Annie's Story

Photo of Annie Wells by Marc Bollmann. A high res version of this photo is available for download here.

Annie Wells has just released her third CD. It is is entitled "Sleepy Town" and this one is especially for childen. Click here for song samples and more info on "Sleepy Town".

Annie performs solo as well as with her group. Check the "UPCOMING GIGS" link above for live performances. Contact Annie for bookings.

Born in the village of Clifton Springs, New York, Annie Wells got her start as a musician at the age of 5 when she won a church talent contest for playing "Heart and Soul" on the piano. A neighbor girl played the bottom part and taught her how to play the melody on top. Around the same time, Annie surprised everyone when she suddenly began playing "Fur Elise" on the piano by ear after hearing her mother play it. Piano and guitar lessons followed, but Annie has always relied mostly on her ears when writing music. An influential piano teacher encouraged her to perform her songs in public. She debuted her first songs at the age of seventeen when her older cousin made her a fake ID to play an open mic at an Indiana club. She went to college to study psychology and ended up spending a lot of time in the student recording studio at Fredonia State University in New York. Since then, Annie has performed as a soloist and with a band in all kinds of venues: coffee houses and clubs, large and small.

Annie’s songs tell stories that are drawn from her life and most recently on her new CD, "Sleepy Town," were inspired by the nieces and nephews she loves so much. On previous CD’s, "Sad and Beautiful" and "Something to Dream About," Annie’s songs include portraits of the homeless, favorite painter Georgia O’Keeffe, her great Aunt Mary, a guardian angel, and other stories about love, loss and hope.

“I think, for me, being able to create is psychologically necessary”, Annie said in an interview with Rob Cullivan for City News in Rochester, NY. “I have an internal motivation to express myself, but I also want to present it in a way that people will connect with.”

Reviews of her well received albums note the sophistication of her music and lyrics and the beauty of her voice.

View a video of Annie performing and being interviewed on RNews.