Alexander James Adams
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Alexander James Adams (born ✦November 8, 1962) is an American singer, musician and songwriter in the Celtic and World music genres. He blends mythical, fantasy, and traditional themes in performances, switching between instrumental fiddle and songs accompanied by guitar, bodhrán, and fiddle playing. He has also been an artist in the field of filk music and won multiple Pegasus awards.
Adams performed as Heather Alexander for 25 years before beginning to tour as Alexander James Adams. His website refers to him as the "heir" to Heather Alexander, and continues to credit songs originally released as Heather Alexander under that name.
The last public performance under the name Heather was at OryCon 2006. His debut as Alexander James Adams was at Seattle's Norwescon 30, on April 6, 2007.
Career
Mid 1980s - 2006
A native of California, Alexander began performing original music in the mid-eighties for friends, Renaissance fairs, and science fiction conventions. Off Centaur Publications was recording performances at one convention and asked to include Alexander. This began an association where Alexander recorded for Off Centaur and later Firebird Arts and Music, primarily working for hire.
In the late 1980s, Alexander co-founded the Celtic fusion rock band Phoenyx, which released one album, Keepers of the Flame. The band disbanded in 1991 after achieving a high degree of local fame, and that album is no longer in print.
Alexander returned to a solo career. Firebird Arts & Music produced a live album which did well enough to inspire Alexander to create a label (Sea Fire Productions, Inc.) for the release Wanderlust 1994. Two live concert albums and several studio albums have followed. Alexander also moved to the Pacific Northwest, settling in Banks, Oregon in 2002. In 2001, Alexander founded a new band, Uffington Horse, together with Andrew Hare and Dan Ochipinti and continued to perform solo gigs between band appearances. In 2004, a limited run of the Uffington Horse promotional CD was offered to fans to help finance recording their first studio album, Enchantment, published in 2004. In 2002, Alexander told Strange Horizons that "I tend to think of myself as a 'musical entertainer.' I sing, play, compose, and tell stories."
2007–present
In early 2007 Adams transitioned to male and, since April 2007 has performed in many of the venues that he had formerly played as Heather Alexander. He has played with Uffington Horse and has also formed a new band, Tricky Pixie, with S.J. Tucker and Betsy Tinney. In summer 2007, the band released a recording of their first concert, Live!, which is the earliest released recording of Adams' post-transition voice.[9]
Adams' first post-transition solo album, Cat & The Fiddle, was entirely instrumental. Balance of Nature, released in fall of 2007, mixed a few of his older works (such as Creature of the Wood) with new songs.
In November 2007, Adams released the Yule album Wintertide', featuring duets between Adams' and Heather Alexander's voices. As noted in Adams' interview in Just Out, Wintertide is the first album with a series of these duets. A Familiar Promise, released in July 2008, also includes duets between the voices.
Sources
- Wikipedia article: Alexander James Adams
Notes
- ↑ The bodhrán is a frame drum of Irish origin ranging from 25 to 65 cm (10–26 in) in diameter, with most drums measuring 35–45 cm (14–18 in). The sides of the drum are 9–20 cm (3+1⁄2–8 in) deep. A goatskin head is tacked to one side (synthetic heads or other animal skins are sometimes used). The other side is open-ended for one hand to be placed against the inside of the drum head to control the pitch and timbre.
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