Download Free Vanessa Carlton * Songs

Vanessa Carlton music biography continued...

1980, in Milford, Pennsylvania, and raised in a musical family. Dad Ed was a pilot who also played the fiddle, while mom Heidi was a pianist and music teacher who gave Carlton and appreciation for classical music. By the time she was 8, Carlton was writing music on the piano, without lyrics, but she followed her first love, ballet, to New York City to become a star. Soon after her arrival in New York at age 17, she grew tired of ballet and decided to pursue music, hitting the New York open-mic club circuit, in the hopes of being discovered. After a year of playing the crowds in downtown New York, scouts from A&M Records were in the audience during one of her shows, which led to her record contract with Interscope, Geffen and A&M Records. In February 2002, her debut single A Thousand Miles, hit the charts and its video was played on MTV. She has performed on Rosie O'Donnell, MTV's TRL, and has been mentioned in Rolling Stone as one of ten artists to watch in 2002. In April 2002, she released her debut album, Be Not Nobody, which went on to be certified platinum.



Carlton's second effort, Harmonium, was released in 2004, debuting at number thirty-three on the U.S. Billboard 200. Against her record company's advice to follow the style of her first album, Harmonium showed a darker, more experimental sound. This resulted in a lack of promotional support for the album, which sold considerably less than her first causing A&M to make more commercial demands on Carlton. Consequently, Carlton left A&M Records in mid-2005. During summer 2005, Carlton supported rock singer Stevie Nicks on her Gold Dust U.S. tour. Nicks said she was glad to give Carlton the opportunity to perform in front of a large, caring and loving audience, particularly because the poor state of the music industry meant that artists such as her weren't "nurtured ... I really respect her." In 2006, Carlton came out with Heroes & Thieves on the Ink label to generally positive reviews and decent sales proving, as she had to Nicks, that talent will overcome.