Published Date:
28 January 2009
By Simon Duke
AFTER taking up singing lessons just two years ago so she could serenade herself in the bath, a Dunbar woman is taking the jazz scene by storm.
Debbie Davis, originally from Guyana, made her singing debut at the age of 16 when she performed for the then president of her native country, Forbes Burnham, at the Royal Albert Hall.
However, she didn't enjoy the experience and was in no hurry to perform in public again.
But after a few lessons with a singing teacher she realised she had a real talent and is now a sought after artist following her appearance at The Jazz Bar, in Edinburgh, in November.
A fan of greats such as Etta James and Nancy Wilson, Debbie has come a long way in a short space of time and she admitted her success has come as a massive shock to her.
"A couples of years ago, I saw something on the news about it being the 25th anniversary of the Falkands War and I thought to myself 'what have I done in the past 25 years?'
"So I decided to make a list of things to do before I die. I figured that in 25 years I'd be 70 and I want to achieve a lot more before then.
"One of the things that immediately sprung to mind was to get singing lessons, not for any other reason than wanting to be able to sound alright when I sing to myself in the bathroom.
"The only other time I'd performed for anyone else was at the Royal Albert Hall and that was under duress - I was shaking like a leaf the whole time!"
It took just a few lessons for Debbie's singing teacher, Lorna Brooks, to realise that her pupil's voice was wasted on the bathroom mirror and she encouraged her to perform some gigs, the first of which presented the potential challenge of a dreaded open audition.
"I had my singing lessons at Banana Row, in Edinburgh, and the company which owns the building has its own wedding band, Callanish.
"I saw a poster saying they were advertising for a singer and I thought 'why not?' Lorna said she thought it might not be for me as all the band were all in their 20s and to get the job I'd have to do an audition in front of a panel with no music.
"I thought to myself the worst that could happen was me making a fool of myself and that didn't really bother me.
"So I had a word with one of the guys involved and after a long talk I was pleasantly surprised when he said there was no need to audition and I'd got the gig. Apparently, some of the band had heard me in a singing lesson and been impressed."
After getting the job, Debbie soon had a host of wedding dates in her diary but she admits that at the first, her mind went back to her nervous debut at the Royal Albert Hall.
"The first wedding I sang at was in Melrose and I have to say I was quite scared - but I'm a firm believer in the motto 'feel the fear, do it anyway'.
"Although I wasn't always singing the type of music I'm a fan of, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and when I was on stage I kept thinking this is something that all middle aged people should do!"
It was another poster which led to Debbie reaching another musical milestone - going into a recording studio for the first time.
"I was taking my son for a music lesson in Edinburgh and walking through the Grassmarket I saw an advert for a producer and musician who were looking for a singer to record with, so I thought I'd give it a shot.
"I went along to the studio and they said they wanted to hear me sing without any music. My legs were shaking.
"I was there for nearly four hours and although he said I wasn't what he was looking for for that particular project, the producer, Clark Sorley, said he'd be interested in working with me as he thought I had a really good jazz voice.
"So from there I was introduced to a lot of new material and concentrated on building up a repertoire of songs.
"After going to a few open mic sessions I started to get some gigs."
The biggest of these so far was when a packed audience at The Jazz Bar, in the capital city at the end of last year, applauded Debbie and you wouldn't bet against her headlining at bigger venues some time in the near future.
"To have all those people queueing outside to see me was very surreal. I never imagined things would go this far - it was all meant to be just a bit of fun.
"I'm really proud of what I've done so up to now and a big ambition of mine for the future is to play the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh - that would be absolutely amazing."
Debbie has gigs coming up at the Ye Old Inn, Edinburgh on February 4 and The Jazz Bar on March 1.
To find out more visit www.debbiedavis.co.uk or www.myspace.com/debbiedavis
The full article contains 885 words and appears in n/a newspaper.Page 1 of 1
Last Updated: 28 January 2009 11:51 AM
Source: n/a
Location: Berwickshire
http://www.berwickshire-news.c...e-success.4921763.jp
28 January 2009
By Simon Duke
AFTER taking up singing lessons just two years ago so she could serenade herself in the bath, a Dunbar woman is taking the jazz scene by storm.Debbie Davis, originally from Guyana, made her singing debut at the age of 16 when she performed for the then president of her native country, Forbes Burnham, at the Royal Albert Hall.
However, she didn't enjoy the experience and was in no hurry to perform in public again.
But after a few lessons with a singing teacher she realised she had a real talent and is now a sought after artist following her appearance at The Jazz Bar, in Edinburgh, in November.
A fan of greats such as Etta James and Nancy Wilson, Debbie has come a long way in a short space of time and she admitted her success has come as a massive shock to her.
"A couples of years ago, I saw something on the news about it being the 25th anniversary of the Falkands War and I thought to myself 'what have I done in the past 25 years?'
"So I decided to make a list of things to do before I die. I figured that in 25 years I'd be 70 and I want to achieve a lot more before then.
"One of the things that immediately sprung to mind was to get singing lessons, not for any other reason than wanting to be able to sound alright when I sing to myself in the bathroom.
"The only other time I'd performed for anyone else was at the Royal Albert Hall and that was under duress - I was shaking like a leaf the whole time!"
It took just a few lessons for Debbie's singing teacher, Lorna Brooks, to realise that her pupil's voice was wasted on the bathroom mirror and she encouraged her to perform some gigs, the first of which presented the potential challenge of a dreaded open audition.
"I had my singing lessons at Banana Row, in Edinburgh, and the company which owns the building has its own wedding band, Callanish.
"I saw a poster saying they were advertising for a singer and I thought 'why not?' Lorna said she thought it might not be for me as all the band were all in their 20s and to get the job I'd have to do an audition in front of a panel with no music.
"I thought to myself the worst that could happen was me making a fool of myself and that didn't really bother me.
"So I had a word with one of the guys involved and after a long talk I was pleasantly surprised when he said there was no need to audition and I'd got the gig. Apparently, some of the band had heard me in a singing lesson and been impressed."
After getting the job, Debbie soon had a host of wedding dates in her diary but she admits that at the first, her mind went back to her nervous debut at the Royal Albert Hall.
"The first wedding I sang at was in Melrose and I have to say I was quite scared - but I'm a firm believer in the motto 'feel the fear, do it anyway'.
"Although I wasn't always singing the type of music I'm a fan of, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and when I was on stage I kept thinking this is something that all middle aged people should do!"
It was another poster which led to Debbie reaching another musical milestone - going into a recording studio for the first time.
"I was taking my son for a music lesson in Edinburgh and walking through the Grassmarket I saw an advert for a producer and musician who were looking for a singer to record with, so I thought I'd give it a shot.
"I went along to the studio and they said they wanted to hear me sing without any music. My legs were shaking.
"I was there for nearly four hours and although he said I wasn't what he was looking for for that particular project, the producer, Clark Sorley, said he'd be interested in working with me as he thought I had a really good jazz voice.
"So from there I was introduced to a lot of new material and concentrated on building up a repertoire of songs.
"After going to a few open mic sessions I started to get some gigs."
The biggest of these so far was when a packed audience at The Jazz Bar, in the capital city at the end of last year, applauded Debbie and you wouldn't bet against her headlining at bigger venues some time in the near future.
"To have all those people queueing outside to see me was very surreal. I never imagined things would go this far - it was all meant to be just a bit of fun.
"I'm really proud of what I've done so up to now and a big ambition of mine for the future is to play the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh - that would be absolutely amazing."
Debbie has gigs coming up at the Ye Old Inn, Edinburgh on February 4 and The Jazz Bar on March 1.
To find out more visit www.debbiedavis.co.uk or www.myspace.com/debbiedavis
The full article contains 885 words and appears in n/a newspaper.Page 1 of 1
Last Updated: 28 January 2009 11:51 AM
Source: n/a
Location: Berwickshire
http://www.berwickshire-news.c...e-success.4921763.jp
