Richard Shindell

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Richard Shindell
Richard Shindell, after a concert, April, 2006.
Richard Shindell, after a concert, April, 2006.
Background information
Birth name Richard Shindell
Born 1960
Origin Lakehurst, New Jersey, US
Genre(s) Folk
Singer-songwriter
Instrument(s) Vocals
Guitar
Years active 1991 – present
Label(s) Shanachie
Signature Sounds
Koch
Associated acts Cry Cry Cry
Website richardshindell.com

Richard Shindell (born 1960, Lakehurst, New Jersey)[1] is an American folk songwriter. He currently lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with his wife and their children.

Shindell's songwriting often involves storytelling from a first-person point of view: from an INS officer and illegal immigrant in "Fishing", to a World War II soldier in "Sparrow's Point", to a Confederate drummerboy in "Arrowhead", to a Spanish grandmother in "Abuelita", to a power broker in "Confession". Other personas he adopts include a stowaway in "Che Guevara T-Shirt," a NYC cab driver in "Last Fare of the Day," a man on death row in "Ascent," a Civil War widow in "Reunion Hill," and even Mary Magdalene herself.

Shindell's career received a boost in 1997 when Joan Baez recorded three of his songs ("Fishing", "Reunion Hill" and "Money for Floods") for her album Gone from Danger, and invited the aspiring singer-songwriter to join her 1997–98 tour.

Shindell collaborated with Dar Williams and Lucy Kaplansky to form the group Cry Cry Cry. On their eponymous 1998 album, Cry Cry Cry covered an eclectic mix of songwriters, from the famous R.E.M. to the lesser known folk singer James Keelaghan. The trio toured in support of their album, but later resumed their solo careers. They have not mentioned plans for future recordings, although Shindell and Kaplansky often appear on stage together.

A new record of cover songs, titled South of Delia, was released on his website in March of 2007, and was released in record stores and on iTunes later in 2007.

Contents

[edit] Discography

Richard Shindell at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival 2004
Richard Shindell at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival 2004

[edit] EPs

  • Scenes from a Blue Divide (Shanachie, 1995)
  • Spring (Signature Sounds 1256-2, 2000). Contains "Spring" (single edit), "Confession" (acoustic version), "Shades of Black, Shades of Blue" (by Charles Lyonhart), and "Spring/Summer Reel" (album version)
  • 3x2 Sampler (Signature Sounds, 2000). Contains "Beyond the Iron Gate" (alternate version), "Abuelita", and "Transit" (album versions). Also contains three songs by Peter Mulvey.
  • The Sonora Sessions (Signature Sounds, 2001)

[edit] Various artists compilations

  • Main Stage Live: Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (Signature Sounds 1253, 1999). Contains live version of "Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore" (traditional arranged by R. Shindell).
  • Wonderland: A Winter Solstice Celebration (Signature Sounds 1266, 2002). Contains "Before You Go".
  • The Folk Next Door: A Collection of Connecticut Roots Music (WWUH 1992). Contains live version of "Home Team".

[edit] References

  1. ^ Henkle, Doug, "FolkLib Index"

[edit] External links

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