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 The
daughter of successful songwriter Terry Gilkyson, Eliza is
a third generation musician who grew up in Los Angeles knowing
that her life would revolve around music. “I got into
it for all the wrong reasons, more as a survival tool than
anything else, but it proved to serve me more than I dared
to imagine.” As a teenager, she recorded demos for her
dad, who wrote folk music hits “Greenfields,”
“Marianne,” and “Memories Are Made of This,”
among others. “He would use me in the studio because
I had a mature voice at an early age and would work for free,”
laughs Eliza. Soon after, she was writing and recording her
own material as well.
At the end of the sixties, she moved to New Mexico with likeminded
souls, eventually raising a family, all the while developing
a loyal fan base in the Southwest and Texas. She cut numerous
records, including Pilgrims, released on Gold Castle Records
in 1987. It was her most successful record to date, but also
gave her a reputation as a new age artist due to its atmospheric
nature – a brief departure from her folk-driven roots.After
a period in Europe working with Swiss composer/harpist Andreas
Vollenweider, Eliza returned to the United States releasing
Through the Looking Glass in ’96 (Private Music), and
1997’s Redemption Road (Silverwave/ MTI), which she
has recently reissued.
Eliza started her own label, Realiza Records and put out
Misfits in 1999, a collection of outtakes that received favorable
press as a sound that connected the worlds of folk and modern
storytelling. In 2000, Eliza released her first album on the
Red House Records label, Hard Times in Babylon. The album
was a critical success followed quickly by more acclaim for
Lost and Found. She has also been on several compilations
issued by Red House, including the Bob Dylan tribute album,
Nod to Bob, and the recent release, Going Driftless, a collection
of Greg Brown songs all done by female songwriters
Eliza has recently appeared on NPR's All Things Considered,
Austin City Limits and on tour with Patty Griffin and Mary
Chapin Carpenter. In February of 2003, she was inducted into
the Austin Music Hall of Fame, alongside such luminaries as
Willie Nelson, Townes Van Zandt, Nancy Griffith, and others.
Eliza's most recent release is Land of Milk and Honey, a recording
decidedly more sociopolitical in theme. She begins touring
this Spring of 2004 in her new van, dubbed El Presidente.
Hope to see you out there!
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Interview:
