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Joan Anita Barbara Armatrading, MBE
Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a United Kingdom order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom....
, (born December 9, 1950) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 singer, songwriter
Songwriter

File:Beethoven.jpgA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer....
, and guitarist
Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may perform solo pieces or play with ensembles and bands of a wide variety of genres....
. Armatrading is a three-time Grammy Award
Grammy Award

The Grammy Awards ?or Grammys?are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry....
-nominee . Additional achievements include a BA
Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin language Artium Baccalaureus, is an Undergraduate education bachelor's degree awarded for either a course or a program in either the liberal arts, the sciences or both....
 (Hons) degree in History from the Open University
Open University

The Open University is the UK's Distance education government-supported university notable for having an open entry policy, i.e. students' previous academic achievements are not taken into account for entry to most undergraduate courses....
, of which she is a trustee .

Early life
Joan Armatrading was born in Basseterre
Basseterre

Basseterre , estimated population 15,500 in 2000, is the Capital of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitts Island, and it is one of the chief commercial depots of the Leeward Islands....
, Saint Kitts
Saint Kitts

Saint Kitts The island is situated at , about 1,300 miles southeast of Miami, Florida, Florida, in the United States. It has a land area of about 68 sq....
 in the West Indies and moved with her family to Birmingham
Birmingham

Birmingham is a city status in the United Kingdom and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. Birmingham is the most populous of England's English Core Cities Group, and is the List of United Kingdom cities by population British city after London, with a population of 1,010,200 ....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, in 1957. She began writing lyrics and music at the age of 14.






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Joan Anita Barbara Armatrading, MBE
Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a United Kingdom order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom....
, (born December 9, 1950) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 singer, songwriter
Songwriter

File:Beethoven.jpgA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer....
, and guitarist
Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may perform solo pieces or play with ensembles and bands of a wide variety of genres....
. Armatrading is a three-time Grammy Award
Grammy Award

The Grammy Awards ?or Grammys?are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry....
-nominee . Additional achievements include a BA
Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin language Artium Baccalaureus, is an Undergraduate education bachelor's degree awarded for either a course or a program in either the liberal arts, the sciences or both....
 (Hons) degree in History from the Open University
Open University

The Open University is the UK's Distance education government-supported university notable for having an open entry policy, i.e. students' previous academic achievements are not taken into account for entry to most undergraduate courses....
, of which she is a trustee .

Early life


Joan Armatrading was born in Basseterre
Basseterre

Basseterre , estimated population 15,500 in 2000, is the Capital of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitts Island, and it is one of the chief commercial depots of the Leeward Islands....
, Saint Kitts
Saint Kitts

Saint Kitts The island is situated at , about 1,300 miles southeast of Miami, Florida, Florida, in the United States. It has a land area of about 68 sq....
 in the West Indies and moved with her family to Birmingham
Birmingham

Birmingham is a city status in the United Kingdom and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. Birmingham is the most populous of England's English Core Cities Group, and is the List of United Kingdom cities by population British city after London, with a population of 1,010,200 ....
, England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, in 1957. She began writing lyrics and music at the age of 14. Her first job was working at Rabone Chesterman (makers of fine engineering tools), in Hockley, Birmingham
Hockley, Birmingham

Hockley is a central district in the city of Birmingham, England. It lies about one mile north-west of the city centre, and is served by the Jewellery Quarter station....
. She was sacked from this job because she insisted on bringing her guitar to work and playing during tea breaks.

Career


In the early 1970s, Armatrading moved to London to perform in a repertory production of Hair
Hair (musical)

Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot....
. There she met the lyricist
Lyricist

A lyricist is a writer who specializes in song lyrics, usually paid for by a band to write a custom song. A singer who writes the lyrics to songs is a singer-lyricist....
 Pam Nestor, and they worked together on the album Whatever's for Us, released on the Cube
Cube Records

Cube Records was launched on the 26 May 1972, by independent music publisher David Platz, and was based at his United Kingdom offices for Essex Music....
 label in 1972. As well as writing lyrics this debut LP saw Armatrading perform all of the vocals, write all of the music and play an array of instruments. Nestor was credited as co-lyricist; however Cube considered Armatrading to be the more likely star material. These events produced a tension which broke up the partnership. A period of inactivity for Armatrading followed, while she extracted herself from her contract with Cube Records.

It was only in 1975 that she was free to sign with A&M
A&M

A&M may refer to:...
, and issued the album Back to the Night which was promoted on tour with a six-piece jazz-pop group called The Movies. Armatrading credited up-and-coming UK singer Elkie Brooks
Elkie Brooks

Elkie Brooks is an English singer, formerly a vocalist with Vinegar Joe , and later a solo artist. Known for her powerful husky voice....
 on the sleeve notes as she had cooked for Armatrading and the band in the studio while making the album, which was produced by Brooks' then-husband Pete Gage. A major publicity relaunch in 1976 and the involvement of producer Glyn Johns
Glyn Johns

Glyn Johns is a musician, audio engineer and record producer.He has worked with such artists as Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Easybeats, The Band, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Eric Clapton, The Clash, The Steve Miller Band, Small Faces, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Blue ?yster Cult, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Mid...
 propelled her next album, Joan Armatrading
Joan Armatrading (album)

Joan Armatrading is a 1976 in music rock music album by Joan Armatrading....
, into the top 20 and spawned the top 10 hit single "Love and Affection
Love and Affection

"Love and Affection" is a song by Joan Armatrading. Her fourth single, and her third for A&M Records, it was her first chart success. It reached the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart in November 1976, peaking at #10....
". The album mixed acoustic work with jazz-influenced material, and this style was retained for the 1977 follow-up Show Some Emotion. This album was also produced by Glyn Johns
Glyn Johns

Glyn Johns is a musician, audio engineer and record producer.He has worked with such artists as Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Easybeats, The Band, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Eric Clapton, The Clash, The Steve Miller Band, Small Faces, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Blue ?yster Cult, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Mid...
, as was 1978's To the Limit. These albums included songs which continue to be staples of Armatrading's live shows, including "Willow", "Down to Zero", "Tall in the Saddle", and "Kissin' and a Huggin". Also at this time, Armatrading wrote and performed "The Flight of the Wild Geese", which was used during the opening and end titles for the 1978 war film The Wild Geese
The Wild Geese

The Wild Geese is a 1978 in film film about a group of mercenaries in Africa. It stars Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris and Hardy Kr?ger....
. A live album entitled Steppin' Out, which showcased her well-honed stage act, was released in 1979.

In 1980, Armatrading radically revised her playing style and released Me Myself I, a harder pop-oriented album produced by Richard Gottehrer
Richard Gottehrer

Richard Gottehrer is an United States songwriter, record producer and record label executive.Gottehrer came to prominence as a songwriter in the 1960s with his most notable songs being "My Boyfriend's Back " and "I Want Candy"....
, who had previously produced albums by Blondie
Blondie (band)

Blondie is an United States rock music band that first gained fame in the late 1970s and has so far sold over 30 million albums. The band was a pioneer in the early American New Wave music and punk rock scenes....
. The album became Armatrading's highest ever charting album both in the UK and the US, while the title track became her second UK top 40 hit single. The same pop style was also evident on the 1981 album Walk Under Ladders and 1983's The Key. Both of these albums were also top 10 successes in the UK, with The Key also producing the hit single "Drop the Pilot
Drop the Pilot

"Drop the Pilot" is a song written and originally performed by Joan Armatrading. It was the first single to be released from Armatrading's 1983 album The Key , and was her third and final UK top 40 hit....
", Armatrading's third UK top 40 hit single. To capitalise on her success, A&M released the "best of" compilation Track Record in 1983.

Armatrading's next studio album was 1985's Secret Secrets. The album was a top 20 hit but failed to yield any hit singles, cementing Armatrading's status as an "album artist". Taking over production responsibilities herself, she continued to record the albums Sleight of Hand (1986), The Shouting Stage (1988) and Hearts and Flowers (1990) for A&M Records, which all made the UK top 40 but failed to achieve the level of success of her earlier works despite successful national tours (a show from her 1988 "Shouting Stage" tour was also filmed for television).

In 1991, A&M released the compilation The Very Best of Joan Armatrading which returned her to the top 10. However, her following studio album for A&M, 1992's Square The Circle did not replicate this success and would be her final recording for the label. Following her departure from A&M, a label she had been with for almost 20 years, Armatrading signed with RCA
RCA

RCA Corporation, founded as Radio Corporation of America, was an electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. Today, the RCA is owned by the France conglomerate Thomson SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Thomson....
 for her 1995 album What's Inside. Despite various television appearances and a full tour (which included a string quartet in addition to her stage band), the album was not a commercial success.

By 2003, and no longer attached to a major label, she released the album Lovers Speak. Her first album in eight years, it met with little commercial success.

Armatrading's music is considered to be mostly pop
Pop music

Pop music is a music genre that features a noticeable rhythmic element, melodies and hook , a mainstream style and a conventional structure.The term "pop music" was first used in 1926 in the sense of "having popular appeal" , but since the 1950s it has been used in the sense of a musical genre, originally characterized as a lighter alternat...
 with forays into blues, rock
Rock music

Rock music is a loosely defined genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the mid 1950's. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rhythm and blues, country music and other influences....
, folk
Folk music

Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including:* Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous with the term "Traditional music", also often including World Music and Roots music; the term "Traditional music" was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the other definition...
, jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
, and even reggae
Reggae

Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s.While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Music of Jamaica, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady....
. Her latest album, 2007's Into the Blues, debuted at #1 on the U.S. Billboard Blues Chart, making Armatrading the first UK female artist, and the first artist born in St Kitts to earn that distinction. Into the Blues, which Armatrading calls "the CD I’ve been promising myself to write for a long time," was nominated for a Grammy, also making her the first female UK artist to be nominated in the Grammy Blues category.

Armatrading has been nominated twice for a Brit award as best female vocalist and has received an Ivor Novello Award
Ivor Novello Awards

The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. The "Ivors" are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters, and were first introduced in 1955....
 for Outstanding Contemporary Song Collection in 1996.

Armatrading was part of Cyndi Lauper
Cyndi Lauper

Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an Music of the United States Grammy- and Emmy award winning singer-songwriter and actress. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual, and became the first artist to have four top-five singles released from one album....
's True Colors Tour 2008.

Armatrading appeared in Episode 4 of Live from Abbey Road
Live from Abbey Road

Live from Abbey Road is a 12 part one hour performance television program/Documentary film that began filming its first season during 2006 at Abbey Road Studios in London....
 performing "Tall In The Saddle" from her 1979 self-titled album, and "Woman In Love" from the album Into The Blues.

Personal life

Armatrading lives in Surrey
Surrey

Surrey is a counties of England in the South East England of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire....
, in the U.K.

Collaborations


Armatrading made a "vocal cameo appearance" on the 1986 Queen
Queen (band)

Queen were an England rock music band formed in 1970 in London by guitarist Brian May, lead vocalist Freddie Mercury and drummer Roger Meddows-Taylor, with bassist John Deacon completing the lineup the following year....
 album A Kind of Magic
A Kind of Magic

A Kind of Magic is a 1986 album by England rock and roll band Queen . It was the band's twelfth studio album, and is based on the soundtrack to the film Highlander , the first in a series directed by Russell Mulcahy....
 on the song "Don't Lose Your Head".

Discography


Albums

YearAlbumUKUS
Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling Albums and extended play in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine....
US BluesBPI certifications
British Phonographic Industry

The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade group. Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four 'major' record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies representing literally thousands of labels....
1972Whatever's For Us----
1975Back to the Night---Silver
1976Joan Armatrading
Joan Armatrading (album)

Joan Armatrading is a 1976 in music rock music album by Joan Armatrading....
1267-Gold
1977Show Some Emotion652-Gold
1978To the Limit13125-Silver
1979How Cruel (EP)----
1979Steppin' Out (live album)----
1980Me Myself I
Me Myself I

Me Myself I is an album by Joan Armatrading. Released in 1980, the album was Armatrading's highest ever chart placing both in the UK and in the US ....
528-Gold
1981Walk Under Ladders688-Gold
1983The Key1032-Gold
1985Secret Secrets1473-Silver
1986Sleight of Hand3470-Silver
1988The Shouting Stage28100-Silver
1990Hearts and Flowers29161--
1992Square the Circle34---
1995What's Inside48---
2003Lovers Speak----
2004Live All the Way from America----
2007Into The Blues--1-


Compilations

YearAlbumUKUS
Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling Albums and extended play in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine....
BPI certifications
British Phonographic Industry

The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade group. Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four 'major' record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies representing literally thousands of labels....
1983Track Record 18113-
1991The Very Best Of Joan Armatrading9-Gold
1996Love & Affection (2 CD)---
2003Love And Affection: Classics (1975-1983) (2 CD)24--


Singles

YearTitleUK Singles ChartsUS Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard Single popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on airplay and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the airplay tracking-week runs from Wednesday to Tuesday....
US Mainstream Rock
1973"Lonely Lady"---
1976"Love And Affection
Love and Affection

"Love and Affection" is a song by Joan Armatrading. Her fourth single, and her third for A&M Records, it was her first chart success. It reached the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart in November 1976, peaking at #10....
"		10--
1980"Rosie"49--
1980"Me Myself I"21--
1980"All The Way From America"54--
1981"I'm Lucky"46--
1981"No Love"50--
1983"Drop the Pilot
Drop the Pilot

"Drop the Pilot" is a song written and originally performed by Joan Armatrading. It was the first single to be released from Armatrading's 1983 album The Key , and was her third and final UK top 40 hit....
"		117833
1983"(I Love It When You) Call Me Names"---
1985"Temptation"65--
1986"Kind Words (And A Real Good Heart)"81-37
1986"Reach Out"---
1988"The Shouting Stage"89--
1988"Living For You"98--
1990"More Than One Kind Of Love"75--
1990"Free"---
1991"Love And Affection" (reissue)91--
1992"Wrapped Around Her"56--
1992"True Love"---
1999"The Messenger" (A tribute song for Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was the first President of South Africa of South Africa to be elected in a universal suffrage democratic election, serving in the office from 1994?99....
)
This was never released as a commercial single
but was made available for free download only 		---


Further reading


External links

  • (includes a searchable database for UK certifications)