As a singer, Katrina (formerly of Katrina and The Waves) was inspired by Motown, Dusty Springfield and girl groups such as The Shangri-Las and The Shirelles. In 1983 Katrina and fellow American Vince de la Cruz joined The Waves (with ex Soft Boy Kimberley Rew) and she picked up on some of their musical influences such as Etta James, Velvet Underground and the Stones.
Katrina was born in Kansas in 1960 and moved to England in 1976 where, together with de la Cruz, she formed her first band, Mama's Cookin'. Their music was inspired by the West Coast sound - Fleetwood Mac, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris and Heart - from their early teenage years in the States.
The Waves became Katrina and the Waves and after two albums and five years washing dishes she was catapulted into the spotlight with ‘Walking On Sunshine’ which has become a timeless summer anthem. During the same year Katrina and the Waves were also nominated for a Grammy for best new artist.
With international success the band toured with artists such as Wham, The Beach Boys, Don Henley, Pointer Sisters, Chaka Khan, The Kinks, Fleetwood Mac, Coolio and Run DMC. They released a further 6 albums charting 10 top 30 singles with performances at Madison Square Garden, The Mall, Washington DC, The Marquee Club and CBGBs where Katrina sang with Joey Ramone. Katrina was also the featured vocalist on albums made by Holly Vallance and Hanoi Rocks and on Natalie Imbruglia’s ‘Torn’. She recorded ‘We Gotta Get Out of This Place’ as a duet with Eric Burdon and sang a guest track on Rick Wakeman’s ‘Return To The Centre of the Earth’.
In 1997 Katrina and the Waves’ ‘Love Shine A Light’ won the Eurovision Song Contest with the largest ever margin, followed by an unprecedented four consecutive appearances on Top Of The Pops.
The following year, Katrina and the Waves split up and Katrina pursued an alternative career on radio and TV. She was a TV presenter on Watchdog with Anne Robinson and was then offered her own show on Radio 2 – where she presented a three-hour show, five days a week for the next year and a half. This was followed by a stint in musical theatre, when Katrina played the lead role (the songwriter Ellie Greenwich) in Leader of the Pack, singing some of the songs that had influenced her as a young singer.
In 2001, Katrina began a solo career, performing live in the UK and in Europe and resumed writing and recording. Her first solo album, 'Katrina Leskanich' was released in October 2005. Katrina wrote and produced many of the songs on the album, which includes collaborations with Phil Thornalley, ('Torn') and a stunning acoustic cover of Kirsty MacColl's, 'They Don't Know'. Following the success of Katrina’s first gig with her new band at London’s Borderline in 2006, Katrina now performs with her new band and as a solo performer.
In 2007 Katrina covered 'Hitsville UK' on 'The Sandinista! Project' - a new compilation and tribute to The Clash Sandinista! Album. And toured Australia on the Countdown Spectacular tour and Norway with Gylne Tider. Katrina's single 'They Don't Know' was included on the Gylne Tider 2 album which went platinum in Norway.
May 2008, sees the release of 'They Don't Know' - six club mixes from Katrina vs The Sleazesisters. And in the summer of 2008, Katrina will be releasing a brand new mix of ‘Walking on Sunshine’.
www.katrinasweb.com
Last updated 30/03/08
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