The word “lush” can be defined as growing luxuriantly, or as very rich and providing great sensory pleasure. Maryland-based singer-songwriter Lauren Glick’s modern, downhome blues album by the same name can also be defined as both.
Glick understands today’s demands that affect us as a nation, from pandemic-induced anxiety to needing a hard reset. LUSH also encompasses personal losses “with messages linked to growth from these unfortunate happenings,” she explains to me. “While doing this record I did not even realize all the songs were about some sort of growth until my son mentioned it after the title LUSH was chosen.”
Glick’s vocals gleam and glow, and with the assistance of her band she bridges the homespun blues with the refined, the lush with the straightforward. “I’m pretty happy with how this CD turned out; it’s now being played locally and nationally on a variety of radio stations! The band playing on this record is more of a recording project band, which made the songs sound tight with a fresh new sound.”
She has been picking up the pieces over the course of her career, with three releases preceding LUSH. Eternity was dedicated to her mother after she committed suicide when Glick was only 19. Love Tangles followed, and then Martinis in Heaven was made with the late Mike Armstrong, her musical partner/writer of 23 years who passed away in 2016. She started to learn new material for the crowds in and around Ocean City, Maryland, also playing keyboards and bass.
Last year’s EP Free found her operating on more of a blues-soul level, sometimes with a dash of rock and roll, which has carried over to this latest release. “I feel I have experimented with all types of music but landed in my comfort this past year with the soulful sound that I do live shows with.”
Known as the “Janis Joplin of the beach,” she has some unlikely broad, multi-genre influences – chief among them fellow singer-songwriter/guitarist/bassist Aimee Mann, who inspired her to study the bass guitar. “I’m a big Janis Joplin fan, although I really did not grow up listening to her. I love her because she sings from the soul, as well as Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Beth Hart, and Susan Tedeschi.”
“I started singing when I was ten and loved to imitate Broadway singers. I loved the show Annie, and then played piano first mostly by ear. I had very limited lessons, but my true love is the bass guitar which I played in college and currently.”
Glick holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Film Scoring from Berklee College of Music and has been teaching voice and piano for over 20 years to ages 5-65. As she says, it’s never too late to start taking lessons. With a strong focus on the art of performance, her classes also offer mic technique, breathing, diction, and battling stage fright. She has students practice in front of peers before they go to the big stage. “Teaching voice has been awesome for I have learned so many styles of songs and I love mentoring my students and listening to the growth in their confidence and range.”
The Ocean City music scene is happening, as Glick puts it; she and her band in particular have diligent frequenters at the various beach bars, happy hour spots, and even bigger festivals. “It’s a 10-mile beach resort and attracts many people from surrounding areas such as PA, DC, and Baltimore. We have a big fan base, and with the release of my new CD LUSH and my new video for ‘Living in Pain,’ we can only go up from there.”
