singer-songwriter | Musicosity

singer-songwriter

John Hammond

John Paul Hammond (born 13th November 1942), also known as "John Hammond Jr", is a blues singer and guitarist. He usually plays acoustic guitars and dobros and sings in a barrelhouse style. Since 1962, when he made his debut on Vanguard Records, Hammond has made 29 albums. In the 1990s he recorded for the Pointblank label. Hammond has earned one Grammy Award and been nominated for four others. He is the son of the legendary record producer John H. Hammond.

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Ben Harper

Ben Harper (born in Pomona, CA, on 28 October 1969) is an American Grammy-winning singer and songwriter. As well as solo albums, he has recorded as Ben Harper and Tom Freund, Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, Ben Harper And The Blind Boys Of Alabama, Ben Harper and Relentless7, Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite, and Ben & Ellen Harper.

Harper grew up listening to blues, folk, soul, RnB, and reggae. Harper's blend of groove-laden funky soul and folky handcrafted acoustics helped him to gain cult status during the course of the 1990s and widespread attention toward the end of the decade. Harper combines elements of classic folk singers, blues revivalists and jam bands and is embraced by critics and college kids alike. Harper's body of work sells consistently and he tours constantly, building a solid, dedicated fan base.

Harper began playing guitar as a child in his hometown of Claremont, California (in California's Inland Empire). He eventually specialized in the acoustic slide guitar (Weissenborn guitars). As a young man, he recorded an LP (Pleasure and Pain) with fellow folk guitarist Tom Freund. After this limited edition record, Harper got a record deal with Virgin Records, who released his debut album, Welcome to the Cruel World (1994).

This was followed by the incendiary Fight For Your Mind (1995) which became a college radio favorite and generated an abundance of songs which still fill his set list to this day.
In 1999 at the Santa Barbara Bowl, Harper met Jack Johnson, who was unknown at the time and had not recorded. Harper obtained a demo tape of 12 of Johnson's songs that he forwarded to his producer, J.P. Plunier, with whom Johnson recorded his first album.

From early on in his career, his music received more attention in Europe than it did in his home country. While he was a well-known and respected figure in the States, in countries like France, Germany, Switzerland, Portugal, and The Netherlands he was a star, receiving a great deal of airplay and critical acclaim. His popularity in Europe is such that he was French Rolling Stone Magazine's "Artist of the Year" (Artiste De L'Année) in 2003, and his tour that year for Diamonds on the Inside played to packed arenas across the continent.

In 2004, Harper recorded the album "There Will Be a Light" as the collaboration Ben Harper and The Blind Boys of Alabama.

In October 2004, Harper participated in the Vote for Change concert tour organised to benefit Moveon.org and encourage people in the swing states to vote during the 2004 U.S. presidential election.

Over the summer of 2005, when the Zooma tour scheduled with Trey Anastasio and various side stage performers was cancelled, Harper took on a tour of more private clubs/venues such as the Avalon Ballroom in Boston, the Tabernacle in Atlanta, and a full-band acoustic performance at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. This series of concerts saw the debut of a number of new Harper songs, such as "Get It Like You Like It" and "Dressed In Black."

In 2006, Harper released the double album Both Sides of the Gun which debuted at #7 on the Billboard charts.
Next Harper did a worldwide tour, with support from Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley on the North American leg.
In 2007, Harper released the album Lifeline, recorded in Paris just after his tour.

In 2009, Harper recorded the album "White Lies for Dark Times", as the collaboration Ben Harper and Relentless7.

In 2014, Harper recorded the album "Childhood Home" as the collaboration Ben & Ellen Harper.

In 2018, Harper recorded the album "No Mercy in This Land" as the collaboration Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite. At the 40th Blues Music Awards ceremony, Harper's joint composition with Charlie Musselwhite, "No Mercy In This Land", was named as 'Song of the Year'. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

Anika Moa

Anika Moa (born 21st May 1980) is a singer-songwriter from Christchurch, New Zealand. While still at school in Christchurch, Moa entered the 'Smokefree Rockquest'.
She received a record deal with Warner Music in New Zealand and Atlantic Records in New York. The record company had big commercialized plans for her - which conflicted with her brash down-to-earth personality. Overall Moa did not enjoy her time in America and returned to base herself in New Zealand. Her first album was released in 2001.

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Bonnie 'Prince' Billy

<a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Will+Oldham" class="bbcode_artist">Will Oldham</a> (born 24 December 1970, Louisville, Kentucky) is an American <a href="http://www.last.fm/tag/singer-songwriter" class="bbcode_tag" rel="tag">singer-songwriter</a>, actor, and musician. His music is often (perhaps inappropriately) placed under the genre of "<a href="http://www.last.fm/tag/alt-country" class="bbcode_tag" rel="tag">alt-country</a>". Oldham has recorded under many names, including <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Palace" class="bbcode_artist">Palace</a>, <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Palace+Music" class="bbcode_artist">Palace Music</a>, <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Palace+Brothers" class="bbcode_artist">Palace Brothers</a>, and <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/+noredirect/Bonnie+Billy" class="bbcode_artist">Bonnie Billy</a>. He often plays and records with other musicians, including <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/David+Pajo" class="bbcode_artist">David Pajo</a> and his brothers Ned and Paul Oldham, but is generally the chief creator of the music.

The Yearlings

Roots/alt. country duo The Yearlings combine warm harmonies with delicate flat-picking and sparse country blues to create songs that are at once haunting and soothing. Hailing from Adelaide, The Yearlings have pushed new limits in Australia's Roots/Alt. country scene. Robyn Chalklen and Chris Parkinson have wasted no time in getting down to the business of making music since meeting at the Tamworth Country Music Festival in 2000. Their successful self-titled debut album (released on Reckless Records in 2003) was recorded live in 8 hours and long-listed for an ARIA nomination.

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Micah P. Hinson

Micah P. Hinson is a singer/songwriter from Abilene, Texas with a warm, husky voice. His music has an americana/alternative country slant, with hints of gospel and blues. Micah P. Hinson and the Gospel of Progress, his first real album, was produced in 2004 by The Earlies, Micah's friends, collaborators and sometimes tour buddies (where they play as his backing band). In 2005, his earlier 4-track recordings were produced and released properly as an album under the title The Baby & The Satellite. Micah has toured with and opened for artists such as Will Oldham, Iron & Wine, David Gray and Calexico.

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Chris Wollard

Chris Wollard is a singer and guitarist in the band Hot Water Music from Gainesville, Florida. He's also a member of The Draft. Other Gainesville-based projects in which Wollard has participated include The Blacktop Cadence, The Cro(w)s (aka The Sheryl Cro(w) Mags) and, most notably, Rumbleseat, alongside fellow Hot Water Music member Chuck Ragan, as well as bassist/vocalist Samantha Jones. He is also given two co-writing credits on the Bad Religion album The Empire Strikes First for the songs "The Quickening" and "Beyond Electric Dreams".

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Maisey Rika

Maori singer/songwriter Maisey Rika, has one of Aotearoa's (New Zealand's) most impressive lead vocal style, fused with her honest and thought invoking messages. Some have described her sound similar to Tracey Chapman or Sade, with a splash of India Arie. Her spine tingling vocals and fusion of English and Maori (Te Reo) lyrics is capturing the hearts of soul seekers both in New Zealand and abroad.

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Laura Jean

Laura Jean has been gracing Australian stages for many years. Invitations to share them have come from overseas artists such as Mark Kozelek (ex-Red House Painters) Richard Buckner, M. Ward, Faun Fables, Tuck and Patti, and Australian acts like Augie March, Ben Lee, Claire Bowditch, Machine Translations, Gaslight Radio, and Sarah Blasko. Her first E.P, 'The Hunter's Ode' (2003) was embraced by community radio and street press across the country, as well as Triple J. The title track is apparently still sometimes heard late at night.

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Amelia Curran

Amelia Curran is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She was born in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and currently lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The National Post describes her music as “a bit like Leonard Cohen being channeled in a dusty saloon by Patsy Cline.” Curran started playing guitar and writing songs as a teenager and eventually dropped out of university in order to busk on the streets of St. John’s. That led to her first album release in 2000, and since then she has released four more.

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