Kellie Lin Knott
"Material draws from keen observation, insight and compassion.
Her voice commands authority."
John Noyd, Maximum Ink Music Magazine
"...lyrics of considerable wit, in more than one sense of that word,
and no little wisdom. More succinctly: wow!â€
Bryan A. Hollerbach, Contributing Editor, Playback St. Louis
"...great writer, sweet, sultry vocals and a very well developed guitar player."
Brian Wheeler, Marblehead, MA Festival of Arts
"I started out singing in a coat closet when I was five or six. I refused to sing unless I was invisible. Eventually, with a LOT of coaxing, I went from that (singing in the closet) to acting in musical theater. I couldn't dance, but I could belt out those showtunes like nobody's business. When my dad gave me my first guitar, I took it one step further and started writing. I wanted to sing my words."
In the 20 years since emerging from the musical closet, Boston-based singer-songwriter Kellie Lin Knott has released 5 CDs and performed her original songs in festivals, house concerts, colleges & listening rooms nationwide. Songs from her most recent solo CD, Comfortable, (folk-rock) won multiple awards and media mentions. Her collaboration with fellow songwriters Victoria Vox & Stolie as the "Midwestern Super Group" Tres Femmes (pop) led to the release of a full-length band CD and two year tour received with rave reviews.
But recently, Knott's writing shifted gears from funky-folk to retro-pop. Goofing around during a 2006 sound check in Franklin, MA with headlining artist, Susan Werner, led to an impromptu jazz duet of the Patti Paige classic, "Old Cape Cod". Kellie Lin fell in love with singing the new-to-her genre of classic jazz & cabaret standards.
"It's interesting to experiment as a song interpreter, especially after performing original material for so long. Some of my early heroes were vocalists who did NOT write, like Bernadette Peters and Bette Midler. And I spent five years of my life in musical theater before I decided to hit the coffeehouse circuit in highschool.
Now I want the best of both worlds. So I'm writing a motley collection of songs that might do well in a tiny little cabaret in New York or Chicago - songs that have the character of another time, but with a few modern-day updates in theme and vernacular."
Look for Kellie Lin Knott's new CD (working title: Deja Vu) in the spring of 2009. In the meantime, watch www.kellielinknott.com and myspace for showdates, new song postings, and more!
Highlights & Credits:
2004: BEST OF BOSTON, BAYSTATE SOUND
2005: FALCON RIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL EMERGING ARTIST SHOWCASE
2005: 1ST PLACE INTERNATIONAL SONG COMPETITION
2005: 3RD PLACE MIDWEST SONG COMPETITION
2005: FINALIST SOUTH FLORIDA FOLK FESTIVAL SONG COMP
2005: FINALIST MINNESOTA FOLK FESTIVAL SONG COMP
2005: HONORABLE MENTION, GREAT AMERICAN SONG CONTEST
Discography:
2005: Tres Femmes (Band CD: Kellie Lin Knott, Victoria Vox, & Stolie)
2004: Comfortable (Kellie Lin Knott solo CD)
2001: 3 (Kellie Lin Knott solo e.p.)
1999: Live From the Living Room (Kellie Lin Knott solo CD - out of print)
1997: Propinquity - Don't Touch The Art (Band CD featuring Jocelyn, Ruth & Kellie Lin Knott - out of print)