below the Waves, followed in 1989, featuring her brother Christopher on acoustic guitar (who also played on her later albums). Her relationship with Creation broke down, and she left, stating "I simply felt that they didn't understand me".
In 1991, Ivo Watts-Russell
asked Berry to sing "'Til I Gain Control Again" on the third album by This Mortal Coil
(Blood), and over the next five years she recorded three albums for 4AD
. Her first album for the label, Love (1991) featured Martin McCarrick (of Siouxsie & the Banshees
), Terry Bickers
and Laurence O'Keefe (of Levitation
), Ian Kearey (Oysterband
) and Lol Coxhill
.
In 1999 she collaborated with Patrick Fitzgerald of Kitchens of Distinction
as The Lost Girls, releasing the single "Needle's Eye".
Berry now teaches at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music
.
, Sandy Denny
, Sarah McLachlan
and Beth Orton
, and described as "highly orchestrated folk-rock" The Boston Globe described her as sounding "like a majestic cross between Sandy Denny, Enya and Sade". Charlotte Robinson of PopMatters
described here styles as essentially "folk", with "dark, Celtic instrumental flourishes and layered vocals". Berry cites Billie Holiday
and Chrissie Hynde
as influences.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
who recorded for Creation Records
Creation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
and 4AD
4AD
4AD is a British independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still active today...
in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Biography
Born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1958, Berry's mother was a jazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
singer with French-Canadian roots, and her father was an actor. Her mother re-married and the family moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1973. While studying print-making at college, she recorded a demo tape in 1985, which eventually found its way to Creation Records
Creation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
boss Alan McGee
Alan McGee
Alan McGee has been a record label owner, musician, manager, and music blogger for The Guardian.McGee is best-known for co-forming and running the independent Creation Records label from 1983–1999, and then Poptones from 1999-2007...
via her then boyfriend Pete Astor. She signed to Creation in 1987, releasing Firefly, a six-song mini-album, recorded with Martin Duffy of Felt
Felt (band)
Felt were a 1980s British alternative rock band led by Lawrence, whose surname was never listed in any credits or press; the band's name was inspired by Tom Verlaine's emphasis of the word "felt" in the Television song "Venus"...
on keyboards and members of Astor's band The Weather Prophets
The Weather Prophets
The Weather Prophets were a British indie band formed in London in 1986 after the break-up of The Loft. After two studio albums, the band split up, with singer Peter Astor going on to a solo career.- History :...
. A full-length album, Below the Waves, followed in 1989, featuring her brother Christopher on acoustic guitar (who also played on her later albums). Her relationship with Creation broke down, and she left, stating "I simply felt that they didn't understand me".
In 1991, Ivo Watts-Russell
Ivo Watts-Russell
Ivo Watts-Russell was joint-founder with Peter Kent of the English indie record label 4AD. He has also produced several records, himself preferring to use the term "musical director" to explain his role in the creation....
asked Berry to sing "'Til I Gain Control Again" on the third album by This Mortal Coil
This Mortal Coil
This Mortal Coil was a gothic dream pop supergroup led by Ivo Watts-Russell, founder of the British record label 4AD. Although Watts-Russell and John Fryer were technically the only two official members, the band's recorded output featured a large rotating cast of supporting artists, many of whom...
(Blood), and over the next five years she recorded three albums for 4AD
4AD
4AD is a British independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still active today...
. Her first album for the label, Love (1991) featured Martin McCarrick (of Siouxsie & the Banshees
Siouxsie & the Banshees
Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin. Initially associated with the English punk rock scene, the band rapidly evolved to create "a form of post-punk discord full of daring rhythmic and sonic experimentation"...
), Terry Bickers
Terry Bickers
Terry Bickers is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known as a member of the rock bands The House of Love and Levitation...
and Laurence O'Keefe (of Levitation
Levitation (band)
Levitation were an English rock band fronted by ex-House of Love guitarist Terry Bickers. Levitation's music and attitude challenged an early 1990s UK alternative music scene dominated by shoegazing and Madchester....
), Ian Kearey (Oysterband
Oysterband
Oysterband is a British electric folk or folk rock band formed in Canterbury in or around 1976.-Early history:...
) and Lol Coxhill
Lol Coxhill
Lowen Coxhill, generally known as Lol Coxhill is a free improvising saxophonist and raconteur...
.
In 1999 she collaborated with Patrick Fitzgerald of Kitchens of Distinction
Kitchens of Distinction
Kitchens of Distinction were a three-person alternative rock/dream pop band formed in Tooting, South London, England in 1986...
as The Lost Girls, releasing the single "Needle's Eye".
Berry now teaches at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music
Brighton Institute of Modern Music
BIMM Brighton & Bristol Institutes of Modern Music in England is an independent college of popular music based in the cities of Brighton & Hove and Bristol...
.
Musical style
Her music has been compared to Nick DrakeNick Drake
Nicholas Rodney "Nick" Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician. Though he is best known for his sombre guitar based songs, Drake was also proficient at piano, clarinet and saxophone...
, Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny , born Alexandra Elene Maclean Denny, was an English singer and songwriter, perhaps best known as the lead singer for the folk rock band Fairport Convention...
, Sarah McLachlan
Sarah McLachlan
Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC, OBC is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. Known for her emotional ballads and mezzo-soprano vocal range, as of 2006, she has sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is Surfacing, for which she won two Grammy Awards and four...
and Beth Orton
Beth Orton
Beth Orton is a BRIT Award–winning English singer-songwriter, known for her 'folktronica' sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit and the Chemical Brothers in the mid 1990s. However, these were not Orton's first...
, and described as "highly orchestrated folk-rock" The Boston Globe described her as sounding "like a majestic cross between Sandy Denny, Enya and Sade". Charlotte Robinson of PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
described here styles as essentially "folk", with "dark, Celtic instrumental flourishes and layered vocals". Berry cites Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
and Chrissie Hynde
Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen "Chrissie" Hynde is an US musician best known as the leader of the rock/new wave band the Pretenders. She is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and has been the only constant member of the band throughout its history.-Early life and career:Hynde is the daughter of a part-time...
as influences.
Albums
- Firefly (1987), Creation
- Below the Waves (1989), Creation
- Love (1991), 4AD
- Heidi Berry (1993), 4AD
- Miracle (1996), 4AD
- Pomegranate: an Anthology (2001), 4AD - compilation of 4AD and Creation material
Singles, EPs
- Distant Thunder (1992), Warner Bros. - promo CD with "Zither Song", "You Upset the Grace of Living When You Lie", "Gloria"
- Soil Samples 13 (1993), Warner Bros. - 7-inch promo single, "Unholy Light" (B-side by UnrestUnrest (band)Unrest is an indie rock band from the Washington, D.C. area. It was one of Mark Robinson's projects for what would eventually become the TeenBeat label, also created by Mark while in high school. Developing from an experimental approach of never playing the same song twice, earlier material seemed...
) - The Moon and the Sun (1993), 4AD