Belinda O'Hooley
| Belinda O'Hooley | |
|---|---|
| Born | Leeds, England |
| Genres | Folk, chamber folk, singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | piano, vocal |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Labels | No Masters; Rabble Rouser; Hum Records |
| Associated acts | O'Hooley & Tidow; Jim Boyes; Nic Jones; Jackie Oates; Lucy Ward; Chumbawumba; Rachel Unthank and the Winterset |
| Website | www |
Belinda O'Hooley is a British singer-songwriter and pianist with Irish roots, who was born in Leeds and went to university in Huddersfield, where she is now based. Formerly a member of Rachel Unthank and the Winterset (now The Unthanks), she now records and performs with fellow Yorkshire singer-songwriter Heidi Tidow (pronounced Tee-doe), who is now also her wife, as O'Hooley & Tidow.
O'Hooley comes from a long line of County Sligo musicians and performed alongside her cousin Tommy Fleming, a singer who was formerly with De Danann.
From 2004 until 2008 she was a member of Rachel Unthank and the Winterset (now The Unthanks). Nic Oliver, reviewing their 2007 album The Bairns for musicOMH, described O'Hooley as "the ace in the pack throughout The Bairns. Her background in cabaret (intriguingly, she had once appeared on Stars In Their Eyes impersonating Annie Lennox) adds a left-field edge to the music, with her jazzy piano chords lending a sing-along feel to the live favourite Blue's Gaen Oot O'The Fashion. O'Hooley also contributes the two original tracks to the album, although the casual listener could quite easily mistake both Blackbird and Whitehorn for traditional songs".
In 2005 O'Hooley released a solo album, Music is My Silence, described by reviewer David Kidman of Netrhythms.co.uk as "a commanding and defiant set of thoroughly contemporary-sounding songs" and by FATEA as "a highly polished collection of songs that gently sway between folk and jazz".
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Wikipedia