- Sarah Gillespie
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Sarah Gillespie 
Sarah GillespieBorn London, UK Residence London Nationality British and American Education Greenwich University, Goldsmiths, University of London Occupation Singer-songwriter Website www.sarahgillespie.com Sarah Gillespie is a British-American singer songwriter based in London. She is known for combining beat poetry lyrics with folk, blues and jazz and for her collaborations with writer and saxophonist Gilad Atzmon.
Contents
Biography
Sarah Gillespie was born in London to an American mother and British father. She grew up in Norfolk, England – interspersed with numerous trips to Minnesota, where she soaked in the sounds of Bessie Smith, Bob Dylan, Cole Porter and early blues and jazz. From the age of 4, Sarah composed songs on piano, and then at 13 began playing guitar. At 18, she moved to the USA, busking in the streets and playing gigs.
On returning to London, she gained a first class degree in Film and Literature and an MA in Politics and Philosophy from Goldsmiths, University of London. Supporting Ian Dury’s band The Blockheads at Ronnie Scott's jazz club one night, Gillespie met the saxophonist and composer Gilad Atzmon, who produced Gillespie's albums Stalking Juliet (2009) and In the Current Climate (2011).
Gillespie plays festivals, jazz clubs, arts centres and theatres in the UK and Europe. She has performed live on BBC Radio 4’s Woman's Hour[1] and Jazz FM, and received airplay on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3 and local stations in Europe and America.
Musical style
Gillespie composes her material on the guitar. She cites her main influences as Tom Waits, Cole Porter, early blues and jazz, poets TS Elliot and James Tate and the 1950’s Beat Poetry movement. Her style has been described as 'mixing folk, jazz and middle eastern blues’ with an emphasis on the lyrical content and delivery.[2] The Guardian’s jazz critic John Fordham writes "Gillespie, who joins Bob Dylan’s lyrical bite and languid delivery to the forthrightness of Joni Mitchell, with a little rap-like percussiveness thrown in, is an original of real promise, even if she does, perhaps, try to hurl in too many ideas at once."[3] Robert Shore of London’s Metro points to "her Beat-like verbal collages (‘Cinnamon ginseng bootleg bourbon Calvados Berlin’) and beautifully controlled associative word strings, all delivered with her distinctive vocal mixture of dark romanticism and punkish attitude", but mentions she "occasionally slips over the line into boho pastiche".[4]
Gillespie's compositions with Gilad Atzmon, Houdini of the Heart and Cinematic Nectar have been described by nemurous critiques [5][6] as Kurt Weillian, while Atzmon’s Arabic-infused harmonies on clarinet and saxophone add middle eastern jazz elements.
Discography
Stalking Juliet - 2009 (Egea)
How The Mighty Fall - single, 2009 (Egea)
In The Current Climate - 2011 (Pastiche Records)
Reviews
Gillespie has received 3, 4- and 5-star reviews from The Guardian,[7] Mojo, The Independent,[8] Mail on Sunday,[9] Metro,[4] Rock n' Reel and the UK local press.[10] English musician Robert Wyatt described In The Current Climate as "an utterly wonderful new record. Expected and got in spades Sarah’s unique way with words plus terrific guitar playing, inspiring production and not just great songs, but totally original music. Brilliant, the bee’s knees.”
Her live performances have been described as 'outstanding, vivacious and forceful'.[11] The Nottingham Evening Post noted 'her verbal exchanges with fellow front-liner multi-instrumentalist Gilad Atzmon were at times hilarious and on other occasions explosive'.[12]
Writings and politics
Gillespie writes articles on politics for Al Jazeera, Middle East Online [13] and The Palestine Chronicle.[14] She writes about issues surrounding liberalism, Islam and the west, critiquing liberals "who imagine that their belief in equality makes them superior". In the Arab News, Shabana Syed described Gillespie as "an artist at the forefront of the demand for change".[15] Gillespie also critiques the missue of feminism in the interventionalist agenda and what she refers to as "atheist fundamentalism". She says: "The mantra of the French Revolution was: ‘Freedom, equality, fraternity or death!’ Pragmatically this has now unfolded into its tragic meaning: ‘Be free, equal and secular - or we’ll kill you.’"[15] Gillespie is an outspoken critic of Zionism and has orchestrated several fundraising concerts for Palestinian organisations including Medical Aid for Palestinians. In October 2010, she performed alongside The Unthanks, Cleveland Watkiss, Seb Rochford, Palestinian hip hop artist Shadia Mansour and Atzmon's Orient House Ensemble at the JAZZA Festival for the Free Palestine Movement.
Some of Gillespie's lyrics have a strong political element. Reviewing In the Current Climate, The Jazz Breakfast wrote: "The personal life and the socio-political one are blended with references to everything from the Dow Jones and the Hang Index to John the Baptist and Zeus. For How The West Was Won, Gillespie sings an imaginary first person song of Shaker Aamer, the remaining British prisoner in Camp X-Ray".[16]
References
- ^ BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour 14 April 2009
- ^ 'John Bungey, Beat Poet venturer Strays Beyond Bounds of Singer Songwriter Review, Mojo -23 January 2011
- ^ John Fordham "Sarah Gillespie/Gilad Atzmon: In the Current Climate – review", The Guardian, 20 January 2011
- ^ a b Robert Shore "Jazz your CD collection up", Metro, 6 January 2011
- ^ 'Mike Butler, In The Current Climate Review, Manchester Evening News -25 January 2011
- ^ 'Bruce Lindsay, Stalking Juliet review, All About Jazz - 29 February 2009
- ^ John Fordham, Stalking Juliet review, The Guardian - 10 April 2009
- ^ Howard Male, Stalking Juliet review, The Independent - 19 April 2009
- ^ In The Current Climate review - Mail on Sunday - January 2011
- ^ Julian Cole, In The Current Climate review, The York Press - 11 February 2011
- ^ 'Jazz triumph for club that offers variety and innovation', This Is Somerset - 21 January 2011
- ^ 'Stunning Sarah gets straight to the point', Nottingham Evening Post - 15 January 2011
- ^ Sarah Gillespie, 'BBC and Transformation of Suffering into Propaganda', Middle East Online - 29 January 2009
- ^ Sarah Gillespie "David Miliband and UK Complicity in Torture", The Palestine Chronicle, 3 July 2010
- ^ a b Shabana Syed "Sarah Gillesie a Singer Songwriter with a Difference", The Arab News, 7 April 2010
- ^ Peter Baker In The Current Climate review, The Jazz Breakfast, 25 January 2010
External links
Categories:- British singer-songwriters
- American singer-songwriters
- Alumni of the University of Greenwich
- Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London
- Musicians from London
- Female guitarists
- American female guitarists
- English female guitarists
- People from Greenwich
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