Search - Amanda Shaw :: Good Southern Girl

Her good looks, vivacious spirit, and signature Southern girl charm are the first things that strike you when Amanda Shaw takes the stage.
Moments later, a poignant and rhythmic resonance that only a musical prodigy produced by the rich culture of Louisiana enraptures her audience. A resounding, 'Wow!' echoes through the crowd. From her wild red hair all the way down to her dancing feet, the 19 year-old musician's on-stage energy is electrifying and relentless. She is the future of music, a pioneer of the new breed of young, roots-based musicians who have embraced both the traditional sounds of Louisiana and the pop sounds of the mainstream.
Classically trained, she became the youngest violin soloist with the Baton Rouge Symphony. As her talent grew, so did her taste in music. The diverse sounds and the enchanting atmosphere of the Delta Blues, Zydeco, Jazz, and Brass drew Amanda to a different landscape of music than
most 8-year olds might appreciate; however, it was the driving, dance-focused rhythms of the Cajun fiddle that truly shaped her musical
outlook.
Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, Chrissie Hynde, and Bonnie Raitt as her primary influences. Not only for their strong vocals and powerful styles, but also because they broke new ground with their crossover success, integrating the sound of their roots into the mainstream. Amanda has spent her career taking the drive of the Cajun fiddle and infusing it s energy into the groove of popular, contemporary songs so that she can introduce
fans all over the world to her culture, just as her icons did to her.
After releasing three critically acclaimed albums, winning a Big Easy Award for Best Female Entertainer, earning two feature roles in Disney movies, and a lifetime of composing, arranging, and performing, Ms. Shaw is poised to command the attention of the national stage with her fourth album, Good Southern Girl, and re-introduce herself to the industry as an adult. The album is the first to capture the effervescent spirit of her live performance and showcases her diverse musical repertoire. Much credit for this can be attributed to the record's Producer Trina Shoemaker, the first woman to win a Grammy for Best Engineered Album, which she earned for Sheryl Crow s acclaimed The Globe Sessions.
Recording at the Music Shed in New Orleans, Trina pushed the songstress to previously unrealized heights, which is clearly translated in the tone and quality of the album.
Her songwriting and composing talent shines in Good Southern Girl and Cruise. 'I love sharing my own songs with the world. I describe my title
track, Good Southern Girl, as a tribute to what I value most: good music, good food, good life.' The five classic covers range from a playful and
bluesy rendition of Sam Cooke's That's It I Quit, to a rocking showcase of non-stop fiddling energy in Jefferson Starship's Git Fiddler from their
Red Octopus record. The album ends with Blues de la Frontier, which serves as a fun and poetic bookend to this diverse, yet remarkably cohesive album.
Each song, whether an original composition or a reinterpretation of an older tune is unmistakably identifiable as Amanda's own, a marriage of
musicality and joy that sets her apart from so some many of the arrivistes found in the roots scene today.
In 2009, Ms. Shaw was recognized as the Emerging Cultural Leader by the State of Louisiana. She takes her role as ambassador for her home
state very seriously. 'I bring New Orleans with me everywhere I go. All that I want is to live every day to the fullest and share my love of the city
with the rest of the world.' With the summer 2010 release of Good Southern Girl, Shaw succeeds in translating the culture vibrancies, and
eclectic spirit of Louisiana to the rest of the world under the guise of a perfectly assembled 14 track set.