Monday 11 June 2012

A whimsical song

This is one of my more unusual songs called "Beautiful". The album version makes more sense and it's a hard song to perform live, but we managed.

Friday 8 June 2012

38 varieties

After finding out that 97% of visitors to the Hollie Sheard music website are from overseas, I thought I'd better install a translation widget. Now available in 38 languages: www.holliesheard.co.uk

Thursday 7 June 2012

A nice little ballad

The second video from the album launch has landed on the YouTube-isphere.

It's called "Moving On" and I performed this one all on my tod. I was a bit nervous as you can see in the middle where I make a teensy mistake. This one is a slow piano ballad about smoochy stuff, and it was a Commended Entry in the UK Songwriting Contest.

Wednesday 6 June 2012

Erasing history

After realising that last song "No Wonder" DID actually feature on an album (my first one, "Truth or Dare"), I went back and had a listen to it. You know what, it was nice to do that. Sometimes we're so focussed on our plans for the future that we forget what we've already achieved.

It was a real hodgepodge of an album with some songs recorded in my bedroom studio, some at college, and some at a much larger studio. The earliest song was written around the year 2000 after breaking up with my first boyfriend, and I didn't write any more for a couple of years because somebody asked me and I quote, "What was that teenage crap you were playing earlier?" (Too Late). "Running" was a jazz ballad written for an assignment in 2003 at Leeds College of Music, before I defected to the pop course at Barnsley. One was written right after my first successful job interview after university in 2006, hence the joyful exuberance (People On This Planet). There's a few made-up stories, a song about parental arguments (When You Fight), one about crush on a teacher - no, not Brian (As Long As It Takes), a couple of later, darker ones about paranoia (Work With Me) and hallucinations (Fleeting), one about wanting to quit a job (Nothing Is Forever), and finally the song I forgot about (No Wonder) which is a tribute to Stevie Wonder.

In 2010, a couple of years after the first album was released, I replaced it with a "special edition" which had different versions and different mixes of the songs, and cut three songs off the album altogether. I wish I hadn't done that now. It's a part of my musical history, a piece of the puzzle. So, I think I will get rid of the special edition and revert back to selling the lovely original vinyl-covered CDs on my website. They look cooler anyway.

Monday 4 June 2012

A song about Stevie Wonder

The first of the "new" videos to make it onto YouTube is No Wonder, a song about Stevie Wonder!
I didn't think I'd made a recording of this song before, but it turns out it's on the first album. I must be getting old.



This video was recorded in July 2010 at the album launch gig in Leeds.

Saturday 2 June 2012

Eeeww

I've got the lurgy.

I never realised my nose could hold so much...

Eeeww.

No rest for the wicked though; I'm working at the theatre non-stop for a bit. We don't get to call in sick unless we're dying. I'll lay off the craft activities for a bit, though. No-one wants to order the lurgy along with their handcrafted gifts.

In other news, I've received a DVD of my album launch which took place in July 2010! It was a long time coming, but I'm very glad to have a copy now. When I've got time the vids will make their way to YouTube (and a copy will be coming to you asap GD).

That's all for now!