Meredith Brooks

Meredith Brooks emerged among the many women crafting songs in the aftermath of alternative trailblazers such as Liz Phair and PJ Harvey. Her approach aligned more closely with earthy writers in the mold of Sheryl Crow and pop-rock voices like Alanis Morrissette, a resemblance that surfaced immediately in her opening single “Bitch.” The track essentially mirrored Morrissette’s manner, climbed the charts in spring 1997, and carried her first album Blurring the Edges onto the same listings. Her music and personal history nevertheless diverged sharply from Morissette’s own; born and raised in Oregon, she developed an early love of music that deepened into an appreciation for blues, R&B, and classic rock during her teenage years. She took up guitar and began composing at that age, sustaining both activities through her twenties until she secured a contract with Capitol Records and issued Blurring the Edges in spring 1997. The delightful second album Deconstruction arrived in 1999. Three years afterward she adjusted her adult-contemporary style on Bad Bad One.