Michelle Shocked

Michelle Shocked's early days were spent circling the world as a military brat, and her wanderlust never subsided, propelling her through (trans)formative times in Austin, San Francisco, and Amsterdam, and shaping her into a musical seeker who writes about the places she's seen, the people she's known, and the truths she's learned. Her best-known track, the intimate "Anchorage," is an ode to constancy in the face of change, just one song in a body of work that — from the rough poetry of "5 A.M. In Amsterdam" to the grown-up rocker "Love's Song" — is nothing less than a life's journey in song. Travel into Next Steps for more Michelle Shocked.

When even a sweet, down-home tune about making "Strawberry Jam" with Grandma becomes a sly shot at corporate America, you know you're dealing with a real-deal folk talent. Shocked makes sure she honors that gift by always evolving; so while cheeky, early output like "God Is a Real Estate Developer" brings a smart-aleck sensibility right up front, smart and seasoned songs such as "Other People" offer a subtler blend of the political and deeply personal. There's been room for much more in Shocked's decades of music-making, including atmospheric soundscapes like "What Can I Say," and even swingin', slightly silly takes on Disney ditties like "To Be a Cat." Dig deeper into the world of Michelle Shocked in Deep Cuts.

When an artist has spent more than 20 years dedicated to musical exploration, plenty of worthy tracks will fall between the cracks. That's where Deep Cuts comes in, with a set of Michelle Shocked gems that don't always get the attention they deserve — witness the potent gospel rocker "Psalm," or the reggae splash of the song of faith "Can't Take My Joy." If there's one thing that unites them all, it's Shocked's commitment to personal authenticity, a sense of caring detail that translates into expansive appeal, whether she's painting a landscape of L.A. Latino life on "Picotesque" or rendering an achingly intimate portrait in the spellbinding "Stillborn."

She was practically born a traveler, this military brat-turned-exploratory troubadour, and her life's journeys have taken her through times as a rebellion-ready punk rocker, a campfire folk singer (hear both personae rolled into one on a raw and youthful "Fogtown"), a major-label breakout, and an indie artist fiercely dedicated to pure, personal expressions of an endless love for American music. "I'm the most sophisticated hillbilly you'll ever meet," says Shocked, and if her East Texas origins come out in the laid-back twang of tunes like "When I Grow Up," she has no problem slipping into other musical skins on songs like the swing-style kiss-off "Too Little Too Late," the Southern-soul mourner "Forgive to Forget," or the hushed-and-tender lullaby "Baby Mine." Our [i]Michelle Shocked[/i] Essentials brings together her best, with decades' worth of a shared heritage filtered through a one-of-a-kind sound.