Dalbello

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Lisa Dal Bello
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Dalbello
Birth nameLisa Concetta Dal Bello
Born (1959-05-22) 22 May 1959 (age 64)
Weston, Ontario, Canada
GenresEarly years:

Later years:
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Instrument(s)
Years active1977–present
Labels

Lisa Concetta Dal Bello[1] (born 22 May 1959), also known as Dalbello, is a Canadian musician. She released three albums in the pop and pop/rock genre in her late teens, from 1977 through 1981 under her full name. In 1984, she re-emerged as Dalbello, with an edgier brand of alternative rock.[2]

Early life

Born to Italian and British parents,

Vaughan. At age 11, she began playing guitar and writing her own songs, performing at the Mariposa Folk Festival and the Fiddlers' Green club in Toronto.[3] The first song she wrote was reportedly a protest song called "Oh, Why?"[3]

Lying about her age,[3] at 13 she joined a government-sponsored educational music program, Summer Sounds '71,[3] which auditioned students at various southern Ontario middle and high schools, with the objective of selecting 30 singers, songwriters, musicians and performers who would receive the opportunity to spend the first month north of the city of Toronto at a summer camp. The students would collaborate creatively, forming small music groups and bands for which they rehearsed and built a full show that toured and performed at various events throughout Ontario for the second month.

Recording career

In her early teens Dalbello was featured on a record by St. Margaret Mary Church Singers, where she performed two covers of traditional church songs: "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Amazing Grace".[4]

At the age of 14, Dalbello made her 1974 recording debut with a 4-song EP that was recorded for CBC Radio, Canada's national broadcaster. The record was produced by Jack Budgell. The EP featured four songs written and composed by Dalbello: "Mourning In The Morning", "The Old Man", "Come Sun Days" and "Human".[5]

In 1975 Dalbello was featured on a Christmas compilation by the CBC Radio, where she performs the traditional Christmas carols "Deck The Halls" and "O Come All Ye Faithful" and a medley together with Dianne Brooks and Roy Kenner.[6] These records were not commercially available, and airplay was legally restricted to the CBC only.

Signing with MCA Records out of L.A. when she was 17, Dalbello's self-titled debut album in 1977 was produced by

Pretty Girls released independently via Talisman Records.[9][11] Pretty Girls received her second Juno nomination in 1979 in the category of Female Vocalist of the Year.[9] The album was later reissued by Capitol Records.[12] Later in 1979, Melissa Manchester
covered the song "Pretty Girls"; released as a single, the track hit the US top 40. This marked Dal Bello's first international success as a songwriter.

Dalbello, signed to Capitol Records, released her third album Drastic Measures in 1981. Dalbello collaborated with Bryan Adams and Tim Thorney on the album.

After Drastic Measures, she took a break from recording to re-evaluate her creative and personal priorities and to work on her poetry.[13] Dalbello received a Juno nomination in 1980 for Female Vocalist of The Year and in 1983 was again nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year.

She told Billboard, "I felt there was no point in making records if I hadn't found a sense of how I fitted in musically, and how to express myself. I hadn't yet learned how to convey my musical ideas to the people I was working with."[3] During this time, David Bowie's former Ziggy Stardust guitarist Mick Ronson saw her in a CBC Television documentary on Canadian music while working at Phase One recording studio in Toronto and convinced her to record another album.[2]

That album,

Female Vocalist of the Year, one for Lenny De Rose for Recording Engineer of the Year and one for art director Heather Brown and photographer Deborah Samuels for Best Album Graphic.[15]

In 1985, Dalbello was nominated for a seventh Juno in the category of Female Vocalist of the Year.

In 1986, Dalbello wrote and recorded the songs "Black on Black" and "I Do What I Do" for the 9½ Weeks soundtrack. Although included in the film, Dalbello's recording of "I Do What I Do" was not on the soundtrack album, which instead featured a recording by John Taylor of Duran Duran; her recording of "Black on Black" did, however, appear in both the film and the soundtrack album. Dalbello also worked with other artists including Duran Duran's John Taylor, Heart, the band Nena, Glass Tiger and their producer Jim Vallance.

Ronson and Dalbello planned to record a second album, however, Ronson was passed over by both her record label and her manager at that time,

Roger Davies, over Dalbello's strong objections. Dalbello then submitted four self-produced song demos to her U.S. label and manager, only to have them rejected because they wanted a real producer.[9] Accordingly, in 1986, it was reported that Rupert Hine had finished producing a new album for Dalbello.[16] However, regardless of the status of the Hine-produced album, partly out of frustration and partly as a practical joke, Dalbello re-submitted her self-produced song demos—crediting the producer as "Bill Da Salleo", which was nothing more than a simple anagram of her name.[9] To her surprise, her label and manager excitedly called her up saying that they loved the new demos and believed "Bill" was the perfect producer for the project.[9]

The Hine-produced album was subsequently scrapped, and remains unissued. However, Dalbello would contribute guest vocals to Hine's "virtual band" project Thinkman, appearing on the title track of their 1986 debut album, The Formula. Dalbello continued to produce her new album under the "Da Salleo" pseudonym, managing to keep both her label and manager from visiting the sessions by booking the studio time late at night. She broke the "news" of "Bill's premature death" to her Canadian

A&R person Deane Cameron just prior to delivering the album to the label, and shortly after Cameron called her out of concern that the label had no signed production agreement between Bill Da Salleo and themselves. When the ruse was revealed, Cameron, a maverick in Canadian music circles who was the first record label A&R person to have signing autonomy from his U.S. label counterpart out of L.A., reportedly laughed out loud, proclaiming that Dalbello had "truly kicked the L.A. A&R offices' asses." However, with the knowledge that Bill Da Salleo was actually Dalbello, her manager began to question the strength of the album's production and commercial viability. It was suggested that half the album be scrapped and new songs be recorded with a new producer and other songwriters. The album was delayed 18 months as a result.[3]

EMI released the album she in 1987. The album's singles, "Tango" and "Black on Black", were Dalbello's biggest hits. The success of she allowed her to tour extensively, particularly through Europe. After the album's release, Dalbello ended her contract with Capitol Records and decided to relocate to Los Angeles in 1990.[3]

During her time in L.A., Dalbello spent the next four years expanding her musical contacts and writing songs for other artists such as Branford Marsalis and Julian Lennon, and co-writing with successful songwriters Carole Bayer Sager, Franne Golde, Bruce Roberts, Holly Knight and Gerald O'Brien. In 1991 Ronson and Dalbello discussed collaborating again. However, everything was put on hold because of a downturn in Ronson's health. Ronson died of liver failure in 1993.

In 1994 Dalbello's former manager, Roger Davies, asked her if she wanted to record another album.[9] Through Davies' efforts, a recording deal with EMI Electrola, which is based in Germany, was forthcoming.[9] Dalbello moved back to Toronto to complete work on her new album.[3] She released whore in 1996,[17] which received favorable reviews from critics upon its release. After the album's release she returned to Europe to tour for the rest of that year.

Recording guest appearances

In addition to having appeared on

It's All in the Game) and Canadian artists Rough Trade, Kim Mitchell and Glass Tiger
.

Cover versions of her music

Don't Get Mad Get Even" was recorded in 1983 by the Canadian heavy metal band Helix for their third album No Rest for the Wicked, and by The Lydia Taylor Band
for their EP Bitch.

Influence

Because of her powerful voice and aggressive persona, as well as her career path of starting out as a conventional mainstream dance-pop singer before reinventing herself as an idiosyncratic alternative rock artist, comparisons have been drawn between Dalbello and

Pretenders), Annie Lennox (of Eurythmics) and Patti Smith as paving the way for her and others.[3]

Songwriter and producer for other artists

Dalbello has not released another album since 1996 and has primarily focused on producing and writing for other artists such as

Carole Bayer-Sager, Holly Knight, Chaka Khan, Branford Marsalis, Damhnait Doyle and Dan Hill
.

Television commercials and documentary voice work

Throughout her recording career, Dalbello has been a session vocalist and voiceover artist on TV and radio commercials in North America, for which she now also writes and arranges music. In 1982 she sang the theme to the ABC TV movie

Ford Focus
automobile in North America; commercials featuring it played in movie theatres and on television.

From 2002 to 2008, she was the brand announcer voice for the Canadian cable news network

The National.[9] She also was featured on Degrassi: The Next Generation Theme, the theme song for the first three seasons of the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation.[9]

In late 2011 Dalbello recorded three 30-second songs, "Every Moment", "Lift You Up", and "Something Good", for The Keg chain of steakhouse restaurants in Canada and the United States.

In late 2012, the Juno Awards' online series, Juno TV, interviewed Dalbello, who shared her thoughts on her early career. The interview aired in June 2013, and was also one of her first recorded appearances in over 15 years.

Personal life

Dalbello currently resides in Toronto, Ontario.

Awards and nominations

Discography

Main article: Dalbello discography

Collaborations with other artists

  • 1983 : DaDa by Alice Cooper — Backing vocals
  • 1985 : Feuer und Flamme by Nena — Dalbello rewrote the lyrics translation in English for the whole album except for 3 bonus songs.
  • 1986 : The Thin Red Line by Glass Tiger — Additional background vocals.
  • 1993 : Desire Walks On by Heart — Additional background vocals.
  • 1996 : Victor by Alex Lifeson — Lead vocals on one song; credited as "Dalbello".
  • 1998 : Toto XX by Toto — Backing vocals on one song.
  • 1999 : Kimosabe by Kim Mitchell — Backing vocals.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ "Artist: Lisa Dalbello | SecondHandSongs". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Quill, Greg (23 June 1984). "The pop princess goes primal". Toronto Star.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "BIOGRAPHY". Oocities.org. Archived from the original (TXT) on 21 October 2009. Retrieved 27 March 2019. The following has been taken from Lisa Dal Bello's official website at www.dalbello.com
  4. ^ "Annunciation Singers, St. Margaret Mary Church Singers - Singalong Hymns For Church, School And Home". Discogs. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  5. ^ "Lisa Dal Bello - Lisa Dal Bello (14-Year Old Toronto Singer / Composer)". Discogs. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  6. ^ "Various - Broadcast Recording's Christmas Album". Discogs. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  7. ^ "Dalbello". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  8. ^ "Lisa Dal Bello - Lisa Dal Bello". Discogs. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "The Many Faces of Lisa Dal Bello". Music Express, 22 May 2014.
  10. ^ "Lisa Dalbello - the Non-Album Tracks | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  11. ^ "Lisa Dal Bello - Pretty Girls". Discogs. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  12. ^ "Lisa Dal Bello - Pretty Girls". Discogs. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  13. ^ Bush, John. "Biography: Lisa Dalbello". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 May 2010..
  14. ^ "Toronto singer back on the scene". Toronto Star, 15 June 1984.
  15. ^ "The Juno nominees are ..." Toronto Star, 5 December 1984.
  16. ^ "'Renaissance' rock star puts on his thinking cap". Toronto Star, 5 September 1986.
  17. ^ "Earth moves for singer Dalbello". The Globe and Mail, 30 August 1996.
  18. ^ "Lisa Dal Bello – Lisa Dal Bello (14-Year-Old Toronto Singer / Composer)". discogs. Retrieved 27 March 2019.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dalbello&oldid=1213478807"