Overboard (a cappella)

Last updated
Overboard
Origin Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Genres a cappella
Instrument Voices
Years active2006–present
MembersCaleb Whelden
Johanna Vinson
Sam Fischer
Eric Morrissey
Tracy Robertson
Website overboardvocals.com

Overboard is an a cappella group based in Boston, Massachusetts. [1]

Contents

History

Founded by Nicholas Girard in the spring of 2006, Overboard was first conceived as a street performance group intent on entertaining audiences around coastal New England during the summer months. The group's first album, Shipwrecked, was released during that summer and was distributed during the group's frequent busking stops in Newburyport, Massachusetts, Freeport, Maine and Burlington, Vermont, as well as around their hometown of Boston. [2] On the heels of their successful first summer, the group decided to continue performing together on a more permanent basis. [3]

In February 2007, Overboard began recording its second album, Stranded, which was released that May. To promote the album, the group performed at a variety of venues throughout New England starting with their appearance at Eggstock, an annual environmental awareness festival held at Flamig Farm in Simsbury, Connecticut where they sang the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" to commemorate the unveiling of the state's first commercial Solar Photovoltaic System. Then, in July, the group performed for audiences at Middlesex School Summer Arts Camp in Concord, Massachusetts and at Idol Camp, organized by the producers of American Idol and held on one of the campuses of the Northfield Mount Hermon School in Northfield, Massachusetts. [4] On December 14, 2007, the group was selected as a top five finalist in the CBS Early Show A Cappella Quest competition hosted by Boyz II Men. [5]

At the 2008 Boston regional Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival held at Tufts University, Overboard placed third. [6] That spring, the group followed up their Harmony Sweepstakes participation with performances for a series of charitable organizations, including concerts for the Avon foundation Breast Cancer Crusade, the American Cancer Society Relay for Life and the opening ceremonies of Special Olympics of Massachusetts Summer Games.

Overboard's third album, Castaways, a compilation of oldies and a cappella standards, was released in September 2008. Their fourth album, Tidings, a collection of holiday songs, was released in November 2008. Tidings received a Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA) nomination for Best Holiday Album [7] and won a CARA for Best Holiday Song ("We Three Kings"). [8] In 2009, the track was chosen for CASC: Christmas A Cappella Volume 1, an international holiday compilation album co-released by CASA and A Cappella Records. [9]

Begun in the spring of 2009, Overboard’s fifth album, Help!, was inspired by the release of the newly remastered Beatles repertoire and Harmonix’s The Beatles Rock Band music video game. Help! was envisioned as a rock opera/concept album, in a similar vein to The Who's Tommy and Pink Floyd's The Wall . Through original arrangements, Overboard reinterpreted pieces of over forty Beatles songs and sounds in order to provide a soundtrack to the imagined backdrop of a tempestuous love affair between Billy Shears and Eleanor Rigby. [10]

Overboard released Help! in November 2009. Inspired by the success of Radiohead's digital release of In Rainbows , Overboard distributed free digital downloads of the entirety of Help! on their website for a limited time. In February 2010, Help! was nominated for CARAs for Best Pop/Rock Album and Best Pop/Rock Song ("Hello Goodbye"). [11] CASA's A Cappella Community Awards (ACAs) recognized Overboard again in 2010 with 8 nominations, as voted by a cappella experts and fans. For the 2010 ACAs, "Help!" was recognized as runner-up for Best Album and group founder, Nick Girard, tied as runner-up for Best Male Vocalist.

In September 2010, Overboard began a year-long project entitled "Free Track Tuesday." Every Tuesday on the group's website, a new track, arranged, recorded and produced entirely by Overboard members, is released as a free digital download. The project was inspired in part by Starbucks' Free Music Tuesday program. Three tracks from the first quarter of Free Track Tuesday garnered one 2011 CARA award, for the traditional spiritual "Amazing Grace," and two runners-up awards, for "Toxic" (originally performed by Britney Spears) and "Used To Love U" (originally performed by John Legend). [12]

In recognition of their performances, recordings and production work, Overboard received 10 2011 ACA nominations, including Favorite Pop/Rock Group, Favorite Mashup (25 or 6 to 4/Babe I'm Gonna Leave You) and Favorite A Cappella Song That Doesn't Sound A Cappella (Hedwig's Theme from Harry Potter). Individual achievement nominations were also given to Alfredo Austin (Favorite Rap Performance), Scott Cobban (Favorite Vocal Percussionist) and Nick Girard (Favorite Male Vocalist, Favorite Arranger, Favorite A Cappella Producer). [13]

Recent and upcoming events

Following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Overboard launched a project called HOPE to raise money for the American Red Cross' relief efforts. In exchange for donating, contributors are given access to successive tiers of rewards, including a digital download of the group's special release album Hope. 100% of the proceeds from HOPE are donated the Red Cross' earthquake and tsunami relief efforts. [14]

On April 17, 2011, Overboard won 1st Place at the Boston Regional Harmony Sweepstakes Festival. In addition to winning the overall competition, the group also won Audience Favorite and Best Arrangement (for All For Love). Overboard competed at the Harmony Sweepstakes Festival's National Finals on May 14, 2011. [15]

Overboard Productions

Through the Free Track Tuesday program, group members have become more involved in the recording side of a cappella and now do freelance production work for collegiate a cappella and professional a cappella groups. Clients include groups such as Yale University's The Whiffenpoofs and Mixed Company of Yale, as well as Brown University's The Brown Derbies. [16] A recent Overboard Productions release, a cover of Katy Perry's hit song Firework performed by Ithaca College's Ithacappella and Premium Blend a cappella groups reached iTunes' Top 200. [17] Proceeds of the song are donated to The Trevor Project, an organization focused on suicide prevention efforts among LGBTQ youth.

Overboard Productions edited and mixed the backing track to the University of St Andrews' The Other Guys' viral video Royal Romance. Released to commemorate the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, Royal Romance is a mashup of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance , Michael Jackson's Billie Jean and Gustav Holst's I Vow To Thee, My Country The video was released on April 12, 2011 and received over 100,000 views in the first week. [18] Clips of the video were also featured on The Today Show. [19]

Awards

YearPresenterAwardResult
2007CBS Early Show & Boyz II MenA Cappella Quest CompetitionTop 5 Finalists
2008Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella FestivalBoston Regional Winner3rd Place
2009Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards of CASABest Holiday AlbumNominated, "Tidings"
Best Holiday SongWon, "We Three Kings"
2010Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards of CASABest Pop/Rock AlbumNominated, "Help!"
Best Pop/Rock SongNominated, "Hello Goodbye"
2010Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella FestivalBoston Regional Winner3rd Place
2010A Cappella Community Awards
Favorite Professional AlbumRunner-Up, "Help!"
Favorite Male VocalistRunner-Up, Nick Girard
Favorite Pop/Rock GroupNominated
Favorite Vocal PercussionistNominated, Scott Cobban
Favorite ArrangerNominated, Nick Girard
Favorite MedleyNominated, "Good Night" (from "Help!")
Most Cutting Edge GroupNominated
Favorite ArrangementNominated, "Hello Goodbye" (from "Help!")
2011Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards of CASABest Religious SongWon, "Amazing Grace"
Best Jazz SongRunner-Up, "Toxic"
Best R&B/Hip Hop SongRunner-Up, "Used to Love U"
2011Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella FestivalBoston Regional Winner1st Place
Audience Favorite1st Place
Best Arrangement1st Place, "All for Love"
2011A Cappella Community Awards
Favorite Pop/Rock GroupNominated
Favorite Male VocalistNominated, Nick Girard
Favorite Vocal PercussionistNominated, Scott Cobban
Favorite Rap PerformanceNominated, Alfredo Austin for "Baby"
Favorite ArrangerNominated, Nick Girard
Favorite A Cappella ProducerNominated, Nick Girard
Favorite MashupRunner-Up, "25 or 6 to 4/Babe I'm Gonna Leave You"
Favorite Gender Bender SoloRunner-Up, "Toxic"
Favorite A Cappella Song That Doesn't Sound A CappellaWon, "Hedwig's Theme"
Favorite Live Performance MomentNominated, Help! at the Las Vegas A Cappella Summit
2012Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards of CASABest Rap/Hip Hop SongRunner Up, "How Low"
Best Folk/World SongNominated, "Hengilas"
Best Pop/Rock SongNominated, "Moves Like Jagger"
2013Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards of CASABest Hip Hop/R&B SongNominated, "All of the Lights" (produced by Plaid Productions)

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deke Sharon</span> American a cappella singer and arranger

Deke Sharon is an American singer, arranger, composer, director, producer, author, coach, pioneer, and teacher of a cappella music, and is one of the leaders and promoters of the contemporary a cappella community. He has been referred to as "the father of contemporary a cappella" and "the godfather of a cappella".

The Contemporary A Cappella Society, or CASA, is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that fosters and promotes a cappella music of all styles around the world. CASA was founded in 1991 by Deke Sharon in San Francisco just after graduation. In his Tufts University dorm room during his senior year, Sharon published a newsletter, The "C.A.N.", mailed to all known collegiate a cappella groups by merging "The List", founded in 1988 and distributed by Rex Solomon, with the database maintained by his college a cappella group the Beelzebubs. The organization boasts over 6,000 current members, and serves as a resource for media and scholarly work in the area of contemporary a cappella.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Idea of North</span> Australian a cappella vocal ensemble

The Idea of North are an Australian a cappella vocal ensemble founded in Canberra in 1993, by Nick Begbie (tenor), Meg Corson (alto), Trish Delaney-Brown (soprano) and Andrew Piper (bass). Still active in 2023, but touring less frequently since the Covid-19 pandemic, The Idea of North has had a number of personnel changes since their formation, with Nick Begbie the only remaining original member.

Shir Appeal is Tufts University’s only mixed-gender Jewish a cappella group. Founded in 1995 with assistance from the Jewish Agency, Shir Appeal is one of the nation’s oldest collegiate Jewish a cappella groups. The group sings music from a wide range of genres, including Israeli rock and pop, traditional and liturgical Jewish songs, Jewish world music, and English music with strong Jewish themes. Though based at Tufts University outside Boston, Shir Appeal has gone on tour to numerous areas in the United States, including New York City, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, and Chicago, as well as the New England and Boston areas. Shir Appeal has been on Best of College a Cappella (BOCA) four times. It was the first non-secular a cappella group to be recognized on BOCA, and the only Jewish group to have ever been featured on it.

Redhot & Blue, usually called Redhot or RHB, is Yale University's oldest all-gender a cappella group. Founded in 1977, the group has released 17 albums. It regularly tours the United States, and it tours internationally once a year, to locations such as China, Japan, France, Italy, and Brazil. The group’s repertoire is based in the jazz genre, but has expanded to include an array of musical styles. Redhot is a member of the Singing Group Council of Yale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beelzebubs</span> Musical artist

The Tufts Beelzebubs, frequently referred to as "The Bubs", is a male a cappella group of students from Tufts University that performs a mix of pop, rock, R&B, and other types of music while spreading their motto of "Fun through Song". Founded in 1962, they have toured in Europe, Asia, South America, and North America, and they competed on NBC's The Sing-Off in December 2009, finishing in second place.

VoiceMale is a masculine-centered a cappella group based out of Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Tracks from VoiceMale albums Propeller (2003), Ain't Done Overnight (2006), and Where's the Album? (2008) have appeared on the Best of Collegiate A Cappella (BOCA) compilation albums. In 2004, VoiceMale also received the award for Best All-Male Album of the Year from the Contemporary A Cappella Society (CASA) for their work on Propeller. Founded by Jonathan Berkowitz '97, Joshua Namias '97 and Samrat Chakrabarti '97.

m-pact is an American pop-jazz vocal group based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in June 1995, the band is known for their award-winning vocal arrangements, recordings, and music videos. The name "m-pact" is meant to signify an agreement between the band members to always remain true to the musical and artistic vision of the group. This "music-pact" began as 5-man ensemble in Seattle, Washington. The founders of m-pact sought to create a group which would combine the harmonic structure and arranging style of vocal jazz ensembles like Take 6 and the New York Voices with a powerful beatbox-driven vocal rhythm section found in groups like Rockapella and The House Jacks. The membership has changed over the years, and the sound of the group has fluctuated to reflect the unique voices of each iteration of the band while still attempting to stay true to the original pact.

After Dark (AD) is a co-ed a cappella group at Washington University in St. Louis specializing in contemporary rock and pop music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Voices in Your Head</span> Musical artist

Voices in Your Head is a student-run a cappella group from the University of Chicago who aim to "push the bounds of contemporary a cappella." Founded in 1998, the group has consisted of both undergraduate and graduate students whose studies range from Economics to Music to MD/PhD programs. Its unique repertoire includes original pieces, as well as an eclectic mix of pop, R&B, rock, and alternative music. Voices competes regularly in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) and releases studio recordings of their arrangements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Banana Boat</span> Polish a cappella group

Banana Boat is a Polish a cappella sextet, authoring and performing original songs representing the genre of neo-shanties. Being one of the pioneers of the new genre, the group retains its simultaneous focus on contemporary interpretations of traditional sea shanties and maritime music. Owing to its characteristic six-part, jazzy harmony, departing from the traditional sound of the music of the sea, the group has become one of the emblems of what the international artists of the maritime stage have informally come to dub as the Polish style maritime song. With maritime music constantly in the focus of its activity, since 2004, Banana Boat has also been experimenting with other musical genres, including popular and jazz compositions, inviting other artists to participate in individual projects. The group is a Member of International Seasong and Shanty Association (ISSA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Brown Derbies</span> American a cappella group

The Brown Derbies is an a cappella group at Brown University. They were founded by Darryl Shrock in 1982 and have released fourteen albums. They sing a variety of different genres, ranging from Rock, to Pop, to R&B and are known in the a cappella community for their unique use of syllables in the background vocals. They have toured throughout the United States and internationally, with recent performances in Beijing, China, Shanghai, China, and New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1997, the group performed for President Bill Clinton at the White House. In November 2007, they were featured on the CBS Early Show in a segment about the rising popularity of a cappella groups on college campuses, and in July 2011 they were featured on the Gospel Music Channel reality show America Sings. In January 2012, they performed in the London A Cappella Festival.

Face is an American a cappella group from Boulder, Colorado. Formed by Joseph DiMasi and Ben Lunstad in 2002, they made their first national appearances as one of the eight original groups on NBC's premiere season of "The Sing-Off" in 2009. They are a two-time National Audience Favorite and two-time runner-up at the National Finals of Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival, and the runner-up for Favorite Pop/Rock Group at the Contemporary A Cappella Society's Community Awards (2007). Face has also garnered numerous local awards including Best Local Band by The Denver Channel's A-List Awards (2013), Best Local Musician by Boulder Weekly's Best of Boulder Awards (2009) and third-place for Best Local Band by The Denver Channel's A-List Awards (2009).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noteworthy (vocal group)</span> American all-female a cappella group

BYU Noteworthy is a seven to nine-member, female Brigham Young University (BYU) a cappella group, based in Provo, Utah, United States. They won 1st place at the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) in 2007 and appeared on the first season of NBC's a cappella competition reality show The Sing-Off in 2009. Esther Yoder formed the group in 2003, aided by members of BYU's Vocal Point. Noteworthy began operating under the direction of the Performing Arts Management (PAM) at BYU in 2014. One of their most popular music videos is a cover of Amazing Grace, which won the Contemporary A Cappella Society (CARA) award for Best Religious Video and has garnered millions of views on YouTube since its release. Noteworthy has released six albums since its formation in 2003. In 2018, Noteworthy performed "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" for a Mormon Message for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The House Jacks</span> American a cappella group

The House Jacks is a professional a cappella quintet from San Francisco, founded in 1991 by Deke Sharon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunshine Becker</span> American singer

Sunshine Becker is an American singer who performed backing vocals for the band Furthur. Despite her maiden name, Garcia, she is not related to Jerry Garcia, an incorrect assumption made by some because of her involvement with Furthur, a post-Garcia incarnation of the Grateful Dead. Similarly, despite her first name, Sunshine, she is not to be confused with Sunshine Kesey, daughter of Ken Kesey and Carolyn Adams, Jerry Garcia's second wife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ARORA (vocal group)</span> American vocal band

Arora, stylized in allcaps with the first R backwards, and formerly called Sonos, is a vocal band based in Los Angeles. Sonos originally grew out of a 2006 recording project and began performing and touring in 2008. The group's repertoire centers on vocal covers sung a cappella with the use of effects pedals. Sonos competed in the third season of The Sing-Off on NBC and was eliminated on the fourth episode. The group changed their name to Arora in 2013 in preparation for the release of their third album, "Bioluminescence."

Another Round, formerly Straight No Chaser, is a collegiate a cappella group which originated in 1996 at Indiana University. The group changed its name several years after the original members reformed as a professional group with the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Note-oriety</span> American choir

Note-oriety is an upper voices a cappella singing group at James Madison University in the United States, founded in 1998 by Kelly Myer and Bonnie Estes. The group sings in and around Harrisonburg, Virginia, tours the east coast and other parts of the United States. Note-oriety is best known for the viral video of their cover version of Beyoncé's song "Pretty Hurts". The group has been featured in USA Today, The Huffington Post, and BuzzFeed, and the group has been praised by Nicki Minaj, TLC, and Kelly Clarkson. They have also been nominated for and received several awards from international organizations, notably, the Contemporary A Cappella Society and the Recorded A Cappella Review Board. Note-oriety has performed all over the country, including The White House, the Lincoln Center, and Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey's United State of Women Summit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Pitchforks of Duke University</span> American all-male a cappella group

The Pitchforks of Duke University, commonly referred to as "The Duke Pitchforks" or just "The Pitchforks", is Duke University's oldest continuing a cappella group. (In the late 1960s, there was a previous Duke men's group called "Chanticleer". The Pitchforks constitute one of Duke's two current all-male ensembles. Founded in 1979 with four members of a Duke Medical School quartet, the Pitchforks have performed across the world; they have sung for the Chicago Bulls and Durham Bulls, performed for Duke Men's Basketball, showcased for the Queen of Jordan, and opened for artists such as Ben Folds and The Band Perry.

References

  1. ↑ "Overboard: Boston a cappella group singing contemporary pop/rock music". overboardvocals.com.
  2. ↑ Fleming, Deirdre (2010-03-18). "Harmonic convergence for men of Overboard". Portland Press Herald . Archived from the original on 2014-05-17.
  3. ↑ Nierstedt, Jenna (2 February 2009). "Singing all the way to the bank". Blast Magazine.
  4. ↑ Young, Emily (2008-01-10). "Who's that band?". newburyportnew.com. Archived from the original on 2013-10-21.
  5. ↑ ""A Cappella Quest" Down To Five Finalists, Boyz II Men To Announce Winner On The Early Show Monday - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Archived from the original on 2007-12-18.
  6. ↑ "Harmony Sweepstakes a Cappella Festival Boston Regional". harmony-sweepstakes.com.
  7. ↑ "2009 Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award Nominees | The Contemporary A Cappella Society". www.casa.org. Archived from the original on 2009-02-05.
  8. ↑ "2009 Contemporary a Cappella Recording Award Winners | A Cappella Music - the Contemporary a Cappella Society". Archived from the original on 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
  9. ↑ "CASA Collection (CASC) | A Cappella Music - The Contemporary A Cappella Society". www.casa.org. Archived from the original on 2009-12-21.
  10. ↑ "Girard High School Marching Band". girardmusic.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-10.
  11. ↑ "2010 Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award Nominees | A Cappella Music - The Contemporary A Cappella Society". www.casa.org. Archived from the original on 2010-02-04.
  12. ↑ "2011 Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award Winners". casa.org. Archived from the original on 2012-03-14.
  13. ↑ "2011 A Cappella Community Awards Nominees | A Cappella Music - The Contemporary A Cappella Society". www.casa.org. Archived from the original on 2011-04-25.
  14. ↑ "Help Overboard Help Japan". overboardvocals.com.
  15. ↑ "2011 National Finals Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival". harmony-sweepstakes.com.
  16. ↑ "Overboard a cappella productions". overboardvocals.com.
  17. ↑ "A Cappella killing in the iTunes charts | A Cappella Music - The Contemporary A Cappella Society". www.casa.org. Archived from the original on 2011-02-14.
  18. ↑ "St. Andrews a Cappella Group Caught in 'Royal Romance' with Kate Middleton". Billboard . 18 April 2011.
  19. ↑ "Video Player". NBCNews.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-29.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.