Annie Haslam is the vocalist extraordinaire (with a five-octave range!) for the progressive / classical rock band Renaissance. The band’s classic albums include 1974′s Turn of the Cards and 1975′s Scheherazade and Other Stories, both of which they recently covered in full on tour. Renaissance’s songs include “Mother Russia”, “Carpet of the Sun”, “Song of Scheherazade”, and “Northern Lights” which was a Top 10 single in the UK in 1978. Renaissance will soon be releasing a new album called Grandine il Vento.
Annie Haslam has also released several solo albums, starting with 1977′s aptly named Annie in Wonderland. And she is an accomplished painter! She responded to the following questions by email, with her answers received on 11/19/12. Sadly, her bandmate, Renaissance guitarist and songwriter Michael Dunford, passed away suddenly on 11/20/12 of a massive Instantaneous Cerebral Hemorrhage.
Jeff Moehlis: How was your part of the world affected by the recent hurricane?
Annie Haslam: Well, I live in Bucks county, PA. There were many trees down in the area, I lost 7. It was a scary experience, the hurricane sounded like a freight train going through my house. But of course the folks in NJ got the brunt of it all. Very sad, but people are pulling together over here to help the victims. As of yesterday parts of Staten Island were still without power.
JM: You’ve recently had problems with your back. How is your recovery coming along?
AH: Thank you for asking. Unfortunately we had to cancel most of Fall tour, it was very disappointing for me because I knew how many people were excited to see us again. We did however do the last 5 (the 6th had to be canceled because of the hurricane). I am in a metal back brace for 3 more months so had to wear that on stage too… a little cumbersome but as I painted it black to go with my stage outfits it ‘sort’ of blended in. I had to tell the fans what was happening as it was necessary for me to hold on to the microphone stand to keep steady and from falling over. In spite of this, my voice was very strong though and I believe I had a huge amount of Angelic help!
CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON GONZO:
Annie solo:
Renaissance:
 | The Other Woman c/w Ocean Gypsy CD - £9.99 |
No comments:
Post a Comment