Karen Cameron and All That Jazz!
An Interview with Karen
Q:
What were you doing in Ethiopia?
Karen: Teaching English and music in a rural mountain setting. Getting
to Know the children and what their real needs are. I would like to help
build another classroom building. There are over eighty children in a
classroom - most are very bright students and all so eager to learn.
Q: Why did you choose to go to Ethiopia on a mission trip instead of
helping the needy in you own country?
Karen: First of all, I do help here at home. Secondly, I believe there
is a master plan for each of our lives. Opportunities arise and we
choose to say "yes" or "no" to them. Ethiopia was one of my
opportunities.
Q:
Did you always know you wanted to be a singer?
Karen: Not in the way one would think. Just as you have always breathed,
I have always sung. There have been many opportunities placed in my path
- all gifts. To some I have said "yes" and to others, "no".
Q: Who are YOUR favorite singers?
Karen: All the good ones.... too many to name! Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy
Wilson, Kathy Mathea, Sandi Patty, Whitney Houston, Etta James, Barbara
Streisand, Nat King Cole, Natalie Cole, Sting, Michael Franks, Joan
Sutherland, Beverly Sills, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Mose Alison and Mark
Murphy are a few.
Q: What did you do in South America?
Karen: I sang with a 17 piece band which played "Tribute to Benny
Goodman" concerts. Buenos Aires and Montevideo are full of Italians who
love swing music as well as opera!
Q: What other recordings have you made?
Karen: Most recently, "A Quiet Place" CD.
The
songs on this CD turned out to be a fitting description of our
experiences in Yetebon, Ethiopia so all the profits from this CD are going to help build anot
her classroom for the Medehane-Alem
School there. I was a studio singer for several years, recording jingles and
demos for commercial clients. My first album, "Lucky To Be Me" has been
reissued as a CD titled "Young and Foolish Again". I have recorded on
four of the Back Bay Rambler's CD's (traditional jazz/Stomp Off label):
"Leven Thirty Saturday Nite", "My Momma's Back in Town", "Cuttin'Up",
and "Red Hot Band". I am also one of four jazz singers on the Kenny
Hadley Big Band CD, "Come Sunday".
You can email Karen at:
