Meg Christian | |
|---|---|
 Christian performing in January 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Lynchburg, Virginia, U.S. |
| Genres | Folk |
| Occupations |
|
| Instruments |
|
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Labels |
|
Meg Christian (born 1946 inLynchburg, Virginia)[1] is an Americanfolk singer associated with thewomen's music movement.
Christian was born inTennessee in 1946 and raised inLynchburg, Virginia. She has spoken about being an only child, learningstringed instruments while spending a lot of time alone and later being influenced byJoan Baez,The Kingston Trio andHarry Belafonte to organize folk groups in the '60s.[2][3] Christian graduated from theUniversity of North Carolina with a double degree in English and music.[1]
She moved to Washington, D.C. in 1969, where she performed in bars coveringeasy listening material by artists such asJoni Mitchell andBurt Bacharach. Christian has said that her "entrance to sexual politics" began after witnessing the wayDavid Frost showed little respect for two women authorsTi-Grace Atkinson andRobin Morgan,[4], during an interview. She then began writing material from an explicitly political andfeminist perspective.[5] For a time in the 1970s, Christian, who is openly lesbian,[6] embracedwomen's separatism and sometimes played at women-only venues.[1][5] She has acknowledged that the "feminist tag...makes women's music seem limited in appeal" but that the common denominator is that "we all make make music out of a consciousness of being a woman...some of us would rather play only to an audience of women...some want to play to the universe."[7]
Christian was one of the performers at the second Boston Women's Music Festival in 1977 and agreed withHolly Near, that the purpose of their music was to make women more aware of political issues. She explained how discovering the gay and women's movement in 1969 had resulted in her writing new material, noting "I couldn't believe what was coming out of my mouth...[and]...I started trying to find songs that said something to women."[8]
Christian, along with other feminist and lesbian activists foundedOlivia Records in 1973.[5] The label began by releasing a single of Christian's version of theGerry Goffin/Carole King songLady, and the first LP was Christian's debut album,I Know You Know in 1974.[9] A reviewer said [that] "the album's core is found in its romantic woman-to-woman folk-pop ballads, such as Christian's ownValentine Song...[and]...the arrangements, generally keyed to Christian's classical or steel-string guitar, are very much in the singer/songwriter style ofJames Taylor andJoni Mitchell.[10] Christian's second albumFace the Music (1977) was said in one review to reflect [the conflict] "between the value of the music-as-message and the music's value regardless of what it is about lyrically",[11] while in another, as being "worth the attention of anyone interested in women's music and an absolute must for Meg Christian fans.[12] Christian has said that the songs on her third albumTurning it Over released in 1981, "had gone places that she had never imagined they would go musically and they are so beautiful that they made me cry."[13] TheWashington Post noted ofTurning it Over, that "every major performer in women's music (Cris Williamson,Mary Watkins,Teresa Trull,Margie Adam) appeared as a musician or backup singer...[and]...it was a sign of love and respect for Christian, who has been at the cultural heart of the women's movement for more than a decade."[4]
She ceased giving live performances in 1984, and began studyingSiddha Yoga withGurumayi Chidvilasananda.[14] The result of these explorations were the albumsThe Fire of My Love andSongs of Ecstasy. She changed her first name to Shambhavi during this time and lived in anashram in New York.[1]
In 2002, Christian restarted her association with Olivia Records, and began performing again for label events; her first appearance since 1984 was on acruise ship arranged by Olivia.[1] She also performed on two weeklong Caribbean cruises to celebrate Olivia's 40-year anniversary in 2013.[15]
Christian has said that working with Olivia Records assisted her as a recovering alcoholic. She noted that writing songs as a "woman-identified-woman" was not only consistent with her concept of feminism, but had also developed an awareness of how music enabled emotional changes to be made without compromising her art. Christian described the emotions and moods of women's music, as helping women "know all that we are" and it helped her to deal with her anger and "listen to my inner voice, to what I truly want for myself, beyond all the shoulds and oughts."[16] She later shared her experiences about time spent in the Alcoholism Centre for Women in Los Angeles and said that she had been validated by meeting other women dealing with the same issue.[17]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
