Heidi Berry

All Music Guide:

Heidi Berry cut a stark contrast to the prevailing musical mentality of the early '90s -- despite releasing records on both Creation and 4AD, together the leading lights of the shoegazing and dream pop movements, her haunting, luminous folk-inspired sound instead harked back to the work of Sandy Denny and Nick Drake, complete with an earnestness and raw honesty far removed from her irony drenched times. Berry was born in 1958 and raised in Boston, MA, the child of an American actor father and a French-Canadian jazz-singing mother. In 1973, her mother remarried and the family relocated to London, where Berry began writing songs in the mold of heroines like Marianne Faithfull and Chrissie Hynde; in 1985, while studying painting and printmaking at Middlesex Polytechnic, she recorded a private demo tape that then-boyfriend Pete Astor (later of the Loft, Weather Prophets, and Wisdom of Harry fame) suggested she shop around. Berry declined the offer, but a copy of the tape still made its way to Creation honcho Alan McGee, who tracked her down and offered a record deal. She accepted, and issued her six-song debut Fireflyin 1987; owing far more to Linda Thompson than Creation labelmates like the Jesus & Mary Chain, it was followed two years later by Below the Waves, a stark, poignant effort highlighted by the fan favorite "North Shore Train." Berry's relationship with Creation grew strained, however, and while opening for Felt and Lush, she was spotted by 4AD founder Ivo Watts-Russell, who asked her to record a cover of Emmylou Harris' "'Til I Gain Control Again" for 1991's Blood, the third LP by his rotating musical collective This Mortal Coil. Berry signed to 4AD to release her next solo effort, 1991's Love, recorded with producer Pete Walsh and an ace backing group including Levitation guitarist Terry Bickers and bassist Laurence O'Keefe, in addition to avant-garde saxophonist Lol Coxhill. Her self-titled masterpiece followed in 1993, notching a minor hit with the lovely "The Sun and the Moon" and yielding an American tour alongside fellow 4AD act Red House Painters. However, despite continued critical acclaim, 1995's Miracle failed to make waves behind Berry's cult audience and she was released from her contract. With the exception of the 1999 single "Needle's Eye" -- recorded with former Kitchens of Distinction frontman Patrick Fitzgerald under the name Lost Girls -- she remained silent in the years to follow. The compilation Pomegranate appeared on 4AD in 2000.

Wikipedia:

Heidi Berry (born 1958) is an American singer-songwriter who recorded for Creation Records and 4AD in the late 1980s and 1990s.

Biography

Born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1958, Berry's mother was a jazz 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.

Musical style

Her music has been compared to Nick Drake, 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 her styles as essentially "folk", with "dark, Celtic instrumental flourishes and layered vocals". Berry cites Billie Holiday and Chrissie Hynde as influences.