Michelle Shocked – Surprise Nostalgia
I recently picked up a copy of an album that takes me very precisely back in time to a specific year, a specific place and a specific girl.
I was raised, for the most part, in Vienna and only came to the UK at age 17 to go to university. Because my Mum is from Manchester that is where I went to do my Foundation Course in Art & Design, despite having been offered a place at Wimbledon School of Art which, with crystal clear 20/20 hindsight, would have been a far better choice. After Vienna where I was, compared to the people of all sorts of nations with whom I went to school, extremely English, it was a massive shock to find out quite how English I actually wasn’t, in reality. I also didn’t have the saving grace of being obviously foreign, which gets you quite a lot of slack cut for odd behaviour.
Consequently, it was a pretty horrendous year of rather merciless culture shock. Once I was offered my place at the Glasgow School of Art, in early January, I packed in the course, which I hated, and took a job in one of the local 5 Star hotels (at least my BBC accent, otherwise a liability in Manchester, was good for something). There I met a very intelligent and very prickly and rather pretty Irish girl who I spent the next two and a half years of my life with. She was easily the most musically interested of any of my other girlfriends and we got into all sorts of really good bands together.
She also, as my only ex to actually own any music, took a fair bit with her when we split up. Generally I replaced this stuff pretty immediately, but this one I never got round to buying again until last week. This enforced break meant that when I heard the music again, for the first time in oh, about ten years, all these incredibly vivid memories came flooding back, as it will with music.
So I thought I’d share some songs from Michelle Shocked’s 1988 album, Short Sharp Shocked. It’s a singer songwriter affair with heavily Southern country, gospel and folk influences. One of my favourite songs on the album is Anchorage, if just because of Michelle’s relationship with her friend’s husband: ‘Leroy says send a picture/ Leroy says hello/ Leroy says keep on rocking girl.’ There’s something so generous and real about the picture of friendship she paints, it really has me choking a little and having to hastily remember the aloof, macho image of cool indifference I have so carefully constructed for myself. Ahem.
Have a listen though. It’s interesting: in the light of Jenny Lewis and Neko Case’s recent success with a very similar sort of music it is interesting to hear some of their precursors. And have a little covert sniffle at the loveliness of the songs as we do so!
Michelle Shocked – Anchorage
Michelle Shocked – The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore
Michelle Shocked – Black Widow
Got 30 seconds into that song, remembered loving it on and old mix tape I had and went straight to amazon! She was great live. Oddly reminiscent of Colin Meloy’s easy chatting banter with the audience.
Yes, I’d forgotten about that. I saw her play The Garage in Glasgow and she was amazing. She came out with the uber-cheesy line:
“You’ve no idea how great it is to hear so many people singin’ your song.”
But she said it with such heartfelt sincerity that it hit me as hard as her songs can. I never doubted for a second that she meant it completely.
There’s a new album approaching in a couple of months too, which may be worth a wee look.
(Sorry, i only know read english)
Moltes gràcies per la petita nota sobre Michelle Shocked. M’has recordat també el disc que vaig comprar fa vint anys. I l’acabe de vore en Youtube en una interpretació fantàstica de «Yes God is Real», tot i que m’ha xocat el context religiós:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJq11taAJgY
She also said “I love Vienna, it reminds me of home and is my favorite city to be in on the road”. Didn’t believe her at the time, but she did say it so graciously.
How does Vienna remind anyone of anywhere in Texas?
home is where the heart is–maybe she left her heart in old vienna–she’s come a long way, you know, come a long way . . . bet you didn’t know i could speak in only cliches and song titles and still make a modicum of sense.
hey, is that portuguese miquel is talkin’?
I’ve been out looking for ‘chelle CDs recently and haven’t found a single one which has pissed me off immensely, although I have a feeling a friend got the triple release thing she did a year or two ago which I might have to steal. This post just made me smile though, she’s bloody great.
I don’t know, Marcy, but I am going to get a Spanish-speaking pal to have a go at translating and then try and respond.
Crash – have you had any luck on Amazon Marketplace? You can usually get 2nd hand stuff pretty cheaply on there, and they have most stuff available, by and large.
Well my Spanish-speaking friend was fucking useless. All he reckons is that it’s probably Portuguese but could even be Catalan, which he doesn’t speak at all. So he can’t make out much more than I can.
Sorry Miquel!
well, i guess we got the gist of what he’s saying. did you watch that video–powerful! : )
I had given up on Michelle Shocked after Arkansas Traveler but played Short, Sharp, Shocked and Captain Swing endlessly. Thanks for the memory lane trip.
Mancs ane the same kind of self-loathing scared of a difference tpyes as Glaswegians. On the more interesting point, I saw MS twice, in Glasgow oddly enough, and I’m sure my brother and I were the only men there both times. Nonetheless, excellent gigs. She’s a class act. Get the double album anthology – Ballad of penny Evans woul;d make you weep even more than Steve Goodman’s original.
i don’t stop round here anything like enough, but this,taches and ooooh lots of other stuff mean i will find more time from somewhere.
i’ve got a lovely live version of anchorage which is (if its possible) even more lip trembling.
x
It wasn’t at the Garage was it by any chance, Derek? That was a top gig.
And Ally, well there’s, erm always email, if you fancied showering me with gifts. *Cough*
Anchorage was a mix tape staple of mine as well back at the turn of the 90s. the first few chords are so evocative now and the lyrics … well said above already. kudos again, Master Toad.
The turn of the 90s. It’s amazing how long ago that actually is.
Come on, guys, it’s CATALAN! He just says that your note reminded him of the record he bought 20 years ago and that he recently found that youtube-stuff, a fantastic version of “Yes God is real”, although he didn’t like the religious context (well, I’m just guessing with the last part …) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJq11taAJgY
BTW I really do appreciate your blog and am a regular reader, listener, admirer. Bye & thanks from Austria – although not exactly from Vienna
Thanks Roman – at someone out there has a proper education, unlike the usual motley crew of miscreants and ne’erdowells that I tend to surround myself with.
Servus!
Thanks. It reminds me too my old times. I bought the LP in a small music shop. It takes a lot, asking and asking the clerk for this Michelle album, he never heard about her.
Long time ago.