Halley DeVestern

Halley DeVestern was born in Long Island, NY. Just before she hit her teens, her parents bought her a guitar and paid for her to take lessons. They probably never dreamed she would stick with them, much less one day make a successful career out of her music. After high school, DeVestern attended the Boston University School of Theater Arts, temporarily switching her attention toward acting. She won some parts, but her love for music never subsided. In the end she couldn't resist returning to it. She began to perform when and where ever she could. Slowly she built a fan base, and the courage needed to put everything she had into making it as a singer in a world of music that offered no kindness to those not strong enough to hold on. DeVestern put together a band of her own in 1996. A year later she at last finished her debut full-length album, Sugar Free. "I'll Light Myself on Fire," "The Family Way," "Ring of Love," "They Ain't Got the Ways," and "I'm Over It" are a few of the ten tracks fans will find on this first offering. Her next album didn't appear for four long years. It was titled Live at the Towpath Inn. In between recording, DeVestern traveled with her band, appearing at festivals across the United States, and as lead singer with famed bands like Big Brother & the Holding Company. She also opened for a number of artists, including Jimmie Vaughan, Little Buster, and John Hammond. Over the last few years DeVestern and her music have received a lot of positive press, including write-ups in magazine like Good Times, Billboard, and Seventeen. Some of DeVestern's band members have been bassist Jon Sobel, drummers Ray Crespo and Rodney Howard, guitarists Jeffrey Lee Campbell and Jimi Crespo (who worked with Aerosmith and Bonnie Bramlett), and keyboardists Jeff Kazee and Rima Fand. ~ Charlotte Dillon