Deborah Coleman
Deborah Coleman (October 3, 1956 – April 12, 2018)[1] was an American blues musician. Coleman won the Orville Gibson Award for "Best Blues Guitarist, Female" in 2001,[2] and was nominated for a W.C. Handy Blues Music Award nine times.[3]
Deborah Coleman | |
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Deborah Coleman in concert, 2009 | |
Background information | |
Born | Portsmouth, Virginia, United States | October 3, 1956
Died | April 12, 2018 61) | (aged
Genres | Blues, rock |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instruments | Guitar |
Years active | 1995–2018 |
Labels | Blind Pig, Telarc, JSP, Ruf |
Biography
Coleman was born in Portsmouth, Virginia and raised in a music-loving military family that lived in San Diego, San Francisco, Bremerton, Washington, and the Chicago area. With her father playing piano, two brothers on guitar, and a sister who plays guitar and keyboards, Deborah felt natural with an instrument in her hands, picking up guitar at age 8. She has played at the top music venues such as North Atlantic Blues Festival (2007), Waterfront Blues Festival (2002), the Monterey Jazz Festival (2001), Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Festival (2000), Sarasota Blues Festival (1999), the San Francisco Blues Festival (1999) and the Fountain Blues Festival (1998).
Coleman's Blind Pig debut, I Can't Lose (1997), was an album of ballads and blues stories, and guitar playing and singing. Her version of Billie Holiday's "Fine and Mellow" got a lot of airplay on college and public radio stations around the U.S. Soul Be It (2002) included the opener "Brick", "My Heart Bleeds Blue", "Don't Lie to Me," and a jump blues track, "I Believe". These were followed by What About Love? (2004) and Stop the Game (2007). Time Bomb (2007) featured three women blues musicians: Coleman, Sue Foley and Roxanne Potvin.[4]
Coleman died on April 12, 2018, from complications brought on by bronchitis and pneumonia.[1]
Selective discography
Albums
Year | Title | Genre | Label |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Takin' a Stand | Blues/Rock | New Moon |
1997 | I Can't Lose | Blues-Rock | Blind Pig |
1998 | Where Blue Begins | Blues/Rock | Blind Pig |
2000 | Soft Place to Fall | Blues/Rock | Blind Pig |
2001 | Livin' on Love | Blues/Rock | New Moon |
2002 | Soul Be It | Blues/Rock | Blind Pig |
2004 | What About Love? | Blues | Telarc |
2007 | Stop the Game | Blues/Rock | JSP |
Compilation albums
Year | Title | Genre | Label | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2007 | Time Bomb | Blues Rock | Ruf (Idn) | with Sue Foley & Roxanne Potvin |
References
- RIP Deborah Coleman, Making a Scene!, April 13, 2018
- "Gibson Guitar Awards: "And the Winner Is ..."". Nyrock.com. 2001-02-21. Archived from the original on 2013-04-06. Retrieved 2016-12-06.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-11-08. Retrieved 2007-12-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-06-02. Retrieved 2007-10-08.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)