Jodie Marie was signed to Decca Records/ Universal Music in 2010 and began writing songs with former Suede guitarist and producer Bernard Butler and singer songwriter Ed Harcourt.
Her debut album Mountain Echo (released in 2012 on the Verve imprint) was described by The Guardian as ‘velvety and bittersweet’ and received much critical acclaim. She since self released her second album Trouble in Mind in 2015. Her sound was described by The Independent as ‘having a light-blues and jazz-folk-edge recalling late-1960s singersongwriters such as Carole King’. Collaborating again with songwriter Ed Harcourt & Dan Smith (of the Noisettes) and produced by collaborator Owain Fleetwood Jenkins. Drawing influences, from the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Aretha Franklin, Amy Winehouse, The Black Keys, Fontella Bass, Lesley Gore & Carole King.
Whenever I write, it’s always from first-hand experience or from experiences that have happened really close to me. This makes writing and creating a record like this very scary when it comes to releasing it, because it’s like someone taking a stroll around your mind or reading your diary. Growing up, listening to the artists listed above, along with the likes of Janis Joplin, Sam Cooke, BB King & Etta James, their music always brought a truth and honesty that I loved, a comfort blanket where it gives you the space to cry when you needed, but also the power to lift your spirits too. This is the kind of record I wanted to try to make. I’ve always been heavily influenced by the landscape around where I live in Pembrokeshire. I spend a lot of time at the coast – walking, swimming in the sea and generally being outdoors blowing the cobwebs away.
I often change between writing on electric guitar and keys throughout the album, which made it really exciting to record. As a band we locked ourselves away and recorded the core of my album tracks live and then overdubbed other instruments on top – you can really hear the live element to the recordings. The sound of humans interacting together in a room. Again, referencing the way albums were recorded in the 60s & 70s.