Nisha Rathode (Editor)

Roberta Donnay

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Origin
  
Europe

Record label
  
Motema Music

Name
  
Roberta Donnay


Years active
  
ca. 1982–present

Instruments
  
guitar, percussion

Genres
  
Jazz, Popular music

Roberta Donnay wwwdanhicksnetroberta1jpg

Born
  
August 10, 1966 (age 57) Washington, D.C. (
1966-08-10
)

Occupation(s)
  
singer, composer, music producer

Labels
  
Motema Music Rainforest Records

Associated acts
  
Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks

Role
  
Singer · robertadonnay.com

Albums
  
Soul Reverse, back before the why, Bohemian

Similar People
  
Dan Hicks, Dan Hicks and The Hot Licks, Orrin Keepnews, Jana Herzen, Ma Rainey

Roberta donnay the prohibition mob band bathtub gin epk


Roberta Donnay (born August 10, 1966, Washington, D.C.) is an award-winning singer and songwriter jazz vocalist, composer, and band leader produced by Orrin Keepnews. Donnay grew up in Washington, D.C. and learned to sing from the radio. She is a practicing Buddhist.

Contents

She began singing professionally at 16, wandering Europe with a knapsack and borrowing guitars on-site. Moving to San Francisco, she sang with Dick Oxtot's Golden Age Jazz Band, followed by Tom Keats and His Tom Kats. She then studied Latin jazz, vocal jazz, and guitar from various teachers. Her first CD, Catch the Wave, was the first indie CD released in the San Francisco Bay area.

As a singer/songwriter, Donnay toured the U.S. with her guitar and appeared on various shows. In 1999, she signed a publishing deal with Heavy Hitters Music and began writing songs for film and television.

Jazz being her first love, she was influenced at an early age by Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Bessie Smith. Donnay returned to singing jazz full-time in 2005.

She and Keepnews were both governors of the San Francisco Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which is how they met. Donnay served as temp music supervisor the temp track for the 2011 science documentary, Journey of the Universe.

She has appeared with Ernestine Anderson, Booker T. Jones, Junior Brown, Tommy Castro, Peter Coyote, David Grisman, Bob Dorough, Woody Harrelson, Dan Hicks, Johnny Lange, Huey Lewis, Eddie Money, Maria Muldaur, Joe Sample, Lenny Williams, Mitch Woods,and Neil Young.

Her voice and songs have been featured on The Unit, Nash Bridges, Numbers, PAN AM, The Young and the Restless, One Life to Live, All My Children, and That's Life.

Donnay's song, "One World," became a theme for the United Nations 50th Anniversary, and is being performed on 5 continents as a world peace anthem. It was also chosen as the theme for World AIDS Day in South Africa in 2003.

Roberta donnay the prohibition mob band


Discography

  • Catch the Wave (Rainforest, 1989)
  • Soul Reverse (Rainforest, 1998)
  • One World (Rainforest, 1998)
  • Bohemian (Rainforest, 2001)
  • Back Before Why (Rainforest, 2005)
  • What's Your Story(Rainforest, 2006/Pacific Coast, 2008)
  • A Little Sugar (Motéma, 2012)
  • Bathtub Gin (Motéma, 2015)
  • As guest

  • 24–Hour Blues (Charles Davis, 2011)
  • Country Blues Revue (A Minor Bit Blue)
  • With Dan Hicks

  • Tangled Tales (Surfdog, 2009)
  • Crazy for Christmas (Surfdog, 2009)
  • Live at Davies Hall (Surfdog, 2012)
  • References

    Roberta Donnay Wikipedia