Daily Discovery: Angela Parrish, “Noon in Denver”

Updated:

July 28, 2014 10:24 am

Influenced by the best of Americana artist, Angela Parrish has a sound all her own. She was a finalist in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest and has headlined at a number of venues. She is currently working on her debut album.

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ARTIST: Angela Parrish

SONG: Noon in Denver

BIRTHDATE: 9/11/1986

HOMETOWN: Newton, Kansas

CURRENT LOCATION: Los Angeles, California

AMBITIONS: To make a living writing and performing meaningful, impactful music. I want my music to help people. Songwriting is the biggest part of my soul, and I’d love to write for as many other artists as possible.

TURN-OFFS: Apathy, bullying, entitlement

TURN-ONS: Talent, an oddball sense of humor, beer, beards, passion, googly eyes, giant bathtubs, strong coffee, tattoos

DREAM GIG: A Prairie Home Companion, Austin City Limits, or touring with Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers

FAVORITE LYRIC:

The entire lyric to “Part of the Plan” by Dan Fogelberg, one of my songwriting heroes. It’s the perfect song for anyone who struggles with religion and has questions about the hardships on Earth and the hereafter. It’s powerful, and comforting, and contradictory all at once. And it’s a balm for the heart.

CRAZIEST PERSON I KNOW: I was raised by a psychologist father; I genuinely feel that everyone is a little bit crazy.

SONG I WISH I WROTE: “Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell. It’s absolutely perfect in every way, and I can’t listen to it without crying. She was 23 when she wrote it, and her perspective on love and life at that young age is jaw-dropping.

5 PEOPLE I’D MOST LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH: Right now? Carole King, T-Bone Burnett, Amy Poehler, Malala Yousafzai, and Elon Musk. But there are so many, and it’s ever-changing. I’m greedy and hungry for people and for their knowledge and experiences.

MY FAVORITE CONCERT EXPERIENCE: Stevie Wonder playing “Songs in the Key of Life” in its entirety, live last December in Los Angeles. You can’t put the significance of that experience into words, you just have to relish it in the marrow of your bones.

I WROTE THIS SONG: while thinking about a former lover, and moving away from a place I associated with a breakup. It’s about pining for a person in another time zone, but it’s just as much about acknowledging that Facebook and the Internet make it so hard to let go completely and so easy to torture ourselves.