Claudia Russell (born 1954) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist.[1] Before becoming a solo artist, Russell performed with a number of Los Angeles bands,[2] including The Life Is Grand Band, who recorded for Smithsonian Folkways, and Maggie's Farm, who recorded for JRS Records and was distributed by BMG.

Early life

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Russell was born to Gilbert Russell né Val Rosing and Marilyn Pendry. Rosing was a well-known British crooner best known as the vocalist on the original BBC recording of "Teddy Bears' Picnic". Pendry was a dancer in TV shows, stage productions and MGM feature films, including White Christmas and An American In Paris. Russell's parents divorced in 1960.[3]

Career

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Russell has released five CDs: Song Food (2000), Ready To Receive (2004), Live Band Tonight, (2007), All Our Luck Is Changing (2013), and Lover's Tree (2018).[4] Russell is often encouraged by her husband/musical collaborator, Bruce Kaplan.[3]

Russell tends to use a close knit group of musicians that includes percussionist Debra Dobkin, Dobro and guitar player Eric Lewis, keyboardist Carl Byron and her husband Bruce Kaplan on guitar and mandolin.[5]

She is known to play often in the midwest and has a fondness for Door County, Wisconsin.[6] Their music is served up with a generous helping of homespun humor and shaggy dog stories, making for a heartfelt and humorous experience of deeply engaging music.[7]

Awards

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Russell has twice been a finalist in the Kerrville Folk Festival's New Folk songwriting competition. Her debut CD, Song Food, earned her Best New Artist honors from Boston radio station WUMB in 2001.[8]

References

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  1. ^ "Claudia Russell". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  2. ^ Gilbert, Andrew (2009-06-28). "A late bloomer in full flower". Boston.com. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  3. ^ a b Sands-Boehmer, Kathy (2014-08-19). "Quick Q and A with Claudia Russell and Bruce Kaplan". Everything Sundry. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  4. ^ "Lovers Tree, by Claudia Russell". Claudia Russell. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  5. ^ "Claudia Russell Electronic Promo Kit". Claudia Russell. 2018-01-01. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  6. ^ "Claudia Russell on Washington Island". Door County Pulse. 2010-06-27. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
  7. ^ "CLAUDIA RUSSELL & BRUCE KAPLAN". The Lake County Folk Club. 2019-08-15. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
  8. ^ "A musician's musician". Pasadena Weekly. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2013-06-22.
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