Introducing Hannah Rickard, the awesome singing talent straight out of Newcastle, and the Relatives - her explosive London based Rock 'n' Roll Collective!

Sultry blues grooving with a honky-tonk swagger, a cool drink of water under a blistering rockīnīroll sun.

Hannah Rickard is a well known, highly respected young singer and fiddle player based in the north east of England. She has played with many local bands on the northern rockabilly, country, bluegrass and folk scenes, but most notably she is a singer in Kathryn Tickell's band. In September 2012, after playing to a packed Southbank centre with Kathryn Tickell, Hannah was picked up by her London-based cousin, Louis Ruddick - former guitarist in The Grit and now owner of Strummers Recording Studio in North London.

Waiting at the studio behind the desk was head engineer, and Music Producers Guild / Brit award nominated producer Andy Brook, and in the live room some of the best rock n roll musicians in London right now; Gary Mills of the Urban Voodoo Machine sat behind the kit, Daisy Durham, one part of Kitty Daisy and Lewis, at the piano, and Nice Guy Eddie - Double Bassist formerly of Demented are Go! and a stalwart in the European Rockabilly and Psychobilly scenes.

The band had never met Hannah, but had spent the last hour or so rehearsing two tracks, not quite knowing what to expect. When Hannah and Louis arrived back from the Southbank, the musicians all quickly made acquaintance with the young singer and then ripped into LaVern Baker's "Hey Memphis". It worked immediately - and the proof is right on the EP. The session was not planned for any reason other than Louis' decision a few days before to cancel the two cousin's planned pub crawl, and do a midnight recording session instead! That decision has unwittingly formed a fantastic rock 'n' roll band, reworking obscure RnB tunes and writing great originals too.

Since that first session the band reunited on a regular basis, and the project became more and more serious, with more fine musicians joining the sessions as guests, more and more tracks being laid down, and a growing demand for live shows. Hannah and the Relatives are currently playing UK festivals as well as London and North Eastern club shows, and will release their debut LP "LA Lover" in the fall of 2013.
www.hannahrickard.com