Bambi Lee Savage
Encyclopedia
Bambi Lee Savage is a singer, songwriter and musician who also has worked as an audio engineer, most notably assisting on U2’s Achtung Baby
. Her song “Darlin’” was featured on the Sling Blade
film soundtrack and her two independently-released CDs are Matter of Time and GJ and the PimpKillers.
. Her father, Guy Thomas Strong, was a Navy pilot who was killed in an airplane crash while working as a stunt pilot on the set of the 20th Century Fox film Tora! Tora! Tora!
in 1969.
In the early 1980s, she played guitar and sang with several punk bands in Denver before moving to London in 1985 where she eventually joined former members of Nyam Nyam and Red Guitars
in the band Horseland. They released a three-song EP in 1987 on the Red Rhino label.
Inspired by an Einstuerzende Neubauten concert at London’s Kilburn National Ballroom, in 1987 she relocated to Berlin where she began working as an assistant recording engineer at Hansa Tonstudio
. There she assisted and/or engineered sessions for artists including U2
, Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie
, Anita Lane
and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
.
She left her audio engineering career to concentrate on songwriting and performing, and in 1992, with Bono
acting as the benefactor of her first recording session, Mick Harvey
played on and produced a four-song demo of her original material. Recorded at Berlin’s Vielklang Studios and also featuring guitarist Hugo Race
, the tracks were to remain unreleased for several years.
As a featured artist in the 1995 German music documentary Lost in Music: Out of Country she performed two of her alt-country songs, “I Can’t Count on My Man” and “Demon Alcohol” with guitarist Alex Hacke and drummer Moritz Wolpert.
Though neither song appears on either of her CD releases to date, “Demon Alcohol” was later covered by Mick Harvey and released on his 2005 solo CD One Man’s Treasure.
At the invitation of Achtung Baby producer Daniel Lanois
, in 1995 she recorded a four-song demo with engineer Mark Howard at Lanois’ San Francisco recording studio. One of the songs, "Darlin'", caught the attention of Lanois and director Billy Bob Thornton
while they were working on the soundtrack to the film Sling Blade, and Lanois added lead guitars and placed it in the soundtrack. This breakthrough led to negotiations with Island Records for a deal that was never to be finalized. She spent the next several years traveling between Berlin and the U.S., working on material and occasionally playing live. In 2003 she returned to Daniel Lanois’ studio (now in Los Angeles) to record two tracks with engineer Adam Samuels, and, combining these with the previous recordings, independently released her first CD, Matter of Time.
She toured Australia in 2005, playing several shows around the country including Byron Bay’s International Roots Music Festival accompanied by guitarist James Cruikshank and several dates in Melbourne accompanied by Mick Harvey on guitar.
Motivated by a growing revulsion to the increasing glamorization of the sex industry and in an effort to address the issue of human trafficking
, in 2006 she began work at her home studio on what would become her second CD, GJ and the PimpKillers. In 2009 she completed the project at Adam Samuels’ Los Angeles recording studio with musicians Josh Klinghoffer
and Steve Nistor
.
Achtung Baby
Achtung Baby is the seventh studio album by Irish rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 19 November 1991 on Island Records. Stung by the criticism of their 1988 release Rattle and Hum, U2 shifted their musical direction to incorporate alternative...
. Her song “Darlin’” was featured on the Sling Blade
Sling Blade
Sling Blade is a 1996 American drama film set in rural Arkansas, written and directed by Billy Bob Thornton, who also stars in the lead role. It tells the story of a mentally impaired man named Karl Childers who is released from a psychiatric hospital, where he has lived since killing his mother...
film soundtrack and her two independently-released CDs are Matter of Time and GJ and the PimpKillers.
Biography
Bambi Lee Savage (birth name: Shannon Strong) was born in 1963 in Pensacola, FloridaPensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
. Her father, Guy Thomas Strong, was a Navy pilot who was killed in an airplane crash while working as a stunt pilot on the set of the 20th Century Fox film Tora! Tora! Tora!
Tora! Tora! Tora!
is a 1970 American-Japanese war film that dramatizes the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, to the extent these facts were known at the time of production. The film was directed by Richard Fleischer and stars an all-star cast, including So Yamamura, E.G...
in 1969.
In the early 1980s, she played guitar and sang with several punk bands in Denver before moving to London in 1985 where she eventually joined former members of Nyam Nyam and Red Guitars
Red Guitars
The Red Guitars were an English indie rock band active from 1982 to 1986. Based in Hull, the Red Guitars' first single "Good Technology" was a minor hit, selling 60,000 copies...
in the band Horseland. They released a three-song EP in 1987 on the Red Rhino label.
Inspired by an Einstuerzende Neubauten concert at London’s Kilburn National Ballroom, in 1987 she relocated to Berlin where she began working as an assistant recording engineer at Hansa Tonstudio
Hansa Tonstudio
Das Hansa Tonstudio is a recording studio located on Köthener Strasse in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin, Germany. Amongst English-performing musical acts it used to be known as 'Hansa Studio By the Wall', 'Hansa by the Wall', or 'The Great Hall by the Wall' in reference to the fact that it was...
. There she assisted and/or engineered sessions for artists including U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie
Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie
Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie were a Scottish 1980s and 1990s rock group formed in Bathgate, near Edinburgh, Scotland...
, Anita Lane
Anita Lane
Anita Lane is an Australian singer and songwriter who directly influenced the early 1980s European post-punk landscape.-Birthday Party:Lane was born in Melbourne, Australia in the late 1950s. Lane began singing and writing songs at age 16. She was a classmate with Rowland S. Howard who would...
and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne in 1983. The band is fronted by Nick Cave and has featured international personnel throughout their career.-Formation and early releases :...
.
She left her audio engineering career to concentrate on songwriting and performing, and in 1992, with Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
acting as the benefactor of her first recording session, Mick Harvey
Mick Harvey
Michael John Harvey , is an Australian rock musician, composer, arranger and record producer. He is best known for his long-time collaboration with the singer and songwriter Nick Cave...
played on and produced a four-song demo of her original material. Recorded at Berlin’s Vielklang Studios and also featuring guitarist Hugo Race
Hugo Race
Hugo Race is an Australian rock musician and record producer who has been based in Europe since 1989. He was a member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, before forming The Wreckery with Nick Barker and Robin Casinader in the 1980s. He is currently a member of Hugo Race and the True Spirit.Race is...
, the tracks were to remain unreleased for several years.
As a featured artist in the 1995 German music documentary Lost in Music: Out of Country she performed two of her alt-country songs, “I Can’t Count on My Man” and “Demon Alcohol” with guitarist Alex Hacke and drummer Moritz Wolpert.
Though neither song appears on either of her CD releases to date, “Demon Alcohol” was later covered by Mick Harvey and released on his 2005 solo CD One Man’s Treasure.
At the invitation of Achtung Baby producer Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie...
, in 1995 she recorded a four-song demo with engineer Mark Howard at Lanois’ San Francisco recording studio. One of the songs, "Darlin'", caught the attention of Lanois and director Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
while they were working on the soundtrack to the film Sling Blade, and Lanois added lead guitars and placed it in the soundtrack. This breakthrough led to negotiations with Island Records for a deal that was never to be finalized. She spent the next several years traveling between Berlin and the U.S., working on material and occasionally playing live. In 2003 she returned to Daniel Lanois’ studio (now in Los Angeles) to record two tracks with engineer Adam Samuels, and, combining these with the previous recordings, independently released her first CD, Matter of Time.
She toured Australia in 2005, playing several shows around the country including Byron Bay’s International Roots Music Festival accompanied by guitarist James Cruikshank and several dates in Melbourne accompanied by Mick Harvey on guitar.
Motivated by a growing revulsion to the increasing glamorization of the sex industry and in an effort to address the issue of human trafficking
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
, in 2006 she began work at her home studio on what would become her second CD, GJ and the PimpKillers. In 2009 she completed the project at Adam Samuels’ Los Angeles recording studio with musicians Josh Klinghoffer
Josh Klinghoffer
Joshua Adam "Josh" Klinghoffer is an American multi-instrumentalist, who is best known as the current guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Klinghoffer replaced his friend and frequent collaborator John Frusciante, who left the band in 2009.Klinghoffer also fronts Dot Hacker, and was...
and Steve Nistor
Steven Nistor
Steven Nistor is an American touring and studio drummer, best known for his work with Daniel Lanois and Danger Mouse. He is currently based in Los Angeles, California.-Early life:...
.
Discography
- Sling Blade soundtrack (1996)
- Matter of Time (2003)
- GJ and the PimpKillers (2009)