UK/USA: FAMILY AND ADMIRERS TALK ABOUT SINGER EVA CASSIDY WHOSE ALBUM "SONGBIRD" HEADS THE BRITISH CHARTS FIVE YEARS AFTER HER DEATH

Record ID: 391140

  • Title: UK/USA: FAMILY AND ADMIRERS TALK ABOUT SINGER EVA CASSIDY WHOSE ALBUM "SONGBIRD" HEADS THE BRITISH CHARTS FIVE YEARS AFTER HER DEATH
  • Date: 22nd March 2001
  • Summary: SMV, (SOUNDBITE) (English) BILL STRAW, OWNER OF U.S. RECORD LABEL BLIX STREET RECORDS SAYING: I knew 10 seconds into Fields of Gold which was what the tape was queued up to when I heard it, that this was one of the most extraordinary singers that I'd ever heard. It was just there. You see gold and you go 'hmm gold' and I continued to listen and it was like each song took o
  • Embargoed: 6th April 2001 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM/ BOWIE, MARYLAND, UNITED STATES/ LOS ANGELES, UNITED STATES
  • City:
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Entertainment,General,People
  • Reuters ID: LVA5DR8JOIHDR6CMLBMVEVFN8N37
  • Story Text: It's a remarkable yet tragic story. Five years after her premature death from cancer, American singer, Eva Cassidy's dream of achieving chart success, has finally come to fruition. Despite having never signed a recording contract, last week Cassidy's album, 'Songbird' reached the number one spot in the UK album charts. Reuters reports.
    The music industry in the 21st century is a fickle business to be in which is why the story of Eva Cassidy is all the more touching and remarkable.
    Eva Cassidy died from cancer in 1996 aged 33. But fortunately for the those she left behind, she'd recorded her talent.
    Cassidy was born in 1963 in Maryland, Washington D.C. and during her childhood she pursued the arts: painting, drawing and music. As a teenager she began performing in local clubs with bands. But although she wanted a career as an artist, it took Cassidy's friends to push her in that direction because she had so little confidence in her abilities. Thanks to her vocal qualities, she soon became a regular performer at local bars and clubs while continuing to search for that record deal.
    Although Cassidy had never been able to secure a recording contract with one of the big American labels, the shy girl from Maryland, Washington D.C. had convinced a local label to record some of her work. Three albums were the result.
    Since her death, the smalltime label 'BlixStreet Records' has been persistant at plugging her recordings. But it wasn't until two years ago, when a UK DJ played one of her tracks, a cover of 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow', on air, that Cassidy found a large following - in the UK. The radio station was flooded with calls from listeners desperate to get hold of a copy of album and the rest as they say is history.
    Last week, 'Songbird', an album of covers recorded by Cassidy went to the number one spot in the UK album charts.
    Her mother Barbara explained what it felt like to hear the news: 'Well it built up slowly you know, she's at number eight, somebody would call, she's at number seven now. We don't have computers or anything so we always have to rely on other people's news. Then she climbed up to number two and we were told over the weekend she will reach the top and she did and we still haven't internalised it all yet and sometimes it doesn't seem real but we are extremely pleased and extremely grateful to the British people for having accepted Eva the way they did,' she said.
    To this day the Cassidy's still receive letters from UK listeners wishing them well. Hugh Cassidy said it's obvious from the correspondence that Eva's music touches people: ''It's interesting how they know just where they were when they first heard Eva and they often share that it got them over some rough times listening to her sing and they still play her every day and things like this so I know that there's quite an affection and a deep feeling for the music that she gives them and it's quite gratifying to be a part of that.' During her career as a singer, Cassidy performed with Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac at his bar in Washington D.C.
    The bar has since been sold but Fleetwood says the memory of Cassidy has not faded in the slightest. He told Reuters what he makes of her posthumous success in the UK.
    'Her whole story is outrageously fascinating and a testimony that you can..it's a sad story but it's also very inspiring for me in this very corporate world we live in. She couldn't get signed up, I would have endless conversations with her about 'what do you think Mick? and 'they want me to change my music and do different songs' and not in a nasty way she would say 'well see you later, then you don't understand me'. And she used to be somewhat frustrated about that from up here, she was a very calm shy, little bit distant type of person and then that's what she brought on stage. And her performance as her performance and often interpretation, she's a great interpretor of other people's songs and I think it confused people in the business etc. etc. so many years later it's like over four years I believe this whole story about her having all this success in England is so cool, and very sad and I hope she's aware of it somehow because it's...and the irony and the lovely part of it that one of these songs that is doing so well for her is a Fleetwood Mac song,' Fleetwood said.
    Having conquered the UK market, all hopes are now pinned on the American music charts and with more than one million albums sold on this side of the Atlantic, the momentum is building.
    And like Cassidy's mother said 'It's a very bittersweet story but it should be told nevertheless it's wonderful to see her success finally'.
    Her parents say Eva was always very artistic as a child and grew up to be an accomplished painter, sculptor as well as musician.
    Her brother Dan Cassidy is also an accomplished musician (fiddler) living in Iceland and performing throughout Europe.
    First three paintings are Eva's work. Painting of child in blue is incomplete....
    Portrait of Eva was not done by her. .
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