HEADLINES

A Deep Look Into the Music of Craig Shannon

November 08, 2019
Craig Shannon is an outstanding musician, artist, singer and songwriter. His original lyrics are comprised of both personal and imaginative experience. Craig Shannon has a creative spirit which is conveyed through his music. His audience is continuously moved by the emotion and intensity which emanates through him on stage. Craig was once asked to describe his relationship with music. 
The following is what he wrote: "Imagination, a glorious sense of wonder, and a soundtrack, are the liquid of life. When I drink from this, I become, I am, what my soul intended me to be. From the first Christmas carols I heard, through all of the music that exploded during the time I grew up in the sixties, through all of the artists, and writers that have come and gone since. I have drank from their cups with an unquenching thirst. Little towns, country roads, freeways and cities. I have observed life through many people and places. My stories are taken from all of this. We are connected, and you can best feel this when you are listening. I remember the first time I felt the power of a song that came from my voice and six steel strings. I was drinking at my friend Grizzly’s Bar on Cedar Mountain, Utah. An old cowboy entered the bar. He had just hitched his horse to a post outside and sat next to me. I had my guitar in my hands and he asked me to play. I played my song Abiline for him, sitting there at the bar. When I finished I looked him in his eyes, and saw myself, his old weathered face had a tear running down, and, he thanked me. I recognized myself in his eyes. I believe there was music before we spoke words. It may have been what transformed us from animals into human beings. If we ever stop singing and dancing we will be lost. I want to thank all the artists, past, present, and still to come for having the courage to perform for all of us."

Craig remembers his early days with music. Waiting for records to be released. Sitting around a record player, playing records over and over, thirsty for the most recently released tracks. Hidden tracks. The excitement of hearing bits of new notes and lyrics over the radio, and the restlessness of getting to his friends fast enough to discuss what they had just discovered. This was a time of patience, wonder and cultural shifts. Craig was born in 1953, and fondly remembers growing up listening to The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens, The Moody Blues, Jethro Tull, and Jimi Hendrix. We hear these names now and imagine legends, mavericks to the music industry creating a stir, an uproar and shifting the status quo. Some of us are old enough to remember, others live vicariously searching for the phantom of originality and ability to think outside of the box, seeking to break this mold that continues to lose plasticity. Craig described listening to these artists as “when changes, possibilities, differences, and rebellion of what society said was okay, was actually okay”.

Craig Shannon allows for the spirit of originality, honesty, and true experience to shine through his music. Craig has written over 100 songs. Each richer and deeper than the next. Craig Shannon began writing when he was young. He has memories of being in third grade and writing short stories. Sharing them with his elementary school friends. Craig looks back at the time fondly, “they really liked my stories, they would wait for me to write new ones”. Craig was asked to sing the National Anthem for his elementary school when he was eleven years old. Craig said, “I had a good voice”. However this event did not go well. It went so horribly that Craig gave up singing until he turned about eighteen. He began writing his own lyrics and music at the age of 23. Craig humbly smirked as he was remembering this and stated, “yeah well nothing good until I was 30”.

Craig Shannon incites excitement and fear, and honors truth through his lyrics and emotion. One of Craig’s longtime friends (of almost 50 years) recently texted Craig. He and Craig were discussing music and sharing upcoming concerts and he wrote, “Steve Earle, as the story goes, years ago, was hanging out with Lucinda Williams, Guy Clark and a cat named Townes Van Zandt in Austin. It became a friendship that has produced a lot of the music that we love today! I think at some point, people will look back at your music and say the same thing”. One may call this a bias review given that they are old friends but the truth is, almost everyone who hears Craig’s songwriting feels the same way. One of Craig’s fans described Craig’s music as, “one of the most passionate songwriters with the guitar to back it up” another stated, “To be in Craig’s audience is to be invited as a participant of the personal experiences in which his songs were born from. It’s not just a show, it’s an exchange”

Craig has the ability to touch people deeply. To speak directly to their soul from the stage. Craig draws people in to his world, his experiences. He allows those who are capable of reaching deep inside to lean into their darkest parts. Craig has made so many local contributions in San Diego. He has volunteered his time working with local drug and alcohol non profit recovery centers to allow individuals to work through pain and trauma with music. Craig has volunteered countless hours to Paternal Opportunities, Programs and Services supporting fathers involved in the Child Welfare System. He has volunteered his time playing music for homeless veterans once a year at the Stand Down put on by the Veterans Village of San Diego. When Craig is not helping organizations reach people on a deep level he is writing, contemplating and searching to challenge the status quo. Craig is a singer and songwriter of the highest caliber. A rough, husky, raspy, sexy voice. Blue eyes that peer into the souls of those who dare to truly listen. Honesty that gives you chills. Enough love to make the world go round.
Craig’s lyrics and music touch individuals from all different genre’s from rap to rock to indie to Americana to country. A fan once said if you allow yourself to listen and truly open your heart you will find your true self, when you lean into it, your eyes open and your horizon broadens. Anyone who has the ability to listen to Craig Shannon’s music absolutely should.
Though he was featured in recently released Lifoti's October/November 2019 issue 10, you can check it from below link's for your country:

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