Anna Nalick Biography

She says in her Columbia Records biography that ever since she was a little girl she wanted to be a performer and that she actually began to write songs in fifth grade. Reportedly, while showing off her talents to her third grade teacher, her teacher told her that she'd end up "one day on Jay Leno's show." Leno recounted that story when Nalick actually did perform on his show earlier this year, quipping "which shows you how long I've been running this show".

Anna grew up in Glendora, California, just east of Pasadena. As a teenager, she says she grew up in a household where her parents spun a wide variety of artists. Her mother turned her on to bands such as The Rolling Stones, Cream and Led Zeppelin, while her father turned her to Elvis Presley and The Everly Brothers. Anna began her songwriting career in the fifth grade. She officially cites her influences as Fiona Apple, Tori Amos, Blind Melon, John Mayer, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, among others. She says of Vaughan that he is "the guy that I'm going to marry when I get to heaven." In high school, in addition to writing her own songs, she performed with a Rush cover band.

Nalick initially decided to go to college and then only afterward pursue her dream of music, but she met a photographer who said that she had a student in the high school at which she teaches who have parents in the music business. Nalick agreed to pass along a six song demo tape, and soon enough, was introduced to Christopher Thorn and Brad Smith, the founding members of Blind Melon now turned production team, and Eric Rosse, best known for his production work with Tori Amos. Putting her college plans on hold, in October, 2003 she signed on with Columbia Records. Anna went into the studio with Thorn, Smith and Rosse as producers, together with mix-engineer Mark Endert (Fiona Apple, Maroon 5, Gavin DeGraw) and an all-star group of musicians that included Smith on bass, Thorn on guitar, Rosse and Zak Rae on keyboards, Lyle Workman and Stuart Mathis on guitar, Joey Waronker and Matt Chamberlain on drums. The result is the Wreck of the Day two years later. (edit)

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