Melissa Ferrick
| Melissa Ferrick | |
|---|---|
Melissa Ferrick performing on September 10, 2008
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| Background information | |
| Born | September 21, 1970 |
| Origin | Massachusetts, United States |
| Genres | Folk-Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, bass guitar, vocals, percussion, flugelhorn |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Labels |
Atlantic W.A.R.? - What Are Records? Right On Records MPress Records |
| Website |
www.melissaferrick.com www.myspace.com/melissaferrick |
Melissa Ferrick (born 1970) is an American singer-songwriter.
Ferrick was raised in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Her father John was a well-liked public school teacher who managed several free-jazz bands on the side. As a child, Ferrick would often accompany her father to clubs on Boston's North Shore to watch the bands play. She began taking classical violin lessons at the age of five, and then moved on to the piano. In elementary and junior high school, she learned the trumpet and bass. Altogether, she received 12 years of formal music training, including two years each at the Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music. Ferrick taught herself to play the acoustic guitar at Berklee, and dropped out after two years to pursue her music career.
Ferrick began her career singing and playing in coffeehouses in the East Village, New York City. She received a great deal of publicity in 1991 when she replaced, at the last minute, the opening act for the singer Morrissey on tour. She was subsequently signed to a recording contract with Atlantic Records and released her first studio album, Massive Blur, in 1993.
Ferrick's relationship with Atlantic was rocky. She was dropped when her first two albums did not meet the producers' financial expectations.
In 1996, she—in her words -- "bottomed out", drinking and "taking a bunch of pills". After sobering up, she returned to music, signing with the indie label W.A.R.? - What Are Records?. Ferrick released three albums on the label; Made of Honor, Everything I Need, and Freedom, the latter inspired by Janet Jackson's The Velvet Rope.
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