Susan McKeown (born February 6, 1967) is an Irish-American folk singer, songwriter, and producer. Dubbed the “Celtic High Priestess,” McKeown has contributed to more than seventy albums over a career spanning upwards of three decades. Among several awards and honors, she won the 2007 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album for Wonder Wheel with The Klezmatics.
Since 1989, McKeown has served as the front woman of Susan McKeown & The Chanting House. Their 1996 album Bones garnered international recognition, with Time Magazine remarking “this is the kind of music that will link Ireland’s musical past with its future.” Her 2004 album Sweet Liberty—a blend of Celtic folk with elements of Mexican Mariachi and Malian Tuareg music—was nominated at the 2005 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. McKeown’s 2012 album Belong was a critical and commercial success, and its lead single, “Everything We Had Was Good,” reached No. 1 on the U.S. Folk Singles Chart.
Throughout her career, McKeown has performed at numerous venues including the Glastonbury Festival, Carnegie Hall, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Hollywood Bowl, and the National Concert Hall. Her music has been featured on PBS, NPR, PRI, BBC, and RTÉ, as well as in ad campaigns for Audi, Jaguar, and Olay.
Early life and education
Susan McKeown was born on February 6, 1967, in Dublin, Ireland. The youngest of five children, she grew up in a musical household: her father worked as a food scientist, while her mother was a pianist and composer who fostered McKeown’s early interest in music. McKeown would later recall, “I was singing before I could speak because my mom had a Hammond organ at home and we were always surrounded by music."
At age fifteen, McKeown began studying classical voice with noted Irish soprano Veronica Dunne. While still in secondary school, she chose to forgo a potential career in opera in favour of folk music. She then began busking on Grafton Street performing with friends, including future Academy Award-winner Glen Hansard. McKeown later matriculated to University College Dublin, earning a joint honours degree in English and Philosophy.
Susan McKeown & The Chanting House
thumb|left|180px|Susan McKeown & the Chanting House c. 1993
Together with John Doyle, McKeown co-founded The Chanting House in 1989. Initially performing as a duo, the band toured Europe with Donogh Hennessy and other musicians, playing original songs as well as traditional Irish music. The Chanting House released a self-titled debut mixtape in 1990, and were invited to perform on The Late Late Show and Nighthawks. Other band members from this period included Chris Cunningham, Michelle Kinney, Lindsey Horner and Joe Trump.. The song "Jericho" was subsequently included in the 1997 compilation album Women Of The World: Celtic II from Putumayo World Music, and featured in the 1999 BBC documentary series The Irish Empire. When commenting on the albums' genre in an interview with Billboard, McKeown noted “on Bones, I write songs using the rhythms of jigs and reels, but at the same time they are unmistakably rock songs. Traditional music is dear to me, but it’s up to the new generation to see how it’s carried down.”
thumb|Susan McKeown & the Chanting House, [[Club Fez c. 1995]]
Bones was lauded by music critics, with particular praise for McKeown’s vocals, songwriting, and experimentation with genre. British publication Rhythm named Bones "one of the best releases of 1996," observing “McKeown comes on the scene like a force of nature: a tide of incantory verse and a voice that slays demons... there’s a stateliness in her delivery that suggests she’s in midnight communion with the long-departed spirit of Sandy Denny.”
After touring on and off for six years, the band released their sophomore studio album Prophecy via Sheila-na-Gig Music on March 4, 2002. Much like its predecessor, the album garnered critical acclaim, with Siobhan Long of The Irish Times awarding the album 4 stars, noting "McKeown exhibits damn fine, renaissance musicianship... Challenging and cerebral, Prophecys 10 gemstone tracks will tap at your subconscious long after your first listen." Sarah McQuaid, in a review for Hot Press, offered similar praise, writing
"Because I could not stop for Death" was subsequently listed in the "Top 20 Songs of Fate & Destiny" by The Guardian. "River" was later covered by Irish band Gráda on their 2007 album Cloudy Day Navigation.
Solo career
Following the success of Bones, McKeown released a Christmas album, Through the Bitter Frost and Snow, with 1-800-Prime-CD and Broadcast Music, Inc. on October 14, 1997. Collaborating with primarily with American jazz double-bassist Lindsey Horner, the album features guest appearances from Jeff Berman, Michelle Kinney, Pete McCann, and Carol Sharar. Through the Bitter Frost & Snow was met with critical acclaim from various media outlets, including AllMusic, Rhythm, the Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post, among others. While promoting the album, McKeown and Horner performed their version of Auld Lang Syne on the New Year’s Eve broadcast of NPR’s All Things Considered.
Later that same year McKeown released Snakes, her debut solo EP with 1-800 Prime CD. Featuring songs from her previous collaborative projects, Bones with The Chanting House and Through the Bitter Frost and Snow with Lindsey Horner, Snakes was released on November 1, 1997. Produced by McKeown, Horner, and Jimi Zhivago, the EP contains four tracks: "Snakes/Mná na hÉireann" (radio version), "Winter King", "Daddy's Little Girl", and "Snakes/Mná na hÉireann" (album version). Mike Boehm of the Los Angeles Times deemed the EP's titular track a "Rosanne Cash-style folk-pop anthem." The following month McKeown contributed two tracks to The Soul of Christmas: A Celtic Music Celebration, a compilation holiday album with Tommy Boy Records. Produced by New York Times bestselling author Thomas Moore, the album also features appearances from Cathie Ryan, Johnny Cunningham, Mary Fahl, and Kathy Mattea. Upon its release, the album was accompanied by a PBS Pledge Week Christmas Special of the same name. Hosted by Martin Sheen, and featuring the albums primary vocalists, the special aired daily from December 6–14, 1997.The Soul of Christmas: A Celtic Music Celebration was subsequently released for purchase on VHS via GlobalVision.
McKeown released Bushes & Briars, her first solo-album of Celtic music, on on February 3, 1998 with Alula Records. Produced by McKeown, Jamshied Sharifi, and
Akira Satake, Bushes & Briars features guest appearances from Andy Irvine, Chris Speed, Greg Anderson, Jerry O'Sullivan, Skúli Sverrisson, and Séamus Egan. Buhses & Briars was lauded by critics. Rick Anderson, in a review for AllMusic awarded the album 4.5 stars, writing: