Jacqueline McShee (born 25 December 1943) is an English singer. Since 1966, she has performed with Pentangle, a jazz-influenced folk rock band.
Biography
McShee was born in Catford, South London. Her musical career began as a soloist in British folk clubs in the mid 1960s.[1] After working with guitarist John Renbourn, she co-founded Pentangle.[1]
Pentangle established itself as one of the earliest exponents of the British folk rock movement. However, in addition to attracting fans of traditional British folk, they also drew audiences from the rock, pop and psychedelic folk worlds.[2] The original band played a mixture of ballads, blues, and jazz, often blending these genres in the same piece.
In 1994, McShee formed a new band named Jacqui McShee's Pentangle which, with a few personnel changes, is still performing today.[1]
In 1995, McShee performed as a session singer, along with her husband, drummer Gerry Conway, on the album Active in The Parish by the singer-songwriter David Hughes. In 1997, the album was voted a Q magazine 'Folk Album of the Year'. In 1998, McShee teamed up with Ulrich Maske to record The Frog and the Mouse and The Cat and the Fiddle. These two books were designed to help German children to learn to speak English.
In 2020, she and British guitarist Kevin Dempsey released From There to Here (MCDEM 001), a recording of self-composed songs and traditional tunes. In November 2020, she was reported to be living in Surrey, England.[3][4]
McShee has a sister. Both of them joined the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in the early 1960s.[5]
Personal life
She was married to drummer and percussionist Gerry Conway, who died in 2024 from motor neurone disease.[6] She had two children, Matthew born in 1979, and Leah born in 1984.[7]
Discography
As a collective
Jacqui McShee, Danny Thompson, Tony Roberts, Vic Abram, An Album of English Christmas Carols (1994)
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