Wednesday 22 May 2013

Mersey Belles to perform at SONIC BOOM's YOUTH MUSIC EVENT - Thursday 23 May 2013, 6-8.30pm @ Brink Liverpool

The fantastic Mersey Belles will be performing at this years Sonic Boom - Youth Music event at the Brink in Liverpool City centre on Thursday 23rd May 2013, 6 - 8.30pm. 

FREE ENTRY - ALL AGES WELCOME



The Mersey Belles have been extremely busy lately playing festivals, weddings and bar mitzvah's galore and are utterly delighted to be performing at the Sonic Boom annual Youth Music event. They will be playing a selectionm of current pop songs by Rihanna, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and many other masters of the music airwaves (don't want to spoil the suprise!) You really need to not miss this!

Sonic Boom music leaders have spent the last 5 months running music workshops at various secondary schools across Liverpool. Their mission was to support those at risk of failing education by running workshops aimed at developing new music skills, team building and building confidence as well as enhancing other areas of personal development. 



The team has worked tirelessly to make this project a huge success. The process has had it's ups and downs - tears and laughter but in the end has produced some excellent work! 90% of the student participants had not had any previous music training and with only a few hours training per week have produced some outstanding work. Some will be jamming the Blues, some performing covers of classic pop songs and some will be performing their very own songs - all written, arranged and produced independently with minimum support from the Sonic Boom team.

Also featuring Liverpool's finest independent MC - JAMIE BROAD



Workshops have taken place at Parklands school in Speke and at Resonate Music Hub in association with Notre Damn in Everton with years 10 & 11. Come along and show your support and see what we have been up to! You will not be disappointed! :)

ALL AGES WELCOME - DRY BAR VENUE


Saturday 9 February 2013

Female Vintage Vocal/Ukulele Duo MERSEY BELLES from Merseyside!

http://soundstudioliverpool.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/ucl-presents-mighty-uke.html

The Mersey Belles have landed!



See them Live!

Performances in March 2013:



9.05pm Friday 8th March 2013 @Threshold Festival
Performed live with UKULELE CLUB on the Lemon Collective Stage @Camp and Furnace, 67 Greenland St, in Liverpool's Baltic Triangle area. 

Here's a few clips taken by a new fan of the Mersey Belles:






10.30pm Friday 8th March @ HOUSE, Bold St, Liverpool

The Mersey Belles performed at charity event TIE A RED RIBBON in association with SAHIR HOUSE & International Women's Day. 






7.30pm Sunday 10th & 24th March 
@ HOUSE, Bold St, Liverpool 

The Mersey Belles made their debut residency appearance at House on Mother's Day and what a way to kick things off! They played and sang a wide variety of classics from the 1940's, 50's as well as putting their Mersey Belle twist on more modern hits turning them into mini delights! It was certainly the perfect gift for all the Mums and Grans that attended!


Video up soon!



The MERSEY BELLES Video Shoot with SOUND STUDIO

On 7th February 2013, I was commissioned through Sound Studio Liverpool to create 2 performance music videos for the Mersey Belles! 

www.soundstudioliverpool.com

[Elaine] I was very delighted to take on this fantastic opportunity - working with The Mersey Belles was great fun! Even though we had a very limited budget to make the 2 videos, we did it by making use of what we could find around the house & garden. The set was assembled in Pearl's living room and I just used a number of lamps and reflectors (including a glitter ball) to light the scene, with a spot light bouncing off the back wall to add that special glow. 
I filmed the footage using nothing more than a Cannon Powershot A2300HD camera on a tripod with 2 condenser mics (AKG-C1000 & a Red5) hooked up to my mac to capture the sound. We did a few takes but the 1st one turned out to be my favourite. One take wonders! 

Glitter ball magic!
Setting up for the shoot. Pearl defeats the music stand.
The audio was mixed in Garageband and imported into i-Movie to be synced up to the footage and hey presto! All in a days work! 

Have a listen to the recordings!

 


The Mersey Bellles were great fun to work with. They are extremely talented and very professional to work with (most of them time!). 

I can't wait to see them perform live! It really was a pleasure to work with them. I would highly recommend booking them for entertainment at any event or occassion - bistros, hotels, parties, weddings, festivals and even corporate events - they can't help but make you smile :) [E.Kinsella]

Nancy & Pearl singing along to 'You Belong To Me'.

Video 1: 'YOU BELONG TO ME'

The 1st video I produced for Nancy and Pearl was a cover of the 1920's classic, written by lyricist Billy Rose and composer Lee David (1926). The song was originally released on Banner Records in 1926, then again in 1927 sung by Gene Austin

Almost 3 decades passed until it resurfaced again in 1952 from the voice of Frankie Lane then soon after in 1955 by Jo Stafford - the first women to top the UK charts! I think the most memorable version for me was the one produced a bit later in 1956 sung by one hit wonder sister duo Patience and Prudencewhere it continued to reclaim commercial success reaching No.4 on the Billboard Charts The very same version has been recently commissioned for the Monarch Airlines TV advertising campaign. 


'You Belong To Me' has since been re-recored and re-released again and again throughout  every decade since the 50's! In the 60's it was The Duprees and so on. It has appeared in various movies, most notably, 'The Jerk' featuring comic actor Steve Martin. It even appeared in the end credits of the movie 'Birth' released in 2004. 

The latest versions of the song can be found on The Bird and The Bee's 2008 EP 'One Too Many Hearts' and again in 2009 on Nobunny's power-pop punk album 'Raw Romance' (Burger Records). There are literally hundreds of versions of this musical wonder.
I am pretty sure this version sung by the brilliant Mersey Belles will be duly noted in the future too! Have a look . . . 

Video 2: 'WE FOUND LOVE'

The 2nd video I produced for Nancy and Pearl is a more recent hit record produced by Calvin Harris and sung by hip-hop/R&B sensation Rihanna for her 6th studio album 'Talk That Talk' released in 2011 on Def Jam records. 

Ed Sheeran had a go at covering the song on Sirus FM and Coldplay and Bat For Lashes have also covered it in the BBC Radio One Live Lounge but I do believe that the Mersey Belles do the song the most justice adding their moody, sultry undertones and beautiful harmonies to the dynamics. 

So, who are the Mersey Belles?

Mersey based, female,vintage, vocal/ukulele duo, the Mersey Belles made their debut appearance with a stunning live performance at House on Bold Street, Liverpool, on Sunday 3rd February 2013, supporting Liverpool R&B singer Chelcee Grimes

M' Belles & Chelcee@House 3/2/13

It seems cousins, Nancy & Pearl have been practising their vocals and ukulele skills since the 1940's, building up an extensive music repertoire. 

Their exquisite, harmoniously blended vocals and choreographed routines are perfectly executed with grace and finesse, along with their victory roles and vintage style, they certainly dress to impress. (E.Kinsella)

I had a chat with them on set to find out more about Mersey Belle mania. Here's what they had to say:

Q. So Nancy, how did the idea for The Mersey Belles come about?
A. [NANCY] The Mersey Belles came about from a combination of things really. I'd been singing for Ian McNabb on his "Little Episodes" album and his ukulele had been hanging around the studio so I picked it up and started playing it, a lot. It was beautiful, he ended up giving it to me. One of Ian's fans called Helen Bc came up with the name, 'Mersey Belles', after I'd posted a request for naming a Liverpool based vintage ukulele duo on my music page. Around the same time good friends of mine set up an old fashioned tea dance company in Leeds called The Marvellous Tea Dance Company so I guess they gave me the initial inspiration to start up a vintage duo. 

Q. Pearl when did you start singing and have you done much performing before?
A. [PEARL] I started singing at 12 in drama school, then at 16 I joined a covers band called Cadenza with 5 school friends, playing local clubs. I took a break from singing until 2001 when I began a Community Arts course at L.I.P.A. In the 1st year I did a singing module with the amazing Jennifer John who gave me a new found confidence in my voice. At 22 I started writing my own songs & performing at local jam nights and was spotted by Andy Lovegrove from EMI on a trip to London. I started recording an EP at the S.A.E Institute but had to postpone as I fell pregnant. I now have a wonderful 8 year old boy called Charlie - he's my world. In 2006, aged 26 I joined Hope Street Harmonies a capella community choir in Liverpool of which I'm still a member. In the last 7 years I've learnt to play guitar and ukulele and performed my own songs as Miss Stan. Late 2011, a friend and I started a 4 piece, blue grass ukulele group called The PollyAnnas. Early 2013 I was introduced to Danielle Laura-Perkins, via Jennifer John and yourself via Sound Studio Liverpool. Danielle was searching for a new partner and hey presto - Long live The Mersey Belles! I absolutely love it and Danielle is just a superstar to work with. 

Q. Nancy, have you sang with anyone else before?
A. [NANCY] Yes I have, I've done bit's for the girls from Attomic Kitten (love those girls), Ian McNabb, Ian Prowse, from the band Amsterdam and Paul Holden, just to name a few! I did some songwriting and singing for my good friend Kirsty Almeida recently working on her 30 songs in 30 days project which was wonderful. My partner is a songwriter/producer and has a studio in our back room so I often get hauled in to put some harmonies on stuff. I love it.

Q. How many ukuleles have you got?
A.[NANCY] Between us we have a few, a Redwood soprano and a tenor, a soprano Kala, and a bright pink soprano Stagg. I think Pearl has her eye on a banjo-lele too. My daughter Nancy Junior has a Sponge Bob soprano and Pearls son has a red one. He attends Ukulele Club in Liverpool so watch out for launch of the Baby Belles! 

Q. What type of music do you typically play?
A. [NANCY] Mainly golden oldies with a few modern classics thrown in. Everything from Dean Martin's 50's hit record 'That's Amore' to Jesse J's 'Price Tag'! When we play at weddings we cater the set list to suit the requests of the bride and groom, but when we start our residencies I'm sure we play our personal favourites and requests from the guest of course! 
[PEARL] I love singing 'Dream A Little Dream' originally recorded in 1931 by Ozzie Nelson, in 1957 by Doris Day and again in 1968 by Cass Elliot from The Mamas and The Papas. I first heard it sung by the Beautiful South though!

Q. Who inspires you?
A. [PEARL] Alanis Morrisette was the 1st female singer that made me really want to sing. I loved her voice. My Dad would often play Jagged Little Pill in the car and I would sing along as loud as I could - knew every word! Also, Ruby Turner because she's got the most beautiful voice & is an amazing person. I had the honour of meeting her in 2002 at the Palace Theatre in Birkenhead as a friend of mine was catering for her crew at the time. More recently Paloma Faith, Emeli Sande, Mumford and Sons and The Lumineers have really twinkled my ear drums.
[NANCY]I have a lot of musical inspiration in my life, from my beau to my best mates but I'd say my biggest inspiration at the moment is cousin Pearl. She's such an amazing singer and talented musician. I'm so glad she's a Mersey Belle.

Q. So where can we see you play and when?
A. [NANCY] We are starting a residency at House on Bold Street in March. We have a few weddings and private parties coming up, obviously you can only see us at them if you are invited! We are singing at a charity event soon for Sahir House and the Nystagmus Network. We will be venturing into Europe this summer for a few festivals and in Spring we will be supporting the debut single launch for local indie-pop band The Swapsies. Keep an eye on our website for the dates to be announced.

Q. Where can people find you online?
A. [PEARL] We are on Facebook, Twitter and Paul Brickles from Brickwork Projects has just designed and set up new website for us at www.merseybelles.co.uk We also have a YouTube channel where you can view our videos.

Q. Are you available for event bookings and what is the best way for people to book you?
A. [NANCY] Yes we are! You can book us through our website or inbox us on Facebook. Alternatively our email address is merseybelles@gmail.com

Q. Finally, what does the future hold for The Mersey Belles?
A. [NANCY] 2013 is the year for the Mersey Belles! Hopefully the future holds some lovely harmony, good times and cracking vintage inspired ukulele music. Watch his space, it's all about to get very interesting!


KEEP POSTED FOR MORE UPDATES ON THE MERSEY BELLES! Ta'ta for now!

Written by Elaine Kinsella, 9th February 2013 in association with Sound Studio Liverpool and Soundworx Media Ltd. 

©www.soundstudioliverpool.com


More info about Sound Studio Liverpool:

YOUTUBEWatch more videos created by Sound Studio Liverpool which can be found on our partner youtube channel Soundworx Media and Sound TV.

A/V SERVICES: For audio/visual production quotes and bookings get in touch via the website www.soundstudioliverpool.com

UKULELE CLUB: Sound Studio also hosts Ukulele Club a ukulele playing and singing music group, which runs every Wednesday at Eastfield Day Nursery In Aigburth, Liverpool, L17 4JU. £4 per session.

SESSION 1: 6.15 - 7.15pm (Age 8+)      SESSION 2: 7.30pm - 8.30pm (Age 16+)

MUSIC LESSONS: Sound Studio works in partnership with a whole host of music leaders and teachers from Merseyside and the Northwest to provide tailored lessons in Ukulele, Drums, Guitar, Bass, Vocals, Piano and Dj-Ing. For more information on music lessons and bookings visit the website or e mail: soundstudiolessons@hotmail.com

STUDIO SERVICES: We also have a fully fitted D.I.Y. recording studio available for rentals, based in Toxteth TV, Windsor St, Liverpool L8 1XE with very competitive rates which is connected to our D.I.Y. SOUNDCLOUD GROUP.