Amanda Marshall (born August 29, 1972 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian pop-rock singer.
Marshall studied music extensively during her childhood, including at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. While performing on the Queen Street West bar scene in her teens, she met guitarist Jeff Healey, who was struck by her powerful voice and took her on tour. She was offered a record deal by Columbia Records in 1991, but chose to wait a few years before releasing her debut album.
She grew up in Toronto in a biracial family to a Caucasian father and a Black mother. In several of her songs, Marshall has reflected on her racial identity "as a woman who looks white but is also half-black"[1][2].
Career highlights
In 1995, Marshall signed to Epic Records, and released her debut album Amanda Marshall the same year. The album was a major success in Canada, generating a great deal of airplay and spawning six Top 40 hits -- "Let It Rain," "Beautiful Goodbye," "Dark Horse," "Fall From Grace," "Sitting on Top of the World," and "Birmingham," which remains her biggest hit internationally.
In 1997, her song "I'll Be Okay" was included into the OST of My Best Friend's Wedding.
In 1999, she released a successful follow-up album, Tuesday's Child. It followed in the same vein as her debut, with a mix of soulful pop songs and ballads, characterizing her powerful voice. Her song "Ride" from that album would be featured in the The Replacements and on its soundtrack. Another single from that album, "Believe In You," was featured on one episode of Touched By An Angel, while Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi was the guest guitarist on the track "Why Don't You Love Me."
In 2001, she released her third album, Everybody's Got a Story. It marked a change in style and sound for Marshall, with a noticeable R&B influence. Her singles "Everybody's Got a Story" and "Sunday Morning After" received some Canadian airplay, and for the album, Marshall worked with the likes of Peter Asher and Billy Mann.
Marshall has not released a new album since her third album, in 2001. Her relatively low profile since that time has remained unexplained. Her official website is in fact a Sony Music marketing site, primarily promoting Intermission: The Singles Collection, and has not been updated since 2003.[3] Marshall does not maintain MySpace or Facebook pages, either.
In 2003, she released a greatest hits album entitled Intermission: The Singles Collection, which was followed by another greatest hits album, Collections, in 2006. In 2008, yet another greatest hits album, The Steel Box Collection, was released.
In 2007, the Canadian Idol Top Ten Finalists covered Amanda's song "I Believe In You." The profits from this track were to be donated to Ronald McDonald House Charities across Canada.
On July 1, 2009, Amanda Marshall performed[4] during a Canada Day celebration concert at Chinguacousy Park[5] in Brampton, ON (a suburb of Toronto).
On July 9, 2009, Amanda Marshall performed at the 2009 Kinsmen Cornwall Lift-Off and rocked Cornwall. We hope she returns.
New Album and Tour for 2010
It's finally time for the news we've ALL been waiting for: in an interview with Cornwall's Variety 104.5 FM with Jimmy & Sue on May 29th, Amanda announced that she is in a Toronto studio working on a new album! Amanda plans to release the album in early 2010 and promises that a tour will follow. During the interview, Amanda explained that the album began as an intimate folky record, but has turned into a much grander production. Amanda did not reveal the album's title, her current record label or exact album release date. Amanda also described what she's been doing over the past few years: travelling and spending time with family. To hear the entire interview, visit the Cornwall Lift-Off webpage here. http://lift-off.ca/09052901.php
Discography
Albums
Compilations
Singles
| Year |
Title |
Chart Positions |
Album |
| CAN |
CAN AC |
US |
AUS |
| 1995 |
"Let It Rain" |
10 |
5 |
— |
30 |
Amanda Marshall |
| 1996 |
"Birmingham" |
3 |
6 |
43 |
— |
| "Fall from Grace" |
17 |
2 |
— |
— |
| "Beautiful Goodbye" |
5 |
4 |
— |
— |
| "Dark Horse" |
5 |
1 |
— |
— |
| 1997 |
"Sitting on Top of the World" |
5 |
2 |
— |
— |
| "Trust Me (This Is Love)" |
24 |
5 |
— |
— |
| "This Could Take All Night" |
— |
— |
— |
— |
Tin Cup (soundtrack) |
| 1998 |
"Believe in You" |
10 |
3 |
— |
— |
Tuesday's Child |
| 1999 |
"Love Lift Me" |
10 |
5 |
— |
— |
| "If I Didn't Have You" |
31 |
11 |
— |
— |
| 2000 |
"Shades of Gray" |
25 |
27 |
— |
— |
| "Why Don't You Love Me?" |
42 |
26 |
— |
— |
| 2001 |
"Everybody's Got a Story" |
6 |
|
— |
— |
Everybody's Got a Story |
| 2002 |
"Sunday Morning After" |
20 |
|
— |
— |
| "Marry Me" |
19 |
|
— |
— |
| "Double Agent" |
19 |
|
— |
— |
| 2003 |
"The Voice Inside" |
— |
|
— |
— |
| "Until We Fall In" |
— |
|
— |
— |
Intermission: The Singles Collection |
Awards and nominations
Marshall has received 11 Juno Award nominations, between 1996 and 2002 in all of the major categories, including Album of the Year (for her first two albums), Single of the Year (for "Birmingham," "Dark Horse," and "Everybody's Got a Story"), and Artist of the Year.[citation needed]
References
External links
