Meet Singer Songwriter and Folk Artist Iris DeMent
The Sensational Country-Folk Music of Iris Dement
Country Folk Arist Iris DeMent's Recordings and Discography
Iris DeMent's Infamous Angel album was released in 1992 to much acclaim. Her song Let the Mystery Be, from the same album, was covered by several artists, including Alice Stuart and 10,000 Maniacs. In 1994, Iris DeMent released her second album My Life which earned a Grammy nomination in the Best Contemporary Folk Album category, no small thing in the country-folk music world. Another album, The Way I Should, was released in 1996 and further advanced Iris DeMent's reputation as a truthteller in the country-folk community. After taking a break from recording for several years, her album Lifeline topped the charts in 2004, cementing Iris DeMent's reputation as a solid country-folk performer and recording artist.
Singer Songwriter Iris DeMent Songs and Lyrics
What on earth does Iris DeMent write and sing about? Plenty. Besides handily covering traditional country-folk topics on the ups and downs of life and love, Iris Dement shows her political edge and range in songs like, Wasteland of the Free and There's a Wall in Washington (The Way I Should). Wasteland's powerful and edgy lyrics, in particular, mark a clear departure from what we had come to expect from the sad and soulful Iris DeMent:
We got CEO's making two hundred times the workers' pay but they'll fight like hell against raising the minimum wage and If you don't like it, mister, they'll ship your job to some third-world country 'cross the sea and it feels like I am living in the wasteland of the free... (Wasteland of the Free)
Iris DeMent Collaborations and Inspiration
Iris DeMent is in big demand on the country-folk circuit. She's appeared several times on one of my favorite shows, Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion, and performed her wonderful acoustic set on the Austin City Limits stage. She has collaborated with the likes of John Prine and Emmy Lou Harris, among other folk legends of the day. She herself has even covered country great Merle Haggard's Big City. In her spare time, Iris DeMent has sung background vocals on any number of albums, including those by Jann Brown (Only Hurts When I Laugh) and Nanci Griffith (Other Voices, Other Rooms). In a simple twist of fate or fortune, it turns out that Iris DeMent was the inspiration for the Goo Goo Dolls' song Iris when one of the band members spotted a story on her unique country-folk sound in Billboard Magazine.
RESOURCES
Iris DeMent
www.irisdement.com
Folkways, Smithsonian Institution
www.folkways.si.edu
Folk Alliance
www.folkalliance.org
Folk Music Archives
www.folkmusicarchives.org
3 Sensational Female Folk Artists Performing Today
By Mary G. Hardiman for Associated Content, 2010
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M.G. Hardiman for Associated Content
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Published by M.G. Hardiman - Featured Contributor in Lifestyle
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- Iris DeMent's simple but heartfelt lyrics and melodies make her stand out in the folk music crowd.
7 Comments
Post a CommentAustin's a great town. Thanks for your read, Cheryl!
I had not yet heard her music, but I love country music and her philosophy! I'm going to look her up in the music store.
I will most definitely be checking her music out. Thanks!
She's a real throw back to a classic country folk sound, Michele. Beautiful voice. You might like her, Michele.
I haven't heard of Iris DeMent, but I'll be looking (and listening) for her. cheers
PV love today
Great review. It brought back memories of Austin City Limits in the town where I used to live. Thanks.