Biography
Sheila Wilcoxson, a guitarist, pianist, and singer/songwriter based in Portland, Oregon, acquired her foundational musical training through church settings. Her vocal journey started at age 12 while living in Detroit. After relocating to Portland in 1978, she promptly assembled the 12-piece ensemble Sheila & the Boogiemen. By the early 1980s this outfit ranked among the leading attractions on the city’s club circuit and served as an opening act for Robert Cray, Sam & Dave, Queen Ida, and numerous other national touring performers. In 1989 she launched a fresh ensemble called Back Porch Blues.
Wilcoxson inked a deal with the Portland blues imprint Burnside Records in 1992, and the band issued its first recording, Back to Basics, the same year. The compact, acoustic-focused unit collected multiple Portland-area honors, among them Best New Blues Band, Best Blues Album, and Best Traditional Blues Act. She herself earned a Crystal Award from the Portland Music Association as Outstanding Blues Act in 1992. While building her regional career, Wilcoxson also completed a Ph.D. at Willamette University in Oregon.
In 1994 she organized yet another outfit, the Backwater Blues Band. Since that time Sheila & Backwater Blues have maintained an active presence throughout the Northwest while her solo profile has simultaneously expanded. She returned to Burnside Records in 1996 to cut material under her own name. The resulting album, Backwater Blues, appeared in early 1997 and highlights her skills as a songwriter, arranger, pianist, and guitarist. Guest musicians from the Northwest who appear on the record include Curtis Salgado, Janice Scroggins, Fritz Richmond, and Terry Robb. Wilcoxson brings levity to the project through original compositions such as “Testosterone Poisoning,” while also revisiting songs associated with Hoyt Axton, Mance Lipscomb, Bessie Smith, and Leadbelly. Among the covers are Axton’s “Sweet Misery,” Smith’s “Backwater Blues,” Leadbelly’s “Looky Looky Yonder”/“Black Betty,” and the traditional piece “John the Revelator.”
In 1998 the Memphis-based Blues Foundation acknowledged her sustained contributions to the Portland and Seattle blues communities by nominating her for Best Female Traditional Blues Artist of the Year.
Wilcoxson inked a deal with the Portland blues imprint Burnside Records in 1992, and the band issued its first recording, Back to Basics, the same year. The compact, acoustic-focused unit collected multiple Portland-area honors, among them Best New Blues Band, Best Blues Album, and Best Traditional Blues Act. She herself earned a Crystal Award from the Portland Music Association as Outstanding Blues Act in 1992. While building her regional career, Wilcoxson also completed a Ph.D. at Willamette University in Oregon.
In 1994 she organized yet another outfit, the Backwater Blues Band. Since that time Sheila & Backwater Blues have maintained an active presence throughout the Northwest while her solo profile has simultaneously expanded. She returned to Burnside Records in 1996 to cut material under her own name. The resulting album, Backwater Blues, appeared in early 1997 and highlights her skills as a songwriter, arranger, pianist, and guitarist. Guest musicians from the Northwest who appear on the record include Curtis Salgado, Janice Scroggins, Fritz Richmond, and Terry Robb. Wilcoxson brings levity to the project through original compositions such as “Testosterone Poisoning,” while also revisiting songs associated with Hoyt Axton, Mance Lipscomb, Bessie Smith, and Leadbelly. Among the covers are Axton’s “Sweet Misery,” Smith’s “Backwater Blues,” Leadbelly’s “Looky Looky Yonder”/“Black Betty,” and the traditional piece “John the Revelator.”
In 1998 the Memphis-based Blues Foundation acknowledged her sustained contributions to the Portland and Seattle blues communities by nominating her for Best Female Traditional Blues Artist of the Year.
Albums