Angela Easterling was raised in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, the daughter of a Baptist minister. Much of her childhood was spent on the farm that has been in her family for seven generations. Country roots run deep for Angela, a native [+]Angela Easterling was raised in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, the daughter of a Baptist minister. Much of her childhood was spent on the farm that has been in her family for seven generations. Country roots run deep for Angela, a native of Taylors, South Carolina; where, “You had to be in church every Sunday!” she laughs. “There was just no questioning that!”
Ironically, it wasn’t until she moved to Los Angeles, that the country calling in her soul became a siren’s song. A performer all her life, Angela had begun playing guitar and writing songs while studying at Emerson College in Boston. More and more her music returned to the place her heart called home. “As a kid, the only music I ever heard was the music in church, old-time gospel. It had such an impact on me.” As Angela began honing her writing and playing live, other artists began to spark her imagination, artists like Emmylou Harris, Loretta Lynn, the Carter Family and Johnny Cash.
All those honky-tonk Saturdays and gospel-drenched Sundays have paid off for Angela, who has embraced her heritage in a big way on her forthcoming album, Earning Her Wings. With a voice that Music Connection magazine called “haunting and ethereal”, Angela is a dynamic spitfire of a performer, with a knack for tapping you on the head while tugging at your heart.
Working “bit by bit” over a period of two years at various SoCal studios, Angela had amassed a lot of material. Early this year, she took all the pieces to James O’Connell, drummer and producer of L.A. roots-rock band West Coast Grand and owner of Silverlake’s Monkey Den Studios. Together, they waded through her tracks, recording new songs and remixing old ones. “This record represents such a slice of my life for the last few years!” she says. “The songs and the recordings are a visceral piece of me. All my friends (who just happen to be stellar musicians) helped me make this album. It was a real family affair and I think you can hear that in the final product”.
Tracks include River Jordan; about the music that’s “in my blood”; and Dear Johnny, which “Always gets a big response. Everybody seems to miss Johnny Cash.” Angela wrote The Accordion with Shawn Davis, but the story is true: “My dad really did trade a truck for an old accordion! Th
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