News
Beth Anderson hits the Open Road
By Fred Davies - Parksville Qualicum Beach News
November 13th 2009
If there's one thing that can be said about French Creek singer/songwriter Beth Anderson it's that she doesn't lack for ambition.
"I want to do country music so I thought to myself 'why not open a company, get investors and go down to Nashville to record a CD?'" said Anderson who has just returned from the Country Music Capital having achieved exactly that.
For those who don't know Anderson one thing is certain; she knows what she wants and won't stop until she gets it. With only five years of singing under her belt, Anderson has sung with Vancouver Island Opera Company, Bard to Broadway and ECHO Players. Additionally she has performed at events including the annual Glassie Awards and Concert for a Cure and recently shared the stage with the pioneering Canadain rock band Chilliwack at Parksville's 2009 Canada Day celebration.
Anderson's latest career move is recording the album Open Road, with song writing credit for eight of 10 songs on the disc recorded at Dark Horse recording studio in the month of October, and a local release slated for the first week of April.
"They were so willing to give me everything I needed and treated me like a star even though I'm just an independent artist," said Anderson. "The music is like country pop with an edge. I have a powerful voice and wanted to show people I could be soft, too. You'll find some power ballads and some softer folksy songs but there's also some foot stompers."
"At times I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown but once I got there I knew that's where I'm supposed to be ... it was intense, it was hectic and it was on the fly but it was perfect."
The effort towards recording her own music didn't come cheap but Anderson was able to raise roughly $10,000 from local investors and that set her on a course to realizing her long held ambition.
She said the co-writer she was assigned, Grady Walker, is well known in the industry and just happens to be the brother-in-law of Michael McDonald from The Doobie Brothers. "He ended up being the sweetest man," said Anderson, "he stayed with me the whole time and was my moral support. One song we wrote together, No Yellow Brick Road, is my absolute favourite."
Writing since the age of five she said she's been able to incorporate some of that output into the new songs in an effort that is a bit of a departure from her beginnings as a conservatory trained classical singer. "There's been this constant battle between classical and country. Everybody's said you can't do both. I can always sing opera when I'm 29 or 30. Right now I want to focus on my country music," said the 22-year old. "The plan right now is working on getting a band together and to try and book a college tour in the spring."
Though she's relatively new to the business, Anderson knows all too well the role that image can play in the music business. To those ends she has shed more than 80 pounds in roughly a year and a half. "I realized that to make my dream come true I needed to be honest with myself and make some serious changes to my lifestyle," she said. "I came to terms that even if I had an amazing voice, nobody would take me seriously in this business. I knew that if I could be disciplined that I could achieve anything I set my mind to."
Music fans eager to get a taste of the young talent's new direction will have to wait a while longer as the recording receives it's final treatment. Anderson is confident the CD, that includes her version of the classic Unchained Melody will make an impression.
"It's been an amazing experience and I can't wait for everybody to hear it."
Anderson off to record debut in Nashville
By Fred Davies - Parksville Qualicum Beach News
September 17th 2009
On Saturday, singer songwriter Beth Anderson performs at Serious Coffee in Parksville.
The gig provides opportunity to see the French Creek songstress one last time before she heads off to Nashville the following day to begin work on her debut album.
“It’s going to be done at Dark Horse Recording, a really well known studio,” said Anderson. “I have a really great producer and there will be younger session players contributing who’ve played for artists like Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift.”
The 22-year-old singer can be seen this Saturday from 4 to 6 p.m. during the free concert at Serious Coffee, #9-1209 Island Highway East.
