Sam and Smudge To Play The Annandale Hotel July 6 2008

Many of you were disappointed to hear, and indeed witness, the legendary Smudge cancel their appearance with Buffalo Tom and Sam Shinazzi in March due to illness. To compensate, and just for the heck of it, Smudge and Sam are playing a show Sunday July 6 at the Annandale Hotel in Sydney. Entry is a laughable five bucks and there will be other bands playing as well, kicking off at 5pm. More news as it comes to hand.

SAM SHINAZZI TO BE FEATURED ON CBS TV SHOW 'THE UNIT'

Anyone who has heard Sam's emotive music would not be surprised to hear any number of his songs on your favourite television shows, but what has surprised some of you is that the world of TV hasn't been so forthcoming. All that however is about to change, with 'Until Sunrise' (track 3 off 'Stories You Wouldn't Believe') finding a home on the CBS show 'The Unit'.

http://www.cbs.com/primetime/the_unit
http://www.unitfans.com/

Stay tuned for episode information and when it will air in your location.

Review

From berkeleyplace.wordpress.com

Sam Shinazzi-Stories You Wouldn’t Believe We come to Sam Shinazzi. Sam’s album is dedicated to Elliott Smith, so right away you get an idea of what this singer-songwriter’s stuff is like. The lyrics on this album are nothing short of brilliant. Check out Game Over, for example, with its refrain: “I awoke to the sound of you leaving/That’s not true, I was awake I wasn’t sleeping.” Or Breakdown, which begins the album with the line: “Don’t you ever get the feeling you’re falling apart?” This is another one that is simply fantastic and deserves (and will receive) a closer listen from me. Give the album a try, or at least check out these Scotty Come Home and Game Over. I’m begging you. I don’t throw the word “brilliant” around often.

Stories You Just Might Believe...

Sam Shinazzi serenades the Sando.

When I say the name, Sam Shinazzi, most people blink at me. Then they ask if Shinazzi is really his last name. It's a shame that I get more of a reaction out of saying the name, Shannon Noll. A big shame. Sam Shinazzi is an indie folk-rock singer/ songwriter that is well known to local indie kids but is relatively unknown to the rest of us. He has collaborated with a vast array of talented Australian performers, toured the United States, released two full length albums and is all set to release a third. And yet, they blink.

Gracious. Unassuming. Grateful. His languid, lonely tunes are offset by his gruff Australian vocals that are filled with yearning, anxiety, raw honesty and regret. Sam Shinazzi strikes the listener as the guy who wanted to ask you to dance at the highschool formal but never quite plucked up the courage. At home on stage and accompanied by his full band; Tessa, T-Bone, Bruno and Anthony, Sam was clearly in his element.

Don't Let Me Forget is sure to be an instant favourite, verging on profound even as a scratchy demo, especially as a scratchy demo. It is as raw as it is heartbreaking, but most relationships are scratchy demos, right? Out of the Question is original and fresh and yet all at once familiar, as if Sam has literally dug it out of our memories and then revisited it with a renewed vigour. Some new favourites include the gentle ballad; My Very Own Mary-Ellen and Today We Lost a Great One. Let's not lose another.

Sam Shinazzi is an undiscovered gem and genuine storyteller. No wonder then that his last album was titled: Stories You Wouldn't Believe. Perhaps you will believe them when you experience one of Sam's intimate and down to earth gigs. These are lonely cowboy songs. Roadtrip songs. Songs to both break your heart and warm it. Don't be a broomhead. Get out and see Sam Shinazzi this year.

(Thanks to Emma for this review)

ALBUM NO.3 - SOME GOSS

Sam and co. have completed recording his as yet untitled third album, which is the follow up to 'Stories You Wouldn't Believe'. Fourteen new songs have come to life in a couple of Sydney studios with engineers Anthony The and Adam 'Wes' Gregorace. It has been mixed by the ARIA award winning producer/engineer Wayne Connolly.

A release date has not been set, but we just wanted to fill you on what we know for now. Here is the official line from Sam: "I locked myself away for three and a half weeks which turned out to be super productive. I think I left the house three times in those 25 days. We have recorded fourteen songs, ten of which were written in that short time-frame. How many actually end up on the album will depend on certain things.

Tentative song titles in alphabetical order are:
Blue-Belle
Broke
Forge My Signature
Girls (Valentine's Day)
Graduation Girl
Li'' Wandering Soul
My Very Own Mary-Ellen
Please Don't Let Me Forget
Something Great Must Come From This
There Is A Road
This Could Be Something
Today We Lost A Great One
Walking
While You Were Sleeping

The reaction from the other guys in the immediate band (Tessa, T-Bone, Bruno and Anthony) upon hearing the mix of the album confirmed to me what I already knew; that we have made an album which is really special to us. We hope you will feel the same way when you get to hear it as well.

Sam x

LIVE CLIPS FROM MARCH 2007

Those of you with Broadband or just those of you whom are patient ... our friend Leigh has made two lil live clips of our last show in March. One is a new song and one is from the last album. There may some more coming too, but for now:

My Very Own Mary-Ellen
Scotty Come Home

iTunes

We have been slack in telling you that 'Stories You Wouldn't Believe' is available track by track or as a whole at: http://www.apple.com/itunes/store/music.html

Do a quick search in the store on 'Sam Shinazzi' or 'Stories You Wouldn't Believe' or any of the 12 tracks and you'll be in business!

SAM'S MySpace

www.myspace.com/samshinazzi

TOUR DIARY

USA

Finally you can hear all about Sam's trip to America in 2005 by the fella himself. Part one is now up in the tour diary section. Further entries and photos will be added over time.

Sam plays The Great Escape Festival - other acts include Sigur Ros, Silverchair and Martha Wainwright

Stories You Wouldn't Believe

Sam's current release is his second album 'Stories You Wouldn't Believe'. It came out September 2005 through Laughing Outlaw Records in Australia and throughout the UK and Europe. It has received some pretty amazing reviews which you can read on the press page.

The album is available to the entire world online through Inertia and Laughing Outlaw's secure websites. For those in the USA, there is also the option of getting the album via the American company CDBaby.

1. Breakdown
2. I Don't Belong Here
3. Until Sunrise
4. Out Of The Question
5. My Friend and a Free Day
6. Scotty Come Home
7. The Drifter
8. A Night For Remembrance
9. Wyoming
10. Game Over
11. Getting Too Old
12. Trying Not To Think About It