Eddi Reader has a live date in Lincoln

Eddi grew up in Glasgow and Irvine, Scotland and it was in those towns that she learned to use music as a vehicle for communicating with others through busking and performing at the local folk clubs.

In the early 1980s, Eddi travelled around Europe with circus and performance artists before moving to London where she quickly became a sought after session vocalist.

She famously harmonised with Annie Lennox touring with the Eurythmics, after her time with successful punk outfit Gang of Four.

It was the short-lived but warmly remembered Fairground Attraction that really brought her into the limelight and to the attention of a much wider audience.

The single Perfect and parent album First of a Million Kisses both topped the British charts.

However, it was her subsequent albums which signalled her increasing ability to assimilate different musical styles and make them all very much her own.

Her unerring instinct for fine material, whether self penned, collaborative or a carefully chosen cover version resulted in Mirmama (1992), Eddi Reader (1994), Candyfloss & Medicine (1996), Angels & Electricity (1998), Simple Soul (2001) and the particularly critically-acclaimed Songs of Robert Burns (2003) which she took on a highly successful world tour.

In 2006, she was awarded an MBE for her services to music.

She is at Lincoln Drill Hall on May 5.

Advance tickets are £24.50 on 01522 873894 or www.lincolndrillhall.com