NEW SINGLE
THE GREATEST GIFT – Available now!
JUNO-nominated artist Barbra Lica is a Toronto-based singer-songwriter, arranger and producer. She has performed around the world, from NYC’s Birdland to Toronto’s Koerner Hall to headlining at festivals throughout North America, Europe and Japan. In addition to writing for herself, Barbra has written cuts for such artists as jazz crooner Matt Dusk (Entertainment One/Universal), rising J-Pop singer Harumi (Sony Music Japan), and Taiwanese pop recording artist, Morrison Ma (Universal Music Group/X Entertainment). As a recording artist, Barbra has been ranked one of Canada’s Top 5 Jazz singers on the CBC, and her 2017 album, “I’m Still Learning”, was nominated for a JUNO Award in the category of “Best Vocal Jazz Album”. Barbra’s most recent project, “You’re Fine” (Justin Time Records), established a brand new sound for Barbra, seamlessly blending jazz, country and folk influences. “You’re Fine” was recorded at Addiction Sound Studios in Nashville with award-winning Canadian engineer David Kalmusky (Journey) and Canadian producer/bassist Marc Rogers (The Philosopher Kings), and features Barbra’s touring band of musicians from across Canada playing alongside country music legends, Paul Franklin (Vince Gill) on pedal steel guitar and mutli-instrumentalist Wanda Vick Burchfield (Taylor Swift). Today, Barbra continues to develop her genre-bending style, writing and producing from quarantine including her brand new Christmas single, “The Greatest Gift”.
“It starts and ends with Lica’s voice. It’s a bright, vibrant contralto one minute, laconic and syrupy the next when she lets a phrase die on the vine and trail off”
– Frank De Blase, Journalist, City Newspaper
JUNO-nominated Toronto singer-songwriter Barbra Lica is celebrating the successful launch of her first ever self-produced track, Hello from My Basement, with yet another basement production. Written in a Zoom session with Alberta’s Danielle Knibbe, and recorded across five far apart home-studios, The Greatest Gift is a reminder of what we all want most this holiday season: to be close to the ones we love. Consider this song an anthem for Christmas revellers in COVID bubbles everywhere.
Music and Lyrics by Barbra Lica & Danielle Knibbe
Produced and Arranged by Barbra Lica
Edited and Mixed by Marc Rogers
Mastered by Reuben Ghose at Mojito Mojito Mastering
Published by CYMBA Music Publishing
Distributed by DistroKid
Vocals: Barbra Lica
Piano and Synth Programming: Joel Visentin
Guitars and Banjo: Thomas O’Reilly-Fleming
Bass and Synth Programming: Marc Rogers
Drums: Will Fisher
Graphics: Steven Preisman
ON THE BLOG
TOO MANY BANANAS
Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the holidays
GET SOCIAL
Here’s a #FBFriday to our Westben concert: Hello From My Basement https://t.co/y1TbnphLGd (catch the full concert on the Official YouTube channel for @WestbenCentre )
Happy New Year, everybody and hello from my basement where I'm cheering on the vaccination effort: https://t.co/WrZZKkRjpD @SuzeMorrison @BardishKW @MarciIen @JohnTory
It me!!! Thanks @CBCBigCity !!! https://t.co/Bw2sjOxu6V
Barbra Lica ( @beelica) calls her Christmas single, The Greatest Gift, "a non-romantic family-oriented ditty."
That's next.
Closing today's show with The Chronicles of Mr. Fezziwig. Drummer Mark Kelso says it was inspired by the character from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. https://t.co/iDAHPrvdfL
Support Barbra by purchasing her music from Bandcamp: https://barbralica.bandcamp.com
Stories From Home is a weekly Toronto Downtown Jazz profile on local musicians and the work they've been doing during the pandemic.