Mem Shannon
Encyclopedia
Mem Shannon is an American
blues
musician
. He is currently signed to Toronto's NorthernBlues Music
. Shannon is a former taxi-cab driver turned bluesman.
and guitar
by the age of fifteen, due to being inspired by his father's collection of blues records. However, he started seriously practicing only after seeing B.B. King.
In the early 1990s, he formed a group called Mem Shannon and the Membership, who won a spot playing at the 1991 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
. Later in 1991, they competed for a spot at the Long Beach Blues Festival
, but lost in the final round of the talent contest and did not get to appear.
of Hannibal Records
contacted Shannon, and his first album, A Cab Driver's Blues, was released on October 15, 1995. Songs on the album featured snippets of actual conversations from his customers while in the cab.
In April 1996, Shannon announced that he was giving up driving his cab in order to make playing music his full-time job.
His song "S.U.V." (2002), won Living Blues
magazine's Critics Poll Song of the Year, as well as receiving a Blues Music Awards nomination for song of the year.
Shannon appeared as himself in the 2008 novel, Bad Moon Rising by Jonathan Maberry
. He is one of several real-world celebrities who are in the fictional town of Pine Deep when monsters attack. Other celebrities included Tom Savini
, Brinke Stevens
, Ken Foree
, Stephen Susco
, Debbie Rochon
, James Gunn
and Joe Bob Briggs
. Shannon's name and persona appear coincidentally in two horror novels: Fat White Vampire Blues by Andrew Fox and the aforementioned Bad Moon Rising.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. He is currently signed to Toronto's NorthernBlues Music
NorthernBlues Music
NorthernBlues Music is a Canadian independent record label, which specializes in blues music. The label was established in 2001, and a number of its artists and albums have since been nominated for and won Blues Music Awards...
. Shannon is a former taxi-cab driver turned bluesman.
Early life
Shannon played both clarinetClarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
by the age of fifteen, due to being inspired by his father's collection of blues records. However, he started seriously practicing only after seeing B.B. King.
Beginnings
After playing in local bands for several years and enjoying local success, his father died in 1981 and he took a job driving a cab in order to help his family pay bills. His music career was put on hold until 1990, when he began playing in local clubs at the urging of his former bassist.In the early 1990s, he formed a group called Mem Shannon and the Membership, who won a spot playing at the 1991 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, often known as Jazz Fest, is an annual celebration of the music and culture of New Orleans and Louisiana...
. Later in 1991, they competed for a spot at the Long Beach Blues Festival
Long Beach Blues Festival
The Long Beach Blues Festival, in Long Beach, California, was established in full in 1980, and is one of the largest Blues festivals and is the second oldest on the West Coast . It is held on Saturday and Sunday of Labor Day weekend. For many years it was held on the athletic field on the...
, but lost in the final round of the talent contest and did not get to appear.
First album and beyond
In 1995, after being impressed with a demo tape that Shannon had recorded, Joe BoydJoe Boyd
Joe Boyd is an American record producer and former owner of the Witchseason production company. Boyd was instrumental in launching the careers of Nick Drake, Fairport Convention, and The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
of Hannibal Records
Hannibal Records
Hannibal Records was a record label and one of the first to work with the World music genre.Hannibal was started by Joe Boyd in 1980. Boyd had produced records by artists such as Nick Drake, The Incredible String Band and Fairport Convention and released recordings by these artists as well as...
contacted Shannon, and his first album, A Cab Driver's Blues, was released on October 15, 1995. Songs on the album featured snippets of actual conversations from his customers while in the cab.
In April 1996, Shannon announced that he was giving up driving his cab in order to make playing music his full-time job.
His song "S.U.V." (2002), won Living Blues
Living Blues
Living Blues is a bi-monthly magazine focused on covering the African American blues tradition, and America's oldest blues periodical. The magazine was founded as a quarterly in Chicago in 1970 by Jim O'Neal and Amy van Singel. Alligator Records owner and founder Bruce Iglauer was also one of the...
magazine's Critics Poll Song of the Year, as well as receiving a Blues Music Awards nomination for song of the year.
Shannon appeared as himself in the 2008 novel, Bad Moon Rising by Jonathan Maberry
Jonathan Maberry
Jonathan Maberry is the multiple Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Ghost Road Blues, the first of the Pine Deep Trilogy, a series of supernatural horror novels...
. He is one of several real-world celebrities who are in the fictional town of Pine Deep when monsters attack. Other celebrities included Tom Savini
Tom Savini
Thomas Vincent "Tom" Savini is an American actor, stuntman, director, award-winning special effects and makeup artist. He is known for his work on the Living Dead films directed by George A. Romero, as well as Creepshow, The Burning, Friday the 13th, The Prowler, and Maniac. He directed the 1990...
, Brinke Stevens
Brinke Stevens
Brinke Stevens is an American actress, model and writer.-Life and career:Born in San Diego, California, Stevens has studied several foreign languages, including Esperanto, and gained a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Psychology from San Diego State University and a Master of Science in Marine...
, Ken Foree
Ken Foree
Kentotis Alvin "Ken" Foree is an American actor probably most famous as the hero Peter in Dawn of the Dead and Kenan & Kel as Roger, Kenan's dad.- Early life and career :Foree was born in Indianapolis, Indiana...
, Stephen Susco
Stephen Susco
Stephen Susco is a film and television screenwriter who is most famous for writing the hit movies The Grudge and The Grudge 2.-Career:...
, Debbie Rochon
Debbie Rochon
Debbie Rochon is a Canadian B-movie actress and former stage performer, best known for her work in Troma films.-Biography:...
, James Gunn
James Gunn
James Gunn may refer to:*Sir James Gunn of Scotland, explorer, member of Henry Sinclair's survey expedition in the 14th century*James Gunn , US Senator from Georgia...
and Joe Bob Briggs
Joe Bob Briggs
John Irving Bloom , who uses the pseudonym Joe Bob Briggs, is a syndicated American film critic, writer and comic performer.-Early years:...
. Shannon's name and persona appear coincidentally in two horror novels: Fat White Vampire Blues by Andrew Fox and the aforementioned Bad Moon Rising.
Discography
- A Cab Driver's Blues (1995)
- 2nd Blues Album (1997)
- Spend Some Time With Me (1999)
- Memphis in the Morning (2001)
- I'm From Phunkville (2005)
- Live: A Night at Tipitina's (2007)