The Shams
Encyclopedia
The Shams were an all-female New York
folk pop trio in the 1980s and early 1990s, featuring Amy McMahon Rigby
, Sue Garner, and Amanda Uprichard. Some critics have credited the band with pioneering elements of what would later become known as the Americana
and No Depression
movements in American music. Others have described them as "queens of urban folkdom" or "riot grrrls
unplugged." Punk rock musician Richard Hell
has labeled their music "beauty parlor soul."
Rigby, Garner, and Uprichard began performing together in the early 1980s in a band called the Last Roundup, a period in which they also sang Christmas carol
s together at parties and outside friends' homes. They all held day jobs when they formed The Shams, but they soon found themselves performing with musicians such as the Indigo Girls
, Soul Asylum
and Buffalo Tom
.
The name "The Shams" is a partial reference to the "outsider music"
group The Shaggs
, an all-female band whose lack of training and unusual melodies have prompted some critics to label them the worst band ever. "In our early days, people often compared us to the Shaggs, and we didn't have a name, so we decided on the Shams," Riby told the Chicago Tribune
in 1992. The name also refers to the American vocal group The Tams
.
The Shams released the single "Only a Dream"/"3 A.M." on musician Bob Mould
's Singles Only Label in 1990, followed by the 1992 album Quilt from Matador Records
and the 1993 three-song EP
Sedusia.
Garner, and especially Rigby, have since gone on to notable solo careers.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
folk pop trio in the 1980s and early 1990s, featuring Amy McMahon Rigby
Amy Rigby
Amy Rigby is an American singer-songwriter. After playing with several New York bands she began a solo career, recording several albums which had only modest sales despite enthusiastic reviews. She settled into a career of touring small venues and private parties while raising a daughter, then...
, Sue Garner, and Amanda Uprichard. Some critics have credited the band with pioneering elements of what would later become known as the Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
and No Depression
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
movements in American music. Others have described them as "queens of urban folkdom" or "riot grrrls
Riot grrrl
Riot grrrl was an underground feminist punk movement based in Washington, DC, Olympia, Washington, Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest which existed in the early to mid-1990s, and it is often associated with third-wave feminism...
unplugged." Punk rock musician Richard Hell
Richard Hell
Richard Hell is a singer, songwriter, bass guitarist, and writer.Richard Hell was an innovator of punk music and fashion. He was one of the first to spike his hair and wear torn, cut and drawn-on shirts, often held together with safety pins...
has labeled their music "beauty parlor soul."
Rigby, Garner, and Uprichard began performing together in the early 1980s in a band called the Last Roundup, a period in which they also sang Christmas carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
s together at parties and outside friends' homes. They all held day jobs when they formed The Shams, but they soon found themselves performing with musicians such as the Indigo Girls
Indigo Girls
The Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metropolitan area...
, Soul Asylum
Soul Asylum
Soul Asylum is an American alternative rock band that formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1983.The band originally formed in 1981 under the name Loud Fast Rules, with the original line-up consisting of Dan Murphy, Dave Pirner, Karl Mueller and Pat Morley. The latter was replaced by Grant Young in...
and Buffalo Tom
Buffalo Tom
Buffalo Tom is an alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986. Its principal members are guitarist Bill Janovitz, bassist Chris Colbourn, and drummer Tom Maginnis. The band's name is derived from the band Buffalo Springfield and the first name of the drummer.-Career:Dinosaur Jr...
.
The name "The Shams" is a partial reference to the "outsider music"
Outsider music
Outsider music, a term coined by Irwin Chusid in the mid-1990s, are songs and compositions by musicians who are not part of the commercial music industry who write songs that ignore standard musical or lyrical conventions, either because they have no formal training or because they disagree with...
group The Shaggs
The Shaggs
The Shaggs were an American all-female rock group formed in Fremont, New Hampshire in 1968. The band was composed of sisters Dorothy "Dot" Wiggin , Betty Wiggin , Helen Wiggin , and later Rachel Wiggin ....
, an all-female band whose lack of training and unusual melodies have prompted some critics to label them the worst band ever. "In our early days, people often compared us to the Shaggs, and we didn't have a name, so we decided on the Shams," Riby told the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
in 1992. The name also refers to the American vocal group The Tams
The Tams
The Tams, sometimes later billed as 'The Joe Pope Tams' are an American vocal group from Atlanta, Georgia, who enjoyed their greatest chart success in the 1960s, and the 1970s, and most improbably in the 1980s. Two separate versions of the group continue to perform and record. One version features...
.
The Shams released the single "Only a Dream"/"3 A.M." on musician Bob Mould
Bob Mould
Robert Arthur "Bob" Mould is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.-Early life:...
's Singles Only Label in 1990, followed by the 1992 album Quilt from Matador Records
Matador Records
Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of indie rock artists and bands.-History:Matador was started by Chris Lombardi in 1989 in his New York City apartment. The following year, Lombardi was joined by former Homestead Records manager Gerard Cosloy, and the two of them have...
and the 1993 three-song EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
Sedusia.
Garner, and especially Rigby, have since gone on to notable solo careers.