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Biography
Patty Griffin grew up as the youngest child with six older siblings. When she turned 16 she bought her first guitar with the intentions to pursue music as a hobby rather than a profession. After her first marriage ended in 1992 she began performing at local coffee houses in Boston and quickly caught the attention of A&M Records, who later signed her to the label.
By 1996 Griffin released her debut album through A&M called “Living with Ghosts”. The album has been one of Griffin’s most successful releases with her selling over 222,000 copies in the US. The album featured the raw approach of Griffin performing only with her voice and acoustic guitar. She avoided the commercial approach of recording with a backing band and opted to produce an album that could be taken as more sincere and direct. The music on the album is very minimalistic and has strong emotional undertones. The album featured the songs “Moses” and “Let Him Fly”.
In 1998 Griffin released her second album “Flaming Red”, which conveyed her switching directions from a minimalistic acoustic guitar approach to a more elaborate approach with a wider range of instrumentation. “Flaming Red” covered genres ranging from folk to rock to country to pop to trip-hop. The album reached the No. 12 spot on the Top Heatseekers chart and was considered more accessible than her debut album.
After “Flaming Red” Griffin was dropped from A&M records and was picked up by Dave Matthews Band’s label ATO Records. Griffin released her third album “1000 Kisses” in 2002, which peaked at No. 101 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 1 on the Heatseekers chart. Although the album was recorded with a band, the album mostly contained acoustic instrumentation and conveyed an intimate sound. The album contained several popular original songs as well as a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Stolen Car”.
Griffin continued to release albums through ATO Records. In 2003 she released “A Kiss in Time”, which was recorded at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2004 she released “Impossible Dream”, which contained the popular song “Top of the World”, which was made famous when the Dixie Chicks covered the song. In 2007 she released “Children Running Through”, which included a collaboration with Emmylou Harris on the song “Trapeze”. The album received critical praise and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. Griffin released the album “Downtown Church” in 2010, which won a Dove Award for Inspirational Album of the Year. In 2013 Griffin released “American Kid”, which was released to critical acclaim and included a songwriting duet with Robert Plant on the song “Highway Song”.
Griffin is also respected by her fellow musicians and has had the opportunity to tour with the likes of Buddy Miller, Gillian Welch, Robert Plant, and David Rawlings. Her music has also been covered by many artists such as Lind Ronstadt, Bette Midler, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Miranda Lambert.
Live reviews
As a Grammy award winning singer/songwriter Patty Griffin made her mark in the music industry with her minimalistic and original folk/rock sound way back in 1996 with her smash hit debut album, Living with Ghosts. Since then, Griffin has worked alongside a whole host of prestigious musicians. When another artist makes the decision and takes the time to cover your songs, you know you’ve really made it, and Griffin has had that occur countless times.
I’ve seen Griffin live a few times, but the most recent concert was definitely the most memorable. Her band (who were incredible) walked on stage, set up their instruments, and began playing the opening introduction of Carry Me as the audience began cheering in anticipation. Griffin slowly walked on stage and gave a small wave and a smile before beginning the song. It was one of the best renditions of her song that I’d heard her do, and she put a different spin on it from the recording, which was extremely refreshing.
The set journeyed through her hits, a couple of covers, and some new tracks that I actually hadn’t heard before. It was amazing to hear new music from Patty. The way that she interacts with her audience is wonderful, as she made the intimate venue seem like a living room. I’ll definitely be going back to see another concert as she just gets better and better.
yazhow
It was my fifth time to see Patty and she was it was by far the best - a combination of her talent, her band and the wonderful concert venue.
Her accompanying duo was fantastic and the three managed to weave a magical atmosphere throughout the historic Auditorium at the Douglas.
The sound in the venue was amazing and the performance was spellbinding, mixing old favorites with selections from her newest release.
The highlight of the night was the reappearance of opening act John Fullbright for the encore, and he and Patty delivered a spirited cover of Dylan's "I Shall be Released".
Both Patty and John sounded the best I had ever heard and I have also seen Fullbright at least a half dozen times.
Fantastic evening and one you would not want to miss.
ndwell
Love me some Patty! She was wonderful! I only wish she would've sang a lot more of her older stuff :( And the drunk people in front of us were a distraction the whole time. WHY do people spend big bucks on a concert ticket then go to the show and talk the whole time? So annoying for the rest of us who came for the artist! Regardless, Patty looked amazing with her red boots and wild hair and that raspy voice to match. This is not the first time I've seen her, nor the last.
nicole-watkins-4
Patty Griffin's voice never ceases to amaze me, not to mention she was incredibly kind to the men and women who were signing her lyrics. Someone in the crowd remembered it was her birthday so we all sang happy birthday to her. To be honest, watching Patty's reaction to the song made my day. All and all, it was an outstanding show and I'm glad I got to experience it.
pheebes-mcgeebs
Show was way too short! Played for just over an hour, with no opening act. With Patty only playing every 3rd song it felt very underwhelming and not worthy of the price of admission. More Patty please!
Czabes
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