TEXAS MUSIC IS LOVED MARCIA BALL AUGUST 2014 Marcia Ball was born March 20, 1949 in Orange, Texas. She is a blues singer and pianist who was raised in Vinton, Louisiana. She was described in USA Today as a sensation, saucy singer and superb pianist... where Texas stomp-rock and Louisiana blues-swamp meet. The Boston Globe described her music as an irresistible celebratory blend of rollicking, two-fisted New Orleans piano, Louisiana swamp rock and smoldering Texas blues from a contemporary storyteller. Born into a musical family, she learned to play the piano at age 5, and showed an early interest in New Orleans style piano playing, as exemplified by Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, and James Booker. She has named Irma Thomas, the New Orleans vocalist, as her chief vocal inspiration. Ball studied English at Louisiana State University in the 1960s while playing in a band called Gum. In 1970, at age 21, she started a progressive country band called Freda and the Firedogs in Austin, Texas, and began her solo career in 1974. Ball continues to play at nightclubs, particularly in Austin and New Orleans, and performs at music festivals in North America and overseas.
Posted on: Sun, 17 Aug 2014 00:47:13 +0000