Ani DiFranco

www.righteousbabe.com/ani/index.asp

BIOGRAPHY:

Since releasing her first recording in 1990, Ani DiFranco has established herself as one of the most influential and inspirational artists of the modern era. DiFranco’s innovative guitar style, signature percussive fingerpicking, expressive vocals and incisive lyrics—along with a constitutional inability to be anything less than totally real—have earned her a loyal, dedicated fan base and ongoing critical acclaim.
 
Ani began her recording career in quintessential lo-fi/DIY fashion by pressing up 500 cassettes to sell at her shows; it was the first of a steady outpouring of artful and boldly personal recordings, marking her as perhaps the most prolific artist of her generation. Altogether, her 19 official albums have sold more than 4 million copies—and she’s done it in classic troubadour fashion, one fan at a time, via word of mouth and sheer charisma, rather than through radio play or marketing campaigns.
 
Released September 11, 2007, Canon, is a two-CD set containing three-dozen songs spanning the years 1990-2006, and contains five newly recorded versions of fan favorites (“Both Hands,” “Napoleon,” “Your Next Bold Move,” “Overlap,” and Shameless”), recorded by Ani and her current band (Todd Sickafoose and Allison Miller). Until now, 1997’s Living in Clip had served as the default overview of this prolific artist’s body of work. Essential though Living in Clip remains (Addicted to Noise called it “a profound collaboration with her audience—the essence of the rock & roll ideal”), the DiFranco oeuvre has been begging for a treatment that takes a healthy bite out of the whole enchilada. That makes this expansive new collection as welcome as it is definitive.
 
In conjunction with the release of Canon, Seven Stories Press published Verses, DiFranco’s first book of poetry. The volume, illustrated with Ani’s original artwork, was also released September 11, 2007.