Sarah Cracknell

by Jason AnkenyThe frontwoman for beloved British club-pop trio Saint Etienne, diva Sarah Cracknell was born April 12, 1967 in Chelmsford, Essex; raised primarily in the Windsor area, as a youth she attended convent school, and later briefly studied drama. After a stint with the little-known Prime Time, in the spring of 1991 Cracknell was recruited to sing on the third Saint Etienne single "Nothing Can Stop Us"; her cool allure fit perfectly with the group's sophisticated indie-dance approach, and after contributing heavily to their 1991 debut LP Fox Base Alpha she was made an official member of the lineup. After completing two more Saint Etienne albums, 1993's So Tough and 1994's Tiger Bay, in the summer of 1996 Cracknell issued her debut solo single "Anymore"; an LP, Lipslide, followed in the spring. And in the midst of recording and releasing Saint Etienne's fifth album Sound of Water in summer 2000, Cracknell balanced out another solo effort entitled Kelly's Locker, which appeared in September.