Beverley Craven: Difference between revisions

'''Beverley Craven''' (born 28 July 1963<ref name="Larkin90"/>) is a British singer-songwriter best known for her 1991 UK hit single "[[Promise Me (Beverley Craven song)|Promise Me]]".<ref name="Larkin90"/> HerShe has recorded six studio albums, including the collaborative album ''[[ChangeWoman ofto HeartWoman (Beverley Craven, Judie Tzuke and Julia Fordham album)|ChangeWoman ofto HeartWoman]]'' waswith released[[Judie in 2014Tzuke]] and ''[[MixedJulia Emotions (Beverley Craven album)|Mixed EmotionsFordham]]'' in 1999.

Craven did not buy her first pop record until she was 15, when she started buying records by singer-songwritersartists such as [[EltonKate JohnBush]], the [[JudieElectric Light TzukeOrchestra]], and [[Stevie Wonder]].<ref>{{cite and,web in| particular,url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/content/articles/2007/03/23/beverley_craven_interview_feature.shtml [[Kate| Bush]],title=Beverley's allback! of| whomwork=BBC influenced| herfirst=Katy | last=Lewis | access-date=13 October 2024}}</ref> music.

At 18, Craven left school and home and worked in a number of oddvarious jobs, living in a south [[London]] bedsit.<ref name="Larkin90"/><ref name=":1" /> Having failed to find any sympathetic musicians with whom to play, at the age of 22 she decided to strike out on her own as a piano-playing singer and songwriter.<ref name="Larkin90"/> Following a brief stint touring with soul singer [[Bobby Womack]], who tried to sign her to his record label, she recorded her first set of demos and attracted the attention of [[Go West (band)|Go West]]'s manager, John Glover. He quicklyhelped set aboutto securingsecure her a major music publishing deal with Warner Brothers and a development contract with [[Epic Records]] followed.<ref name="Larkin90"/>

In November 1988, sheCraven was sent to Los Angeles to work with some established songwriters and to 'learn her craft' playing in bars and restaurants.<ref name="Larkin90"/> The experience was "unproductive" she confesses,{{citation needed|date=March 2016}} preferring even now to write alone. Soon afterwards, again in Los Angeles, she made her first attempt to record her debut album with record producer [[Stewart Levine]] of [[Simply Red]] fame.<ref name="Larkin90"/> However sheShe feltbelieved the professionalism of the recordings failed to capture the naivete of her work and was relieved when Epic agreed. She went on to record with [[Paul Samwell-Smith]],<ref name="Larkin90"/> whose other production credits included [[Cat Stevens]], [[Carly Simon]] and [[All About Eve (band)|All About Eve]].

HerCraven's first album, ''[[Beverley Craven (album)|Beverleyeponymous Cravendebut album]]'', was eventually released in July 1990. Although it initially failed to attract attention in the United Kingdom, it found acceptance in Europe.<ref name="Larkin90"/> It was not until April 1991 that she found success in her homeland. A re-released "[[Promise Me (Beverley Craven song)|Promise Me]]" (written on the back of an early relationship breakdown<ref name=":1" />) was heavily promoted and eventually peaked at No. 3 in the [[UK Singlessingles Chartchart]], becoming her biggest hit.<ref name="Larkin90"/> This success helped renew hugesignificant interest in her debut album, leading to it charting at No. 3 in the [[UK Albums Chart]],<ref name="Larkin90"/> staying in the charts for over a year and eventually going double platinum in that country. The album sold in excess of 1.2&nbsp;million copies worldwide. Other singles released to promote the album, including "[[Holding On (Beverley Craven song)|Holding On]]" and "[[Woman to Woman (Beverley Craven song)|Woman To Woman]]", were also Top 40 hits and helped maintain album sales.

In 1992 sheCraven released a videotape, titled ''Memories'', recorded live at the Birmingham Symphony Hall.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

Craven spent much of 1992 enjoying motherhood and recording her second album. ''[[Love Scenes (Beverley Craven album)|Love Scenes]]'', again produced by [[Paul Samwell-Smith]], was released in September 1993.<ref name="Larkin90"/> Ian Gilby of ''[[Sound on Sound]]'' called it "a collection of quintessentially English ballads that echo the naive feel and sentiments of her first outing".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.soundonsound.com/people/beverley-craven-mor-love-scenes | title=Beverley Craven: MOR & Love Scenes | work=Sound on Sound | first=Ian | last=Gilby | access-date=13 October 2024}}</ref> It peaked at No. 4 on the UK Albums Chart and spent three months on the chart. It spawned three singles, "[[Love Scenes (song)|Love Scenes]]", "[[Mollie's Song]]" (written for her daughter) and a cover of [[ABBA]]'s "[[The Winner Takes It All]]". The singles all became minor hits, with the title track reaching the UK top 40.

Craven took a five-year hiatus after giving birth to two more daughters and it was not until 1999 that she released her third album, ''[[Mixed Emotions (Beverley Craven album)|Mixed Emotions]]''.<ref name="Larkin90"/> She recorded the album in her home studio and for the first time produced the record herself.<ref name="Larkin90"/> The album peaked at No. 46 in the UK, spending two weeks on the chart. The lead single, "[[I Miss You (Beverley Craven song)|I Miss You]]", was only released as a promo single as the label refuseddeclined to release it commercially. After promotion for this album ended, Craven left Epic Records and retired from the music industry to take care of her daughters.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

In 2004, ''[[The Very Best of Beverley Craven]]'' compilation album was released and Craven embarked on a comeback to promote the record, making a handful ofsome live concert appearances, but shortly after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Following treatment she was finally given the all-clear and returned to the stage in 2006, doingperforming in more toursconcerts in subsequent years.

In March 2009, Craven released her first album in ten years, ''[[Close to Home (Beverley Craven album)|Close To Home]]'', fully written and produced by herself. She released it on her own record label and sold it initially through her website and at concerts, although later in the year she made it available for purchase on online retailers and on digital outlets. The song "Rainbows" was released as a digital download single and she filmed a videoclip of it.

Craven's fifth studio album, ''[[Change of Heart (Beverley Craven album)|Change of Heart]]'', was released on 1 September 2014, followed by a tour through the UK in the Autumnautumn.

After meeting backstage at a [[Tears for Fears]] concert in 1991, Craven began a relationship with singer-songwriter [[Colin Campsie]]. After the birth of their first daughter, the couple married at [[Culcreuch Castle]] in December 1994. The couple have three daughters. They initially lived in [[Kilburn, London|Kilburn]], North-West London, before moving to [[Buckinghamshire]] in 2006, to a family home which Craven bought with the royalties from her single "Promise Me".{{cn|date=August 2024}} She was first diagnosed with cancer in 2005. The couple separated in 2010, when she left her husband and daughters to live nearby. They divorced in 2011.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Foster |first=Peter Robertson, Alistair |date=2013-09-05 |title=Beverley Craven's daughter follows in her singer-songwriter footsteps |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/celebritynews/beverley-craven-s-daughter-follows-in-her-singersongwriter-footsteps-8799307.html |access-date=2023-01-19 |website=Evening Standard |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lambert |first=Victoria |date=2018-10-29 |title=Beverley Craven: Why I'm going on tour two months after my double mastectomy |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/beverley-craven-going-tour-two-months-double-mastectomy/ |access-date=2023-01-19 |issn=0307-1235}}</ref>

In 2014, Craven's sister Kathy died at the age of 44.<ref name=":2" /> Craven herself, was diagnosed for a second time,; her breast cancer treatment meant she underwent a double mastectomy and lymph node surgery followed by five months of intense chemotherapy treatment which resulted in the loss of her hair. Her second cancer bout also led to the postponement of her 2018 Woman to Woman tour, which resumed in June 2019 after her health had improved and where she revealed a shorter hairstyle.<ref name="musicnews">{{cite web |title=Beverley Craven ready to hit the road again after beating cancer for a second time |url=http://www.music-news.com/news/UK/121497/Beverley-Craven-ready-to-hit-the-road-again-after-beating-cancer-for-a-second-time |website=Music-news.com |access-date=10 June 2019}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Citation |title=PROMISE ME by BEVERLEY CRAVEN - THE ONE SHOW |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtC5VTcph6I |language=en |access-date=2023-01-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Beverley Craven returns with new tour and autobiography |url=https://www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk/news/bands-and-music-news/6771/Beverley-Craven-returns-with-new-tour.html |access-date=2023-01-17 |website=www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk |language=en}}</ref> She released her updated autobiography, ''Truth Be Told'', on 1 June 2019. She met her partner, Mike, a businessman in 2019, on the Internet through ''Guardian Soulmates''.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

[[Category:20th-century British women singer-songwriterspianists]]

[[Category:English20th-century British women pianistssingers]]

[[Category:Sri21st-century LankanBritish musicianswomen singers]]

[[Category:PeopleBritish fromwomen Colombopianists]]

[[Category:SriBritish Lankanwomen people of English descentsinger-songwriters]]