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Eden Atwood
has always known exactly what she wanted to do ...sing. Her father, Hub
Atwood, himself an accomplished writer and arranger for the likes of Frank
Sinatra, Harry James, Stan Kenton, Nat King Cole, accompanied her on piano
at age three in Memphis nightspots. From that time, Eden knew what she
would do for the rest of her life... sing.
When she was
five, divorce split the Atwood family and Eden moved to Montana with her
mother, Gus, the daughter of Pulitzer Prize winning author, A.B. Guthrie,
Jr. Her mother kept her love of music alive by encouraging her
participation in musicals. Eden attended the University of Montana's drama
department but left after two years. Something was missing.
At the lender
age of 19, Eden's father passed away and Eden keenly feeling the loss set
out for the big city, Chicago. She found work as a waitress in an Italian
restaurant that featured Jazz. As if a Hollywood script had been written,
one night the regular singer took ill and Eden's boss let her sit in. Says
Eden, " It was the closest I had felt to my father since lie passed.
I had never done a real jazz gig before, but it felt like the most natural
thing I had ever done". Two weeks later she quit her job and became
the new regular singer.
It was also in
Chicago that Eden attended the American Conservatory of Music. Eight years
of classical piano had provided her with a solid musical foundation but
Eden wanted lo able to write and arrange her own material. She produced a
demo tape that caught the attention of Bill Alien at Chicago's legendary
Gold Star Sardine Bar. Alien, who along with Bobby Short owns the club and
chooses the talent, knew he was listening to someone special. Eden became
the headliner for eight years with breaks to accommodate her acting and
modeling careers.
In 1992, Eden
was tapped for recurring role on ABC's, "The Commish" and that
same year she starred for nine months on the ABC daytime drama,
"LOVING". It was during this time that Eden made her Manhattan
singing debut in the famed Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel. Engagements at
Tavern on the Green and Michael's Pub soon followed. A guest star role on
Paramount's, "The Untouchables" brought Eden back to Chicago
where she resumed her duties as headliner at the Gold Star Sardine Bar.
In 1993,
Marian McPartland of Piano Jazz fame heard Eden's self-produced CD,
"Today" and forwarded it to Concord Record's Carl Jefferson. He
was so impressed with the effort that he signed Eden immediately to a
three record deal and re-released "Today" under the new title
"No One Ever Tells You", a song that Eden's father had written
for Frank Sinatra. All of Eden's CD's have enjoyed critical praise. Mark
Holton of Jazziz Magazine says: "As each of her Concord CD's have
confirmed in warm and swinging terms, Eden has emerged as one of the most
distinctive all around talented singers to enter the crowded ranks of the
female vocal tradition in years".
Since the
release of Eden's last Concord recording, "A Night In The
Life", Eden has performed all over the world with the likes of Joshua
Redman, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Gene Harris, Jeremy Monteiro and others.
She has been
featured on NPR's Piano Jazz with Marian McPartland. Ms. McPartland
appears on two of Eden's CD's; one as author of a tune that Eden recorded
and on the other accompanying on three cuts.
Both Starbucks
Coffee and Eddie Bauer have put tracks of Eden's on their compilation CD's
along side Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, and Nancy Wilson.
Most recently,
Eden has been appearing at Somerset's Bar in Singapore as headliner for
four months. Says Eden, "The goal is just to sing and to be the best
singer I can be. The wealth of great material out there means that I will
always have something to sing that inspires me. I am lucky".
Jim Merod of
Jazz News says it perfectly; "In a culture that has demoted lyrical
beauty, Eden Atwood's voice lends dignity. Her promise lends quiet
hope."
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