American singer-songwriter
Musical artist
Patty Larkin
(born June 19, 1951
[1]
) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist based in
Boston
, Massachusetts. She is a founding member of
Four Bitchin' Babes
. Her music has been described as folk-urban
pop music
.
Life and career
[
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]
Patty Larkin was born in
Des Moines, Iowa
, United States, and grew up in a musical and artistic family in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
.
[2]
Descended from a long line of Irish-American singers and storytellers, her mother was a painter and her sisters both musicians. She learned at a young age to appreciate the beauty and magic of the arts. She began classical piano studies at age 7, and became swept up in the sounds of pop and folk in the 1960s, teaching herself the guitar and experimenting with songwriting in high school. An English major, Larkin sang throughout her high school and college career, starting out in coffeehouses in Oregon and San Francisco. Upon graduation from the
University of Oregon
, she moved to
Boston
, Massachusetts, where she devoted herself to music, busking on the streets of Cambridge and studying jazz guitar at
Berklee College of Music
and with Boston area jazz guitarists.
[2]
Her recording career began in 1985 with Philo/
Rounder Records
where she recorded
Step into The Light
,
I'm Fine
, and
Live in the Square
.
[2]
In 1990, she signed to
Windham Hill
's new
High Street
label and delivered four releases:
Tango
,
Angels Running
,
Strangers World
, and
Perishable Fruit
.
[2]
After Windham Hill was sold to BMG, Larkin moved to
Vanguard Records
and released
a gogo
,
Regrooving The Dream
,
Red=Luck
, and
Watch The Sky
. The latter was a
New York Times
"critic choice".
[3]
In 2010, Larkin celebrated her 25th year of recording with
25
, a stripped down retrospective of 25 love songs with 25 featured guests (Road Narrows Records/
Signature Sounds
).
Larkin produced
La Guitara
, a compilation of international women guitarists challenging the notion that there are no great women guitarists. She has also performed on numerous compilations and her songs have been featured in the following films: "Anyway The Main Thing Is" in
Evolution
(
Columbia
/
DreamWorks
); "Good Thing" in
Random Hearts
(
Columbia
); and "Coming Up For Air" and "Tenderness on the Block" in
Sliding Doors
(
Miramax
/
Paramount
).
Cher
recorded Larkin's "Angels Running" on her album
It's a Man's World
.
[4]
Larkin is the recipient of an honorary doctorate of music degree from Berklee College of Music. She has also been honored by Boston's Mayor
Thomas Menino
with "Patty Larkin Appreciation Day" for her career in music and philanthropic contributions.
Personal life
[
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]
She currently lives with her partner and two adopted children in
Wellfleet, Massachusetts
.
[2]
Discography
[
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]
References
[
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]
External links
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]
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International
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