Sam's concert review - Shannon Curfman 11/11/06 (1 Viewer)

[HEMI6point1]

*Didn't want to dig up the old concert thread to post this here, as this a review of a recent concert I went to, not a list of concerts.*

Do you remember a female guitarist by the name of Shannon Curfman? Well, I sure do. I always like it when I see a special talent, and Shannon is it.

Back in ’99, I taped an episode of Jay Leno and the musical guest was a hot 14 year old girl who played guitar like a 35 year old man, and had the excellent vocal chops to match. That was Shannon. I immediately bought her album, and it was on frequent rotation in my CD player.

I then tried for awhile to catch her act live, but was unable to. Then it happened. Shannon just disappeared off the face of the earth. Her website was updated once in a while with family pics and stuff, but nothing big.

Fast forward to 2006….

Just for the hell of it, I decided to check her website out and found out not only did she release a 5-song EP, but was touring again. Why the loooooong wait? Well first off, she wanted to finish high school. Next, she had to go through two major labels before starting her own Indie label. Those two labels were Arista (her original) and Sony/Epic. Why did she escape? They wanted to tell her what do regarding songs so she would be more “commercial.” Basically, they wanted her to sound “poppy.” The same crap happened to Jonny Lang and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. Those guys’ latest albums tanked because the record companies got involved and made them create an album that was more commercial pop/rock and not the music that people were used to. This alienated current fans and didn’t help bring in new ones. So, she decided to give a big “screw you” and decided to start her own label where she is free to do the music she wants, not the other way around.

Anyway, on to the review and pictures….

I took my dad who is a big blues fan to this show.

Part 1: The Venue.

The Bamboo Room is a blues/rock club and bar located in Lake Worth, FL. Or should I say Lake Worthless? Basically the club a great place, but it’s located in a tough area.

The club itself is roomy and the staffs are friendly. Not to mention the tickets are cheap. They are will call, which can be blessing and in this case it was: the guy who showed us to our seats began by saying, “you’re in the center.” I figured it was going to somewhere down, but they were front row dead center! Two cool things about blues/rock clubs is that A). You get to meet & greet the artist and B). Cameras are allowed, as in the case here. Due to not much traffic, we got there a bit early, but it was better than being late.

Part 2: Hanging around, and meeting the band (or at least most of them).

A little while before Shannon showed up, a guy in a cowboy hat came on stage and started tuning and testing the guitars, so I thought he was the guitar tech. I went over and asked him if he was the guitar tech – he said, “yeah, tech and guitar player!” I apologized for my faux pas and introduced myself, and complimented him on his choice of latest guitar. A few minutes later I chatted with the bass player and drummer, they all seem like very nice people.

I returned to my seat and a few minutes later Shannon walked to the stage, put a drink in her mic stand’s drink holder and walked back to the far end of the club. I knew she was busy so I didn’t want to bother her.

Part 3: Shannon then and now.

One of the things I noticed is that the hot, slender 14 year old I first saw in ’99 is no more. Now 21, she fits perfectly into that “slightly pudgy but still attractive” category. Sure she won’t win any beauty contests, but I doubt most men would kick her to the curb either: She has a great personality, is very nice (more on that later) and can play guitar better than many men. What’s not to like?

Part 4: The concert.

Shannon’s band started off by doing a short instrumental and then Jason (the guitar player) introduced Shannon. She started off by doing one of her new songs, then a string of previous songs from her first album. After only a couple of songs, I was in awe of her playing. I have seen many male guitarists over the years, including Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Neal Schon and Eric Clapton, and I can tell you this: Shannon ranks right there with those greats. She actually reminded me of Stevie Ray Vaughan, my favorite guitarist of all time. Not to mention her voice is excellent, more than a match for her guitar playing. It’s sad that she actually had to start her own label and play clubs while dolts like Hillary Duff and Jessica Simpson are playing at major arenas.

A few songs in we heard something going through the amps as she once she was done with one of her songs. It didn’t take Shannon long to find out her distortion pedal blew, so she unplugged it and decided to play without it for the rest of the show.

One great thing about Shannon’s show is that she did ALL the songs that me and I assume all the other fans (the place was packed) wanted her to play. It was great. My dad even said that he liked her version of “The Weight” better than the original. The final song before the encore was “Playing With Fire.” I decided to video tape this song with my digital camera and I stopped when I thought she was done and then she did an amazing guitar solo that ended the song that lasted over 2 minutes, and I forgot to record that part. In the encore, she came on the stage just by herself and picked up her hallow-body telecaster, and did a Robert Johnson song in tribute to her late grandmother, as she was the one that suggested she learn how to play the guitar. This was the first time she did the song in nearly 2 and a half years. Towards the end of the song, I knew something didn’t sound right with her guitar, and she informed us her amp blew out, and looked up at the ceiling and said, “grandma!” Like a pro, she soldiered on, but right after the song she let Jason take over – that amp was DONE. Next was a song about a guy she broke up with (can’t remember the name) and a rock cover (again, can’t remember the name).

Part 5: Meeting Shannon.

After the show I didn’t have to wait long at all for the meet and greet, as I was one of the front row people. When she started signing, I noticed she is a lefty, but of course she plays right-handed. I asked her if that was difficult to do, but she said she actually found it easier to play right handed. She was very sweet and though it was awesome that I was a fellow southpaw, and that I have been listening to her since she was 14. I also told her “Let me tell you, you’re like the female Stevie Ray.” She goes, “Oh gosh, thank you!” I had her sign my CDs, my poster and also pose for a pic with me. Up close she is actually a very pretty girl! She also asked me if I could send the pics I took I took of her to her email, and I promised her I would. (Don't worry, I already did).

After the show we left and came back home. This was definitely one of the best concerts I have been too, right up there with RUSH, Journey, ZZ Top and Eric Clapton.

I could post the pictures here but I don't want to create extra posts in the thread. Please go here: Shannon Curfman - Bamboo Room 11/11/06. pictures from music photos on webshots
The one with me and the young lady herself is towards the end of the gallery.

 

[Rollout96]

Wow... Sounds like you had a great time. I enjoyed the pictures too!

 

[yoda]

Sounds like you had a great time Sam... Always good to read a personal review of an artist as opposed to the ones from the popular press. And it sounds like she's got an idea about how to handle her business, both on and off stage.

Too bad she's chosen to go the route of a "true" musician- the blame for that genre not being sucessful can be squarely placed on the shoulders of US, the paying public. As we continue to put down the "commercial" artists, please remember that nobody holds a gun to anybody's head and tells them to like/buy certain music. Pop acts have a place as music that doesn't involve a whole lot of cerebral energy (for both the artist and the consumer)- it is supposed to be fluff, and targeted twords mass consumption. The "throw it at the wall and see what sticks" principal.
Probably the only reason you have even heard of Johnny Lang or Kenny Wayne Sheppard is the fact that the music industry threw them at the wall, along with Chris Whitley, Sonny Landreth and Mark Curry, and they just happened to stick, albeit only for a short amount of time. People just don't stick with music like they used to, and acts like those focus on the skills as opposed to the glitz.

But, as I am usually employed by many of those pop artists, believe that they at least start in the industry with the same hopes and dreams as Shannon- they just choose to record a musical style that is more directed twords A) music THEY like; and B) music that the buying public likes too. Add in industry executives, accountants and marketing teams, and you immediately see that the music that we get just happens to be the music that is the easy sell- nobody is gonna go out and buy things they don't like, no matter how good it may be...

Best of luck to Shannon- I'm gonna go find her CD and check it out.

 

[HEMI6point1]

Sounds like you had a great time Sam... Always good to read a personal review of an artist as opposed to the ones from the popular press. And it sounds like she's got an idea about how to handle her business, both on and off stage.

Too bad she's chosen to go the route of a "true" musician- the blame for that genre not being sucessful can be squarely placed on the shoulders of US, the paying public. As we continue to put down the "commercial" artists, please remember that nobody holds a gun to anybody's head and tells them to like/buy certain music. Pop acts have a place as music that doesn't involve a whole lot of cerebral energy (for both the artist and the consumer)- it is supposed to be fluff, and targeted twords mass consumption. The "throw it at the wall and see what sticks" principal.
Probably the only reason you have even heard of Johnny Lang or Kenny Wayne Sheppard is the fact that the music industry threw them at the wall, along with Chris Whitley, Sonny Landreth and Mark Curry, and they just happened to stick, albeit only for a short amount of time. People just don't stick with music like they used to, and acts like those focus on the skills as opposed to the glitz.

But, as I am usually employed by many of those pop artists, believe that they at least start in the industry with the same hopes and dreams as Shannon- they just choose to record a musical style that is more directed twords A) music THEY like; and B) music that the buying public likes too. Add in industry executives, accountants and marketing teams, and you immediately see that the music that we get just happens to be the music that is the easy sell- nobody is gonna go out and buy things they don't like, no matter how good it may be...

Best of luck to Shannon- I'm gonna go find her CD and check it out.

Great post, and BTW I am a big fan of both Jonny Lang AND Kenny Wayne. Can you imagine them and Shannon doing a G3-like tour together?

 

[HEMI6point1]

You know what Martin, what you said reminds me of an article I wrote for another message board a while ago. It took me a little bit to dig it up but here it is. The article was written for Katharine McPhee (hence the "Kat" references) and is a bit outdated, but the idea is the same:

Title: Why Katharine should NOT do a pop album.

I was shocked and saddened to hear from Kat herself that her first album will be a pop album. Why shocked and saddened? I have seen the deaths of so many pop divas and I do not want the same fate happening to Kat. I’m not talking about actual death, I’m talking about death in the music business. Look at Debbie Gibson, the Spice Girls, Britney Spears and many others. Where is Ms. Gibson? It’s definitely not anywhere near today’s music scene. The same goes for the Spice Girls. Britney is still in the spotlight only because she married a no-career dufus that is always partying with his friends and for some reason, people think that is interesting enough to actually pay attention.

Now, here is my $.02 as to why it would be a bad idea for Kat to make a pop album as her debut record. To answer this, what is the fan base of almost all boy bands and pop divas? Pre-teen and teenaged girls. No offense to teenaged girls, but this is the WORST place to market a fresh new talent to (unlike someone like Britney, Kat actually has talent!). To put it bluntly, this market STINKS.

Why does it stink? Pre-teen and teenaged girls are like chameleons with their musical tastes. In other words, it changes all the time. One year you may be the flavor of the month, next year you’re a has-been already. To make matters even worse, a lot of teenaged girls may even get turned off by an artist they once loved, when another one comes across the corner. For the first six months you may have a huge fan base and the next six the same base may think you’re a poser.

And before you think I’m picking on girls, I’m not. Teenaged boys have this problem as well, but not to the same level as girls because they are also attracted to things other than the artists’ music (looks, etc…), and a woman’s looks does not usually fade like her career usually does.

So, if this market is so bad, why is it targeted so much? One answer: $$$$$$$$$. The majority of people buying CDs or (legally) downloading songs are young people. That’s the only reason. They know that almost all the artists targeted to this demographic have a staying power of only about 1 to (if they’re lucky) 3 years (see above), so when those years are up, all the record companies have to do is find another boy band or pop diva to fill the void, and the cash flow continues.

Another reason why Kat should not do a pop album is how they are structured to be marketed and sold, and also for radio airplay. Nowadays, a pop album is structured to squeeze out 1 or 2 good singles. The rest is just filler music most of the time. Logic would state that is not how you would guarantee an artist’s staying power, but as with them marketing to the worst demographic available I have given up on record companys’ logic a long time ago. Credit the RIAA for that.

It wasn’t like that back in the day. For many years up until the late 80’s, peoples’ tastes (including teenagers) did not have the chameleon-like properties like they do today, and albums were actually about albums, not singles. Ah, to bring the music industry back to its glory days. Sadly, it’s not going to happen.

Now, I want you guys to know that I am not picking on Kat. I am a big fan myself. She looks like she came straight out of heaven, and I love her voice (unlike most modern artists whom I equate to nails on a chalkboard). This is coming from a man that usually listens to bands like Led Zeppelin, RUSH, and many of the other greats. I’m probably one of the few here that knows what 45s and 33s are.

Kat would be right at home doing a nice jazz and blues album. I would love to hear her doing a cover of one of Steve Ray Vaughan’s songs (SRV was one of the best blues musicians out there – check him out), myself. Maybe something rock among the lines of Ann Wilson from Heart. Doing an album like this would limit her audience a little (most teenagers scream “eww!” at the mere though of jazz or blues), but it would open her up to much broader range of people, and thankfully most of those people won’t have chameleon-like musical taste. Now THAT would guarantee her staying power. To see a present example of this, look at Joss Stone. Her music has a more limited audience but she is still doing very well.

Yet they (the producers, I can imagine) want Kat to do a pop album. Not for staying power or any of the good stuff. Just money. Short term money. I can tell you that if an artist sells only 1 or 2 million copies of his/her debut record but goes on to make many more successful records and have a steady fan base, now that is the way to go, and is logical. Yet the record companies feel it’s better for an artist to sell 5 millions copies and two years later be a featured story on “Where are they now?” That’s not logical. Then again, like I said before nothing nowadays is logical with the record companies.

Just my $.02 on this.

 

[willy]

I hope Shannon makes it..her way. I'll be checking it out.

Not to de-rail..but I lived in Doc's country for a couple years..and there was this 10 yr old kid from Mesa that just flat out rocked. Played National Anthem at all the big venues. Saw him in a little biker bar (mentioned in this article from Jan.)..and it was amazing. He's now 15 (16 by now I'd guess) and doing it all his way..this is a good read..and a couple samples as well.

Great stuff there, Sam.

Nick Sterling Interview

 

[yoda]

Man, I bet there are thousands of musicians, sucessful or not, that would like to sell "1 or 2 million albums"... Those numbers mean someone is making money- and that is as hard to do in music as it is in racing.

Look at K-Fed, Brittney's soon to be ex; even with all the press he has gotten in the past week, debut sales are in the low 4 figures. And the industry considers that "a dog". Imagine if you only moved that much product A YEAR (the last Alan Parsons release did those kind of dismal numbers, and it was a GREAT CD..)