Laurie Freelove

Country of origin:

U.S.

Type of music generally:

evocative/eclectic alternative pop/folk

Status:

Most recent recording, Songs From The Nineline (live, 1996). Another album, The Invisible Invisible is available as a demo, as is later work.

See also:

Harmony Ridge's page for Laurie Freelove

Wikipedia's entry and The Ectophiles' Guide entry for Two Nice Girls, a band Laurie Freelove was a member of before going solo.

Comparisons:

Her voice has rough qualities like Marianne Faithfull's or Toni Childs'. Musically she's hard to pinpoint. (Neile)

Covers/own material:

Own, occasional covers

General comments:

She's a great songwriter and has a lovely, unusual, expressive, and challenging voice. (Neile)

Recommended first album:

Either Songs From The Nineline or Smells Like Truth. (Neile)

Recordings:

Fifty Words For Snow (limited-edition CDR, 1989)
• Smells Like Truth (1991)
• "Heaven on Earth" (single, 1991)
• 60 Stanley Road (limited-edition CDR, 1995)
• Songs From The Nineline (1996)
• The Invisible Invisible (limited-edition CDR, 1997)
• Singles Sketches: Demo II (limited-edition CDR single, 1998)
• 7 Songs: Personal Records (CDR ep, 2003)

Fifty Words For Snow

Release info:

1989—Nineline Productions—limited-edition CDR

Availability:

Unknown

Ecto priority:

Highly recommended for Laurie Freelove fans

Produced by:

Laurie Freelove with The East Side Flash

Comments:

A three-track single with "White Hail" which later appears on Smells Like Truth, "Valentine Heart" a bluesy track that only appears here, and a strong, wrenching cover of Tim Buckley's powerful "Song to the Siren." (Neile)

Smells Like Truth

Release info:

1991—Chrysalis/Ensign—F2 21849

Availability:

Album is deleted, but can be found used

Ecto priority:

Must have

Group members:

Laurie Freelove—acoustic guitar, waterphone, vocals

Guest artists:

Paul Taylor—didjeridoo, bull-roarer
Paul Pearcy—percussion, drums
Roland Denny—upright bass
Phil Stereopulos—electric bass, stick bass
Roy Dodds—stick bass percussion, percussion, sound effects
Leah Rummel—keyboards, flute
Chris Searles—percussion, drums
Jeff Jackson—additional vocals
Laura Love—additional vocals
Donny Silverman—WX7 Midi wind controller, Korg MI synthesizer, additional voice, bass clarinet
Greg Harewood—electric bass
Mark Taylor—keyboards
Henry Kadima—electric bass
Boo Hewerdine—electric guitar, voice, Hammond organ, additional vocals
Eddi Reader—additional vocals, voice
The East Side Flash—additional acoustic guitar
James Fenner—percussion

Produced by:

Laurie Freelove with Boo Hewerdine, Chris Birkett, and Kevin Moloney

Comments:

An awesome piece of work. (meth@smoe.org)

Laurie Freelove has challenging songs and a rough, intriguing voice. The sound is really wonderfully put together on this album. There are two unforgettable songs: "Smells Like Truth" and "Heaven on Earth" and the rest of the album is very close to being as incredible. (Neile)

This is just as I had expected it to be from reviews on ecto—Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush's love child. (spike45@sos.sos.net)

Odd, grunge meets world, fun, different! (cyo@landoftheblind.com)

A classic! (stjarnell@yahoo.com)

"Heaven On Earth" single

Release info:

1991—Chrysalis ensign—F2 23785

Availability:

Hard to find

Ecto priority:

High for Laurie Freelove fans

Comments:

Contains 3 versions of "Heaven On Earth" ("Radio Remix," "Freelove On Earth Part 1," and "Radio Edit/LP Version") as well as "Looka" a song available nowhere else, her wonderful cover of "Dear Prudence," which is luckily now more widely available on Songs From The Nineline. (Neile)

60 Stanley Road

Release info:

1995—Nineline Productions—limited-edition CDR

Availability:

Available from the Harmony Ridge Laurie Freelove page

Ecto priority:

Highly recommended for Laurie Freelove fans

Group members:

Laurie Freelove—guitar, vocals

Guest artists:

Gemma Cochran—backing vocals

Produced by:

Laurie Freelove with Gemma Cochran

Comments:

Gemma Cochran's backing are a lovely combination with Laurie Freelove's scratchy vocals. This is a wonderful collection of stripped-down versions of songs from Songs From The Nineline. (Neile)

Songs From The Nineline

Release info:

1996—Nineline Productions, 2111 Dickson D. Suite 24, Austin, TX 78704, U.S.A., 512-447-6644—6909 CD

Availability:

Mail Order from label

Ecto priority:

highly recommended (Neile)

Group members:

Laurie Freelove—vocals, guitar, rainstick

Guest artists:

Shane Madden—violin
Konrad Meisner—percussion
Nick Junga—didgeridoo
Mark Williams—fretless bass
Patrice Sullivan—back up vocals, hand percussion
Gemma Cochran—supporting vocals & hand percussion
Donny Silverman—wind synthsizer
Chris Searles—talking drum

Comments:

This is a lovely collection of her live versions of older and new songs. The songs grow richer the more you listen to the album. I highly recommend it—it's strong work, and as powerful as any of her earlier recordings. (Neile)

This is a collection of live broadcasts done at radio stations and elsewhere around Austin Texas and Dutch Public Radio. The songs, the lyrics, the arrangements are impeccable, and Laurie's voice is truly astounding. This is the type of music that for me demands my full attention, with no distractions, a very clear and empty mind. It's downright addictive, the more you listen, the more pleasurable it becomes, and you find yourself looking at the CD pile and always reaching for Songs From The Nineline. The first cut "The Nineline" is one of those songs that I can't get out of my head and will probably play about 9000 times or until my CD wears out. Every cut is really a treasure. (jsutton@rahul.net)

Songs From the Nineline was a complete surprise. Very different from Smells Like Truth...the Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush comparisons don't quite fit here. I couldn't agree more with jsutton@rahul.net about the song "The Nineline". At the time I read his comments the song was running through my head also. It's not the only great song though...the 2nd track ("No Fire") is just as good & running through my head as I type.
     Some music passes through and out while some grows on you and gets better and better with time. At first I didn't like Laurie's cover of "Dear Prudence". Well, it has grown on me. A Beatles song is not easy to cover. At the time I first heard the song, I specifically didn't care for the synth imitating a tabla. It was very irritating to me, but since then I've grown to love Laurie's voice and notice some small details about the way she sings that didn't jump out at me when first listening. In other words I love the song now.
     The CD is all live from various radio broadcasts and the sound is just as good as any studio album. Laurie's got a wonderful singer (Gemma Cochran) doing backup vocals and harmony. I'm a sucker for moon imagery. "Meet me on the moon at midnight" (from "The Nineline"). (spike45@sos.sos.net)

The Invisible Invisible

Release info:

1997—Nine Line Productions—limited-edition CDR

Availability:

Available from the Harmony Ridge Laurie Freelove page

Produced by:

Mitch Watkins, Claude McCann II & Laurie Freelove

Comments:

When I heard that the CD-R of this album was available I just had to have it. I was lucky enough to get a demo tape of this from Laurie Freelove about a year ago, and I loved it on first hearing. This is truly a stunning album, and it deserves a wide release. Those of you who like "9line" and "The Invisible Invisible" on Songs From The Nineline are going to be blown away by the rich studio versions. There are some other great songs on here, too: an interesting, dancey "Girl Friend", the irresistible "Damn Fool", etc., etc. I love the dance tunes here, and as always I love Laurie Freelove's vocals and her overall sense of how to make a song. Brilliant! (Neile)

This is a limited edition release put out on CDR and includes some new material as well as studio versions of some of the songs that were released on Songs From The Nine Line and other previous Laurie albums. Songs From The Nine Line was one of my 1996 top ten, and this is like a fresh look at the spirit of that work with a new slant on the songs that made it so wonderful and some new gems to ponder as well. (jsutton@rahul.net)

Particles of the World: Singles Sketches; Demo II

Release info:

1998—Nine Line Productions

Availability:

Available from the Harmony Ridge Laurie Freelove page

Produced by:

Shane O'Madden

Comments:

Three great Laurie Freelove songs. My preferences here are the last two, "O Boy" and "No Fire"—they seem more distinctive than "Give It Away". These promise much more wonderful music from Laurie Freelove. (Neile)

7 Songs: Personal Records

Release info:

2003—limited-edition CDR

Availability:

Available from the Harmony Ridge Laurie Freelove page

Ecto priority:

Highly recommended

Group members:

Laurie Freelove—guitar, vocals

Comments:

"Personal recordsings straight from the four track...mixed only with guitar and effects...a kind of sonic solo presentation." Laurie Freelove says "I think they are actually some of the best recorded music I've made" and I have to agree. They go from strength to strength. If I hadn't long ago lost faith in the music industry, I would be moaning about how I couldn't believe no-one had picked these up for a wide release. They're wonderful, irresistibly infectious, emotionally powerful songs. (Neile)