Trish Lester

Artist Information

Biography

Trish Lester is an award-winning songwriter from Santa Clarita, CA, who has been singing folk music for decades. On stage, she fully engages her audience with memorable original songs, familiar tunes and personal stories. Her roots are in 60’s folk music, and she loves to share music from that era (Bob Dylan, John Denver, Judi Collins, Joni Mitchell), often encouraging her audience to join in.

As a songwriter, Lester’s music is fresh and engaging – an eclectic Americana mix, with overtones of folk, country and R&B. Her CD “Plymouth Belvedere” is a collection of 13 songs that leave listeners laughing, crying and humming along. They enjoy the wit in “It’s Just a Cookie,” “Smith & Wesson 38” and the title track, which is about -- what else? -- an old car! (The song is included on a compilation CD recently released by NPR’s weekend show, “Car Talk”). Listeners are also moved by Lester’s sensitivity in a number of little masterpieces of songwriting, such as “How Do We Go On?” and “Your Special Gift.” Her special gift (in addition to a pleasing and honest voice, plus terrific and varied instrumental arrangements) is the ability to allow audiences to hear a new friend, sharing from her heart. There’s a current of patriotism on the CD, as well, in “The World Changed Forever” and “Thank a Soldier,” a song that now graces almost a half-dozen Websites in support of American troops.

Lester brings a lot of life experience to her music, sharing wisdom in a gentle and agreeable manner, often spiced with irony or humor. Her songs leave a lasting impression on audience members young and old alike, with crystal clear lyrics and unforgettable melodies.

You'll find her in Santa Clarita, California (30 miles north of Los Angeles), and on the Web at www.TrishLester.com

Instrumentation

Solo artist with acoustic electric guitar. Also plays with two other women artists as a trio -- please inquire!

Discography

"Plymouth Belvedere." (Songs from this CD are included on three compilation CDs -- ("Stairway to Heapdom" a collection of irreverent automotive tunes from National Public Radio; "Beautiful" by Red Coyote Records; and "Goin' Back Home" by QuickStar Productions).

CDs are available at www.CDBaby.com/TrishLester

The 13-song album is a testament to Lester’s versatility, not only as an artist but also as a songwriter. She wrote the lyrics and composed the music for 11 of the tracks. Rounding out the mix are a traditional folk tune, and a John Lennon Songwriting Contest award-winner from Rain Perry of Ojai, CA.

1.The Words Keep Coming Through (3:00)
2. Plymouth Belvedere (2:51)
3. How Do We Go On? (3:36)
4. Waitin’ for an Easy Way Out (3:28)
5. I’m Drifting (3:26)
6. It’s Just a Cookie (3:16)
7. Your Special Gift (3:21)
8. Yosemite (3:49)
9. Smith & Wesson 38 (2:32)
10. The Water is Wide (3:37)
11. Thank a Soldier (2:54)
12. The World Changed Forever (2:49)
13. (BONUS) The Christmas Letter (3:02)

Links

• Buy my new CD, "Plymouth Belvedere" at CD Baby
• Join me as a friend at MySpace!
• Purchase individual songs at DiscRevolt
• I'm on EZfolk.com -- where the "folkies" play

Audio

• Plymouth Belvedere
  Listen  
• Thank a Soldier
  Listen  
• The Christmas Letter
  Listen  
• It's Just a Cookie
  Listen  
• Don't Look Back (acoustic - Paradoxx)
  Listen  
• The Words Keep Coming Through
  Listen  
• How Do We Go On?
  Listen  
• The World Changed Forever
  Listen  
• I'm Drifting
  Listen  
• Smith & Wesson 38
  Listen  

Lyrics

• Plymouth Belvedere
• The Christmas Letter
• Thank a Soldier
• It's Just a Cookie
• The Words Keep Coming Through
• How Do We Go On?
• The World Changed Forever
• I'm Drifting
• Smith & Wesson 38

Video

Thank a Soldier

Photo Gallery

Press

• Delicious Cookie Song [+ Show ]
  

  August 20, 2009 (regarding Trish's song, "It's Just a Cookie") “Listening to this song I had t...August 20, 2009
  
  (regarding Trish's song, "It's Just a Cookie")
  
  “Listening to this song I had to rush to the kitchen and find a cookie. OK, truth is I found two.... This song should be a commercial for a cookie company - very unique, very good and a lovely voice to listen to.”
  
  Rhon Scheuerman
  RhonBob Promotions, Kodak, TN
  

• Acoustic LA - LIVE! [+ Show ]
  

  REVIEW: Sabrina and Craig’s Acoustic LA – LIVE! At Hallenbeck’s General Store and Café in ...REVIEW:
  
  Sabrina and Craig’s Acoustic LA – LIVE!
  
  At Hallenbeck’s General Store and Café in North Hollywood
  
  http://www.sabrinaandcraig.com/#/blognews/4521423044
  
  WOMEN ON THE MOVE – August 8, 2009
  
  It was a wonderful night of music that really connected our audience with the amazingly entertaining musical variety that is “Acoustic L.A.-LIVE!”
  
  WOMEN on the MOVE (WoM) -- the acoustic power trio of singer/songwriters Joan Enguita, Linda Geleris, and Trish Lester -- beautifully illustrated the axiom "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts." Each is both a strong songwriter and solo performer, but as Linda, Joan, and Trish each took the spotlight in turn, the others provided back-up and harmony vocals that blended solo artist into mini-chorale.
  
  Their vocal enhancements ranged from doo-wop accents to string-like smoothness, and when the trio united to sing as one voice in three-part harmony, the effect was magical; three distinct voices merged into one angelic blend. Add the variety of three individual songwriters whose mutual respect was evident, and the result was two sets of great entertainment.
  

• Trish Lester offers a hot cup of contemporary folk music and one sincere slice of pop flavored Americana on ‘Plymouth Belvedere’ [+ Show ]
  

  by Brian Ball, Brian Ball, Music Editor/Director of Music and Talent When you bring several genre...by Brian Ball, Brian Ball, Music Editor/Director of Music and Talent
  
  When you bring several genres together in a seamless blend, it can only mean one thing…that you’re driving a Plymouth Belvedere? Not exactly, but…it does mean that one fine collection of tunes can be found on Singer/Songwriter Trish Lester’s 2007 release titled Plymouth Belvedere! Trish definitely has her own unique and easygoing perspective on life, and shares it with her audience in a way that is a little bit country, a little bit folk and very much present day Americana that speaks from a place of love and experience!
  Opening the album, we are warmed up with an acoustic number that gives a nod to the very important role that music itself plays in our world, and perfectly depicts just how strongly it can take hold if you let it! Also, we are introduced to the real star of this album, her Plymouth Belvedere that Trish just can’t seem to get rid of, no matter how it may "affect her image!" This unique blend of humor and music has been a sincere joy to discover, and we recommend taking a listen for yourself!
  Trish does slow it down a little bit on “How Do We Go On?” and offers a harmonic(a) accompaniment to the real-life situations including struggle and perseverance, which are illustrated in lines such as We start again every day / Never giving up, though we may lose our way.
  On a little less serious vibe, Trish shares a bluesy rock/country number called “Waitin’ for an Easy Way Out,” which is upbeat, easygoing and true for many people in this world. You’ve heard the spiel about ‘it’s always your decision to make your life what you want’ or ‘go to school, get a job, have 2.5 kids and a minivan,’ but this song is somewhat the anti-thesis to those prefab social expectations, and gives hope to those who are just sitting around waiting for good things to come!
  As we float along through Plymouth Belvedere, Trish shares an amazingly intimate and gentle acoustic song titled, “I’m Drifting,” which reminisces of love gone by and welcomes the past into our present with open arms and an enlightened point of view. Trish’s slide guitar and angelic finger picking take this song to a level that is partly cinematic and wholly sweet & sincere!
  

• Plymouth Belvedere CD Review [+ Show ]
  

  With a voice reminiscent of Judy Collins, Lester fits in perfectly with 70s singer-songwriters like ...With a voice reminiscent of Judy Collins, Lester fits in perfectly with 70s singer-songwriters like Gordon Lightfoot and John Denver. Offering songs about ending relationships, thanking soldiers and food (my favorite topic), she covers a lot of ground with her capable band. She wrote most of the songs.
  
  The title cut is about her fabulous car. She shows up at a country club, a funeral and a party, although it ruins her image. In the end she sells it for a Hummer. I don’t know any folk singers who could afford the gas but then, this song is done with tongue planted firmly in cheek.
  
  "I’m Drifting" is a sad breakup song backed by strings, and "Your Special Gift" is a sweet song about her brother.
  
  There are lighter tunes like "It’s Just a Cookie" – um yeah, they’re definitely health food - and "Waiting for An Easy Way Out." In the latter, she sings, "I can’t see my toes, can’t fit into my clothes, my bathroom scale and I have almost come to blows." Lots of folks can sure indentify with that.
  
  "The Water is Wide" is pretty, with nice mandolin trills and smooth vocals.
  
  At the end is "The Christmas Letter," about those dreary holiday tomes. It put a smile on my face although I was waiting for Junior to find the cure for cancer on his lunch hour. But hey, they learned to program their VCR, so it’s all good.
  

• Heartfelt American Folk music that speaks to your soul [+ Show ]
  

  When you bring several genres together in a seamless blend, it can only mean one thing…that you’re d...When you bring several genres together in a seamless blend, it can only mean one thing…that you’re driving a Plymouth Belvedere? Not exactly, but…it does mean that one fine collection of tunes can be found on Singer/Songwriter Trish Lester’s 2007 release titled Plymouth Belvedere! Trish definitely has her own unique and easygoing perspective on life, and shares it with her audience in a way that is a little bit country, a little bit folk and very much present day Americana that speaks from a place of love and experience!
  
  Opening the album, we are warmed up with an acoustic number that gives a nod to the very important role that music itself plays in our world, and perfectly depicts just how strongly it can take hold if you let it! Also, we are introduced to the real star of this album, her Plymouth Belvedere that Trish just can’t seem to get rid of, no matter how it may "affect her image!" This unique blend of humor and music has been a sincere joy to discover, and we recommend taking a listen for yourself!
  
  Trish does slow it down a little bit on “How Do We Go On?” and offers a harmonic(a) accompaniment to the real-life situations including struggle and perseverance, which are illustrated in lines such as We start again every day / Never giving up, though we may lose our way.
  
  On a little less serious vibe, Trish shares a bluesy rock/country number called “Waitin’ for an Easy Way Out,” which is upbeat, easygoing and true for many people in this world. You’ve heard the spiel about ‘it’s always your decision to make your life what you want’ or ‘go to school, get a job, have 2.5 kids and a minivan,’ but this song is somewhat the anti-thesis to those prefab social expectations, and gives hope to those who are just sitting around waiting for good things to come!
  
  As we float along through Plymouth Belvedere, Trish shares an amazingly intimate and gentle acoustic song titled, “I’m Drifting,” which reminisces of love gone by and welcomes the past into our present with open arms and an enlightened point of view. Trish’s slide guitar and angelic finger picking take this song to a level that is partly cinematic and wholly sweet & sincere!
  
  Each song on Plymouth Belvedere is definitely worth mentioning in review, but we’d like to point out just one more that is a welcome departure from the traditional Holiday numbers that we are bombarded with each and every year, and this song is the last on the album, titled “The Christmas Letter.” Thank you for the bonus song and we can’t wait to hear more!
  
  “Heartfelt American Folk music that speaks to your soul in a common tongue” – Brian Ball, Music Editor / Director of Music & Talent

• Women on the Move cast a holiday spell in Palmdale [+ Show ]
  

  Monday night at the Palmdale Playhouse (December 8, 20008) was beyond expectations. Stellar performa...Monday night at the Palmdale Playhouse (December 8, 20008) was beyond expectations. Stellar performance, knockout songs, sung with such unique voices and great harmonies. Trish Lester and her equally talented counterparts from “Women on the Move” -- Joan Enguita, Tracy Newman, Linda Geleris and Karen Hart -- blew away the audience!
  
  These ladies have been raising funds for domestic violence shelters ever since their compilation CD, “Beautiful” (www.RedCoyoteRecords.com) was released last July. But their Christmas show -- what a special treat.
  
  No matter how many times I’ve listened to Trish Lester’s phenomenal, handcrafted music, I love her work more and more. It was a special treat to hear her seasonal number, "The Christmas Letter." I could not stop laughing throughout the entire, tongue-in cheek song, especially with the other four ladies camping it up on stage. Lester and the group spread so much joy and happiness at the Palmdale Playhouse -- I wished they could have gone on for hours instead of just a 45-minute set. No one in the audience wanted the gals to get off stage after their spell-binding performance!
  
  An ardent fan,
  
  Adina Joy
  
  

Setlist

A typical 40-minute set would include original songs from her Trish's CD, "Plymouth Belvedere," and, if appropriate, may include cover tunes -- from such artists as Bob Dylan, Buffy Sainte-Marie, John Denver, Alison Krauss, Kate Wolf, and others.

Basic Requirements

Calendar