RAE'S RECORDS ARE SO ON SOULFUL BRIT SINGER SET FOR GRAMMYS.

Byline: Fred Shuster Music Writer

Less than a year ago, few on this side of the Atlantic had heard of Corinne Bailey Rae, the bewitching young singer whose sunny songs are simply everywhere these days.

Today, the world is at her feet. In the past few months alone, the 27-year-old Rae has been nominated for three Grammy Awards, watched her debut album soar from No. 32 to fourth on the charts in one week and had her music used throughout a critically acclaimed film.

Add to this one of the year's biggest hit singles worldwide in the shape of ``Put Your Records On,'' plus a host of prestigious awards at home in Britain, and Rae -- who's set to team up with John Legend and John Mayer in a Grammy performance Feb. 11 -- might be expected to show some nouveau star attitude.

Not even slightly.

The soulful, university-educated singer, born and raised in the north of England, appears as modest as she probably always has been.

``It all happened so fast,'' Rae said. ``For me, getting to play in front of 300 people is still a big thing. I'm just amazed they've come to see me -- and that people have even heard of me. I don't feel remotely famous or well-

known and I always want it to be that way. I don't want some kind of arty, super-cool niche audience -- people who are cyncial and only want to hear a certain type of music.

``I want lots of people to be able to relate to my songs. Some people bring their parents to my shows -- and why not?''

Rae's jazz-tinged, good-vibes music, typified by such current indie faves as ``Like a Star,'' ``Trouble Sleeping'' and ``I'd Like To,'' is just as instantly appealing to the masses as that of Norah Jones. And while her voice is often compared to everyone from Billie Holiday to Macy Gray and Erykah Badu, Rae prefers references to Martina Topley-Bird, the sultry Brit chanteuse who gained fame on trip-hop pioneer Tricky's still-potent 1995 album ``Maxinquaye.''

Rae describes her self-titled album as ``chilled-out, acoustic, kooky, atmospheric and soulful. I'd also be tempted to say it comes from a very organic place, but that would sound pretentious, so I won't.''

The warmly melodic mix caught the ear not only of music critics and radio hosts, but the creative imagination of film director Roger Michell, who used almost all of Rae's album in the soundtrack to his recent drama ``Venus,'' for which Peter O'Toole is nominated for an Oscar.

As Michell recently told the U.K.'s Independent newspaper, Rae's music was recommended to him by his teen daughter. ``She dragged me into Woolworths last summer and forced me to buy one of Corrine's singles. We played it in the car on the way to Devon, and by the time we'd reached Bristol, I'd decided I had to use her in the film.''

3 Grammy nods

The big-screen exposure is a helpful sidebar to Rae's trio of record academy kudos. Along with ``Put Your Records On''-inspired nods for record of the year and song of the year, Rae goes up against James Blunt, Chris Brown, Imogen Heap and Carrie Underwood in the best new artist category.

``The Grammys are far more worldly than any other music awards anywhere,'' Rae said. ``I like the fact that in America there's a wide respect for all different styles. There's a bigger culture of rewarding successful people. In the U.K, there's a culture of not wanting to give people a big head by awarding them if they are too popular.''

One of Rae's earliest supporters in the U.S. was New York radio veteran Meg Griffin, program director and afternoon host at Sirius Satellite Radio's eclectic Disorder channel, which spins everything from Count Basie to Lucinda Williams. Rae played a live set for Griffin last spring just before the singer's Manhattan club debut.

``When I first heard Corinne's album, it was like, `What song do I not play?' It's just so rich. She's the kind of artist, like Joan Osborne or Norah Jones, who's at home with the language of music. That's what motivates them. It's the same river of soul as Stevie Wonder and Billie Holiday.

``Corinne's also one of the nicest people I've ever interviewed because she's so unaware of how great she is. She's very endearing and she can sing better than she even knows.''

A band named Helen

Singing started early for Rae. The oldest of three daughters of a West Indian father and a Yorkshire mother, Rae, who first began singing in her local church, was obsessing over female-led, indie noiseniks like Veruca Salt and L7 as a teen. At 15, she started her own band. Its name was Helen.

``I know, I know,'' she says in defense of the name. ``What can I say? We were 15 and thought Helen was a cheeky, indie kind of thing to do. It seemed clever at the time. Admittedly, it seems less so now.''

When the band received notices far less than hell on wheels, Rae entered Leeds University to study English literature, spending evenings working as a hatcheck girl in a local jazz club. Every now and then, she was invited to sing with the band, and from there she began thinking of her own musical ideas.

By the time EMI signed her in 2005, she had 10 years of experience and knew exactly what she wanted to do.

``From where I came from, I thought my music would be an underground thing, so I was totally shocked when it became popular at home,'' she said. ``I just see myself as part of a tradition like Motown -- get on the bus and play my music every night.''

Fred Shuster, [phone]

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2007 GRAMMY AWARDS

What: Mary J. Blige leads with eight nominations, followed by the Red Hot Chili Peppers with six. Newcomer Corinne Bailey Rae has nods for record of the year, song of the year and best new artist.

Where: CBS (Channel 2).

When: 8 p.m. Feb. 11.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Corinne BAILEY RAE

She's looking to the Grammys ... and beyond

(2) - Corinne Bailey Rae

(3) ``I like the fact that in America there's a wide respect for all different styles. There's a bigger culture of rewarding successful people,'' says Grammy nominee Corinne Bailey Rae.