A native of
Eugene, Oregon, Bonham began singing at age 5, playing the violin at 9, and
piano at age 14. After moving to Boston to study voice at Berklee College of
Music, leaving her full violin scholarship at the University of Southern
California behind, she began to write her own songs on the guitar. It was 1994
and the young musician felt it was time to express her own feelings and not
those of composers from a different era. She proved to be a quick study; Her
1996 major label debut, The Burdens of Being Upright (Island), went gold,
spawning the hit single “Mother Mother”, leading to a pair of Grammy nominations
as well as an MTV Video Award nomination (her video featured her real mother as
well as her step father).
Her next
record, Down Here, was significantly delayed while the label endured a series of
dramatic changes. Island Records had been bought and sold, ultimately landing
under the Universal umbrella and merging with hip hop label Def Jam. By the time
Down Here was released in the year 2000 the climate had changed exponentially.
Just as quickly as female singer-songwriters had emerged on the rock scene in
the mid nineties, they were escorted right out the same door in the name of
over-saturation and backlash. Bonham found herself frustrated and eventually
left Island/Def Jam to regain her independence and find her passion for music
again. She began playing in smaller venues, mostly acoustic, reconnecting with
herself and her fans. From this experience she met and began collaborating with
other artists.
It was at a
little club called Fez in downtown Manhattan where Bonham found herself
performing in front of producer Jack Douglas (John Lennon, Aerosmith). Douglas
was producing Aerosmith's Honkin' On Bobo record at the time and asked her to
come to the studio and sing and play violin with the band. She appears on the
tracks "Back Back Train" and "Jesus Is On The Main Line". On another occasion
the three founding members of Blue Man Group came to see her perform and
immediately asked her to be a part of their Complex tour. She had already begun
recording with Blue Man group at the time and was featured on the tracks "Up To
The Roof and "Shadows Part Two" on The Complex album. It was with the band
Wayfaring Strangers that Bonham had the most fun. This super group, formed by
the string department head at Berklee College of Music Matt Glaser, is made up
of established musicians in the American Folk, Bluegrass, Klezmer, and Jazz
world. Bonham had always felt like a fish out of water, but enjoyed being around
and learning from these incredible musicians (namely Tony Trischka, Jaimee
Hadad, Andy Statman, Ruth Ungar, Aoife O'Donovan, Lazlo Gardony, Jim Whitney,
and Glaser). Bonham has performed with Wayfaring Strangers at numerous venues
and festivals including Symphony Hall with the Boston Pops. Wayfaring Strangers
has had two releases so far; their self titled debut and This Train in which
Bonham's vocal strength is heavily showcased. These records are released on
Rounder Records.
In 2003,
while on the road with Blue Man Group's The Complex tour as opening act as well
as featured guest vocalist/violinist in the Blue Man show, Bonham started
selling her EP entitled the Bee EP. This was the first time Bonham had the
experience of being her own label, merchant, and management. Bonham was able to
sell enough EPs to finance her next full length album blink the brightest which
was picked up by Rounder/Zoe in 2005. On blink the brightest, Bonham makes full
use of a palate containing far more colors than you’ll find on those of most
writer/artists. “This record comes from the music that I really love,
incorporating classical influences, rock and pop, sometimes an R&B or soul
flavor,” she says. There’s no equivocation in her assessment of it, either.
“It's my best work yet,” she asserts. She uses these varied stylistic elements
to create consistently inventive arrangements that transcend genre conventions
and are bound only by the needs of a particular song.
And what
songs they are. “Whether You Fall,” a first-take solo performance with Bonham
accompanying herself on piano, sounds like a modern-day standard. “Wilting
Flower” is pure art song, perched somewhere between Joni Mitchell and Emily
Dickinson. The final verse of “Shine,” which celebrates the human spirit in
characteristically unconventional fashion, is a stunner: “When we’re eighty
years old and you can’t see a thing,” she sings, “you must never forget how much
light you bring.” The fact that “D.U.M.B.O. Sun” [an acronym for Down Under the
Manhattan Bridge Overpass, a Brooklyn neighborhood] and “Did I Sleep Through It
All?” are inventively autobiographical doesn’t limit their relatability one
iota. The coda of the latter–a string quartet and piano vignette composed,
arranged and played entirely by Bonham–powerfully underscores the song’s
resonance. “That song is about looking back at your life and the mistakes you
made, and realizing that you were sleepwalking,” she explains.
With her
latest indie EP In The City + In The Woods, Tracy Bonham show us her sensitive
side. This is an EP mostly made up of acoustic performances where she plays
every instrument, sometimes shifting from guitar to violin and back again in one
song. With the help of loops and effect pedals Bonham creates an exciting and
creative musical landscape for her songs to exist. Along with these performances
is a studio recording of a mixed up cover song; Beyonce's "Crazy In Love". "Who
knew there would be a Klezmer-swing version of this song?" says Bonham. "The
idea came to me because I thought I had heard it playing in a restaurant over
the noise of people dining and talking. Turns out it was my imagination. I
figured it must be a sign to do it myself".
Bonham has
performed on TV shows such as The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, Late Night with
Conan O'Brien, Late Late with Craig Fergusson, A & E's Breakfast For The Arts,
and Saturday Night Special with Roseanne Barr. Her songs have recently been
played on TV shows such as What About Brian, Brothers and Sisters, The L Word,
The Closer, AMC Network, and Rockstar Supernova. Tracy has also appeared as
guest vocalist/violinist with artists such as Latin Playboys, NoBlues (from the
Netherlands), Ron Sexsmith, Mark Oliver Everet (The Eels), Aerosmith, Euphoria
(from Canada), and Jimmy Page and Robert Plant.
Currently
Tracy is writing, recording, and string arranging in Brooklyn and Woodstock, NY.
ok last night i was doing my dishes and listening you the first album and i could not figure out one thing no matter how much i listened to the song.... what the hell is a navy bean????????
As I dive deeper into the waters of your CD Blink The Brightest, I have to point out that Take Your Love Out On Me is fantastic! And Whether You Fall! Wow! Anyway, I´ll stop posting comments now - you know the titles of your songs & you know you are wonderful ... all the best, Börn
Hey Tracy Bonham! Just love this live video of Earth Died Screeming!! And your own songs, too! Like World Has The Nerve ... Thanks & take care, Börn from Vienna
HAH! Having listened to your new "myspace song" - I see you're keeping it real as always. It's tremendous. But stay away from the gasoline, the world needs you!
Thank you for adding me. I have your song "Something Beautiful" in my head since hearing it a few days ago. What a beautiful song, and voice. I will be buying Blink The Brightest asap. Keep on singing!
