Lea Longo

Lea Longa has performed all over the world. Bringing mantra style world music together with jazz and pop elements she creates a seamless musical experience with her silky voice and songwriting talents. This album contains three well known jazz standards—“The Very Thought of You,” “Fever” and “Here’s to Life” but it was the original works that caught my attention. Those are the pieces that make this album lean closer to the 5 star range in the ratings. The original works let the listener hear the artist in her natural environment, and what a lovely sound it is. Don’t miss this album. - Dana Wright

After 17 years of reviewing music, I thought I had heard it all, but after hearing Lea Longo's Songs Of A Siren, I realize there IS something new under the sun. Longo lends her sensuous, sultry vocals to a collection torch songs/standards and originals with a heavy backdrop of smooth grooves and sassy melodies. You may be asking yourself "So, what's so new about that?" Well, she takes ballads such as "Fever" and "The Very Thought Of You," gives them a sexy spin with that voice of hers, but also interjects Kirtan/Sanskrit chanting among the usual lyrics (she is credited on those tracks with "lyric adaptation").

To ease the chants' integration with the music's grooves, sitar (by Radford Crasto) and tabla (by Shawn Mativetsky) were added to the instrumentation, alongside the expected keys, guitar, bass and percussion. Longo's voice is something very special, whether she is chanting or singing lyrics. She is no slouch at composing either. "Love Is All You Need" percolates nicely along featuring Longo's vocals expertly multi-tracked and "Jaya Love" will have you swaying with its playful sensuousness.

Songs Of A Siren may be the first album with chant on it that you can picture yourself listening to while peering out of the windows of a 30th story penthouse overlooking Central Park West as the Saturday evening sun sets over Manhattan. It's a unique mixture of two disparate musical ideas that works unexpectedly well thanks to Longo's vision and guidance as well as the talents of collaborators. - Bill BINKELMAN

SUCCESS STORY FOR LEA LONGO:

Lea Longo is based in Montreal, making her the most distant attendee of the Top Producers seminar. "I was able to play one of my songs for Michael C. Ross," Longo said, "and he was immediately interested in working with me on co-producing and re-mixing it for the American market." This confirms what many in the business have known for years, that Ross has great ears. Since that time, the song called "Ugly," produced by Dan Cinelli, has won two song writing contests, the Canadian Music Week National Songwriting Competition, and Montreal'sMix96SongwritingContest.

In addition, the song has been placed in heavy rotation on Mix 96, a top-rated commercial station in one of Canada's major markets. The musical director for the station praised the record, calling it "an uplifting song, bright, with hooks from start to end."

Now, with Ross behind the board for the next version of the song, the U.S. market will soon be heading Longo's voice. "I am very excited about the new mix that Michael is doing for the American release of this song," Longo stated. This isn't the only breakthrough for Longo this year. Her song, "Someone Like Me," was in the 20th Century Fox movie "Cheaper by the Dozen" starring Steve Martin. And since she sings in four languages (English, French, Spanish and Italian), there is tremendous potential for her as a global artist.

"I heard a lot of songs that day at the L*A*M*P event," Ross stated. "Lea's was by far the best. I remember saying to myself, 'I would love a chance to beat that demo'. Well, I am getting my chance. It has been great to see all that Lea has been able to get going on her own. It just shows some of the opportunities independent artists can take advantage of, when they make the extra effort."
- G-man/LAMP event

It's clear why this Canadian Songbird's work has paddled up "Dawson's Creek". Her songs are uptempo, acoustic/electric pop/rock and it's all crafty, deftly arranged and well produced.

At times, Lea's voice reminds of Nathalie Imbruglia, especially on the tune, "Breathe". "Cross Over" is an all out rocker.

Through it all, this performer's sweet voice registers appropriately and gets the job done. Her formula is utterly commercial. - LA MUSIC CONNECTION

It used to be that musical categories were fairly well defined, and that most songs fit neatly into little boxes called genres. However, in recent times, it seems that the lines have become blurred and the boundaries breached, so that just about any style can be merged with any other style to create some of the most innovative blends imaginable. A perfect example of this is the latest release by Canadian singer/ songwriter Lea Longo, entitled Songs Of A Siren. Here she combines her love of jazz and pop standards with the spirituality of mantra and kirtan chanting to provide a completely different twist on the East meets West concept.

So what is the motivation, and what thread ties together these disparate musical elements? According to Lea: The title, Songs Of A Siren, is influenced by the Greek Mythology, The Sirens, where the female sirens seduce the sailors to shore. I was intrigued by this concept while my life was undergoing transformation, so I decided to produce a collection of love chants. Showcasing the beauty of the female energy and voice, it enchants the listener into a blissful state. The Sanskrit symbol (on the cover) represents LOVE. I hope listening to these songs will bring you divine love.”

The devotional aspect of this music is a deeply felt part of Lea’s life that flowered when she traveled to India in 2006 and “discovered music mantra chanting with true chanting masters.” After this awakening, she pursued certification as a Lea LongoKundalini Yoga instructor, which she is still active in as a teacher and practitioner. In addition, Lea has given numerous kirtan music performances at events such as The Toronto Yoga Conference, Open Mind Festival, Montreal Yoga and Chant Fest, Bhakti Fest, and more She has also produced albums like Zen Voyage and Peace Chants that feature sacred mantras. Interestingly, before this Lea had a highly successful career in a more traditional Hollywood setting, where her songs gained major television placements in shows like “Dawson’s Creek,” “Party Of Five,” Fox TV series “North Shore” and “Felicity,” as well as in the movie “Cheaper By The Dozen” starring Steve Martin.

Although the well-known classic song “Fever” was written in 1956 and has been covered by Peggy Lee, Elvis, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Bette Midler, and even Madonna, if you’ve never heard it with sitar and tabla, and interspersed with Sanskrit chants, get ready for a trip into uncharted territory. This is, in fact, the song that opens the album. Along with the sitar playing of Radford Crasto and Shawn Mativetsky on tabla drums, are Western instruments such as bass, drums, and some very tasty George Benson-style jazz guitar, all of which provide a grooving background for Lea’s vocals, which range from sensual to spiritual, as she alternates between the traditional lyrics and mantra chanting. Imagine Sade meets Deva Premal and you’ll get an idea of this very cool combination. I particularly enjoyed Lea’s jazzy scat singing in unison with the guitar towards the end.

The next song on the album is also a pop standard ballad entitled “The Very Thought of You.” This tune, which dates back to 1932, also has a storied history and has been covered by some of the greatest singers of our era. Lea’s upbeat rendition forgoes the sitar and tabla, but does morph between the song’s English lyrics and devotional chanting in Sanskrit, as do all of the songs on the recording. Extensive instrumentation, including drums, percussion, keys, guitar, bass synth, and back-up vocals were provided by co-producer/ engineer Jesse Jaeo Tolbert throughout the album, in addition to various accompanists, including Alex Paquette on bass and guitarist Andy Dacoulis, among others.

After the first two “cover” tunes, the album features an original by Lea entitled “Love Is All You Need.” This one starts off with a mystical vibe of Lea’s chanting along with Rad on sitar, Alexandre Lavoie on flute and the electric piano of Allister Phillip before moving into a surprisingly funky R&B-driven beat that reminded me rhythmically a bit of the classic 70’s hit, “Low Rider” by War. However, given the hybrid nature of this album in general, any blending of unlikely genres should not come as a surprise. This is followed by another of Lea’s lovely original compositions called “Jaya Love” – a breezy uplifting tune with smooth jazz influences.

The last of the standards that Lea covers is “Here’s To Life,” a more recent tune first made famous by Shirley Horn and later by Barbara Streisand. Although I’m sure their versions did not feature sitar and tablas. Despite a touch of those exotic instrumental inclusions, Lea plays this one a little bit more straight ahead with her beautiful voice adding just the right sultry vibe to the jazzy background.

After this point the last four songs are all originals, two written by Lea and two by Rad Crasto with mantra lyrics by Lea. I particularly liked the carefree ambience of “Sail Away,” with atmospheric synthesizer textures adding a bit of magic. This piece segues into the next track called “To Heaven,” which is an extension of “Sail Away” and carries on the vibe to the next level, in this case, heaven.

The album draws to a close with a great re-mix of track 3, “Love Is All You Need,” by Ben Leinbach, a well-known San Francisco Bay area producer who has worked with top kirtan singers such as Jai Uttal, Snatam Kaur, Donna DeLory, Jaya Lakshmi, and many others artists in a variety of genres. Here, Ben adds his own special touch to create an enchanting mix of Lea’s heartfelt composition.

When I first read about the fusion of musical elements that this album combined, I couldn’t help wondering how it wouldlogo all come together and what it would sound like.

But by the end of the first tune, I knew that I was going to be in for a very interesting and unique listening experience. Songs Of A Siren is an ambitious undertaking that could have easily missed the mark if done by a less accomplished and innovative artist than Lea Longo and her talented team of accompanists. Over the course of ten tracks, Lea has managed to create a musical mélange that appeals to both the inner and outer dimensions of the listener. "Songs Of A Siren" will have your toe tapping and your spirit rising. - Michael Diamond

“Ugly” is rocking up the ordinarily bland Mix 96 here after this local sensation won Montreal's Mix 96 songwriting contest. To add more fuel to Lea's crisp mix of rock, pop and southern hints is her recent winning of the National Songwriting Contest that took place last month in Toronto during Canadian Music Week. On top of that, this local songstress and chanteuse is now pushing her latest disc, Miserably Happy. It's a fresh sound that has instantly memorable hooks with verses that build to big choruses, making it no surprise that her music has already seeped south, appearing on TV's Dawson's Creek and, more recently, in Steve Martin's last flick Cheaper by the Dozen. Once again, Montreal produces a great talent with little fanfare....


- Mitch Joel

- HOUR, Montreal

By Kerry Doole

LEA LONGO: This Montreal songstress launched her new album, Miserably Happy (on DEP/Universal) with an industry showcase at Clinton's. Lea recently won the 2004 Canadian National Songwriter's Competition (for her song "Ugly"), and her melodic radio-friendly pop-rock material could do well. She has already placed songs in Dawson's Creek and Party Of Five, as well as the film Cheaper By The Dozen. The audience member who yelled out "sing something in Italian" was disappointed, but the rest in attendance enjoyed both the set and the Sambuca shots.
- Tandem Music MAgazine

Ray Scott, MD MIX 96 Montreal
“Up-bright with hooks from start to end”



The Music Connection, Los Angeles
“Acoustic-electric pop/rock, deftly arranged, well produced
and utterly commercial”



Kelly Atchison-TheHawk Nova Scotia
“ It only took one listen to think, INSTANT ADD!”



CMW
“ Lively and upbeat, Lea's music is spiritually rewarding as it is danceable”



Mitch Joel, The Hour
“A fresh sound that has instantly memorable hooks with verses that build to big choruses, heartfelt, captivating and alive.
Longo is a consummate songwriter with an evocative voice-truly remarkable”



Micheal C Ross sound engineer, Los Angeles
(Christina Aguilera, Vanessa Carlton, Mya, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton)
“I heard a lot of songs that day at the L*A*M*P event,
Lea’s was by far the best”



Daniel Cinelli, engineer/producer
(Serial Joe, Peter Murphy, Roch Voisine)
“Lea’s CD is a powerful, melodic blend of pop/rock and adult contemporary songs with a soothing voice and positive lyrical
content of life experiences”

Rob Kingston- Chart Attack
“Rich percussion rythms and swirling melodies support Longo's stellar voice and make for a solid, no-cracks-in-the-surface sound.”

- Industry Quotes