LIZ VANDALL

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Liz Vandall has led a life that gracefully blends the unconventional with the universal, a journey that has taken her across continents and musical landscapes. After emigrating to the USA at the age of three and growing up in Rhode Island, she then moved to Los Angeles in 1983 and began professional vocal training with the legendary Seth Riggs—renowned coach to Cher, Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson, and many more. 

After performing with several rock bands, Liz found her stride with Sahara, a five-piece semi-progressive heavy rock band. The group recorded two albums, Going Crazy and The Seventh House, both released in Europe and Japan. The band garnered critical acclaim, receiving praise from music publications that hailed her as “one of the greatest singers in the world” and possessing “one of the most powerful voices in all of music, period.”

Sahara enjoyed substantial success, but in July 1995, the band came to a close when Diane Arens—one-third of the band’s core songwriting team alongside Liz and Phil Woodward—retired from music. As Liz recalls, “Within the context of Sahara, Diane was irreplaceable, and we found it impossible to go on.” This marked a period of reflection and evolution as Liz turned toward a solo path.

Just as she was preparing to launch her solo career, composer and legendary guitarist Uli Jon Roth (formerly of the Scorpions) contacted Liz to record vocals for his album Requiem for an Angel. Roth was instantly captivated, declaring, “Liz Vandall has a one-in-a-billion and a million-dollar voice!”

In 1997, Liz moved to the United Kingdom, where she lived until 2006. During 1998, Liz began touring Europe as lead vocalist with Uli Jon Roth, including on the prestigious G3 Tour—conceived by Joe Satriani—which also featured guitar icon Michael Schenker. The band included music greats Don Airey (Deep Purple, Ozzy Osbourne, Rainbow, Gary Moore), Clive Bunker (Jethro Tull), and François Garny. 

Following the birth of their daughter, Akasha Dawn Roth, that year, she took a step back from the spotlight to focus on motherhood while still appearing in select high-profile performances. One highlight of this era was Liz's performance of the introduction to Roth’s Hiroshima Symphony, which appears on the 2000 release Transcendental Sky Guitar. In 2002, she performed at the Legends of Rock tour alongside Uli Jon Roth, Jack Bruce, Glenn Hughes, and Frank Marino. In 2004, she sang at the Rock Meets Renaissance concert with Roth’s Sky Orchestra, delivering a stirring performance of her original song “Falling from the Sky” and a duet with iconic rock vocalist Doro Pesch. 

A temporary move to Germany in 2006 coincided with the release of Roth’s Under a Dark Sky in 2008, a rock opera featuring Liz and Mark Boals (Yngwie Malmsteen, Royal Hunt, Ring of Fire) on vocals. The album was followed by a world tour spanning New Zealand, Japan, the United States, and Europe—including opening shows in the UK for the Scorpions.

Since returning to the UK in late 2011, Liz has continued to collaborate on various recording projects. Among them were two duets with Tony Martin (ex-Black Sabbath): “Poison Roses,” a remake from The Cage II by Dario Mollo & Tony Martin, and “Bring on the Night,” co-written by Liz, Tony, and Aldo Giuntini for Project IV. In 2012, she was featured on two tracks—“Nostalgia” and “Meteors in the Blue”—on The Time of the Equinox by Lebanese progressive rock artist Amadeus Awad.

In 2015, Liz was featured on Uli Jon Roth’s Scorpions Revisited, performing the track “Pictured Life,” followed by a series of live appearances, including the A New Day Festival in Kent, England, and shows in Belgium and France.

A particularly meaningful milestone came in September 2019 when Liz performed with the Prague Philharmonic and Athens State Orchestras at the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Over two sold-out nights, she opened the concerts and performed five songs to enthusiastic audiences in one of the world's most iconic venues.

In 2020, Liz released a powerful cover of Bruce Dickinson’s classic “Tears of a Dragon,” earning acclaim from fans and even from Roy Z, the guitarist and producer of the original track from Dickinson’s Balls to Picasso album.

In 2021, 20th Century Music re-released Sahara’s debut album Going Crazy on CD and vinyl, including previously unreleased tracks and rare video footage on DVD, renewing interest in the band’s legacy.

Liz is currently recording lead vocals for Uli Jon Roth’s long-awaited forthcoming orchestral work Requiem for an Angel, produced by legendary Scorpions producer Dieter Dierks which brings things full circle as this was the album that brought them together to record in 1996. The original had never been completed and released. Plans for a world tour are already in motion, as this next chapter in her musical odyssey unfolds.