Issa (singer)
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[[Image:Jane Siberry.jpg|thumb|Issa from her most recent album [[Shushan the Palace: Hymns of Earth]]|right]] Issa (pronounced eeee-sah) (born October 12, 1955 in Toronto, Ontario), formerly known as Jane Siberry, is a Canadian singer-songwriter. In Canada, she is most famous for her early 1980s new wave hits such as "Mimi on the Beach", "I Muse Aloud" and "One More Colour". Internationally, she is best known for her 1993 album When I Was a Boy.
Issa was studying microbiology at the University of Guelph when she released her debut album, Jane Siberry in 1981 (see 1981 in music). The album was relatively successful for an independent release, but the follow-up, No Borders Here was critically acclaimed and included the underground hit "Mimi on the Beach".
The Speckless Sky (1985, see 1985 in music) was a commercial and critical success, and Issa moved to a major label in time for The Walking (1988, see 1988 in music), which was a critical success but popular failure. The Walking was released on Reprise Records internationally, but remained on Duke Street Records in Canada. Reprise would become her Canadian record label as well with her next album, Bound By the Beauty in 1989.
In 1993 (see 1993 in music), Issa worked with Michael Brook and Brian Eno on When I Was a Boy. That album's most famous song, the k.d. lang duet "Calling All Angels", first appeared in Wim Wenders' Until the End of the World, and was later re-recorded for the Pay It Forward soundtrack. The song was also subsequently used in the Six Feet Under episode "The Rainbow of Her Reasons", sung by several characters around the body of a deceased friend.
Following the commercial failure of her 1995 album Maria, Issa founded her own independent label, Sheeba Records. She has released all of her subsequent material on that label. Her public profile has been lower since she became an independent artist; however, she retains a devoted cult following.
All of Issa's independent albums have presented material organized around a particular theme, such as Christmas music, songs about communication, or traditional spiritual music.
Her latest album is Shushan the Palace: Hymns of Earth (2003, see 2003 in music), an album of pop interpretations of Christmas hymns.
Issa's music is most commonly compared to artists such as Kate Bush, Joni Mitchell and Laurie Anderson. Her personal musical influences include Van Morrison and Miles Davis.
In 2005, Issa pioneered a self-determined pricing policy through [her website] on which the purchaser is given the choices of: standard price (about $0.99 USD/track), pay now - self-priced, pay later - self-priced, or "a gift from Jane". Her music is now only available on mp3 format in order to eliminate plastic waste.
Early in 2006, she closed her Sheeba office, then sold and gave away nearly all of her possessions -- including her home and instruments. She presently retains one travelling guitar, but none of the other instruments featured on her albums and in her concerts.
On June 3, 2006, somewhere in northwestern Europe, Issa changed her name, from her old name of Jane Siberry to the name she uses now, Issa (or ISSA, or issa), Arabic for 'Jesus'. She revealed her new name to to the public on June 24, 2006. She has also indicated, however, that her older music will remain available for sale under the name Jane Siberry; only her new material will be released as Issa.
On July 4, 2006, she gave a lecture at University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, on the topic of "Cracking the Egg: A Look from the Inside," opening with a poetic meditation on science and life -- and then opened the floor up to questions from the audience. She talked about her recent adventures in decommodifying her life, her change in name, and her new conception of herself as an artist. While she has been recording new music lately, at present she has no plans to release music conventionally on CD as she has in the past, preferring perhaps to release a song at a time through her website or to share new music in concert.
Discography
- Jane Siberry (1981)
- No Borders Here (1984)
- The Speckless Sky (1985)
- The Walking (1987)
- Bound By the Beauty (1989)
- Summer in the Yukon (1992, compilation
- A Collection 1984-1989 (1992, compilation)
- When I Was a Boy (1993)
- Maria (1995)
- Teenager (1996)
- A Day in the Life (1997)
- [[Child: Music for the Christmas Season]] (1997)
- [[Lips: Music for Saying It]] (1999)
- [[Tree: Music for Films and Forests]] (1999)
- Hush (2000)
- City (2001)
- [[Love is Everything: The Jane Siberry Anthology]] (2002)
- [[Shushan the Palace: Hymns of Earth]] (2003)
Tracks on compilation albums
Issa has also contributed tracks to a number of movie soundtracks and compilation albums:
- Until the End of the World, 1991 ("Calling All Angels")
- The Crow, 1994 ("It Can't Rain All the Time")
- Faraway, So Close, 1994 ("Slow Tango")
- [[Time and Love: The Music of Laura Nyro]], 1997 ("When I Think of Laura Nyro")
- Pay It Forward, 1998 ("Calling All Angels")
- [[Whatever: The 90s Pop and Culture Box]], 2005 ("Calling All Angels")
Trivia
Her song "One More Colour" was covered by Sarah Polley on the soundtrack to The Sweet Hereafter, and by the Rheostatics on their Introducing Happiness album.
External links
- [Sheeba Records; home to Issa's online store]
- [Homepage for pre-Issa info]
- [Issa homepage]
- [Current MySpace]
- [Former MySpace]
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