Holly Lerski (born Holly Elmhirst, 13 November 1969) is an English singer and songwriter known both for her work with Angelou and for her solo career.

Biography

Coming to public attention in the late 1990s with folk rock band Angelou this Norfolk based singer-songwriter earned comparisons to

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...

and

Beth Orton Elizabeth Caroline Orton (born 14 December 1970) is an English musician, known for her "folktronica" sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit, Andrew Weatherall, ...

. Her music has also been featured in the American TV show '' Close to Home'' and the indie film ''Fish Without a Bicycle'', starring Jenna Mattison,

Brian Austin Green Brian Austin Green (born Brian Green; July 15, 1973) is an American actor, rapper, television personality and podcaster, best known for his portrayal of David Silver on the television series ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (1990–2000). Green was al ...

and

Jennifer Blanc Jennifer Blanc (born Jennifer Tara) is an American actress. She was born in New York City. She is married to actor Michael Biehn. Personal life Blanc, who goes by Jennifer Blanc-Biehn, is married to Michael Biehn Michael Connell Biehn ( ; ...

. Lerski was born in London, daughter of a sound engineer and ex-

St Martins School of Art Saint Martin's School of Art was an art college in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1854, initially under the aegis of the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Saint Martin's became part of t ...

student. She grew up around music, and began playing guitar at the age of six. When she was nine her family relocated to Norfolk. It was in this transitional period, with the aid of her 'Beatles Complete' book, Lerski first began to write songs. Lerski played bass and guitar in various bands throughout her teens and whilst studying at Art School. Upon graduation she joined folk rock band The Rainbyrds, and began songwriting and performing again.

Music career

Lerski formed Angelou with guitarist Jo Baker in 1996. They recorded their first demo in the winter of that year, which included a cover of the

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

song "Hallelujah". Inspired by Jeff Buckley's version, Lerski had been a fan of Buckley's, corresponding with the artist. Local Norwich label Haven Records heard the demo and signed Angelou in the beginning of 1997, scheduling the release of the Hallelujah EP to coincide with a UK summer tour supporting

Eddi Reader Sadenia "Eddi" Reader MBE (born 29 August 1959) is a Scottish singer-songwriter, known for her work as frontwoman of Fairground Attraction and for an enduring solo career. She is the recipient of three BRIT Awards. In 2003, she showcased the w ...

and

Boo Hewerdine Mark "Boo" Hewerdine (born 14 February 1961) is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. His work includes lead singer and creative force behind The Bible, formed in the 1980s, and reformed in 1994, as well as solo recordings and work f ...

. "Hallelujah" came out a week after Jeff Buckley's untimely death, ending the year on novelist

Nick Hornby Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born 17 April 1957) is an English writer and lyricist. He is best known for his memoir '' Fever Pitch'' and novels '' High Fidelity'' and '' About a Boy'', all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work ...

's 'Best of 97' compilation. In 1998, Angelou released their first album ''Automiracles''. Now including drummer Phil Di Palma, the album was written by Lerski, and recorded in 10 days by producer Calum MacColl. The album featured guest vocals from Eddi Reader and Boo Hewerdine and received comparisons to

The Sundays The Sundays were an English alternative rock band, formed in the late 1980s, which released three albums throughout the 1990s. The band's beginnings came with the meeting of singer Harriet Wheeler and guitarist David Gavurin while attending ...

' debut ''Reading, Writing and Arithmetic''. Their second album ''While You Were Sleeping'', released in 2000, received further acclaim and established Lerski as one of the new crop of up and coming female folk artists. Written and produced by Lerski, and recorded in studio down-time, the album finished with a moving tribute to Jeff Buckley. Lerski went on to contribute this to the Buckley documentary 'Amazing Grace'. In 2001, Spanish label El Diablo released an Angelou compilation called ''Midnight Witcheries''. Now joined by new drummer Cath Evans and bassist Anne Richardson, this record allowed the band to be heard for the first time throughout Europe. They completed two extensive tours of Spain, appearing on national TV and radio. They also went on to release a further EP and two videos. On hearing of their success abroad, UK music independent giant

Sanctuary Records Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is as of 2013 a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest m ...

offered Lerski a recording and publishing agreement and at the end of 2001 Lerski finally signed a major deal. Angelou were soon off on the road again, this time as a duo touring Scandinavia and Europe with

John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

& The Goners. On their return from Europe the band went into rehearsals for the third album, staying in a wooden hunting lodge in Derbyshire. Recorded both in Denmark and Manchester throughout 2002, ''Life Is Beautiful'' was a much poppier record. It was finally released in 2003 under Lerski's own name. With the launch of the album came lives dates with

The Cranberries The Cranberries were an Irish rock band formed in Limerick, Ireland. Originally named the Cranberry Saw Us, the band were formed in 1989 by lead singer Niall Quinn, guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal Lawler. Quinn was ...

Jason Mraz Jason Thomas Mraz (; born June 23, 1977) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, ''Waiting for My Rocket to Come'' (2002), which spawned the single " The Remedy (I Won't ...

and

Josh Rouse Josh Rouse (born March 9, 1972) is an American folk/roots pop singer-songwriter. Originally from Nebraska, Rouse began his recording career in Nashville in 1998 and later relocated to Spain. In 2014, Rouse won a Spanish Goya Film Award in the c ...

, and support from

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

and most notably

Wake Up To Wogan ''Wake Up to Wogan'' (''WUTW'') was the incarnation of '' The Radio 2 Breakfast Show'' that aired each weekday morning from 4 January 1993 to 18 December 2009. It was the most-listened-to radio show in the United Kingdom, and the flagship breakf ...

producer

Paul Walters Paul Christopher Walters (15 June 1947 – 21 October 2006) was a BBC radio and TV producer, best known for his work and appearances on Terry Wogan's BBC Radio 2 breakfast show ''Wake Up to Wogan'' from 1995 until a few months before his death ...

. In 2004, after disagreements with Sanctuary over lack of promotion for the record, Lerski was forced to leave the label and her songs behind. In the summer of 2004, tired of the music industry and following a break up, Lerski relocated to Manchester where she began to write new material with the intention of releasing on her own imprint Laundry Label. ''Greetings From N.Y.'' was Laundry's first release. Featuring on the cover a hand written postcard to Lerski from Jeff Buckley, 'Greetings' was a 'best of' CD showcasing Lerski and the band's music to date. BBC Radio 2's

once again championed the record and "More Than A Storm" featured weekly on his show.

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 cou ...

at the time was also featuring tracks from ''Life Is Beautiful'' on their in-store compilation. By 2006, following the news that Sanctuary had been bought out by

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch–American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

, Lerski returned to Norwich to begin a new chapter.

Solo career

Going it alone now, Lerski played her first solo date in New York's The Living Room in 2007. That same week " Hallelujah!" was featured in the finale episode of CBS TV drama ''Close to Home''. In September 2009, Lerski announced the launch of her own label, Laundry Label. From 2012 until 2014, she recorded a new album in her garden shed. ''The Wooden House'' was released on 1 June 2015. ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' named ''The Wooden House'' as one of the best folk albums of 2015.Martin Chilton
"Best Folk Albums of 2015"
''

'', 30 December 2015 Lerski went on a US road trip writing songs in 2019. She recorded a selection of these at Johnny Lee Schell's Ultratone Studio with Bonnie Raitt bassist James 'Hutch' Hutchinson', Tony Braunagel and Diego 'El Twanguero' Garcia later that year. 'Home Is Your Shoulder' was the first single released in November 2020. In 2021 she released a double A side single with James 'Hutch' Hutchinson entitled 'Carmel/Mighty Big Sur'.

Discography

Albums

* ''The Wooden House (2015)'' * ''Greetings From N.Y.: Holly Lerski & Angelou 1997 – 2004 (2004)'' * '' Life Is Beautiful (2003) '' * '' Sweet Dreams Tonight (Best of Angelou) (2001) '' * '' Midnight Witcheries (2001) '' * '' While You Were Sleeping (2000) '' * ''Automiracles (1998) ''

Singles and EPs

* Carmel / Mighty Big Sur (2021) * Home Is Your Shoulder (2020) * Oh Atoms, Oh Molecules (2015) * My Love (2003) * Everyone's Lonely (2003) * Summertime (2001) * Hallelujah (1997)

Official Videos

* '' Mighty Big Sur (2021) '' * '' Carmel (2021) '' * '' Home Is Your Shoulder (2020) '' * '' Oh Atoms, Oh Molecules (2015) '' * '' Come Sit Down (2015) '' * '' My Love (2003) '' * '' Everyone's Lonely (2003) '' * '' Summer Homecoming (2001) '' * '' This Is Not A Love Song (2001) ''

References

External links

Official website

Holly Lerski's Songs , Stream Online Music Songs , Listen Free on Myspace
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lerski, Holly 1969 births Living people English women singer-songwriters English women guitarists English guitarists Musicians from Norfolk