 |
Jewel
- Since she recorded her first album
nearly a decade ago, Jewel has continued
to explore fresh avenues, branching out
from her folk roots to incorporate rock,
pop, country, blues, jazz, and classical
influences into her work. Each successive
album has found her experimenting with new
sounds and widening her artistic scope,
while retaining her uniquely personal
lyrical style and musical authenticity.
Still in her twenties, Jewel enjoys a rare
career longevity among her generation of
artists. Her four albums to date have sold
25 million copies worldwide.
Jewel is currently wrapping up work on her
fifth Atlantic album, entitled "0304,"
which finds the multi-platinum
singer/songwriter moving in new musical
directions inspired by her burgeoning
interest in modern dance beats and
textures. Slated for release on June 3rd,
the album is being preceded by the new
single, "Intuition." The song was written
and produced by Jewel and Cuban-American
producer Lester Mendez (Shakira, Santana,
Enrique Iglesias), who collaborated with
her throughout the new album. Joining
Jewel on the song are Rusty Anderson
(electric guitars), Mark Oakley (acoustic
guitars), Paul Bushnell (bass), Michael
Bolger (accordion), and Mendez on
keyboards.
In his rave Billboard review of the single
(issue dated April 19th), Chuck Taylor
stated: "’Intuition’ is a bold step away
from Jewel’s folk-intellectual persona,
steeped in mirthful beats, production
straight from a gleeful gypsy wedding, and
a loose but handsomely robust vocal that
makes this Jewel shine like never before."
"I’ve always been really interested in all
kinds of music," says Jewel. "I loved
hip-hop and rap when I was first exposed
to it in the ‘80s. I loved the beats, and
I loved the artists who had the ability to
be very lyrical with those beats. I also
like the hypnotic nature of dance music;
there is something very primordial about
it. And, of course, I love folk music… I
love story-telling and socially driven
music. The tone of some of the new songs
also leans towards jazz. So you are going
to hear my love of all these types of
music on the new album, and I tried to
combine them in a way that makes sense.
You have folk melodies against hip-hop
beats against a French accordion against
hand-clapping and whistling solos. But it
still really sounds like me."
Jewel’s previous album, the RIAA platinum
"THIS WAY," was released by Atlantic
Records in November 2001 and debuted at #9
in Billboard. To date, it has
scanned 1.5 million copies in the U.S.
alone. Produced by Jewel and Dann Huff, it
marked her first work as a producer.
Critically acclaimed, the album – which
included the singles "Standing Still,"
"Break Me," and the title track – was
applauded for its depth and diversity. As
James Hunter noted in his 3 1/2-star
review in Rolling Stone: "The apparent
simplicity of folk presents wondrously
complex and sexy possibilities for Jewel.
She’s one of the most richly idiomatic
female pop singers of her generation. With
‘This Way,’ Jewel continues on – elegant,
earthy, engaged.
Jewel made a wide variety of appearances
in the weeks surrounding the release of
"THIS WAY," including the CBS-TV concert
special, Garth Brooks: Coast To Coast
Live, which saw her singing for the
men and women of the aircraft carrier USS
Enterprise upon their return to Norfolk,
Virginia after serving in the Middle East.
Among Jewel’s many other stops were
performances of the National Anthem at the
opening game of the 2001 World Series, as
well as at the World Heavyweight Title
rematch between Hasim "The Rock" Rahman
and Lennox Lewis in Las Vegas. Alongside
musical appearances on an array of network
television programs, Jewel was also among
the poets featured on the acclaimed HBO
special, Def Poetry Jam.
In November 2001, Jewel – who was featured
on the cover of Vanity Fair’s 2001
Music issue – was among the honorees at
the Sixth Annual "Do Something" Gala
celebrating America’s top young community
leaders. Jewel received the 2001
Rolling Stone "Do Something" Award,
alongside fellow award recipients Russell
Simmons and Senator Charles Schumer
(D-NY). She subsequently performed at
several high-profile charity events,
including: the New York Civil Liberties
Union’s 50th Anniversary celebration; the
launch of "Helping Hands II: Handmade in
America," an auction of celebrity
handiworks benefiting victims of the
September 11th tragedies; and GHMC’s "You
Gotta Have Friends" AIDS benefit at New
York’s Carnegie Hall.
Jewel launched her 2002 "THIS WAY" world
tour in late-March, beginning with
concerts throughout Asia and Europe. In
mid-June, she embarked on her first major
North American tour in three years, which
became one of the few highly successful
and widely acclaimed concert series of the
season. The shows, which featured Jewel
with her band, earned her rave reviews
across the country.
In mid-August, Jewel returned to the road
for her "New Wild West" solo acoustic tour
of North America. This marked the first
time Jewel had played guitar throughout an
entire concert since April, when she was
thrown from a horse in Texas, breaking her
collarbone and first rib. The demand for
Jewel on the road ran so high that another
tour leg, also a series of intimate solo
shows, took place during the month of
November.
In the summer of ’02, Jewel launched Soul
City Café™, a multi-faceted program
designed to expose, encourage, and develop
new talent in a variety of artistic media.
The project was launched with Soul City
Café ArtBeat™, a showcase for emerging
musical and spoken word artists who have
been performing with Jewel on her current
tour. This was followed by a Soul City
Café™ video director search to find an
aspiring filmmaker to direct the video for
the title track of "THIS WAY." Currently,
Soul City Café™ is conducting a search for
exceptional up-and-coming talent via Music
Quest™, a competition for bands and solo
artists. Winners in each category will
land opening slots on Jewel's next tour.
In a departure from Jewel’s usual musical
avenues, her song "Serve The Ego" (from
"THIS WAY") was given the dance treatment
by several of the hottest remixers on the
scene. The remix collection shot to the #1
spot on Billboard’s "Hot Dance Music Club
Play" chart. It was this first-hand
experience with the world of beat-driven
music that helped inspire Jewel’s musical
direction on her new album.
In other recent Jewel news, her version of
Lynyrd Skynyrd’s "Sweet Home Alabama" was
used as the title song to the Touchstone
motion picture starring Reese Witherspoon.
She has also established her own film
production company, Magic Lantern
Entertainment, which has acquired its
first feature film script, Wave,
written by David Rothmiller. Jewel will
star in the film along with an ensemble
cast. Jewel made her acclaimed movie debut
in Ang Lee’s Ride With The Devil.
She is working on her second book of
poetry (to be love poems), following the
success of her two previous books: her
first poetry collection, A Night
Without Armor, which has sold over a
million copies, and Chasing Down The
Dawn, containing journal writings, short
stories, and photographs.
The ClearWater Project – the flagship
endeavor of the non-profit Higher Ground
for Humanity foundation, established by
Jewel and her mother Lenedra Carroll – has
established community projects which are
currently bringing safe drinking water to
thousands of people in El Salvador,
Tanzania, Tibet, India, South Africa, and
New Mexico (its first U.S. project).
Moving forward, partner relationships have
been established in 14 additional
countries. ClearWater was represented at
the World Summit on Sustainable
Development in Johannesburg in the summer
of 2002, and was nominated for the 2003
Stockholm Water Prize.
Raised in Alaska, the 29-year-old Jewel
has been celebrated as one of the most
gifted and accomplished artists in popular
music today. Her 1995 debut, "PIECES OF
YOU," received the RIAA’s prestigious
Diamond Award for U.S. sales in excess of
10 million units (and is currently
certified at 11 million). The album –
which includes the hit singles "You Were
Meant For Me," "Who Will Save Your Soul,"
and "Foolish Games" – spent a remarkable
114 weeks on the Billboard 200, where it
hit the #4 mark.
Jewel’s highly anticipated second album,
"SPIRIT," was released in 1998 to much
popular and critical acclaim. The Patrick
Leonard-produced collection – featuring
the singles "Hands," "Down So Long," and
"Jupiter (Swallow The Moon)" – made its
debut in the #3 position on the Billboard
200 and was certified platinum
out-of-the-box. It sold six million
worldwide, making it one of the most
successful sophomore albums.
1999 saw the release of "JOY: A HOLIDAY
COLLECTION," produced by the legendary
Arif Mardin. The album includes
performances of a number of seasonal
favorites and new Jewel originals,
including a unique Christmas-themed
version of "Hands." Two songs featured on
the platinum-certified "JOY" revealed the
increasing depth and diversity of the
artist’s talent and vision: the dynamic
expression of faith, "Face of Love," as
well as the stirring "Gloria," a Latin
composition.
Jewel was also featured on Merle Haggard’s
1999 album, "FOR THE RECORD." The album
includes two duets by Jewel and the
legendary country musician/songwriter –
"That’s The Way Love Goes" and "Silver
Wings."
Whether alone on stage with just her
guitar or fronting a band of musicians,
Jewel has always been a charismatic live
performer. Along the way, she has earned
the respect of the likes of Bob Dylan and
Neil Young, both of whom invited her to
open their shows. Since the release of her
first album six years ago, she has forged
a powerful, intimate bond with
concert-goers around the globe. On top of
numerous tours across North America, Jewel
has also performed to sell-out crowds in
Asia, Australia, and Europe, where she was
acclaimed – by the influential Times of
London – as "the most sparkling female
singer-songwriter since Joni Mitchell."
December 1997 saw Jewel performing as part
of the annual Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies
in Oslo, Norway. In January 1998, she was
welcomed home to San Diego to sing "The
Star-Spangled Banner" prior to the opening
kick-off of Super Bowl XXXII. In December
of that same year, Jewel played for Pope
John Paul II as part of the 6th Annual
Natale in Vaticano concert in Vatican
City. The concert – which included a
performance of "Hands" accompanied by a
100-piece orchestra and a 40-member choir
– was televised throughout Europe on
Christmas Eve.
In addition to her many sold-out
headlining performances, Jewel has been
part of a number of important concert
events, including Woodstock 1999. The
festival found Jewel and her band
performing before the largest live
audience of her career – not to mention
millions of TV viewers around the world.
Despite a sudden downpour in the middle of
"Foolish Games," the set was widely
considered a highpoint of the weekend.
Later that year, Jewel performed for
President and Mrs. Clinton as part of the
annual Christmas In Washington
charity concert assisting the Children’s
National Health Center. In August of 2000,
she performed at the Nashville rally where
Vice President Al Gore announced his
running mate, Senator Joseph Lieberman,
and she subsequently served as an eloquent
spokesperson for their Presidential
campaign.
Jewel’s considerable accomplishments as a
singer, songwriter, and performer
represent just one area of her creative
life. Her debut poetry collection, A Night
Without Armor, was released by
HarperCollins in 1998, and quickly became
a mainstay of The New York Times’
best-seller list, with 29 printings and a
remarkable million-plus copies sold. In
addition, the unprecedented success of the audiobook release of her poetry collection
led to Jewel receiving the 1999 Audie
Award from the Audio Publishers
Association.
The fall of 2000 saw the successful
publication of Jewel’s second book, the
intimate and honest Chasing Down The Dawn
(HarperCollins). A striking chronicle of
an artist’s turbulent life on the road –
written primarily during the 1999 "SPIRIT"
World Tour – the book also includes photos
taken by Jewel, images and poignant
vignettes from her childhood in Alaska,
and tales of challenges faced as a
daughter, sister, young woman, and
creative artist. A paperback edition of
Chasing Down The Dawnwas published in late
2001.
In 1999, Jewel made her acclaimed acting
debut in Ang Lee’s much-admired Civil War
drama, Ride With The Devil. "Jewel conveys
an orneriness and tough humor beneath a
facade of 19th-century decorum," declared the New York
Times’ Stephen Holden, while Roger Ebert –
writing in the Chicago Sun Times – noted
that "Jewel deserves praise for, quite
simply, performing her character in a
convincing and unmannered way. She is an
actress here, not a pop star trying out a
new hobby."
1999 also saw the release of Jewel’s first
full-length home video, titled Jewel: A
Life Uncommon. The autobiographical
documentary features an hour of archival
footage of the artist’s life, both on and
off the road, as well as revealing
interviews with those closest to Jewel. In
addition, the film – re-released in
late 2001 on DVD and digitally remastered
VHS – includes four exclusive live
performances from Jewel’s April 25, 1999
concert at the Henry Fonda Theater in L.A.
benefiting Higher Ground For Humanity –
the humanitarian organization founded in
January 1999 by Jewel and her mother and
manager, Lenedra J. Carroll as a means to
promote global community and individual
action to inspire positive change.
HGH’s flagship program, The ClearWater
Project, was launched in October 1999 in
conjunction with Jewel’s performance at
NetAid, the live global musical event
staged as part of a long-term initiative
to help eradicate extreme poverty.
ClearWater Project is working to create a
world where clean, safe water is available
to everyone. This includes working with
local communities to provide simple
approaches and reliable technologies for
creating safe drinking water, as well as
education awareness programs and other
initiatives.
Among Jewel’s many accolades are three
Grammy Award nominations, an American
Music Award, and an MTV Video Music Award.
In June 1999, Jewel was presented with the
prestigious Governor’s Award from the Los
Angeles chapter of the National Academy of
Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS). The
award acknowledges Academy members "whose
creative talents and accomplishments have
crossed all musical boundaries and have
been recognized as an asset to our music
community."
Jewel also received a number of other
tributes that year, including the 1999
"Founder’s Choice Award" from the
non-profit Time For Peace organization, as
well as being named one of Glamour
magazine’s 10th Anniversary "Women Of The
Year" for her dedication to humanitarian
goals.
In addition to her many artistic and
charitable endeavors, Jewel has long been
active in utilizing new media technology,
via her official site. The web page offers frequently
updated news, exclusive merchandise, and
most importantly, links to a number of
humanitarian sites supported by Jewel and HGH. |
|
|
