Remembering Laura Branigan
I was very sadden to hear of Laura Branigan's passing. She died Thursday night in her sleep from a brain aneurysm. Apparently she had complained to a friend of headaches for about two weeks before, but had not sought medical attention. Laura was a four-time Grammy Award nominee best known for her 1982 platinum hit "Gloria," which launched her career. In 2002 she starred as Janis Joplin in the off-Broadway musical "Love, Janis," which earned her rave reviews.
Laura recently had been working on material for a new release. She was 47.
Laura loved performing onstage, her voice was a thing of beauty, very emotional and with a five octave range. Although she enjoyed working with other musicians in the studio, she loved the thrill of performing for a live audience. " When you're on stage", she says "the audience becomes your other half. It's the ultimate high you can reach as a musician--an incredible feeling. And no matter where I am it's the same; there's a reason we call music the universal language."
Back in January of this year I attended one of her concerts at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT. Laura's voice that night was stunning, her heartfelt performances of "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", "Ti Amo", "Don’t Cry For Me Argentina" and "Forever Young" were especially memorable. I will truly miss her.