Shannon McNally’s blues-Americana return, BLACK IRISH will make you dance, break yourheart, and save your soul. The album was recorded in Nashville, but its distinctive sense ofplace lies 210 miles west, where Memphis meets Mississippi. The primary colors of Americanmusic are black and white, and BLACK IRISH displays that hybrid in many shades, mixingcountry, blues, soul, rock, folk balladry and classic pop.BLACK IRISH is McNally’s most personal project yet, which is saying a lot, given theAmericana singer-songwriter’s deep catalog. But it speaks to the power of connection, andthe power of music to create it and to reflect it. The kick off track “You Made Me FeelFor You”, was written by her producer, Americana icon, Rodney Crowell, and serves as ametaphor for their collaboration—how his particular understanding of her unique gifts pulledout the career-defining album many have been waiting for since she came on the scene.The concept for BLACK IRISH began in 2013, as Shannon was going through what she calls“a miserable divorce,” raising her daughter Maeve, and nursing her terminally ill motherMaureen. Her parents had relocated to Holly Springs, Mississippi, and McNally moved in,caring for her mom until her death in 2015.“I had no vim or vigor in me for a couple of years,” she admits. What saved her was her emailrelationship with Crowell, who’d been talking about producing her since 2012. “We startedthis really wonderful thing of just lobbing song titles back and forth. And I just sat at a tableand learned about a dozen tunes, my favorite covers, anything to spark a fire in this reallydark turn.”She co-wrote three of the album’s 12 songs—one with producer Crowell, who also pennedtwo more for her; the rest include personal favorites by Stevie Wonder (“I Ain’t Gonna StandFor It”), Robbie Robertson (“It Makes No Difference”), and J.J. Cale (“Low Rider”). Theresult is an album that stands with the best of classic vocal interpreters like Linda Ronstadt,Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris and Maria Muldaur.When it came time to record, McNally enlisted her friend, Memphis soul-gospel powerhouseWendy Moten on background vocals, while Crowell called in some of Music City’s finest,including guitarists Colin Linden and Audley Freed, bassists Michael Rhodes and DavidSantos, and drummer Jerry Roe.For those familiar with Levon Helm’s ramshackle take on Muddy Waters’ “The Stuff YouGot to Watch”, McNally’s smoothly swinging rockabilly/jump blues will be a revelation. It’sher tribute to Muddy. “I love how classy he was, how sharp-dressed and handsome, with hispompadour and his gold and his perfect suit.”To McNally, the late Susanna Clark’s song about Townes Van Zandt, “Black Haired Boy” (withEmmylou and Elizabeth Cook singing harmony) is a bookend to “Prayer in Open D”, the twomost “singer-songwriter” tracks, both featuring Crowell’s fingerpicking.McNally and company close BLACK IRISH with the joyous, roof-raising Delta gospel of TheStaple Singers’ “Let’s Go Home”. She won’t be staying long. With BLACK IRISH, ShannonMcNally moves into the next part of her journey.

• 1. You Made Me Feel For You
• 2. I Ain't Gonna Stand For It
• 3. Banshee Moan
• 4. I Went To the Well
• 5. Roll Away the Stone
• 6. Black Haired Boy
• 7. Low Rider
• 8. Isn't That Love?
• 9. The Stuff You Gotta Watch
• 10. Prayer In Open D
• 11. It Makes No Difference
• 12. Let's Go Home