Andrea Menard

Music:

Member Since: 11/15/2006
Band Website: www.andreamenard.com
Band Members: I like to keep my band small and tight. Vocals, guitar, and bass. That way if we are playing to a jazz crowd we can pull out the hard chords! Robert Walsh is my main collaborator because he is an amazing guitarist and producer, and the best songwriter around.

Influences: Music - Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Randy Newman, and Lyle Lovett for their storytelling. The music of the 1930s and 40s, whether it is Billy Holiday or Hank Williams. And melt your heart voices: Ella Fitzgerald, Eva Cassidy, Brandi Carlisle, and Michael Buble.
Film - Ewan McGregor, Laura Linney, Julie Walters, Phillip Seymore Hoffman, Kate Winslet, Jim Broadbent, Meryl Streep, Jack Black and Gerard Butler.

I’d Like to Meet - Brothers and sisters, from all over the globe, who know their purpose and allow their voice to uplift humanity.
Interests - Movies, my dogs, peace and quiet, nature. I need to breathe fresh country air at least once a day.
Television - "Slings & Arrows" – every theatre actor has to see this television show, "Heroes", "Flight of the Conchords"
Books - Every kind of book crosses my nightstand.
Heroes- Any and every person who has conquered their biggest fear and moved on to live their best life.

Sounds Like:

The creative spark inside Andrea Menard has caught fire on her third album, a multi-genre original work that celebrates the glittering winter, but also embraces the beauty of summer. Sparkle is a Christmas release, but it encompasses roots and jazz songs for all seasons.

“I called this album Sparkle, because that is my prayer for the winters ahead — to allow the spark within us to burst into flames and ignite a grand illumination all across the globe,” says Menard. “So sparkle, my friends.”

Menard, an acclaimed singer, writer and actor, is travelling a new path carved out by her understanding of a universal consciousness and a deep desire to defend the planet. “I dedicate this album to Mother Earth, our blessed mother who is awakening and inspiring me in ways beyond description,” says Menard. “And that means awakening my ability to laugh at myself as well.”

The original songs, written with long-time collaborator Robert Walsh, cover a wide spectrum. Sparkle describes the crisp, clear winters, “full of icicles, stars, snow, tinsel, and crackling fires,” she says. Yet it also contains songs for all seasons including Evergreen, which will be released as Menard’s first music video. The name of the song is appropriate, since it describes Menard’s own talent – fresh and evolving, with roots that run deeply into her Métis heritage.

Menard's second album, Simple Steps, produced by Walsh, won many awards:
- 2006 Western Canadian Music Award for “Outstanding Aboriginal Recording”,
- 2006 Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards for “Best Folk Album”,
- 2006 Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards for “Best Single – 100 Years”,
- 2006 Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards for “Best Album of the Year”,
- 2006 Indian Summer Music Award for “Best Folk Album”,
The album was also nominated for two Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards.

Menard's debut CD, The Velvet Devil features songs from her hit one-woman show that has been taking Canada by storm. In 2003, The Velvet Devil earned her several nominations as well:
" Best Aboriginal Recording, Western Canadian Music Awards (2003)
" Best Female Artist, Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards (2003)
" Best Folk Album, Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards (2003)

"Her warm, burnished alto at times recalls Linda Ronstadt and Patsy Cline, and she can sing an a cappella tune like The Mother Song with an instrumental purity that keeps the audience riveted and utterly silent. But she can also belt and wail a bluesy tune with roof-raising power." - Steven Mazey, The Ottawa Citizen

Record Label: unsigned
Type of Label: Indie