RITA
ON FOR WBR 2004
Hot on the heels of her newest release "No-One To Blame", Hamilton native Rita Chiarelli has just been announced as a featured vocalist in the Toronto Blues
Society's Women's Blues Revue at Massey Hall, Saturday, November 27. Her legion of Toronto fans will not have to wait that long - she will be appearing on August 5th at noon at
Nathan Phillips Square as a part of "Tasty Thursdays".
Known for her raspy, sensual voice Rita Chiarelli has been wowing Blues fans around the world with her soulful singing and pure expression of each song. Rita can whisper a love song, wail a rock ditty and scream the Blues, all the while making it seem effortless. Chiarelli's songs are often a combination of blues and other genres, including rock, country, Cajun and jazz.
A gifted storyteller, guitar player, and lyricist, Rita began her singing career in Hamilton at the age of 15. She played in bands throughout high school and eventually hit the road with her band Battleaxe after graduation. It took little time before Rita would be noticed by the legendary Ronnie Hawkins, and start singing with his band. She also has 5 years of studio work in Italy to add to her impressive resume. Returning to Canada seems to be the best career move Rita could have made. Her single "Have You Seen My Shoes" was included in the soundtrack of the 1989 cult film Roadkill, she released her first album in 1992 and began to gain attention as one of Canada's best female vocalists. Shortly after, Rita toured Europe and gained a loyal following among Blues fans in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Belgium. By 1995, Rita had earned a Juno nomination for her recording called Just Getting Started, a fitting title for an album that would propel Ms. Chiarelli further into the Blues scene and earn scores of new fans around the world.
Many prestigious awards later, 2001 proved to be a huge year for Rita with the release of the acclaimed Breakfast at Midnight on NorthernBlues Records. Another Juno nomination for this recording added to the buzz surrounding Rita Chiarelli. Rita is a multiple Maple Blues Award winner and received the CBC's "Great Canadian Blues Award" in 2002.
Rita just completed a 20-day tour of the US including blues meccas St Louis, Memphis and Kansas City as well as six dates in Texas including a gig at the legendary Threadgills in Austin. She'll be returning to Texas in November. Her 'Southern Nights' tour of the USA was documented on video - watch for video clips on the web site soon and a DVD is in the works.
With tours across North America and Europe, Rita has been able to multiply her talents ten-fold, and she continues give her all with each energetic performance. Her newest release No-One To Blame (Mad Iris MIM0002/Festival) is a collection of covers that represents Rita's musical influences. A wonderful twist to this record is that practically all of the songs were originally sung by males, and Rita is able to take these tracks and make them her own. US radio has reacted very well to the new album with comments like "We are getting a lot of requests for your new CD...in fact, we are going to report it to LIVING BLUES this next time around," "We have it listed as #4 on Rotation," "We want to do a Chiarelli weekend...promoting you and your CD" and " We'll be on this album for a long time, beginning this Friday night."
Rita performed at the first Women's Blues Revue in 1987 and was called back in 1988, 1991, 1994, 2000 and went to Vancouver with the Women's Blues revue in 1993. "That was all a long time ago and it's been great to see the Women's Blues Revue grow to this extent. It's brought to the forefront women in blues. Blues has always been known for guitar-slinging guys and the WBR has made people aware that you don't have to be male and playing guitar to get into the blues".
This event usually held at the Danforth Music Hall has been moved to the larger Massey Hall this year and will feature an all-star line-up of featured vocalists to be announced August 18th as well as the legendary Women's Blues Revue Band. The show is scheduled for Saturday, November 27.
For Rita's tour information and to purchase No-One To Blame or any other Rita Chiarelli CD, visit www.ritachiarelli.com or send $23CDN to: Mad Iris Music, 373 Milverton Blvd., Toronto, Ont M4J 1W1. The CD is also available in stores through Festival Distribution
Sarah French