Amsterdamned Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 On Thursday June 4th we're delighted to be welcoming back to The Grapes, Rod Picott & Amanda Shires. The US duo return to support their debut release 'Sew Your Heart With Wires'. Both respected solo artists in their own they have combined forces to create an album of songs as rough, ragged and as wonderfully inspired as their guitar and fiddle led live shows. Support comes in the shape of an acoustic set from Roseville Grand. Advance tickets priced at £7 are available from Jacks Records and Seetickets.com. Doors open at 8pm and the price on the night will be £9. ***ROD PICOTT & AMANDA SHIRES*** A yankee singer-songwriter and a Texas fiddler might seem an unlikely pairing but the natural chemistry between Rod Picott and Amanda Shires is undeniable. Rising from the sun-driven plains of West Texas is fiddler and singer/songwriter Amanda Shires and from the northern mill towns of New England is Rod Picott. At 16 Amanda Shires was playing fiddle with The Texas Playboys, an auspicious start that testifies to her natural talent and soulful delivery. From there, Shires went on to be one of the founding members of Lubbock's Thrift Store Cowboys, releasing 4 albums independently and reaching top ten status on many CMJ charts around the country as well as becoming the number one selling act in 2007 for the respected internet retailer Miles Of Music. In 2008 one of Amanda Shires compositions was featured on NPR's All Songs Considered. As an in demand side player Amanda has worked with Texas legends Billy Joe Shaver, and Gary P Nunn as well as Folk/Bluegrass favorites The Rowen Brothers, Whit Smith’s Hot Jazz Caravan, and one of Indie rock's hottest acts Devotchka. Her first solo album release Being Brave from 2005 , mixes brilliant arrangements and performances of traditional fiddle music along with several of her own compositions. Now 25 Amanda Shires stands in front of an already impressive body of work and on the edge of a career in full bloom. In 1994 Rod Picott moved to Nashville TN. where he established himself as one of the better new writers in town as well as opening shows for Alison Krauss and Union Station and Gillian Welch. His co-write Broke Down with Slaid Cleaves was the most played song on Americana radio in 2001. Rod Picott has released 5 albums since 2001 to stellar reviews both stateside and overseas. Picott's debut release, Tiger Tom Dixon's Blues received airplay from Bob Harris on the BBC, and Music Row magazine’s Robert Oermann called the debut, "the birth of a major, major artist". 2002's Straydogs featured guest appearances from Alison Krauss and frequent co-writer Slaid Cleaves and found it's way onto the Americana chart for 5 weeks. Released in November 2004, Girl From Arkansas brought Picott's eye for lyric detail and whiskey-voiced delivery together with a newfound intimacy. In 2005, a collection of live performances titled Travel Log was released. Recorded in front of a small crowd in Charlotte N.C. the cd documents a soulful performance with accompaniment from dobro and lapsteel player Matt Mauch. In 2006 Picott co-produced, [with David Henry] Slaid Cleaves' Rounder Records release Unsung to great reviews. In the summer of 2007 Rod assembled some of his favorite musicians and recorded another album Summerbirds. Maverick magazine called Summerbirds "as damn near perfect as you can get" and gave the album a full five star review. Amanda Shires and Rod Picott met at the Folk Alliance Conference in Austin Tx. in 2006. Over the following 2 years they toured throughout the States and Europe playing more than 150 shows together. In the winter of 2008 they began co-writing and recording their debut duo project titled "Sew Your Heart with Wires" . The album is a completely acoustic recording featuring only their two voices, Picott's guitar and Shires' fiddle and Ukulele. The songs range from a murder ballad [Little Darlin'] to a gospel rave up [When You Get Your Story Told] to an outlaw narrative [Ruby]. All ten tracks were co-written by Rod Picott and Amanda Shires. The album's sound is rich, full of texture and drenched with soul and reverb. "A great album. 4 stars." Maverick Magazine "Picott just gets better and better really. Here is a songwriter who balances a deep regard for melody and tradition with an intuitive understanding of what works and what doesn’t. In Shires he has unearthed a like-minded soul, someone who adds not only a stunning vocal and musical contribution here but, in co-writing these songs, adds another more folkier edge to Picott’s sound and indeed appeal. Top class." Americana-uk.com http://www.myspace.com/rodpicottandamandashires http://www.myspace.com/rodpicott http://www.rodpicott.com http://www.myspace.com/amandashiresrunning http://www.amandashires.net ***ROSEVILLE GRAND*** The Roseville Grand adventure began in early 2008 when singer/songwriter Neil McLarty took to putting a full time band together. With the band in the throws of putting their debut album together and one case of impending fatherhood, tonight will see Neil perform an acoustic set. Heavily influenced by all things Americana, Neil's song writing has been described by Shut Eye Records as "somewhere between Ryan Adams and Van Morrison." http://www.myspace.com/rosevillegrand Facebook Event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=94352989080 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amsterdamned Posted June 3, 2009 Author Share Posted June 3, 2009 This is tomorrow night. Live music will kick off very shortly after 8pm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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