Singer/Guitarist Megan McCormick deserves some attention
Megan McCormick: Honest Words
Upon first listen to the debut release Honest Words from Megan McCormick you are immediately struck by her voice: so powerful, rich and clear, reminiscent of KD Lang and Patsy Cline. You keep listening and hear this amazing guitar, a mixture of Mark Knopfler and Steve Ray Vaughn. Then the words hit you with waves of torment, soul searching and melancholic, lamenting of life, love, loss and salvation. And when you realize it’s all her, you get, like the first track says, a “Shiver.” This gal does it all!
McCormick is a fully realized artist, born in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and raised in Wasilla, Alaska, and now based in Nashville after attending East Tennessee State University’s acclaimed bluegrass program. She displays her schooled talents not only for vocals and guitar, but also mandolin, lap steel and bass — proof that encouraging young women to pursue their musical aspirations is far from folly and electric guitar is not just a man’s world. Megan’s songwriting is what separates her most from the crop of young guitar slingers and divas. At 23 she paints a picture of a life already full of the joy and pain often found in the writing of artists twice that age. After being brought up with a family of musicians who most certainly reared her on a diet of Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, and Joni Mitchell, she is fearless in revealing her musical breadth and emotional intensity. From the gritty blues of “Shiver” and “Drifting,” to the rocking stomp of “Addiction,” the classic torch song “Lonely Tonight,” and the high lonesome sound of “Wasted,” the landscape of lush textures brings out the best of each song. Kudos to Ryko Press for pairing McCormick with Grammy-winning producer Dave O’Donnell and allowing them create and album that isn’t formulated or genre specific, instead it is rooted in blues, country and jazz and full of “Honest Words.”
Originally appeared in Innocent Words