Cindy Alexander performing at Genghis Cohen
Cindy Alexander (born Cynthia Alexander) is an American indie singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist.[1][2] She currently resides in greater Los Angeles, California.
Born in Los Angeles, weighing only four and a half pounds but with the voice that could fill a stadium.... Cindy’s
parents figured G-d had a plan, they just weren't in on the joke. They sent their little "peanut" to the "crying doctor" when she was 5 only to be told she just wanted attention. The stage seemed like a good place.
Cindy was trained at the acclaimed USC School of Drama but realized quickly that there was enough
“drama” in real life, and the best part she could play was herself. Eventually, the diary she kept turned
into songs, and those songs caught the attention of the L.A. music scene which was coming to life in the late 90’s.
One day, Cindy Alexander was so irritated and grumpy because the guy who lived in the apartment above her
blasted his stereo so loud that it would trigger her migraines - so finally she crawled out of bed, pounded on his
door and asked him to turn it down. Instead of fighting, Cindy and Paul Trudeau became best of friends, wrote a
bunch of songs and started a band. Their first show was at Genghis Cohen on Fairfax Ave., and the second was at
the famous Doug Weston’s Troubadour. After a couple of years, a lot of gigs, and a ton of emotional epiphanies, Cindy put out a cd which was a compilation of her demos: See Red (1999). Most of the tracks were produced by David Darling (Boxing Gandhis/Meredith Brooks/Brian Setzer) and Paul Trudeau. See Red earned a nomination for Album of the Year by the L.A. Music Awards, who the year before crowned her Songwriter of the Year and nominated her for Female Vocalist of the Year. The "Peanut Gallery" (aka Cindy Alexander fans) grew exponentially and Cindy rode the wave of the internet, topping charts at mp3.com and becoming one of Amazon.com's best indie sellers.
In 2001, she was asked to record a cover of Tom Petty’s “American Girl” for the Sugar & Spice soundtrack (Trauma
Records/ New Line Records) by New Line Cinema executive Joe Nimziki. The song was produced by Matthew
Wilder.
In 2002, a chill out version of her original song, “Only Love,” written with Gary Harrison, was released on Chilled
Sirens (Water Music Records/ Universal Records) alongside Sarah McLachlan and Delirium.
Cindy also appears on 2003’s Sunday Brunch (Treadstone Records/ Columbia Records Japan) alongside Oleta
Adams. In 2003, Cindy released her second CD, SMASH, also nominated for L.A. Music Award's Adult Contemporary Album
of the Year. SMASH features co-writes with Grammy Award winners Gary Harrison and Dennis Matkosky. She was
named CNET's Net Music Countdown Net Unknown of the Year (joining past recipients such as Michelle Branch)
and was named Female Artist of the Year by Just Plain Folks, also winning Pop Song of the Year by the same
organization. Cindy kept busy touring in 2004 with a new distribution for her own label, JamCat Records, earned
three more awards (2004 Unanimous Choice Award Recipient – Special Achievement: Pop Artist – 14th annual LA
Music Awards, JPF Songwriter of the Year, and All Access Magazine Best Female Vocalist), and recorded her 3rd cd
with Dave Darling: Angels & Demons.
Angels & Demons was released in 2005 to glowing reviews, with an on air live performance for Mark & Brian on
KLOS 95.5 FM and affiliates. This sparked an immediate sell out of ALL of Cindy’s inventory and a huge influx of
new fans. That energy fueled a string of dates opening for AMERICA and Cindy began headlining festivals as far
away as Barbados. Angels & Demons was nominated for three Album of the Year awards by All Access Magazine,
L.A. Music Awards and Just Plain Folks, a songwriter networking organization which boasts over 40,000 members.
Also in 2005, Cindy contributed to a compilation called Home, produced by Raymond Steiner, which benefitted
Children’s International.
June 2006 unleashed a new compilation entitled Eclectic Cafe on Water Music Records/Universal featuring Cindys
song 4 Hours alongside cuts by Aimee Mann, Heather Nova, Tracy Bonham, Moby and Duncan Shiek.
Summer/Fall 2006 was a huge turning point. On a whim, Cindy joined the cast of NBC/David Foster’s Star
Tomorrow, with the understanding that it was a talent contest based upon original material and artistry, quite
unlike the American Idol shows. After months of head to head competition with some of the best indie artists in
the US, and battling it out on the world wide web, Cindy WON a deal with a major label. Well, sort of. After a LOT
of consideration, soul searching and an extended tour in the Pacific Rim entertaining our Troops, Cindy decided
that it was an offer she COULD refuse and consequently, shared the news with her fans. Their overwhelming
support of her decision to stay indie resulted in enough pre-orders and donations to the production account to
completely fund the making of WOBBLE WITH THE WORLD, Cindy’s fourth CD which was released October 2007
and immediately nominated for Independent Album of the Year, Best Female Vocals, A/C Artist of the Year (South
Bay Music Awards) and Best Songwriting (Rock City News). Wobble with the World is produced Cindy’s longtime
friends and musical co-horts, Dave Darling and Paul Trudeau, with a special guest appearance by Michael Bacon on
“Bloom.” The digital-only version of the CD contains an extra bonus track, “Slow Motion Miracle” which proceeds
are donated to a charity close to Cindy’s heart: www.wespark.org.
Cindy Alexander married drummer Chip Moreland in 2007 and after a brief tour to support Wobble with the World,
set out to create a family. After putting career first for many years, it was time to pursue another dream: to have
children. In May 2009, twin daughters Jette and Perry were born and Cindy devoted all of her creative energy to her
children. The one exception was her 2009 and 2010 performance for the Sony play station video game White
Knight Chronicles II soundtrack, with the songs "Fly! -My Bluebrid,” ”The Battlefield Flower" and "White Knight Chronicles - 'Travelers'".
In 2011, as a way to reclaim the artist within and once again allow the creative spirit some room to regenerate and
grow, she began to write songs again. With a completely new and different perspective, Cindy returned to the
studio with longtime producer and friend, and now Grammy nominated Dave Darling, and released Every Rise and
Fall in 2012, which won L.A. Music Critic's Best CD (Female). Every Rise and Fall tackles issues such as fertility,
marriage, motherhood, aging, birth and death. The CD features another guest appearance by Michael Bacon on
cello, and musicians Arlan Oscar (Joe Bonamassa/Janiva Magness) on organ and wurlitzer, Carl Sealove (Bob
Dylan/Boxing Gandhis) on stand-up bass/ bass guitar, husband Chip Moreland (Altered State/Dread Zeppelin) on
drums, Dave Darling on guitar/backing vocals, and of course Cindy on vocals and piano.
Cindy hit the road again in 2013 with her long time touring buddies, The Bacon Brothers (Kevin and Michael
Bacon). But her career resurgence was halted when in July of that year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Cindy handled the experience of a double mastectomy and reconstruction in the ways she knows best – by openly
sharing the journey with humor and blunt honesty, and of course, through song. Her next CD, Curve, was the first
release by Blue Élan Records, founded by Kirk Pasich in 2014. Blue Élan Records is an artist-friendly label, bringing
expertise, perseverance, a long history of working with talent, and an environment that fosters creativity on the
artist’s terms. Among the glowing reviews, AXS.com declared “By fearlessly exploring such intriguingly honest
territory, Cindy has branded Curve her most compelling work to date.” In January 2015, it was announced that
Curve won the L.A. Music Critic’s Award for Best Female CD (2nd Half 2014).
Also in 2014, Cindy released a Christmas EP entitled Christmas is Here. AXS included her original song For Auld Lang
Syne as one of the "Best Christmas Songs flying beneath your radar."
Cindy toured the US in 2015, spreading the messages of Breast Cancer Awareness & Prevention as part of the
- ThinkPinkLiveGreen initiative and as Ambassador to BreastCancer.org. As a Survivor, Cindy feels strongly about
counting her blessings and paying it forward.
In October 2015, Cindy released An American Girl (an EP), produced by Dave Darling. The first single,“Play,” was
nominated for Best AC/ AAA Song for the Hollywood Music and Media Awards. Said AXS magazine: “Robust,
warm, rich, and vibrant, the remarkable spectrum of earthy tones coloring Alexander’s arresting performances
resonate with the picturesque beauty of a Midwestern landscape.” This record includes a new version of Cindy’s
cover of Tom Petty’s “American Girl,” this time a roots ballad rather than the modern rock version which appears
on the Sugar & Spice soundtrack (Trauma Records/ Newline Records 2001)
2016 was the start of a new collaboration with fellow Blue Élan artist Colin Devlin, one half of the Irish duo The
Devlins. Together they co-wrote and Colin produced Deep Waters, released July 2016. The albums first single,
“Heaven’s Wall” (originally recorded by the Devlins), premiered on Guitar World “Exploring love in all of its
forms— the passionate, sexual, the sacred and the maternal, even love that’s remorseful and misguided, Deep
Waters is an insightful collection that exposes Alexander as a fearlessly skilled songwriter, singer and artist in every sense of the word.” That year, she was nominated for 3 L.A. Music Critic Awards: Best CD Female (Deep Waters),
Best Pop/Rock Female Artist (she won) and Best Christmas Single (she won) for “Christmas Song,” her contribution
to the Blue Elan Christmas cd which benefits the Alliance for Children’s Rights.
In 2017, Cindy launched a #PlayItForward tour through the platform Road Nation, where fans pledged money to
bring her to different cities. When a threshold was reached, a show was booked as a charity event to raise money
for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. That summer, she went into the studio with Kirk Pasich in the producer’s seat to
record her next cd “Nowhere to Hide.” The idea of this record originated from Kirk Pasich, founder and President
of Blue Élan Records. He wanted to capture the raw, emotional connection of Alexander's acoustic performances
that he'd been watching on stage for many years. The focus is on the artist and the song, and not on production.
Nowhere to Hide became a concept - the record was recorded live in single takes, played together by the
musicians in the same room. The only instruments involved were voices, a grand piano, acoustic guitars and dobro.
Kirk set the stage, and allowed the musicians to do what they do best in an environment without restraints. The
release features fan favorites spanning Cindy's entire nine album career, as well as covers of Bread's "Everything I Own," and Stephin Merritt's "Book of Love." Nowhere to Hide was released January 5, 2018 and a national tour is planned.
Cindy teamed up with musician Kevin Fisher and the duo announced their new band, "The Humming Bards" on September 9th 2018.
Discography[2]
Albums [3]
- 1999 – See Red (JamCat Records, nominated for Album of the Year by the L.A. Music Awards)
- 2003 – SMASH (JamCat Records)
- 2005 – Angels & Demons (JamCat Records)
- 2007 – Wobble with the World (JamCat Records)
- 2012 – Every Rise And Fall (JamCat Records)
- 2014 – Curve (Blue Elan Records)
- 2014 - Christmas is Here (Blue Elan Records)
- 2015 - An American Girl (Blue Elan Records)
- 2016 - Deep Waters (Blue Elan Records)
- 2018 - Nowhere to Hide (Blue Elan Records)
Compilations
- 2002 – Chilled Sirens (Water Music Records/Universal)
- 2003 – Sunday Brunch (Treadstone Records/Columbia Records Japan)
- 2005 – Back Home (Benefits Children International, see homecd.net)
- 2006 – Eclectic Café (Water Music Records/Universal)
External links
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