Syd Straw

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• Genre: Singer-Songwriter

About

Straw is a singer songwriter with a wonderfully expressive soprano voice and a gift for offbeat images and affecting melodies. She got started in the music business as a back-up singer for Pat Benatar, before moving into the lead singer position in the 1980's cult super group The Golden Palominos. The Palominos were led by producer/percussionist Anton Fier, and their shifting line up included folks like Michael Stipe and Richard Thompson they made the kind of cerebral yet visceral Art Rock that was a critic's wet dream. After leaving the group Straw scored her own major deal, recording an album with Daniel Lanois that included players like Ry Cooder, Van Dyke Parks, Michael Stipe and Marshall Crenshaw. It was a while before her next record, which was a much more scaled down affair with the Missouri Roots Rock band The Skeletons backing her up. In conjunction with her solo career, Straw is a much in demand harmony singer and collaborator, working with a long list of Roots Rock, Alt country and Indie Rock luminaries.

- Tom Heyman