Penelope Houston is an American singer and founding member of the San Francisco punk rock band The Avengers. She has had an eclectic solo career in folk, jazz, pop, and folk-rock, inspired by Tom Waits and British folk music. Houston has released solo albums including Birdboys, Cut You, On Market Street, and The Whole World. Her most popular songs include Things, Qualities of Mercy, and Hole. She appears in the documentary Turn It Around: The Story of East Bay Punk.