Caroline Trettine is half-German and spent the early years of her life in Nigeria. It was during this time that she composed her very first song which went like this: 'All aboard said the porter as he cut the string shorter...' Then her brother bought a guitar, which Caroline started playing and her song-writing really started to take off. At sixteen, she composed the melody that would become 'Sleep With Me', on her debut album Be A Devil.

Moving to Bristol, where she studied English with French, she stayed on to play in various bands. One evening, gigging at the Bristol Bridge Inn, she was discovered by Gerard Langley, who invited her to join the Blue Aeroplanes. She sang and played guitar with Gerard, Nick Jacobs, John Langley, Angelo Bruschini and Dave Chapman, in a series of memorable gigs.

 

She then left the Aeroplanes to pursue a solo career in London, where deals with a number of major labels came tantalisingly near. Securing a contract with Billy Bragg and Pete Jenner's Utility label, she recorded the Be A Devil album in 1990 at the Cathouse studios of Grant Showbiz (producer of Billy Bragg, The Smiths and The Fall). Successful tours with Bragg and Christy Moore, and appearances on regional and national BBC radio were met with great critical acclaim:

'Like [Sandy] Denny, Trettine hovers over great melancholy with an almost detached air that only cuts closer to the quick. To be worthy of such a comparison this early on is no mean feat.' **** (Q Magazine)

'It is her voice which is the most striking. At once both tremulous and emotionally charged, she conjures up a dreamy and sensuous lilt.' (The Times)

In the intervening years Caroline has continued to record material, experimenting with many different styles and working with a range of collaborators. She was one of the first acoustic artists to embrace hip and trip hop. She cites her major influences as Laurie Anderson, Nina Simone, Portishead, Joni Mitchell, The Smiths and Paul Simon.

One day in summer 1999, Gerard Langley introduced her to David Stephenson. The result of that meeting is Caroline's new album Ten Light Years.

Ten Light Years was recorded and produced by Richard Bell at Evensong's studio. Caroline describes it as 'an album of passion, excess, loneliness and enduring love'. Many musicians have worked on the album with her. These include multi-instrumentalist Ian Kearey (ex Oyster Band, and Blue Aeroplanes): bass player Dave Chapman and guitarist Nick Jacobs (both ex Blue Aeroplanes); drummers Paul Stewart, and Alan Brown; Laurence Halcrow on concertina; 'spoken voice' from Ian Halcrow; plus featured producers - Gerard Langley (Blue Aeroplanes), Nick Jacobs and Dave Chapman.

As well as her own lyrics, Trettine has put poems by Andrew Marvell, Tennyson, Apollinaire and contemporary poet Christina Dunhill to music. The high quality of the lyrics is a feature of the album, the songs expressing feelings simply and with warmth for the person who inspired the song.