Shania Twain Ramble

This recent music wormhole started with Orville Peck’s Show Pony EP. One of the multiple highlights from it was a collaboration with Shania fucking Twain titled “Legends Never Die.” The song was already a stimulating jolt of energy. The music video sent me over the moon like the cow Maureen sang about. Shania’s cheetah print outfit with the fringe to my eyes is like a white ice cream suit to Ray Bradbury’s.

It’s funny I’ve had such a strong reaction to Shania Twain because I haven’t listened to her in awhile. That might be due to how I, and anybody who also had any level of awareness in the 90s, fully overdosed on this woman’s music.

It’s crazy to remember a song like “Man! I Feel Like A Woman!” and recall how dominant popular music was. When people were still buying CDs and listening to the radio, you couldn’t get away from #1 singles. Take it from me, a half Cuban who recalls many parties where we always did “The Macarena”, when I say mainstream music doesn’t have the influence it used to.

Because of Orville Peck reminding me of how great Shania Twain is, I started bumping her music and started with “Any Man of Mine.” Good lord what a great song. Not only are you getting Shania Twain laying down some great vocals, but you also have some great licks on a twangy Fender and some wonderful fiddle work.

I was so taken with “Any Man of Mine” that I picked up an acoustic guitar I haven’t touched in years and tried to learn the intro. When I was younger I spent so much time learning guitar and was fucking terrible. The peak of my abilities was I could play all of Metallica’s “Seek and Destroy” minus the solos. It wasn’t for me. Once I got laid x amount of times for cosplaying as a musician, I hung the axes up.  Now as I have this new appreciation for country, I’m wishing I was a skilled guitarist. I bet it’s fun shredding on a Telecaster next to a skilled fiddler in a barn.

I was probably due to fall into this recent Shania Twain appreciation because as I look through her catalog, I’m reminded of a part of my childhood where my mom was routinely bumping Shania Twain. As I listen to her album Come On Over, I’m reminded tracks like “Love Gets Me Every Time”, “Don’t Be Stupid (You Know I Love You) and “Come On Over” were a regular sound coming from my mother’s boombox. “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?” from The Woman In Me also feels like something that scored a good portion of my childhood.

What I’m learning here is, anybody who was old enough to experience a piece of the 90s has a Pavlovian response to Shania Twain. Her voice was everywhere. I for one feel lucky to have someone this talented scoring a memorable part of my life.