Rock Trezor: JOAN ARMATRADING

JOAN ARMATRADING – STORY

Joan Armatrading was born 9 December 1950, Basseterre, St Kitts, West Indies. Joan Armatrading was the first black woman singer/songwriter based in Britain to compete on equal terms with white women. While Madeline Bell and P.P. Arnold pre-dated Armatrading's success, the latter has remained consistent for 20 years.

Although she has been inaccurately compared with Tracy Chapman, the two women have little in common other than the colour of their skin and the fact that they are both guitar playing singer/songwriters. The Armatrading family moved to Birmingham, England, in 1958, and Joan taught herself to play piano and guitar, before meeting Pam Nestor, also a West Indian immigrant (b. Berbice, Guyana, 28 April, 1948). Both were working in a touring cast of the celebrated hippie musical, Hair. Armatrading and Nestor worked as a team, writing songs together, but Armatrading was given the major role on WHATEVER'S FOR US,

her 1972 debut album produced by Gus Dudgeon (who was also working with Elton John at the time, hence the participation of musicians such as guitarist Davey Johnstone and percussionist Ray Cooper). Released in the UK on Cube Records, the album was a greater critical than commercial success, and was licensed for North America by A&M Records.

Armatrading and Nestor dissolved their partnership after the album; Nestor made an excellent one-off single for Chrysalis in the late '70s, but seems not to have recorded since.

By 1975, Armatrading was signed to A&M world-wide, working with producer Pete Gage, (husband of Elkie Brooks). The album which resulted, BACK TO THE NIGHT,

featured instrumentalists such as Andy Summers (later of the Police) and keyboard player Jean Roussal, but again failed to trouble the chart compilers. 1976 brought the album which first thrust Armatrading into the limelight. The first of four consecutive albums produced by Glyn Johns, JOAN ARMATRADING

made the Top 20 of the UK album chart, and includes her only UK Top 10 hit (and her best known song) "Love And Affection." 1977's SHOW SOME EMOTION

became the first album to reach the UK Top 10 and 1978's TO THE LIMIT

made the UK Top 20, although neither album included a hit single. 1979 saw the end of her partnership with Johns in STEPPIN' OUT,

a live album recorded in the USA, which did not chart on either side of the Atlantic.

1980 brought a change of producer for her seventh album, after a brief working alliance with Henry Dewy had provided a minor hit single "Rosie," which was included on a mini album, HOW CRUEL,

released in the USA and continental Europe but strangely not in the UK. Richard Gottehrer (once part of the Strangeloves and the producer of Blondie's first album) was obviously a good choice, as ME MYSELF I,

released in 1980, became Armatrading's first album to reach the US Top 40 and returned her to the UK Top 10, while it included two minor UK hit singles, in the title track and "All The Way From America." WALK UNDER LADDERS,

Armatrading's 1981 album, was produced by Steve Lillywhite, and among the musicians who contributed to it were the celebrated Jamaican rhythm section of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare, plus Andy Partridge of XTC and Thomas Dolby.

The album, which reached the UK Top 10, but peaked somewhat lower in the US chart, included two more minor UK chart singles, "I'm Lucky" and "No Love." Her 1983 album, THE KEY,

was mainly produced by Lillywhite again, but with two tracks, "Drop The Pilot" (which was her second biggest UK hit single, almost reaching the Top 10) and "What Do Boys Dream," produced by Val Garay. The album largely restored Armatrading to international commercial prominence, peaking just outside the US Top 30 and reaching the UK Top 10. Later that year, a Best Of album, TRACK RECORD,

made the UK Top 20. By this point in her career, Armatrading appeared to have a solid core of fans who would buy every album, but who were too few to provide first division status. 1985's SECRET SECRETS

was produced by Mike Howlett with musicians including bass player Pino Palladino (of Paul Young fame) and Joe Jackson, who was the only other musician involved on the track "Love By You." "Temptation," another track from the album, was a minor UK hit single, and while the album once again made the Top 20 of the UK chart, it was not a major US success, despite a sleeve shot taken by celebrated New York photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. SLEIGHT OF HAND,

was Armatrading's first self-produced album, which she recorded in her own quaintly named Bumpkin studio, and which was remixed by Steve Lillywhite.

This was her least successful album in commercial terms since her debut, stalling outside the Top 30 of the UK chart and considerably lower in the USA, even despite the fact that this time the sleeve photographer was Lord Snowdon.

1988's THE SHOUTING STAGE

was her most impressive album in some time but failed to reach the height achieved by many of its predecessors despite featuring Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits and Mark Brzezicks of Big Country as guests. HEARTS AND FLOWERS

again demonstrated that even though the quality of Armatrading's output was seldom less than exemplary, it rarely achieved its commercial desserts. 1991 brought a further compilation album, THE VERY BEST OF JOAN ARMATRADING,

which largely updated the earlier TRACK RECORD, and included a remix (by Hugh Padgham) of "Love And Affection" which was released as a single. Armatrading seems to have reached a plateau in her career which is slightly below the top echelon in commercial terms, but which will enable her to continue recording with reasonable success (especially in critical terms) for as long as she desires. She has also contributed her services to a number of charitable concerts, such as the Prince's Trust, the 1988 Nelson Mandela Concert and Amnesty International.

She is equally at home reading through her considerable collection of comics. She is to be applauded for remaining unpretentious, and is also in the enviable position of being able to choose her own touring and recording timetable.