Kate Wallace

Artist Information

Biography

** Hey What Fun! Kate's song, "Peace Peace Peace" was selected by the State of CA to be the song that represented CA and the US to the world at the US Capitol Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony in Washington D.C.in 2011! The tree and the song both came from CA (not since 1995).It was an honor-- we had a blast....It was great to play in Washington D.C. at Christmas.




Sometimes, to find a great artist, you have to go beyond what the mainstream media offers and look around. Kate is one of those remarkable artists you would find if you took that less traveled road. She has the magnetic combination of an extraordinary and powerful voice:

“the voice of an angel”
Maya Angelou

"Kate sings with the type of raw tenacity that separates your standard female singer songwriters from your great ones”
Alan Cackett, Maverick Magazine, UK


remarkable songs that are at once deeply personal and yet universal:

“Wallace’s music waxes a rich artful beauty of which only the most accomplished are capable. She proves herself to be an exquisite exponent of her craft.”
Maurice Hope, Maverick Magazine


and the ability to move an audience to laughter, tears or thoughtful sighs with her quick wit, soulful observations and moving songs, perfectly described as “Amereclectic” by fellow folk poet, Michael Camp. Wherever she plays, Kate is always a festival crowd favorite (Kerrville, Napa, Bliss, Tucson, Wildflower-- The Troubador, Cactus Cafe, The Bluebird Cafe, Fiddler’s Green & MANY MORE).Kate is often compared to her heroes: Emmylou Harris; Joni Mitchell; Bonnie Raitt; Nanci Griffith and Stevie Nicks, but her voice and style are completely unique. (Kate LOVES it whenever she gets these comparisons).

“I love Kate. I love her music and I’ll baby-sit her dog anytime”.
John Jennings, artist & producer

" I LOVE to hear her sing!"
John Stewart


Kate spent several years as a well respected member of the writing and performing community in Nashville where she was a a staff writer at Polygram, had songs cut by the famous and infamous, and got to hang with the best players/writers imaginable:


“ The first time I heard Kate play and sing, I knew she was a great talent and one of the best up-and-coming singer songwriters. I have always believed in her ability and think she is an extremely gifted artist. ‘Bill’s Old Truck” is a song I’ll never forget, it doesn’t get much better than that. I’m proud to have co-written ‘Whisper Something Sweet’ on her first release, ‘Kate Wallace, ‘on the Honest label.”
Rory Bourke, Nashville Hall of Fame Songwriter


and recorded three highly acclaimed CDs while there:


“KATE WALLACE" " An extraordinary release"
Billboard Magazine

"TWO LANE AMERICA” “This CD ripples along so nicely, you canalmost see the pickers smiling"
Robert Oermann, Music Row Magazine

“TOO LONG FROM THE SEA” “Wallace demonstrates a versatility in performance and material which is both rare and welcome.”
Rambles Magazine


Since the release of these highly regarded CDs, Kate has returned to California where she has produced and released three new CDs on her own label, New Pair O’Dimes. One, called Artists for Change, includes songs from some of Kate’s good friends like, Greg Greenway, Michael Lille, Sally Barris, James McVay , johnsmith, and Caren Armstrong. This CD was made to benefit JEM, an organization that promotes global economic justice.

In 2007, Kate released the CD, POLITICS & RELIGION, which diverges a bit from her earlier CDs and is equally highly regarded:


"Wallace’s voice is like rain pouring over caked-brown dirt, delivering heartfelt lyrics and providing hope for change. When I first received a copy of the CD, I couldn’t stop listening."
Felicia Tomasko, Santa Barbara Independent

“There's no finger-pointing here, just a call to consider where one stands. Kate Wallace is a rare singer songwriter with a lot on her mind, which she has always spoken freely. She made an indelible impression on so many of us in the ten years she spent in Nashville.”
Frank Goodman, puremusic.com

“The three songs which do not originate from her pen fit seamlessly in with her own writing and each of them on their own is worth the asking price of the album. The first of these, Spirit, was written by John Stewart who shares the vocals with Kate. The delivery is nothing short of stunning and left this reviewer returning to it time and again in order to absorb every note, every syllable.”
Al Moir, Maverick Magazine


Kate has just released her latest CD, RUBY SLIPPERS, now available at her website and CD Baby. It's a beauty.

"Ruby Slippers is a masterpiece--Kate's music moves souls." Dana Cooper

‘"Ruby Slippers’ is anything but ‘wallpaper music’, those who appreciate the work of a literate writer and are prepared to quietly absorb the lyrics and music of a woman who takes her music seriously, will reap rich rewards."
Al Moir, Maverick Magazine, U.K.


In addition to recording, touring and performing, Kate books the popular acoustic concert series, Trinity Backstage (www.trinitybackstage.com), and is occasionally hitting the road behind Ruby Slippers (she goes where she's invited). More info on Kate can be found at her website, www.katewallace.com. Her CDs are available at her website as well as at iTunes and CD Baby.

Kate is endorsed by and LOVES to play,
Elixir Guitar Strings.

Instrumentation

Kate Wallace on acoustic guitar.
Usually that's plenty, but when requested, David West, Doug Clegg or Michael Lille accompanies me. Then it's really fun. And-- cool bass players & drummers abound. So I can be virtually any configuration as the gig requires.

Discography

KATE WALLACE, Honest Records, Nashville, TN
TWO LANE AMERICA, New Pair O'Dimes, Nashville, TN
TOOLONG FROM THE SEA, Nashville,TN
ARTISTS FOR CHANGE, New Pair O' Dimes,Santa Barbara, CA
POLITICS AND RELIGION, New Pair O'Dimes Music, Santa Barbara, CA
RUBY SLIPPERS, New Pair O'Dimes Music
Santa Barbara, CA

WUMB in Boston, KCBX in CA, Women of Substance Web Radio, various NPR Folk shows, Grassy Hill Streaming Radio, Pandora & others are kind enough to play a variety of my songs. Bless them all.

Official Website

http://www.katewallace.com

Links

• MySpace
• Facebook

Audio

• Ruby Slippers
  Listen  
• Blood From a Stone
  Listen  
• Wherever You Walk
  Listen  
• Dry As The Desert
  Listen  
• A Friend Like That
  Listen  
• Brave New World
  Listen  
• Farewell Babylon
  Listen  
• Too Long From the Sea
  Listen  
• The God in Your Machine
  Listen  
• Simple Life
  Listen  
• Peace peace Peace
  Listen  
• I Love You Goodbye
  Listen  

Lyrics

• Dry as the Desert
• Brave New World
• Farewell Babylon
• Too Long From the Sea
• Ruby Slippers
• Wherever You Walk
• A Friend Like That
• I Love You Goodbye

Video

You Cross My Mind

Wherever You Walk

Photo Gallery

Press

• Politics & Religion [+ Show ]
  

  I may at first have found the title of Kate's latest release daunting, as Religion and Politics are ...I may at first have found the title of Kate's latest release daunting, as Religion and Politics are topics I generally avoid. But, as many fellow artists insist, the point is that these times are too troubling to avoid talking of politics, and how it intermingles with faith. In fact, the title is a little misleading, since the matters at hand could be called Spirit, Mercy, Love, and Time.
  There's no finger-pointing here, just a call to consider where one stands. Kate Wallace is a rare singer songwriter with a lot on her mind, which she has always spoken freely. She made an indelible impression on so many of us in the ten years she spent in Nashville, and Brent Rowan produced a great Country record on her before she called it a decade and returned to her roots in Southern California, where she's still making great singer/ songwriter records and playing gigs with her multi-instrumentalist paramour Douglas Clegg. Kate's also been a key player in the Kerrville Folk Festival crowd down in Texas. And she hosts a great concert series in Santa Barbara called Trinity Backstage, you can check that out at www.trinitybackstage.com.
  Politics and Religion is a lush and masterful recording, and co-producer David West has everything to do with its triumph. The artist is herself a fine arranger with a veteran's ears and instincts, but the partnership with West really works. He also sings and plays acoustic and electric guitars and basses, mandolin, banjo, dobro, and keyboard. All righty,then.
  Gabe Witcher on fiddle is sterling. Stringmeister troubador Michael Lille appears on acoustic lead on the opening and closing cuts, always first rate, and the So Cal legend Kenny Edwards turns in a pair of great bass tracks. The most surprising cameo is one of Kate's idols, John Stewart, singing harmony on his beautiful composition, "Spirit." Kate's voice is awesome throughout,but it really killed me on the Pete Seeger closer, "Old Devil Time."
  
  “Songs to live by and a voice to die for.More than impressive, deeply moving. Get it.” •
  
  Frank Goodman, Editor, www.puremusic.com
  

• New CD Release [+ Show ]
  

  “This is somebody you need to pay attention to. Her songs have wonderful melodic curves and her vo...“This is somebody you need to pay attention to. Her songs have
  wonderful melodic curves and her vocal is marvelously lustrous.
  Seek her out- trust me, she’s a real winner.”
  
  Robert K. Oermann,
  Music Row Magazine
  

• Country-Folk Artist Deserving of Much Wider Recognition [+ Show ]
  

  "Kate sings with the type of raw tenacity that separates your standard female singer songwriters fro..."Kate sings with the type of raw tenacity that separates your standard female singer songwriters from your great ones"
  
  Alan Cackett,
  Maverick Magazine, UK

• Kate Wallace Review [+ Show ]
  

  "Wallace was once a Nashville-based writer, but who never subscribed to the Music Row mentality of f..."Wallace was once a Nashville-based writer, but who never subscribed to the Music Row mentality of factory writing. She has a distinctive voice and style of writing that allows the songs to flow together seamlessly....Kate deserves all the success fate might bring her for sticking to her guns and making it sound so good."
  
  Neal Fagan
  Performing Songwriter Magazine

• Too Long From the Sea [+ Show ]
  

  "Wallace's vocals are always exactly right. Her voice is clear and rich; it retains power in the low..."Wallace's vocals are always exactly right. Her voice is clear and rich; it retains power in the lower registers and does not thin out when it gets higher. The melodies share an infectiousness, yet the style shifts from song to song: each is distinctly different...
  Wallace blends folk, pop, blues and jazz effectively into a unique and appealing style of her own. Each track has something to recommend it; each song has a story in the evocative lyrics. On Too Long From the Sea, Wallace demonstrates a versatility in performance and material which is both rare and welcome." Donna Scanlon

• Politics & Religion [+ Show ]
  

  19 August 2007 KATE WALLACE Politics And Religion: - New Pair Of Dimes Music - ***** FIVE STAR...19 August 2007
  KATE WALLACE
  
  Politics And Religion: - New Pair Of Dimes Music - ***** FIVE STARS
  
  Kate Wallace resided in Nashville for a decade in the hope that, as she put it, “mainstream country music might still honor its roots, not veer irretrievably into predictable pop music.” During this period she released an excellent self titled country album, following it up with TWO LANE AMERICA, a collaboration with her musical travelling companion, Michael Camp, before finally releasing the wonderful TOO LONG FROM THE SEA.
  As much as Kate loved the community spirit she found among many writers and performers in Nashville, she realised that Nashville was not really interested in the sort of music that she wanted to make, and in turn, she was not interested in the sort of music Nashville expected from her and so she left for California and there she has found her spiritual home. A literate writer of serious songs, Kate has a voice which conveys her message powerfully. Some may view the title of her latest album with a measure of trepidation expecting a bigoted or biased tirade of fanaticism, but in this they would be sorely mistaken. Kate, like one of her idols, Pete Seeger, loves her country although she is acutely aware that there are some cultural, social, political and indeed, religious issues which need to be addressed. She is certainly not into pointing an accusing finger at individuals,nor does she demand revenge, retribution or calling for miscreants to be hung, drawn and quartered. What she does do, in a sense, is hold up a mirror so that society can view itself and, hopefully, recognise and consequently redress its own shortcomings. She does this most eloquently through her music and she most certainly does not self righteously exclude herself from the reflection. A number of her songs relate to love of our fellow beings, peace, reconciliation, mercy and friendship in order to build a better, more harmonious world. Kate’s songs are thought provoking, leaving the listener considering a range of issues which might otherwise have been swept under the carpet but, having been presented so rationally, so articulately, it becomes difficult to dismiss them lightly. Now, all this might sound fairly ‘highbrow’ or idealistic, but it is not. POLITICS AND RELIGION is an incredibly well crafted album which is not at all ‘preachy’. Kate is honest and forthright in the issues she addresses. She has written eight of the featured tracks with Dark Angel, dealing with the sudden death of a close friend particularly moving while the plea she makes in How Can You Turn Away making for compelling listening, and the beautiful I Will Carry You demonstrating what an incisive, compassionate writer Kate is. The three songs which do not originate from her pen fit seamlessly in with her own writing and each of them on their own is worth the asking price of the album. The first of these, Spirit, was written by John Stewart who shares the vocals with Kate. The delivery is nothing short of stunning and left this reviewer returning to it time and again in order to absorb every note, every syllable. Next came Love Comes To The Simple Heart, written and originally recorded by Chuck Hall, another riveting love song, while the closing track, Old Devil Time, written by Pete Seeger must surely rank as one of the highlights of an album where every song has so much to commend it.
  Just as Kate wastes no meaningless words in her lyrics, so also does she not allow her songs to become cluttered with unnecessary instruments. She plays acoustic guitar and gathers around her old friends and more than competent musicians like Michael Lille on lead guitar, Gabe Witcher on fiddle, Kenny Blackwell on mandolin, Tom Ball on harmonica with Peter Galway on electric bass along with subdued drums and percussion. Not all the named musicians play on every track, but when they do the result is highly satisfying. David Tolegian is featured on saxophone on two tracks, Mercy Brings Mercy and How Can You Turn Away but special mention must be made of David West, who not only co-produced the album with Kate but also sings vocal harmony on some numbers as well as offering additional guitar, mandolin and acoustic bass. David worked with the late Kate Wolf and his contribution to this album is immense.
  
  Details www.katewallace.com
  
  

Setlist

I generally play either two 45 minute sets with a brief break between or one long set. The majority are original songs, but I occasionally play the songs of John Stewart, Dylan, Joni and friends like Dana Cooper, Mark Germino, David Wilcox, Michael McNevin and Tom Kimmel. Naturally, years of experience provide some great stories.... Set Example:

That's How the River Runs
Blood From a Stone
He Takes It With Him When He Goes
Red Dress
Brave New World
Pray For the Prisoner
Mercy Brings Mercy
Ruby Slippers
Farewell Babylon
I Ain't Changin
How Can You Turn Away
Old Devil Time
Wherever You Walk
Exalted Rose
Dry as the Desert

Basic Requirements

Calendar