Patty Larkin
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Patty Larkin | |
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 Patty Larkin | |
| Background information | |
| Born | June 19, 1951 Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. |
| Genres | Folk rock |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1980s–present |
| Labels | Signature Sounds |
| Website | pattylarkin |
Patty Larkin (born June 19, 1951[1]) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist based in Boston, Massachusetts. She is a founding member of Four Bitchin' Babes. Her music has been described as folk-urban pop music.
Life and career
[edit]Patty Larkin was born in Des Moines, Iowa, United States, and grew up in a musical and artistic family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[2] Descended from a long line of Irish-American singers and storytellers, her mother was a painter and her sisters both musicians. She learned at a young age to appreciate the beauty and magic of the arts. She began classical piano studies at age 7, and became swept up in the sounds of pop and folk in the 1960s, teaching herself the guitar and experimenting with songwriting in high school. An English major, Larkin sang throughout her high school and college career, starting out in coffeehouses in Oregon and San Francisco. Upon graduation from the University of Oregon, she moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where she devoted herself to music, busking on the streets of Cambridge and studying jazz guitar at Berklee College of Music and with Boston area jazz guitarists.[2]
Her recording career began in 1985 with Philo/Rounder Records where she recorded Step into The Light, I'm Fine, and Live in the Square.[2] In 1990, she signed to Windham Hill's new High Street label and delivered four releases: Tango, Angels Running, Strangers World, and Perishable Fruit.[2] After Windham Hill was sold to BMG, Larkin moved to Vanguard Records and released à gogo, Regrooving The Dream, Red=Luck, and Watch The Sky. The latter was a New York Times "critic choice".[3] In 2010, Larkin celebrated her 25th year of recording with 25, a stripped down retrospective of 25 love songs with 25 featured guests (Road Narrows Records/Signature Sounds).
Larkin produced La Guitara, a compilation of international women guitarists challenging the notion that there are no great women guitarists. She has also performed on numerous compilations and her songs have been featured in the following films: "Anyway The Main Thing Is" in Evolution (Columbia/DreamWorks); "Good Thing" in Random Hearts (Columbia); and "Coming Up For Air" and "Tenderness on the Block" in Sliding Doors (Miramax/Paramount). Cher recorded Larkin's "Angels Running" on her album It's a Man's World.[4]
Larkin is the recipient of an honorary doctorate of music degree from Berklee College of Music. She has also been honored by Boston's Mayor Thomas Menino with "Patty Larkin Appreciation Day" for her career in music and philanthropic contributions.
Personal life
[edit]She currently lives with her partner and two adopted children in Wellfleet, Massachusetts.[2]
Discography
[edit]| Date | Title | Label | Charted | Country | Catalog Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Album | |||||
| 1985 | Step into the Light | Philo Records | – | – | 1103 |
| 1987 | I'm Fine | – | – | 1115 | |
| 1990 | Live in the Square | – | – | 1136 | |
| 1991 | Tango | High Street Records | – | – | 10312 |
| 1993 | Angels Running | – | – | 10318 | |
| 1995 | Strangers World | – | – | 10335 | |
| 1997 | Perishable Fruit | – | – | 10354 | |
| 1999 | À Gogo: Live on Tour | Vanguard Records | – | – | 79547 |
| 2000 | Regrooving the Dream | – | – | 79552 | |
| 2003 | Red=Luck | 38 Billboard Top Independent Albums |
US | 79727 | |
| 2008 | Watch the Sky | – | – | 79851 | |
| 2010 | 25 | Signature Sounds | – | – | 2028 |
| 2013 | Still Green | – | – | 2057 | |
| 2020 | Bird in a Cage | Road Narrows Records | US | ||
| Collaborations | |||||
| 1991 | Buy Me Bring Me Take Me: Don't Mess My Hair!!! (with Four Bitchin' Babes) |
Philo Records | – | – | 1141 |
| 2005 | La Guitara: Gender Bending Strings | Vanguard Records | – | – | 79796 |
References
[edit]- ^ "FolkLib Index – Musician's Birthdays/Bibliography (L)". Folklib.net.
- ^ a b c d e Colin Larkin, ed. (2000). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music (First ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 226/7. ISBN 0-7535-0427-8.
- ^ "Patty Larkin – Watch the Sky – Raheem DeVaughn – Love Behind the Melody – Drive-By Truckers – Brighter Than Creation's Dark -". The New York Times. January 21, 2008.
- ^ "It's a Man's World – Cher | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
External links
[edit]
- Official website
- FolkLib entry for Patty Larkin
- Patty Larkin: 25 Songs, 25 Friends, 25 Years – interview by NPR
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1951 births
- American women singer-songwriters
- American folk guitarists
- American folk singers
- American people of Irish descent
- Berklee College of Music alumni
- American lesbian musicians
- American LGBTQ singers
- American LGBTQ songwriters
- LGBTQ people from Iowa
- Lesbian singers
- Lesbian songwriters
- Singers from Boston
- Musicians from Des Moines, Iowa
- Living people
- Four Bitchin' Babes members
- Guitarists from Iowa
- Guitarists from Massachusetts
- 20th-century American guitarists
- Signature Sounds artists
- 20th-century American women guitarists
- 20th-century American LGBTQ people
- 21st-century American LGBTQ people
- 21st-century American women
- Singer-songwriters from Iowa
- Singer-songwriters from Massachusetts