Spend “An Acoustic Evening with Shawn Colvin” at the Davidson on October 12

Shawn Colvin won her first Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album with her debut album, Steady On (1989). She has been a mainstay of the contemporary folk music scene ever since, releasing 12 superlative albums and establishing herself as one of America’s greatest live performers. She triumphed at the 1998 Grammy Awards, winning both Record and Song of the Year for “Sunny Came Home.”

CAPA presents An Acoustic Evening with Shawn Colvin at the Davidson Theatre (77 S. High St.) on Friday, October 12, at 8 pm. Tickets are $31.50 and $41.50 at the CAPA Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), all Ticketmaster outlets, and www.ticketmaster.com. To purchase tickets by phone, please call (614) 469-0939 or (800) 745-3000.

In the 27 years since the release of her debut album, Colvin has won three Grammy Awards, released 11 albums, written a critically acclaimed memoir, maintained a non-stop national and international touring schedule, appeared on countless television and radio programs, had her songs featured in major motion pictures and created a remarkable canon of work. 

A small-town childhood in the university town of Carbondale, Illinois, drew Colvin to the guitar by the age of 10. She made her first public appearance on campus at the University of Illinois at age 15. By the late 1970s, Colvin was singing in a Western Swing band in Austin, Texas—the city she now calls home. Moving to New York at the decade’s end, she remained in the country music field as a member of the Buddy Miller Band until she met producer, guitarist, and co-writer John Leventhal who inspired her to find her own voice as a songwriter. She began honing her skill and was soon signed to Columbia records. Her first album, Steady On, won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Recording. 

Colvin continued to win fans and critics with her subsequent releases, Fat City (1992) and Cover Girl (1994). In 1996, she released A Few Small Repairs, which would prove to be her breakthrough. The murder-ballad “Sunny Came Home” gave Colvin a Top 10 hit, a platinum-selling album, and two of Grammy’s biggest honors—Record of the Year and Song of the Year. 

Holiday Songs and Lullabies (1998), recorded while Colvin was eight and a half months pregnant with her daughter Caledonia, followed. Her next studio album, Whole New You (2001), found Colvin examining her new motherhood and the responsibilities of family. Polaroids (2004) is a showcase of the first half of her recording career. These Four Walls (2006) was lauded by People Magazine as “the most self-assured album of her career” and “one for the ages” by the Washington Post.

Shawn Colvin Live (2009), was recorded during a special three-night solo engagement at San Francisco’s famous jazz club, Yoshi’s. Praised by both critics and fans, the album was honored with a Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Folk Recording.

All Fall Down (2012), Colvin’s eighth studio album, was the first to be produced by her longtime friend and cohort Buddy Miller. Recorded in Nashville with a group of stellar musicians, the album features performances by Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Jakob Dylan, Bill Frisell, Viktor Krauss, Brian Blade, Stuart Duncan, and Julie Miller.

The release of All Fall Down was simultaneous with that of her memoir, Diamond in the Rough. Its pages tell the inspiring story of a woman honing her artistry, finding her voice, and making herself whole.

The long-awaited Uncovered (2015) includes masterful interpretations of songs by Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, Tom Waits, Stevie Wonder, Robbie Robertson, and Graham Nash to name a few, but in their selection and delivery they are pure Shawn Colvin.

In 2016, Colvin and longtime friend Steve Earle united to release, Colvin & Earle, their acclaimed self-titled duo album. Produced by Buddy Miller, Colvin & Earle beautifully captures the pair’s extraordinary chemistry and is a true standout in careers already filled with pinnacles and masterpieces.

Shawn was recently recognized for her career accomplishments when she was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Trailblazer Award at the 2016 Americana Honors and Awards Show.

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Grammy-winning A Few Small Repairs, Columbia/Legacy Recordings released an expanded edition of the album in 2017. The anniversary edition includes seven rare, live performances plus enhanced artwork with liner notes by Colvin and Leventhal and archival photos.

Colvin’s most recent release, The Starlighter (2018), is a collection of songs adapted from the children's music book "Lullabies and Night Songs." It’s 14 songs are a mix of traditional numbers and children's standards, an elegant and graceful musical offering that resonates with the warmth and tenderness of poignant familial experience and remembrance.