"On this journey, you must find your way alone
There’s no room for hangers on
On this journey, you must face your greatest fears
And then you’ll see the truth will appear"
There’s no room for hangers on
On this journey, you must face your greatest fears
And then you’ll see the truth will appear"
Deborah - the early years
Where to begin? Well, in the timeless words of Maria – “Let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.” I was born. Some time shortly after that, according to family legend, I was swaying in my cot to any music that happened to be playing. I don’t know how discerning I was, but I’m pretty sure there would have been some Frank Sinatra, Jazz classics and a mixture of Broadway musicals, as my parents had fairly good taste. Added to that, I have two older sisters, so there would have been some pop thrown in for good measure too. So, music and rhythm were bound to feature strongly in my life and background.
I started ballet at five, piano at seven, tap at ten and drums at twelve. I can’t say that I am a virtuoso at any of them, as I gave each of them up in turn, but they definitely helped along the way. One of my earliest musical influences was Karen Carpenter – “Oh, that’s why she’s so thin,” I hear you say! Nope, just her voice blew me away. She had such depth and tone, and the songs were so well constructed, as arranged by her brother, Richard. The harmonies were beautiful and Karen’s empathetic way of singing never failed to move me. I used to sing along with her all the time, which is partly how I think I developed such a low range at quite an early age, as well as honing my ear for harmony. Plus, she played the drums… Unfortunately, my dad didn’t quite understand the kind of drums I wanted to play, and I was presented with two teachers – one a percussionist with an orchestra and the other a very sleazy Jazz drummer. I didn’t take lessons for very long, needless to say, which probably explains why I didn’t become a virtuoso! But I did use my drums for venting a lot of pent-up frustration, and I have never stopped being inspired by rhythms. When I finally got around to hearing Classical Indian music, the first thing my ear went to was the tabla – the drum – and I have composed quite a few of my songs just around a tabla beat, or taal.
I sang in various choirs, one of which my father was the manager of – a mixed voice choir – and all the family joined at some point or another. My love of harmony was nurtured in this way, and I sang both alto and soprano as my voice developed. But I also got frustrated because I never got to sing solos, as I was always in line behind my middle sister, who in turn was behind the favoured soprano. Eventually my ego got the better of me and I decided to move on. I started working with various musicians on jazz-orientated projects, but soon the desire to express myself through my own songs started to grow.
I had always wanted to learn guitar but had just never had the patience for those chord books or “Easy steps to play the guitar” type things. I just couldn’t get any kind of decent sound out of the shapes they told you to make on the fret board, so I kept giving up. But I was rehearsing nearly every day with an extremely dedicated jazz guitarist who also wrote his own songs, and somehow – through osmosis maybe – I picked up a guitar one day and wrote a song. I was only holding down two or three strings in each chord, but it seemed to work and, once I’d written one, it just started flowing. In fact, each time I write a new song, I still wonder if I’ll ever manage again. But somehow, when I really have something to express, my music muse gives me a helping hand. I’ve stopped questioning where it comes from now and am just grateful that it does, because I know that my song-writing has been enormously cathartic for me and generally, for those that listen too.
Somewhere along the way, I started listening to Classical Indian music, and, as my ear grew accustomed to the different tones and rhythms, I began to nurture a desire to learn more and maybe find a way to fuse it with my jazz/pop background. I found out about an Arts Academy in Nagpur, India where I could study, so off I went in 1996 for about four months. It sowed a seed, but it wasn’t until 1998 that I really began to take it seriously, and I went back for a further 6 months to go deeper in the knowledge and techniques. My songs took a different turn, as did my spiritual understanding, and I just wanted to explore the countless possibilities that were now available to me. I tracked down an Indian singer, Shweta Jhaveri, who I had heard on a film soundtrack and went to study with her in America for a few months. And every now and then, I also put on my ‘acting hat’ to satisfy the other side of my character(s) – I think I have quite a lot of Gemini in my chart!
I guess that kind of tells the tale, as far as it goes for now, although I’m sure I could continue. But then, it’s always better to leave the audience wanting more …
I started ballet at five, piano at seven, tap at ten and drums at twelve. I can’t say that I am a virtuoso at any of them, as I gave each of them up in turn, but they definitely helped along the way. One of my earliest musical influences was Karen Carpenter – “Oh, that’s why she’s so thin,” I hear you say! Nope, just her voice blew me away. She had such depth and tone, and the songs were so well constructed, as arranged by her brother, Richard. The harmonies were beautiful and Karen’s empathetic way of singing never failed to move me. I used to sing along with her all the time, which is partly how I think I developed such a low range at quite an early age, as well as honing my ear for harmony. Plus, she played the drums… Unfortunately, my dad didn’t quite understand the kind of drums I wanted to play, and I was presented with two teachers – one a percussionist with an orchestra and the other a very sleazy Jazz drummer. I didn’t take lessons for very long, needless to say, which probably explains why I didn’t become a virtuoso! But I did use my drums for venting a lot of pent-up frustration, and I have never stopped being inspired by rhythms. When I finally got around to hearing Classical Indian music, the first thing my ear went to was the tabla – the drum – and I have composed quite a few of my songs just around a tabla beat, or taal.
I sang in various choirs, one of which my father was the manager of – a mixed voice choir – and all the family joined at some point or another. My love of harmony was nurtured in this way, and I sang both alto and soprano as my voice developed. But I also got frustrated because I never got to sing solos, as I was always in line behind my middle sister, who in turn was behind the favoured soprano. Eventually my ego got the better of me and I decided to move on. I started working with various musicians on jazz-orientated projects, but soon the desire to express myself through my own songs started to grow.
I had always wanted to learn guitar but had just never had the patience for those chord books or “Easy steps to play the guitar” type things. I just couldn’t get any kind of decent sound out of the shapes they told you to make on the fret board, so I kept giving up. But I was rehearsing nearly every day with an extremely dedicated jazz guitarist who also wrote his own songs, and somehow – through osmosis maybe – I picked up a guitar one day and wrote a song. I was only holding down two or three strings in each chord, but it seemed to work and, once I’d written one, it just started flowing. In fact, each time I write a new song, I still wonder if I’ll ever manage again. But somehow, when I really have something to express, my music muse gives me a helping hand. I’ve stopped questioning where it comes from now and am just grateful that it does, because I know that my song-writing has been enormously cathartic for me and generally, for those that listen too.
Somewhere along the way, I started listening to Classical Indian music, and, as my ear grew accustomed to the different tones and rhythms, I began to nurture a desire to learn more and maybe find a way to fuse it with my jazz/pop background. I found out about an Arts Academy in Nagpur, India where I could study, so off I went in 1996 for about four months. It sowed a seed, but it wasn’t until 1998 that I really began to take it seriously, and I went back for a further 6 months to go deeper in the knowledge and techniques. My songs took a different turn, as did my spiritual understanding, and I just wanted to explore the countless possibilities that were now available to me. I tracked down an Indian singer, Shweta Jhaveri, who I had heard on a film soundtrack and went to study with her in America for a few months. And every now and then, I also put on my ‘acting hat’ to satisfy the other side of my character(s) – I think I have quite a lot of Gemini in my chart!
I guess that kind of tells the tale, as far as it goes for now, although I’m sure I could continue. But then, it’s always better to leave the audience wanting more …