All the while, no matter the accolade, Joan Armatrading has focused on the music.
"I write," she says, "because I love it.
When first you hear the voice; rich, warm, remarkable; it's the voice of a woman who tells the truth. For more than 27 years, Joan Armatrading has done just that – in songs crafty, subtle and sublime. Even at their boldest, driven by her passionate guitar, they touch the listener like a whisper to the ear, like confessions from heart to heart.
She works only with the finest musicians, effortlessly eclectic ranging from soul to sophisticated pop – an apt mix for a performer born under the palms of the West Indies and raised beneath the smokestacks of Birmingham, England.
Her career has seen the birth of classics like "Love and Affection," Down to Zero" "Drop the Pilot" and "Me Myself I". She has been nominated at the Brit awards, the American Grammy Awards and awarded the Ivor Novello title of Outstanding Contemporary Song Collection, all the while bringing out numerous silver, gold and platinum albums with consistent, enviable critical acclaim.
Joan released a CD of 'Lullabies with a Difference' with friends and musicians whom she admires, like Mark Knopfler, Jools Holland, Midge Ure, Tina Turner, The Cranberries, Melissa Etheridge, Brian May, Sarah Randle, Lewis Taylor. “The Messenger” was a tribute song Joan was asked to write for Nelson Mandela, the former President of South Africa, which she played for him on his 70th birthday celebrations at Wembley Stadium to a packed audience.
See Joan perform her special kind of magic for yourself, live in concert at the Royal Theatre in Castlebar on Thursday 8th September. Tickets are on sale at €33, and can be purchased from the Box Office: 0818300000, on the TF website: www.royaltheatre.ie and from all usual outlets.
