Introduction: meet Deb Talan Whether she takes the stage alone or accompanied by her full band, Deb Talan is one singer/songwriter that will linger in your memory, thanks to her distinctive voice and evocative, well-crafted songs. Deb’s musical influences include Joni Mitchell, Shawn Colvin, Jonatha Brooke, and Suzanne Vega. Her own music might be classified as intelligent folk-pop. Part I: classical geek girl Classically trained in clarinet and piano, Deb began writing music when she was only ten years old. By the time she graduated from high school, she had written numerous pop songs and composed a score for a local production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Her senior year in college, Deb picked up a guitar and has been toting it around ever since. Part II: the band years Deb’s next significant musical endeavor consisted of writing for and fronting an upbeat, pop band in Portland, Oregon. The band Hummingfish played in the Northwest for five years to ever-increasing audiences. They put out two albums, “Hover” and “Love Tractor.” During this time, Deb—while still enjoying her key role in Hummingfish—began preparing for a solo career and even put out her debut solo recording, “Songs for a Misfit Heart.” Performing two songs from this album, Deb won second place in the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Troubadour Contest in 1996. In the summer of 1998, Deb organized a series of highly successful, in-the-round performances featuring women songwriters from local bands (including Ms. Talan herself). Thus, Deb’s career as a solo performer began in earnest. Part III: steppin’ out Having established herself in the Northwest as a musical force, separate from her band, Deb decided, in February of 1999, to head for the musical hotbed of Boston, Massachusetts. For a year, Deb laid low, while finishing her second solo recording, “Something Burning.” With that in her back pocket, she headed out to several of the local clubs, including Toad, Johnny D’s, Kendall Café, Club Passim and Somerville Theatre; her fan base in the North East is increasing rapidly, with copies of “Something Burning” flying off store racks and merchandise tables. Recently, Deb received Acoustic Guitar Magazine’s “Homegrown CD Award” for “Something Burning” along with two Boston Music Award nominations and placed third in the 2001 Telluride Troubadour Competition at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. She sold out in advance her first headline show at Club Passim with the release of her new, live album, “Sincerely.”