Sam is self-publishing and her EP “At Home” is available on SoundCloud.

Sam works at home with friends, developing songs, and collaborating with others to put her inside out and her outside in, and see if she can help some others to do the same along the way.

All material will be available on her upcoming album BLUE & GOLD.

VISIT SamRichardsMusic for further information on live performances, new recordings, and enquiring about writing collaborations.

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Founded in 1995, in NYC, out of a desire to promote new and re-emerging artists. Waif & Stray Productions assists aspiring artists to identify and dissolve barriers in their creative journey.

Waif & Stray Productions is the brain-child of Sam Richards, who has been a musician since she was seven.  She saw the harp played at a recital and immediately went home and told her parents “I want to play to harp” – much to their confusion, amusement and subsequent joy!

Initially taught by Marie Gossens of the Royal Philhamonic, who believed in a naturalistic form of tuition, Sam was introduced to “feel” from an early age. She rejected formal exams and grades, instead concentrating on meditative practice and live performances.

Due to switching schools, changes in teachers, financial constraints, and becoming a teenager, Sam stopped playing the harp at 14. Spending over 10 years without an instrument she struggled to find a voice for the music which bubbled in her.

During this period her parent’s introduced her to Corky Hale, a Jazz Harpist playing at Ronnie Scott’s.  Corky had trained as a pianist then transferred to the harp later in her musical career. Corky didn’t perceive the musical barriers with the harp that Sam had experienced. During her performance at Ronnie Scott’s this amazing talent attacked her harp with so much fervour that her cream silk blouse was blood splattered from ripped up fingertips by the end of the set!

The story, and meeting Corky and her husband Mike Stoller, helped Sam to start to understand that musical and creative limitations only came from those with a limited imagination and a conservative opinion about instruments, their capabilities and uses.  Desperately wanting to play contemporary music, which resonated with her, but still not understanding that you can play however you feel, she searched for a more suitable outlet trying the guitar and piano, and feeling that these were just not her instruments.

During this time she turned her hand to writing lyrics, or “bad poetry” as she likes to call it, singing accapella – predominantly in empty houses, tunnels, alleyways and bathrooms – and performing accompanied by ne’er do wells and ruffians mostly around campfires, and in the basements, of small town USA.

In 2000, following a sea-change whilst living in Upstate, Sam bought a cheap celtic harp on the internet and started practising again. Promptly threw out the CD’s and books that came with it and started playing direct from the heart. Starting with the scales and chords her fingers automatically remembered, she started composing a piece which later developed into “Fallen / Fallin'”.  Within six years she was performing her own compositions at open mics around London, promoting live music events in small venues, and organising spoken word and musical performances.
In 2007 she stumbled onto and into the Blues in Soho, London.  Whilst searching for venues to sing with a full band, a neighbour recommended “Ain’t Nothing But …” aka “The Blues” on Kingly Street. Within a year was writing 12 bar blues by osmosis.  Deciding to feel the fear and do it anyway, she started singing her own material and covers of old style 12 bars, in Jams around London at venues such as ‘Round Midnight, Alley Cat, Charlotte Street Blues, and The Blues Kitchen and in bars and coffee shops on the East Coast of USA and South Coast of the UK.

In 2008 Sam organised her first official UK 12th Night Party at Circle Bar in Clapham North. Waif & Stray Productions held the 6th official one at TCR on Tottenham Court Road in 2013.

2008 also saw the launch of “Sam’s Homemade Jams” – Invitation only evenings and showcases at the Royal George, Arch 1 and other private venues around London, the South Coast of England, and East Coast USA.

During 2012-2013, with the help of Sean Pregnolato, three acoustic tracks (COMFORT / WORLD / STRONG) forming part of the EP “At Home” were recorded. Along with 40 minutes of other original material Sam & Sean showcased the songs at ‘Round Midnight as part of Mark Harrison’s Roots Nights in March-May 2013, with George Elliot & Linus Taylor filling in.

In 2014 another 5 tracks were live recorded over two sessions, and included the acoustic version of Sad-but-Merry with Chris Cox on guitar.

The live sessions, with a full band, took place at the Arch in London, with George Elliott manning the helm and playing guitar/bass, Dan Hale on Drums, Chris Cox on Guitar, Enzo Strano on Bass, Alex White on Sax.  The second session Mark Owen Recorded & Engineered at The Edit Rooms with Dan Hale on Drums, Carmen Vandenberg on Guitar, Luigi Casanova on Bass, featuring remote Hammond by John Moody, and Linus Taylor on Guitar and Mixing.

Over the past two years Sam has continued to work with Sean “At Home” in London developing styles, experimenting with different sounds, and generally having fun, creating new tracks such as “Gather Round Me Children” which is featured on the EP.