Singer/songwriter
Annabel Lamb was born in Surrey, England. When Annabel was
five years old, her father lifted her up and sat her on the
refrigerator in their kitchen. He said, "I'm going to play
you some music and I want you to close your eyes and listen
to it. Then, when it's finished, I want you to tell me what
the music made you think about." He went into the other room
and put a record on.
Annabel continues, "Dad turned the volume up really loud and
left the door between the two rooms open so that the music
flowed through to where I was sitting. It was beautiful music,
music that I had never heard before, and I loved it. As I
sat there listening, images began to appear behind my closed
eyelids, rushing, rippling water, swirling, drifting tide,
the sea, the ocean! (I had seen the ocean before and was already
in love with it). The music stopped and I opened my eyes after
a few moments, amazed and dazzled by what I had seen. My father smiled at me." "Well?" he asked. I smiled back at
him, "the sea Dad, it made me see the sea!". He grabbed me
then and danced me round and round the room in his arms. "Good
girl", he kept saying, "Good girl!" The piece of music was
Debussy's "La Mer". Annabel has never forgotten that first
realisation of the power of music. "I think I was hooked from
that moment onwards." Her abiding love for music in general and her skill as a lyricist
have allowed her to be diverse at times and to explore different
areas, her earlier albums showing jazz and ethnic influences
in a contemporary setting. Having been compared with many
singers, (Annie Lennox and Chrissie Hynde to name two), she
has always taken these comparisons as compliments whilst never
wishing to be pigeonholed. She has made albums for A&M Records, BMG/RCA, Polygram and,
most recently, BMG label Red Rooster in Germany, where she
recorded the album "Flow".
In 1996 she met Rick Goldstein of "Way Out West Records" and
between them they decided to release "Flow" in the UK. During
the writing and recording of "Flow", Annabel began a close
association with cowriter and producer Dave Dix (producer
of "Black", Alison Moyet and Melanie Garside), and under his
influence and guidance, "Flow" was produced. As well as her
recording and touring career, Annabel has co-written songs
with many other artists and songwriters, notably the song
"Amazed Are We" for Maxi Priest. She also writes short stories and is currently working on
her first novel. Amongst her influences, she lists James Taylor,
Bonnie Raitt, the Canadian singer/songwriter Jane Siberry,
Fairport Convention, Paul Brady and a host of others. "Flow"
wins over the listener almost immediately with it's emotional
depth, simple song structures, strong melody, power and joie-de-vivre.
"I am a new-age country artist", she laughs. "To me, true
success as an artist comes from writing something which touches
people and with which they can identify. If someone offered
me a million pounds I wouldn't say no, but if I had to give
up my definition of success to have it, then the only benefit
would be that I could be miserable in comfort!" |