finetune artist: Lynn Miles

b. 29 September 1958, Sweetsburg, Quebec, Canada. Miles's parents brought her up in a musical household, where space on the record player was divided between her mother's opera and country records and her father' jazz albums. She studied violin and flute at school before taking piano lessons, self-financed from sporadic employment as a babysitter. Her first songs were written at the age of 10, inspired by her devotion to music and her voracious reading of mystery novels. She began to sing in clubs before studying as an opera singer for two years as she turned 20 years old. After initially working with Mark Thibeault she embarked on a musical partnership with guitarist Terry Tufts with whom she continued to earn a modest living throughout Ottawa. Initially playing covers, Miles subsequently introduced her own songs into the set, leading to her first recording sessions in 1987. This self-titled cassette recording, which included strong early compositions such as "White Knight" and "The Art Of Self-Defense", gave notice of her developing talent. Her personal circumstances were still difficult however, and during this period she helped support herself with work at the Ottawa Folklore Centre as a voice teacher, her students included a young Alanis Morissette. A second album for Snowy River Records, this time issued on compact disc, followed in 1991. Chalk This One Up To The Moon included a revealing testament to her nation's fixation with male sports which she had witnessed in her adolescence. "It's Hockey Night In Canada" was the record's most powerful moment, though other songs such as "It'll Be Here" and "All I Ever Wanted" were also convincing.

Listen to Lynn Miles at Finetune.

(1998) Night In A Strange Town
(1996) Slightly Haunted

You Don't Love Me Anymore
I Loved A Cowboy
I'm Still Here
Loneliness
Middle Of The Night