Shannon McNally

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Shannon McNally (2006)

Shannon McNally (born March 17, 1973 in Hempstead , Long Island , New York ) is an American singer and musician ( singer-songwriter ).

Life

Shannon McNally, who has Irish , German and Iroquois ancestors, grew up in Hempstead, New York State. She made her first appearance in kindergarten or first grade when she read the story 'Brer Rabbit and the tar baby' by Uncle Remus . When she was at school she was always involved in the musical offerings and when she was in college she expanded her repertoire to include "Open Mics" and coffee shops. She was also a DJ for various radio stations. She received her first guitar at the age of 12. Her early musical influences came from her parents' record collection with a focus on folk / blues.

After school McNally studied anthropology at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster County in the US state of Pennsylvania and completed his academic education with the Bachelor -degree from. After graduating, she lived in Paris for some time, where she a. hired out as a street musician. She then moved to California in the 1990s . Between the recording of her debut album Jukebox Sparrow in 1999 and its release in 2002, she briefly worked as a model for the cosmetic brand Urban Decay .

She moved from California to New Orleans , where she lived in 2005 and witnessed Hurricane Katrina in late August 2005 . Her daughter Maeve was born there in 2008, whom she fathered with her husband Wallace Lester (a native of Mississippi , her drummer and tour manager at the time ). Their child only led to a short break, as she, as "Rock and Roll Mommy", the title of a blog post she wrote for swampland.com , combined her private life and career and took her daughter and her nanny on tours. She later moved to Holly Springs , Mississippi.

In 2013 she began work on the concept album Black Irish , which was released four years later in 2017. In doing so, u. a. the experience of the one what they 2013 as "miserable divorce" felt ( English "a miserable divorce" ), and the care of her dying mother Maureen, who died, 2015.

Influences and style

Their music can be assigned to the genres Alternative Country and Roots Rock .

One of her greatest influences is Shannon McNally himself JJ Cale , who can be classified between rockabilly , blues , jazz and country . Especially when it comes to the sound and the emotions, it is the best reference. In addition, she cites Dire Straits , Los Lobos , The Grateful Dead , Townes Van Zandt , Neil Young and Bob Dylan as great textual and aesthetic models. When it comes to singing, she mentions Dinah Washington , Emmy Lou Harris , Nina Simone and Willie Nelson as fundamental influences. When it comes to self-confidence, she appeals to visionaries like John Coltrane , Miles Davis , Duke Ellington and Sun Ra .

From Allmusic's point of view , McNally has expanded her music well beyond the folk / blues horizon and also integrated soul jazz and electric blues rock. She also passes on the great tradition of blues and blues rock to a new generation of fans who are already paying tribute to bands like North Mississippi Allstars and Warren Haynes .

For the 2017 album Black Irish , Blues Magazine from the Netherlands used country , blues , R&B , soul , gospel and rockabilly as references to describe McNally's style.

Career

In 1997 she signed a contract with the music label Capitol Records , which, however, did not release her debut album Jukebox Sparrows , which was completed in 1999, until 2002 . In the meantime, however, she was sent by her label in 2000 together with Tara MacLean , Kendall Payne and Amy Correia on the club tour entitled Girls Room , which led through 21 cities in the USA, offered free entry and was carried out without age restrictions. The " estrogen party", according to the industry paper Billboard , received sponsorship from Stayfree , at the time a sanitary napkin brand from Johnson & Johnson . In addition, Stayfree donated USD 1,000 to a variety of charities for children and women at each venue.

Disagreements with the label then led to her leaving the record company in 2005 when her second work Geronimo was released. Specifically: It took a six-month negotiation process and financial concessions so that Geronimo could take on her dream producer Charlie Sexton . Since the record company was not satisfied with the product and wanted to re-record it with a new producer, McNally again invested six months in negotiations to get out of the contract and release the album as originally planned. Back Porch was then responsible for sales. At the Austin Music Awards , Sexton then received the award for "Best Record Producer" for his work.

She recorded the acoustic EP Ran on Pure Lightning , which has meanwhile been produced as a musical sign of life, together with her tour guitarist, the singer / songwriter Neil Casal , and distributed it from 2003 at concerts and via her website. As with the debut album, Benmont Tench , keyboardist for Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, made a guest appearance. In addition, Run for Cover , a sound carrier with re-recordings of various blues numbers , was self-published by Tail Feather Records in 2004 .

Their third studio album Coldwater , recorded in 2008 in the Zebra Ranch studio by Jim Dickinson, who can also be heard on the keyboards, was released entirely in DIY mode. In 2010 she started a campaign on Kickstarter.com with the aim of raising $ 10,000 for the production of a new studio album. With their contributions, 204 backers - including three who invested $ 1,000 to be named as producers and seven who secured a living room concert for $ 1,500 - helped bring the total to $ 23,171 and the album Western Ballad could be released.

The cover album Small Town Talk followed in 2013 , with which she paid tribute to the singer and composer Bobby Charles (1938-2010) and which was inspired by his self-titled 1973 debut.

Four years later, the album Black Irish, based mainly on personal experiences such as her divorce and the death of her mother, followed . It was recorded in Nashville with Rodney Crowell .

She was one of the special guests at the 2017 Americana Music Association's award show . a. with Jim Lauderdale , Emmylou Harris and Jack Ingram a performance of the 1978 country song Tulsa Time by Don Williams .

reception

The Austin Chronicle ruled that the debut album, released with a three-year latency, was buried under "Adult Rock", which grinds the rough edges of their music, and yet McNally's potential becomes visible. On their second studio album Geronimo they show their ability to portray pleasure and pain with a clarity that seems deceptively natural for such a young songwriter.

The New York Times was also convinced of their second work:

“She has the voice: bruised, smoky and crazy, at home where land and soul meet. [...] Sometimes her lyrics lose focus, but when she lets herself into a succinct refrain, "I never learned nothing but the hard way / 'Cause at the time it felt so good" - she is irresistible. ( English “She has the voice: bruised, smoky and ornery, right at home where country and soul meet. […] Her lyrics sometimes lose focus, but when she homes in on a pithy chorus" I never learned nothing but the hard way / 'Cause at the time it felt so good "- she's irresistible.” ) “

- New York Times

"" McNally proved to be a rock'n'roll figure for the big stages, with the ability for interactive intelligence that only the big ones have "( English " McNally proved herself as a big-stage rock 'n' roll figure capable of the interactive intelligence only the greats possess " )"

- Offbeat Magazine

On the occasion of the Kickstarter funded publication Western Ballad , Glide Magazine drew a completely positive assessment of Shannon McNally and her performance:

“She is believed to be the most talented undiscovered rock gem. That woman with a voice full of confidence. Shannon has released a brand new album and it contains some of her best songwriting accomplishments to date. ( English “She is probably rock's most talented undiscovered gem. This woman with the confident voice. Shannon has a brand new CD out called Western Ballad that features some of her best songwriting to date.” ) “

- Glide Magazine

On a review of 2017's Black Irish album, americansongwriter.com's Hal Horowitz noted that it was hard to explain why she wasn't a major Americana star. After all, she has released seven good to great "blues / rock / swamp / folk / country / whatever" solo albums, has toured tirelessly since her debut album in 2002 and has a unique voice that hits both the big and the subtle nuances. Specifically related to the album, Horowitz drew the conclusion that there is something in the dozen pieces for everyone who loves the roots of this music and is a singer-songwriter fan ( English In other words, there is something for every roots-loving, singer-songwriting fan in these dozen tracks. ) With a little luck and the right promotion, she could join the top of the Americana stars with the album , where she clearly belongs.

Awards

  • 2006: Austin Music Awards - Geronimo ( Charlie Sexton as "Best Record Producer")
  • 2010: Grammy Awards - nomination in the category "Best Traditional Folk Album" (as guest musician on the album Onward And Upward by Luther Dickinson )

Discography

Studio albums

  • 2002: Jukebox Sparrows ( Capitol Records )
  • 2005: Geronimo (Back Porch Records / EMI )
  • 2009: Coldwater ( self-published )
  • 2010: Western Ballad (Sacred Sumac Records)
  • 2017: Black Irish (Compass Records)

Others

  • 2000: Bolder than Paradise ( EP , Capitol Records)
  • 2003: Ran on Pure Lightning (EP, self-published, with Neal Casal )
  • 2004: Run for Cover (cover album, Tail Feather Records)
  • 2006: North American Ghost Music ( Live album , Back Porch Records / EMI)
  • 2006: The Southside Sessions (EP, with Charlie Sexton , Back Porch Records)
  • 2011: Live at Jazz Fest 2011 (Live album, Home Grown Distribution)
  • 2013: Small Town Talk (Songs of Bobby Charles) ( cover album , Sacred Sumac Records)

Sampler contributions (selection)

  • 2001: Landmark Music Vol. 1 (Filter Magazine)
  • 2002: Sweet Home Alabama - OST (Hollywood Records)
  • 2005: Radio Woodstock - 25th Anniversary (B-Dub)
  • 2005: American Folk (Putumayo World Music)
  • 2016: The Musical Mojo Of Dr. John Celebrating Mac And His Music (Concord Records / Universal Music Group )

As a guest musician (selection)

  • 2003: Jason Crosby - Four Chords And Seven Notes Ago (Artists House / Blues Planet)
  • 2007: Son Volt - The Search (Transmit Sound / Legacy)
  • 2009: Luther Dickinson and the Sons of Mudboy - Onward And Upward (Memphis International)
  • 2013: Jim Lauderdale - Black Roses (Sky Crunch)
  • 2014: Rodney Crowell - Tarpaper Sky (New West)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Encyclopedia of Popular Music , cited above. after: Shannon McNally. In: oldies.com. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  2. ↑ a b c Terence: Shannon McNally. Artist interview. In: guitarbench.com. September 2, 2009, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  3. ^ John W. Barry: With new album, Shannon McNally is 'here to stay'. In: poughkeepsiejournal.com. January 1, 2016, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  4. ^ A b Richard Skelly: Shannon McNally - Biography & History. In: allmusic.com. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  5. ↑ a b c Stewart Oksenhorn: Shannon McNally: A major label's nightmare. In: aspentimes.com. August 10, 2005, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  6. ↑ a b Bennuman: Recensie: Shannon McNally - Black Irish. In: bluesmagazine.nl. August 5, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2017 (Dutch).
  7. ^ Rob Mancini: Shannon McNally's Jukebox Sparrows Finally Takes Flight. In: mtv.com. January 16, 2002, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  8. ↑ a b Jim Caligiuri: Shannon McNally. In: austinchronicle.com. August 26, 2005, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  9. ↑ a b c Michael Bialas: Shannon McNally Celebrates Her Spirit of Independence Days. In: huffingtonpost.com. September 18, 2011, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  10. ↑ Shannon McNally: Swampland: Rock and Roll Mommy. In: swampland.com. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  11. ↑ Shannon McNally - "Bohemian Wedding Prayer". In: hottytoddy.com. November 27, 2012, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  12. ↑ a b Shannon McNally to Release Black Irish on June 9 via Compass Records; Haunting Anthem "Banshee Moan". In: compassrecords.com. April 4, 2017, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  13. ^ Melinda Newman: Penn & Mann's United Musicians Collective Offers Artists Label Services, Distribution . In: Billboard . May 20, May 2000, pp. 14 ( Google Books ).
  14. ↑ Greta Weiderman: Energizer to pay $ 185 million for Johnson & Johnson's feminine products brands. In: bizjournals.com. July 31, 2013, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  15. ^ John Morthland: Shannon McNally - No Bones About It. In: nodepression.com. June 30, 2005. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  16. ^ A b Charlie Sexton for Shannon McNally: Geronimo - Best Record Producer - Austin Music Awards - 2005 - Related Categories - The Austin Chronicle. In: austinchronicle.com. October 27, 2005, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  17. ↑ Barry A. Jeckell: Billboard Bits: New Edition, Shannon McNally, The Who. In: billboard.com. October 21, 2002, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  18. ↑ Rein van den Berg: Shannon McNally and Hot Sauce - Coldwater. In: altcountryforum.nl. September 30, 2009, accessed November 22, 2017 (Dutch).
  19. ↑ Jewly Hight: SHANNON MCNALLY> Coldwater. In: americansongwriter.com. April 27, 2010. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  20. ↑ New album 'Western Ballad' Fund by Shannon McNally. In: kickstarter.com. October 6, 2010, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  21. ↑ Calvin Powers: Shannon McNally - Interview and Music (Americana Music Show, episode 149). In: americanamusicshow.com. July 22, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  22. ↑ Jim Hynes: Shannon McNally, on her new CD, Black Irish. In: elmoremagazine.com. June 17, 2017, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  23. ^ Watch the Americana Honors & Awards on PBS - Nov. 18. In: americanamusic.org. November 14, 2017, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  24. ^ Jon Pareles: Feeling the Illinois. In: nytimes.com. July 10, 2005, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  25. ^ John Swenson: Ghost Music: Shannon McNally. In: offbeat.com/. September 1, 2005, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  26. ↑ Leslie Michele Derrough: Getting Serious With Shannon McNally. In: glidemagazine.com. April 14, 2011, accessed November 22, 2017 .
  27. ↑ Hal Horowitz: Shannon McNally: Black Irish. In: americansongwriter.com. June 5, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2017 .
  28. ↑ Shannon McNally. In: grammy.com. November 7, 2017, accessed November 22, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME McNally, Shannon
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American singer and musician
DATE OF BIRTH March 17, 1973
PLACE OF BIRTH Hempstead , Long Island , New York