MP3 Libby Lavella - Sometime In Morning 2007
Darkly pretty. Pink Floyd guitar atmospheric vibe, with poetic, socially charged Laura Nyro/Joni Mithcell- esque lyric style. A voice that soothes like Norah Jones with a purity of Karen Carpenter, and the range and power of Paula Cole.
11 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Psychedelic, POP: Psychedelic Pop
Details:
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Raven haired and fair skinned, Libby Lavella is an Australian-born singer/songwriter who currently resides in Los Angeles. Her latest album, the follow-up to her debut release Sponge Brain is due out this fall (2007) and is entitled Sometime In Morning.
Libby’s musical life began at the age of 5, when while accompanying her father on a painting job in Australia, Libby discovered a piano belonging to the home owner. The woman, a concert pianist, sat Libby down with her and played a few bars or music. Libby, exhibiting her natural talent, was able to replay the melody perfectly on her first try. Her parents, clearly aware of their child’s budding talent, scraped together enough money to buy a piano.
Libby began taking piano lessons and soon was winning the regional competitions called the estedfords. But, Libby’s talents did not begin and end with playing piano alone. Libby’s family also belonged to a Baptist church (in Sydney), where she would routinely be tardy for Sunday School because she would stay behind to try sing gospel songs with the adult congregation. Though, the minister did not take her seriously as a soloist as she was only a 6-year-old girl.
Her first big break came at the age of 14, when she was attending her first rock concert. The band held a competition to win a copy of their first CD, in which they invited three random people to come onstage and sing with them. The unforgiving Australian crowd devoured the first two contestants, but was soon taken aback by Libby, the teenager who sang the entirety of “Shout” winning the audience and the competition. News traveled fast and Libby was invited to join a rock band formed by some older boys at her school. During this time, she picked up the guitar, and has never had a lesson.
In a shocking turn of events, Libby was informed at 16, that she was adopted and was of Italian heritage and from a long lineage of musicians, called the Gambale family. At once, astonishing and comforting, at least she now knew where her musical abilities came from.
Exhibiting a natural gift for music, Libby often favors Classical, World and Soul influences in her writing. She studied at the Conservatorium of Music before her desire for travel and life experience led her to Egypt, Zimbabwe and Europe. She even lived and studied at the Universita Per Stranieri in Perugia, Italy.
Eventually her travels brought her to the United States where she landed at Berklee College of Music in Boston before the unaccustomed cold forced her to consider a move to warmer US climes. The move to Los Angeles came in the late ‘90s under the suggestion of her uncle living there at the time. It was in Los Angeles that Libby found her permanent home away from home and began her professional songwriting career, releasing her first EP, followed by a full length solo album shortly after.
Now in 2007, Libby is set to release her sophomore album, Sometimes In Morning which was recorded and produced by Heroes & Villains, Billy Mohler and Dan Burns (Macy Gray, Herbie Hancock, The Crystal Method) over the course of two months in LA. Libby found a songwriting partner in local prominent songwriter, Joan Jones, with whom she co-wrote 3 of the 11 songs on Sometimes. Most of the album’s instrumentation was done by Libby and Billy of the Heroes and Villains, but enlisted the aid of Dave Palmer on keyboards and piano and Charlie Paxson on drums. Guest vocalists include Shelly O''Neill, Joan Jones, Selwyn Gibson, Ro Cham Bo and more.
Throughout her career, Libby has performed and/or recorded with the legendary Frank Gambale, (her uncle), SmashMouth, Rain Phoenix, Badi Assad, Michael Sembello, Australian Mushroom recording artist Kate Ceberano, Dave Palmer, Shane Alexander and LA artist Joan Jones. In addition she recorded with the rap artist Big Syke of Tupac Shakur’s Thug Life group in an uncanny collaboration.