February 17, 2010
Shawn Colvin. Download image.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB's Alys Stephens Center will present an evening with Shawn Colvin at 8 p.m. Friday, March 5 in the center, 1200 10th Ave. South. Tickets are $45, $35, $25; $20 for students. A limited number of VIP tickets are available. Call 205-975-2787 or go to www.AlysStephens.org.
Colvin is a rare performer, like Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris or the idol of her youth, Joni Mitchell, who has been able to grow up alongside her audience and mature into her role as singer and songwriter. She was rewarded with a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk for her 1989 debut disc "Steady On." Colvin continued to win fans and critics with her subsequent releases, "Fat City" (1992) and "Cover Girl" (1994). In 1996, she released "A Few Small Repairs," which proved to be her breakthrough: the murder-ballad "Sunny Came Home" gave Colvin a Top 10 hit and two of Grammy's biggest honors: Record of the Year and Song of the Year. "Holiday Songs and Lullabies" (1998), recorded while Colvin was more than eight months pregnant with her daughter Caledonia, followed. Colvin's 2006 release, "These Four Walls," was lauded by People magazine as "the most self-assured album of her career" and "one for the ages" by the Washington Post. The Austin-American Statesman called it "an exquisite portrait of strength and vulnerability."
Colvin's newest release, "Shawn Colvin Live" (2009), was recorded in 2008 during a special three-night solo engagement at San Francisco's famous jazz club, Yoshi's. "Live" includes 12 songs written or co-written by Colvin, as well as covers of songs by Robbie Robertson, Gnarls Barkley and the Talking Heads. "Live" captures the beauty and intimacy of Colvin's performances, showcasing her inimitable voice and matchless guitar stylings. Colvin recently signed a deal with Harper Collins Publishers to write a memoir, which will be an extension of the intimate, personal and often hilarious stories that she weaves into her live concerts.
This show is part of the Eclectic Palate Series and is sponsored by Protective Life Corp., The Birmingham News and Viva Health.
About UAB's Alys Stephens Center
UAB's Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center is one of the Southeast's premier performing arts centers, hosting the best in international, national and local performance. Home to the UAB departments of theatre and music and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, the ASC also presents its own season, bringing the world's best music, dance, theater, comedy and family entertainment to Alabama.