Emma King releases teaser for 4 live-to-tape recordings released summer 2019

EMMA KING TO RELEASE FOUR LIVE-TO-TAPE RECORDINGS THIS SUMMER & UNVEILS TEASER TRAILER

Pre-order at www.musicglue.com

“Spine-tingling… Emma King’s Sun Studio recordings sound exactly like you are sitting in on a session from the 50s”  – Sean Magee, Abbey Road Studios

Country-blues singer-songwriter Emma King is to release a special 4-track 10” vinyl (also available digitally) on July 26th 2019 titled THE SUN AND THE BLUES. 

Recorded between 2014-2018 live to tape, ‘The Sun And The Blues’ showcases four of Emma King’s best live recordings at America’s homes of Rock ‘n’ Roll: Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee.

Tracked live to analogue tape by Grammy award-winning engineer Matt Ross-Spang (Jason Isbell, Margo Price), Jake Niceley (Alison Krauss, Osmond Brothers) and Dustin Richardson (Milk Carton Kids), Emma and her band capture the heart and soul of these original songs, recorded and produced in a way that is faithful to the legacy of these historic studios.

Sun Studio is the famed Memphis recording studio founded by Sam Philips where Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash made their first ever recordings. The ‘Birthplace of Rock’n’Roll’ was made available to Emma for a private evening session in 2014. The House of Blues Studio, started life in Memphis but eventually relocated to Nashville, TN and in 2009 brought one of its most-loved buildings (Studio D) in its entirety on a truck down the I-40 motorway!

The recordings have been kept as authentic as possible, these are full live takes performed by musicians all in the same room. As a bonus for those who order online, Emma has also included a digitised version of her track ‘Devil City’ which was recorded live-to-vinyl at Jack White’s Third Man Record Store Booth in Nashville, TN.

The Sun And The Blues was cut to vinyl and mastered at Abbey Road Studios, London.

Side One

(Live at Sun Studio, Memphis, TN)

1. All the Other Fools

2. Rollin’ In

Side Two

(Live at House of Blues, Nashville, TN)

1. Break the Mould

2. Wild Things

See Belles And Gals article written by Lesley Hastings

ABOUT EMMA KING

Biggest musical influences: Elvis Presley, Eurythmics & Fleetwood Mac

I first came across Emma King and the Heartsets via Myspace, Maverick Magazine and saw them live at The Half Moon, Putney supporting Tia McGraff and The Stories.

The power of Emma’s voice has taken her from Kingston-Upon-Hull to touring the US and Europe, receiving 5-star reviews along the way.

In her teens Emma was a gigging musician and her love of country music developed thanks to catching legends such as Cash and Haggard on late night television.

Emma King’s career began in earnest when she received a scholarship from James Brown’s god-daughter Carleen Anderson (Brand New Heavies) to study at BIMM Brighton. She built up her musical chops performing in England and Germany and self-funded a move to the US for a five-year period. This work paid off, leading to some incredible experiences such as playing in Sun Studios in Memphis using vintage tape machines, Elvis’s microphone and Jerry Lee Lewis’s piano.

She has appeared on the PBS network, BBC Radio 2, ITV, performed live for the prestigious WSM radio station and supported acts such as The Drifters.

After meeting them at the Brighton music college she formed a Country/Americana 5-piece band (Emma King (vocals), Ian Harrison (lead guitar), Ritch Spence (piano & guitars), Toby Schwietering (bass), Will Stanley (drums)) named Emma King and the Heartsets. The gigging tradition continued playing in Europe (Germany) and included self-funded trips to Nashville.

In 2010 they released a 13-track tagged “Alternative“ CD LIFE UNDER LIGHTS (PLC Records | Spotify) arranged by the band with 10 of the tracks written by Ritch Spence and Emma penning “On The Change” and “A Place For Me”. The album received a 5 STAR rating in Maverick Magazine.

Maverick Magazine (June 2009) Click to ENLARGE

In November 2010 Lee Williams from CMR Nashville (and former BCMA president) lead a British Invasion to Nashville to celebrate the 44th CMA awards and to perform at The International Party on the night before the CMA Awards Tuesday 9th November at the Cadillac Ranch. Emma King and The Heartsets joined other UK acts Raintown, The Hayley Oliver Band, Alan West Band, “the legendary” Sandy Newman (Marmalade lead singer) and the David Bradley Band.

The majority of comments the band received about their live shows were that people loved the fact they were animated and lively on stage and were a cohesive unit. 

They were influenced by the Nashville sound and the laid-back life of living in Tennessee with Ritch Spence choosing to play acoustic rather than electric instruments. With US management (Jonathan worked for many years in the music industry) their career progressed having left UK terrain for Music City in search of longevity.

The band made 4 to 5 trips to Nashville to show they were committed and had a passion returning to the UK working day jobs to save money for flights. Emma was offered a record deal as a solo singer and turned it down to carry on with the original band. A manager who had worked with RCA Records and Show Dog Records (Toby Keith) got interested and arranged showcases and another label got involved.  

Whilst stateside (based in Tullahoma, TN; 1 hour from Nashville) the band caught the attention of music executives, got offered work as a house band and continued to work/tour there for four years. During this time Emma made quite a name for herself including becoming a regular performer at the Bluebird Cafe and opened for acts such as Old Dominion and CMA award winning Deanna Carter, her own soulful sound evolving all the time.

In October 2011 they released a superb cover of Chalee Tennison’s "I Am Love". A wonderful and powerful song they discovered it hearing whilst driving and wanted to put their own stamp on it. The song aired in the UK on CMR Nashville, BBC Lancashire and BBC Cambridge. A video followed filmed in the tracking room in Nashville, which sadly no longer exists on YouTube, but the audio can be heard here:

Published on March 4, 2013 Official music video for "So Alive" by Emma King.

Emma has previously worked with Grammy Award winning engineers including Chas Sandford (Stevie Nicks and Chicago), Milan Bogdan (KC and The Sunshine band, Shania Twain) and Aaron Swihart (Peter Frampton). Her debut album was independently produced, recorded at Snap Studios in London and mastered at Abbey Road.

In 2016 she returned from Nashville to home soil to release a 10-track self-titled debut POP album EMMA KING (Amazon UK - UK iTunes | British Songwriting Co.) on May 27, 2016. Her sound was described as “an idiosyncratic mix of pop, soul and roots, with a voice that brings comparisons to Joss Stone, Annie Lennox and Christina Aguilera”.

Emma shared “It’s almost a souvenir of my last 5 years living in Tennessee; some people take pictures but I write songs to relive my journey”.

Emma’s writing style is open and honest, touching upon themes such as anger and loss, but with a sense of optimism throughout. The experience of living abroad is a prominent theme; she describes album opener ‘Devil City’ as being “about feeling completely lost in unfamiliar territory; getting pulled back in every time you try to leave.”

Devil City [OFFICIAL VIDEO] published on April 26, 2016

She released her second solo album ELECTRIC SOUL THERAPY (tagged "Rock"/ "Roots Rock") on Sept 28, 2018 https://listnin.co/EmmaKingEST.

Emma felt the pull of Intercontinental music making once more. It was recorded both in the UK and the US, showcasing an evolved sound of Roots, Rock and Soul, alongside the idiosyncratic charm and power of Emma’s voice. Featuring Steely Dan’s fabulous Keith Carlock on drums, the album is underpinned with a master-crafted authentic feel, and also features film/tv composer Michael Whittaker on Keyboards, David Santos (Elton John, Billy Joel), Chas Sandford and many more.

She shared her four top tips for getting the best out of studio sessions. See feature at iSing Magazine

Published on Aug 31, 2018 watch the video for single 'War Paint':

Keeping the raw emotional power of Emma’s songs, many of the recordings feature live takes and the music oozes authentic analogue warmth. To top it off, the record it was lovingly mixed down to 2-track tape and mastered at Abbey Road Studios, London.

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