Victoria Blythe

Award winning singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Victoria Blythe (vocals) combines jazz, folk and pop music into original songs in a style uniquely her own. Her thrilling beautiful vocals have been compared to Alison Krauss, Joni Mitchell, Paula Cole, Sandy Denny and Evanescence. She has studied both classical voice and jazz and has been performing professionally since she was a teenager. Her song "Dancing with You" won the West Coast Songwriters Song of the Year award and has appeared in a number of movies, including "Anywhere But Here", and on TV. She performs her own material, select covers, and songs written by, or co-written with, Greg Beattie, who has won numerous songwriting awards including Kerrville New Folk, Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist, Grand Prize in the West Coast Songwriters International Song Contest and the Napa Valley Music Festival Emerging Artist Prize. She has been perfoming for many years with her Americana band "Calaveras" which she founded with her partner Greg Beattie and together they have played at numerous venues including the Freight and Salvage (Berkeley), Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Kerrville Folk Festival, Fiddling Cricket, and the Florence Winter Folk festival. In addition to lead vocals, Victoria also plays guitar, piano, violin and viola, bass, mandolin, recorder and Native American Flute, with her greatest love being viola. Victoria's vocal talents were apparent at a very young age when her kindergarten teacher recorded her singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" to play at the school's open house. She sang solo's in church as a child and eventually began singing in weddings. She studied classical viola, violin and piano and performed in YPSO (Berkeley)and the Junior Bach Ensemble as a teenager. She directed the youth choir "Songs of the Soul" for a number of years and has been actively involved in the music program at the First Congregational Church of Berkeley as a performer and musician. Her song "This is When the Angels Sing" was included in the Berkeley production of "The Garage Door Nativity". She began writing songs when she was 12 years old but did not pursue professional songwriting until she met her partner, Greg Beattie, in 1992. They formed the Americana band "Calaveras" which has released three CD's with a fourth one currently in progress. Victoria will be releasing her first solo CD "Silver Flyer" in the fall of 2014. This new CD is a fusion of folk, jazz and pop.

Sam Bevan (Bass) has established himself as one of the most versatile and creative bassists in the Bay Area music scene. Sam is able to canvas a large musical landscape where jazz, funk, R&B, folk, Afro-Cuban, Afro-Venezuelan and West African disciplines joyously intermingle. He has worked with David Grisman, Joe Craven, Monk's Music Trio, and VNote ensemble.

John R Burr is that rare pianist who combines jazz technique with a genuine love for folk music. "Pianist extraordinaire John R Burr has the most sparkling style since former Allman Brother-turned-Rolling Stone hired hand Chuck Leavell." The Philadelphia Weekly

Guitarist Walter Stauss has translated the African kora (harp) music to guitar and the results are absolutely amazing. This California guitar maestros songs are full of the groove and fire of an African dance party, the dynamics and textures of a string orchestra, and the back-porch soul of American roots music. In addition to touring solo in the US and abroad, Walter has collaborated with wide-ranging talents, including a duo with 2010 Grammy-winning kora player Mamadou Diabate, guitar virtuoso Alex de Grassi, and The Burns Sisters.

Guitarist Mark Holzlinger's style crosses many different genres including swing/jazz (Lost Weekend), Gypsy Jazz, and Americana (Pitchfork Trio). He's played with Bobby McFerrin, Joe Williams, Ricki Lee Jones and Marvin Gaye.

James Brown Tribute Song and Video

On August 1, Universal Pictures will be releasing the James Brown biopic “Get on Up.”  In recognition of this event and for airplay in connection with it,  Victoria is releasing her cover of “I Got You (I Feel Good)” in advance of her jazz/R&B/pop album Silver Flyer, to be released later this fall. The song is just her sultry, nimble voice, dressed in nothing but a stand-up bass……check it out!

 

I Got You (I Feel Good) YouTube Video

Where to Find My Music

Silver Flyer Album CDbaby

My Americana band Calaveras

Victoria Blythe on ITunes

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