Album Notes

"Raven embodies all the best attributes of independent music... Her songs move seamlessly between straightforward Mississippi blues to ethereal folk rock("Free")." - Kristin Feeley for www.fmsound.org This debut CD by Raven Sadhaka won the ASCAP Plus Award twice, and her song "Between Orion & the Bear" (1st track) won a GREAT AMERICAN SONG award in 2005. She is almost her next CD... stay tuned to CDBaby.com for more on that. Raven was raised in a very musical and literary household with Mom a vocalist when not teaching English or writing, and Dad on violin, piano, and vocal harmonies, when not teaching or being a superintendent of schools. Having older parents meant growing up in retro-land, listening to swing and jazz standards, lots of broadway musicals from the 40's, 50's and 60's, classical music and some other unusual fare: Raven was probably the only kid in school who knew a couple of infantry drinking songs from World War II (thanks, Dad). Besides the requisite 5 years of classical piano lessons and an overlapping 6 years of training on flute, Raven also sang in many choirs, glee clubs and smaller groups throughout school and college in addition to some classical vocal training as well. At the age of 12, she picked out a $70 guitar for her birthday and there was no turning back. She was playing variety shows at 15 and was a rhythm guitarist and singer in a band by the age of 16 -- the "Car Doors" (a name created in a moment of desperation before taking the stage for their first gig) was her first band in high school. Growing up just a stone's throw from the metropolitan Philadelphia area in the early seventies meant exposure to some of the greatest R&B of our time -- her first concert was Gladys Knight & the Pips. In addition, Raven owes a great deal of her inspiration to such groups such as the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, the Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Heart, and U2, and to solo artists such as Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Emmy Lou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Joan Osbourne and Sarah McLachlan. Lately, she's added Bjork, PJ Harvey, Wah! and Krishna Das to her list of eclectic influences. Her original music reflects her roots and many influences, encompassing folk, rock and blues with a dash of jazz thrown in for good measure.