Gillian Welch

Singer-songwriter, contemporary folk, Americana

Gillian Welch's style is so unique, it's hard to even make a comparison. Depending on the song, she could be compared to the likes of Lucinda Williams and the Carter Family, and will likely be of interest to fans of Alison Krauss, Dar Williams, and Ani DiFranco.

Revival (Almo Sounds, 1996) compare prices

Hell Among the Yearlings (Almo Sounds, 1998) compare prices

Time (The Revelator) (Acony, 2001) compare prices

The Harrow & the Harvest (Acony, 2011) review

"Look at Miss Ohio"
"Revelator"
"Elvis Presley Blues"

Gillian Welch was born in New York City in 1967, and was adopted the same day. When she was four years old, her family moved to Los Angeles, where she would grow up. She picked up guitar around the age of seven and grew up making music. It was during college at UC Santa Cruz, however, where she became enamored with bluegrass music.

She eventually moved to Boston and enrolled at the Berklee College of Music, where she met and started dating guitarist David Rawlings (who later became her musical partner).

Together, Welch and Rawlings moved to Nashville in 1992, and got to work on their music career. Four years later, Welch released her first recording, Revival, which won a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Folk Album. Since then, she has received several other Grammy nominations, as well as IBMA awards.

Welch has released five records in all, with the most recent one being 2011's The Harrow and the Harvest. The disc was released after an eight-year hiatus during which time Welch toured with her partner David Rawlings and as a member of his band, the Dave Rawlings Machine.

In addition to her solo work, Gillian Welch has contributed work to several compilations and soundtracks, including the soundtrack for the Coen Brothers Movie Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? and the 2009 release of Dave Rawlings Machine's A Friend of a Friend.