Following up her Edinburgh Fringe run by performing music from her three albums Short, Sharp, Shocked, Captain Swing, and Arkansas Traveler
Seminal songwriter, activist, firebrand, punk, anarcho-feminist Michelle Shocked follows up her 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival Truth vs Reality show by returning to the UK for a short tour, celebrating her roots as a fiercely independent artist, and her celebrated Mercury Trilogy.
Michelle first released the trilogy through Mercury Records in the US, earning Grammy nominations for Short, Sharp, Shocked (1988) and Arkansas Traveler (1992). However, blacklisted by Mercury due to the fact she’d “cut too good a deal for herself”, she sued the label for violating her [anti-slavery] 13th Amendment rights, and retained control of all her masters, re-issuing the trilogy through her own label — Mighty Sound. In a musical landscape where more and more artists from all genres are adopting a spirit of independence and DIY, Michelle Shocked was ahead of the curve by at least a decade.
First discovered after a UK label released a bootleg cassette of her performing around a campfire at the legendary Kerrville Folk Festival in the 1980s, Shocked has gone on to play huge concert halls and acclaimed festivals around the world. Here, she is going back to her roots, playing small, intimate venues and combining tracks from her sizeable back catalogue with stories from the road, and a few surprises thrown in.
Michelle Shocked:
“From a Texas campfire to London cabaret.. I daresay that’s not as daring a leap as moving my mooring from Tottenham to Kingston on Thames when I lived on a narrowboat in the late 80’s. I’ve followed my muse to memorable places; Queen Elizabeth Hall was my first pro gig in London and my glass slipper still fits. Zedel’s is a world-class performance destination and the perfect base to launch my UK tour. It’s a place for grown ups, and I am definitely a grown-ass woman. And, let’s be honest, these days American cabaret can’t handle me.”
Full tour dates below.
- 21 February – Zedel, London – Playing Short Sharp Shocked – SOLD OUT!
- 23 February – Caroline of Brunswick, Brighton – Playing Short Sharp Shocked – SOLD OUT!
- 26 February – Zedel, London – Playing Captain Swing – Buy now!
- 26 February – Zedel, London – Playing Arkansas Traveler – Buy now!
- 1 March – Caroline of Brunswick, Brighton – Playing Arkansas Traveler – Buy now!
- 4 March – Square Chapel Centre for the Arts, Halifax – Playing Short Sharp Shocked –SOLD OUT!
- 5 March – The Boards, Edinburgh – Playing Short Sharp Shocked – Buy now!
- 6 March – The Boards, Edinburgh – Playing Captain Swing – Buy now!
- 8 March – The Boards, Edinburgh – Playing Arkansas Traveler – Buy now!
- 11 March – The 13th Note, Glasgow – Playing Short Sharp Shocked – Buy now!
- 12 March – Belfast Festival of Ideas and Politics – Buy now!
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