Joanna Newsom: Difference between revisions
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== Personal life == |
== Personal life == |
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Newsom's family includes her brother Pete, a fellow musician, and sister Emily, who inspired her song "Emily" (and contributed backing vocals). She is the second cousin, twice removed, of [[Lieutenant Governor of California|Lieutenant Governor]] [[Gavin Newsom]] of California.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfbg.com/38/09/art_music_pleased.html |title=San Francisco Bay Guardian article, 2003 |publisher=Sfbg.com |date=2003-11-26 |accessdate=2010-11-07}}</ref> She has dated [[Noah Georgeson]], [[Bill Callahan (musician)|Bill Callahan]] and is dating [[Andy Samberg]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article7032768.ece |title=The Times article, 2010|publisher=timesonline.co.uk |date=2010-02-20 |accessdate=2010-11-07}}</ref> |
Newsom's family includes her brother Pete, a fellow musician, and sister Emily, who inspired her song "Emily" (and contributed backing vocals). She is the second cousin, twice removed, of [[Lieutenant Governor of California|Lieutenant Governor]] [[Gavin Newsom]] of California.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfbg.com/38/09/art_music_pleased.html |title=San Francisco Bay Guardian article, 2003 |publisher=Sfbg.com |date=2003-11-26 |accessdate=2010-11-07}}</ref> She has dated [[Noah Georgeson]], [[Bill Callahan (musician)|Bill Callahan]], [[Newt Gingrich]], and is dating [[Andy Samberg]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article7032768.ece |title=The Times article, 2010|publisher=timesonline.co.uk |date=2010-02-20 |accessdate=2010-11-07}}</ref> |
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== Discography == |
== Discography == |
Revision as of 12:24, 14 November 2011
Joanna Newsom | |
---|---|
![]() Joanna Newsom in 2007 | |
Background information | |
Genres | Indie folk |
Instrument(s) | Voice Harp Piano Harpsichord |
Labels | Drag City |
Partner(s) | Andy Samberg (2010-present) |
Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American harpist, pianist and singer-songwriter from Nevada City, California.
Early life
Newsom grew up in the small town of Nevada City, California. As a child, Newsom was not allowed to watch television or listen to the radio because she was raised by doctors who were "kind of idealists when it came to hoping they could protect us from bad influences, like violent movies, or stupid stuff".[1] She was exposed to music from a young age. Her father played the guitar and her mother was a classically trained pianist who played the hammered dulcimer, the autoharp and conga drums.[2][3] She attended a Waldorf school where she studied theater and learned to memorize and recite long poems. This skill helps her to remember lyrics while on tour.[4]
At the age of 5, Newsom asked her parents if she could play the harp. Her parents eventually agreed to sign her up for harp lessons, but the local harp teacher did not want to take on such a young student and suggested she learn to play the piano first. Starting at the age of four, she began playing the piano and later the harp, which she "loved from the first lesson onward."[5] From her instructor, Joanna learned composition and improvisation. She learned to play on smaller Celtic harps until her parents bought her a full-size pedal harp in the seventh grade.[6] During her teens, she and the instrument became inseparable, and she describes her relationship with the harp as similar to "an artificial limb or a wheelchair. It’s almost part of me, but more to the point, it serves a purpose, and if it wasn’t there I would wonder what was supposed to fit in its place."[1]
She studied composition and creative writing at Mills College in Oakland, California. While at Mills, she played keyboards in The Pleased. She dropped out of the school in order to focus on her music.[1]
Career
In 2002 and 2003, Newsom recorded two EPs, Walnut Whales and Yarn and Glue. These homemade recordings were intended to serve as a document of her early work; she recorded them on a Fisher-Price tape recorder.[7] These EPs were not intended for public distribution. At the suggestion of Noah Georgeson, her boyfriend at the time and the EPs' recorder, she burned several copies to sell at her early shows.[7] John Fellman, co-producer of Mission Creek Music and Arts Festival, claims to be the first to have booked a show for her.[8]
A friend of Newsom's passed one of these CDs on to Will Oldham at a show in Nevada City. Oldham was impressed with Newsom's music and asked her to tour with him. He also gave a copy of the CD to the owner of Drag City, his record label. Drag City signed Newsom and released her debut album The Milk-Eyed Mender in 2004.[9] Shortly thereafter, Newsom toured with Devendra Banhart and Vetiver and made an early UK appearance at the Green Man Festival in Wales, returning to headline in 2005, 2007 and 2010.
Newsom's work has become prominent on the indie scene. Her profile has risen, in part, due to a number of live shows and appearances on shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC.
Her second album Ys was released in November 2006. The album features orchestrations and arrangements by Van Dyke Parks, engineering from Steve Albini and mixing by Drag City label-mate Jim O'Rourke. On a road trip, Bill Callahan recommended she listen to the album Song Cycle by Parks, which led to his being chosen to arrange her work on Ys.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Joanna_Newsom_tunes_harp.jpg/220px-Joanna_Newsom_tunes_harp.jpg)
Joanna is known to debut songs impromptu at her concerts. On March 28, 2009, she performed over two hours of new material at a 'secret' concert in Big Sur, California with fellow Nevada City singer-songwriter Mariee Sioux under the pseudonym 'The Beatles's'. Those in attendance reported that about one-third of her new material was played primarily on piano, with a backing arrangement of banjo, violin, guitar and drums.[10]
Since late 2006, Joanna has performed a solo harp version of the traditional Scottish song "Ca the Yowes Tae the Knowes".[11]
Several of the songs on The Milk-Eyed Mender have been covered by her peers. "Bridges and Balloons" was covered by The Decemberists on their 2005 EP Picaresqueties. "Sprout and the Bean" has been covered by The Moscow Coup Attempt and Sholi. "Peach, Plum, Pear" has been covered by Final Fantasy (Owen Pallett) on the 2006 EP Young Canadian Mothers, as well as by Straylight Run. M Ward has played "Sadie" at some of his live shows.[12]
In 2009, she appeared in the music video for the song "Kids" by the group MGMT.[13]
On January 12, 2010, an entry cryptically entitled "@!?*(%$#!!" was posted on the Drag City website. It contained a link which led to a short comic strip titled "Joanna Newsom 'Have One on Me'" with a date of February 23, 2010.[14] Later that day, it was confirmed by Spunk, Newsom's Australian label, that the title and date represented the title of Newsom's upcoming album and its release date.[15] P-Vine Records in Japan announced that Have One on Me, which was recorded in Tokyo in 2009, would be released in Japan on March 3, 2010, as a 3-disc CD set, with a total of approximately three hours of new recordings.[16] Newsom was chosen by Matt Groening to perform at the edition of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival he curated in May 2010 in Minehead, England.
On February 11, 2010, Pitchfork Media reported that Newsom would be the subject of a tribute book titled Visions of Joanna Newsom which has now been published by Roan Press.[17] She toured throughout Europe and America in 2010 to promote her latest record, supported by a five-man band. In December 2010, a tribute album of Newsom covers was released as a digital download. Artists involved include M. Ward, Billy Bragg and Owen Pallett, with all proceeds going to Oxfam America's Pakistan Flood Relief Efforts.[18]
On July 19, 2011, Newsom's second single, What We Have Known, was released on 12" vinyl. The single was originally the b-side to her first single, Sprout and the Bean.[19] In June 2011, she filmed her second music video (for the song "Good Intentions Paving Company") with directors Karni & Saul.[20] Recently Joanna has been chosen by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he will curate in December 2011 in Minehead, England.[21]
Style
Newsom's earlier work was strongly influenced by polyrhythms.[22] Her harp teacher, Diana Stork, taught her the basic pattern of four beats against three which creates an interlocking, shifting pattern that can be heard on Ys, particularly in the middle section of "Sawdust & Diamonds." After Ys, Newsom said she had lost interest in polyrhythms. They "stopped being fascinating to me and started feeling wanky."[23]
The media have sometimes labeled her as one of the most prominent members of the modern psych folk movement. Joanna, however, makes no ties to any particular music scene.[24] Her songwriting incorporates elements of Appalachian music and avant-garde modernism.
Newsom's vocal style (in the November 2006 issue of The Wire she described her voice as "untrainable") has shadings of folk and Appalachian shaped-note timbres. Newsom has, however, expressed disappointment at comments that her singing is "child-like."[24]
Critics noticed a change in Newsom's voice on her latest album.[25][26] In the spring of 2009, Newsom developed vocal cord nodules and could not speak or sing for two months. The recovery from the nodules and further "vocal modifications" changed her voice.[27][28][29]
Collaborations
In addition to her solo work, Newsom has played on records by Smog, Vetiver, Nervous Cop, The Year Zero, Vashti Bunyan, Moore Brothers, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Golden Shoulders and The Roots[30] and played keyboards for The Pleased.
Personal life
Newsom's family includes her brother Pete, a fellow musician, and sister Emily, who inspired her song "Emily" (and contributed backing vocals). She is the second cousin, twice removed, of Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom of California.[31] She has dated Noah Georgeson, Bill Callahan, Newt Gingrich, and is dating Andy Samberg.[32]
Discography
- Albums
- The Milk-Eyed Mender (Drag City, 2004)
- Ys (Drag City, 2006) US #134, UK #41
- Have One on Me (Drag City, 2010)[33] US #75, UK #28
- Early unofficial recordings
- Walnut Whales (self-released, 2002)
- Yarn and Glue (self-released, 2003)
- EPs
- Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band (Drag City, 2007) UK #135[34]
- Singles
- "Sprout and the Bean" (Drag City, 2004)
- "What We Have Known" (Drag City, 2011)
Licensing of songs
- In 2004, "Peach, Plum, Pear" played over the credits of the animated short City Paradise.
- In 2004, "This Side of the Blue" was used on a British television commercial for Orange SA.
- In 2006, "Sprout and the Bean" was used in a tourism ad for Melbourne, Australia.
- In 2007, "Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie" was used in the PBS documentary Following Sean.
- In 2007, "Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie" was sung by an aspiring musician in the film Great World of Sound.
- In 2008, "Sprout and the Bean" was featured in the film The Strangers.
- In 2008, "Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie" was used in a television commercial for HSBC.
- In 2008, "The Book of Right-On" was used in an MTV ad for sexual care and education.
- In 2009, "The Book of Right-On" was licensed for the end credits of the Mexican/Italian film The Best of Feelings
- In 2009, "Sprout and the Bean" was used in a Victoria's Secret Bra commercial.
- In 2009, the harp intro of "Cosmia" was used in the Louis Theroux documentary "A Place for Paedophiles."
- In 2009, "Sprout and the Bean" was used again in a tourism ad for Melbourne, Australia.
- In 2009, a shorter edit of "Inflammatory Writ" was used in ads for the Spanish TV channel La Sexta [35]
- In 2010, "Bridges & Balloons" was used in an LG commercial.[36]
References
- ^ a b c Heawood, Sophie (2010-02-20). "The conversation: Joanna Newsom". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 2010-12-30.
- ^ "First interview, May 2003". The Portable Infinite. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ "The Wire interview". The Wire. 2004-12-23. Archived from the original on 2004-12-23. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Zine, Venus (2006-12-01). "Venus Zine interview, December 2006". Venuszine.com. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ "Chickfactor interview, circa 2005". Chickfactor.com. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Joanna Newsom: Don’t Call Her A Prodigy. Or Maybe Do., West Coast Performer, September 2003
- ^ a b "Under the Radar". Web.archive.org. 2007-10-13. Archived from the original on 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Harmanci, Reyhan. "Playing By The Bookings". San Francisco Chronicle. May 29, 2005
- ^ The Wire, 2004
- ^ Woolf, Devin (March 31, 2009). "Joanna Newsom Debuts New Record at Surprise Fernwood Show in Big Sur". Naturalismo.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: postscript (link) - ^ Sauma, Luiza (2007-01-23). "Joanna Newsom, Barbican, London <!- none onestar twostar threestar fourstar -> - Reviews, Music". The Independent. Retrieved 2009-10-09.
- ^ “” (2006-09-07). "M. Ward - "Sadie" live". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Daniel Kreps. "MGMT Cast Joanna Newsom, Kid, Monsters in "Kids" Video : Rolling Stone : Rock and Roll Daily". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-10-09.
- ^ "@!?*(%$#!!". Dragcity.com. 2010-01-12. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Joanna Newsom Have One on Me Out February 19[dead link]
- ^ "Joanna Newsom: Feb 8, 2010, Scott Hall, Waseda". Metropolis Magazine. February 9, 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-09.
- ^ "Joanna Newsom Gets Her Own Scholarly Tribute Book". Pitchfork. 2010-02-11. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Versions of Joanna
- ^ What We Have Known 12 single release
- ^ Photos From Joanna Newsom’s “Good Intentions Paving Company” Video Shoot
- ^ ATP curated by Jeff Mangum
- ^ "NEARER THE HEART OF THINGS: Erik Davis on Joanna Newsom (Arthur Magazine)". Arthurmag.com. 2006-12-23. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Randall Roberts (2007-11-07). "Mending the Gap". LA Weekly. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ a b Rebecca Milzoff (2005). "Q&A With Joanna Newsom". New York Magazine.
{{cite web}}
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ignored (help) - ^ "Joanna Newsom Have One On Me - Review of Joanna Newsom's Triple Album Have One On Me". Altmusic.about.com. 2010-02-23. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ 09:53am. "Music - Review of Joanna Newsom - Have One on Me". BBC. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Heawood, Sophie (February 20, 2010). "The conversation Joanna Newsom". The Times. London. Retrieved May 6, 2010.
- ^ "Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me (Review)". Look Listen Play. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Newsom, Joanna (2010-02-23). "First Listen: Joanna Newsom". NPR. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ Vozick, Simon (2010-04-22). "The Roots enlist Joanna Newsom, John Legend, Jim James for new album | EW.com". Music-mix.ew.com. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ "San Francisco Bay Guardian article, 2003". Sfbg.com. 2003-11-26. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ "The Times article, 2010". timesonline.co.uk. 2010-02-20. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ Zobbel (2008-01-25). "Chart Log UK 2007". Zobbel. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
- ^ “” (2009-09-24). "Promo "Estás en laSexta"". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "LG Mobile Phones Commercial - Optimus T". Youtube. 2010-11-11. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
Interviews
- Tiny Mix Tapes (September 2004)
- KCRW (February 2005)
- The Guardian (October 15, 2006)
- The Wire (November 2006)
- Pitchfork (November 20, 2006)
- The Times (February 20, 2010)
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg/34px-Wikiquote-logo.svg.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- American harpists
- American pianists
- American female singers
- American singer-songwriters
- American folk singers
- Psych folk musicians
- Musicians from California
- Drag City artists
- New Weird America
- Mills College alumni
- People from San Francisco, California
- People from Nevada City, California
- 1982 births
- Living people