Tori Amos turns 60 today (22 August 2023).

 

The Dionysian Waitress, the Datura Pixie, the Shapeshifter, the Space Piano Muse.

 

Tori's influence on my music? Without her I wouldn't be playing the piano or composing, it's as simple as that. In terms of my music, I owe Tori pretty much everything.

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It was thanks to the piano solo bridge in Cornflake Girl that I saw the light: that's when I knew there could be a future for me & piano. The whole album - Under the Pink, 1994 - was crucial; without it, I probably would've stopped playing. Bells for Her & Icicle, both transcending the instrument; Yes. Anastasia with its string arrangement. This was the work of a genius, someone who could see how an acoustical instrument could transcend itself. Added to that, her voice. Without any CGI, her bare voice, bending space. With Tori, she doesn't just take you to the cliff edge; she pushes you over it.

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"Abbey Road... was my Bible. That record changed my life, and really made me go to the Peabody and say, "This is what I want to do." And I wanted to be a female composer, not a great pianist. I'm not great, I'm good. I know great, I've seen them; I knew my hands would never gonna do that. However, a female composer... And they said, "There's not a lot of female composers in this department." And I held up Abbey Road and said, "There's gonna be." (ShockHound Interview, 2009)

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"The song is sovereign. The soul of it is independent." (Scarlet's Walk Interview, 2003)

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Thank you for tapping into the Source, Tori, and for all the sonic shapes you've brought into this dimension.

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10 years ago, to celebrate Tori turning 50, I created this little video with some of my favourite Tori tunes, mainly solo piano segments. The first eight images are from the RAINN Benefit Calendars. Martini glasses up, everybody.

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Happy Birthday, Tori!