21+ with ID.
Lubbock-born gem Amanda Pearl Shires steps into the spotlight with the release of her new album, West Cross Timbers. Her clever songs glitter with a tinge of the Western swing she honed so expertly as a side woman for Tommy Allsup and the legendary Texas Playboys, with whom she began work at age 16. Though Shires hasn't left the band she co-founded, raucous Texas indie rockers The Thrift Store Cowboys, she's shifted her focus to her solo work for the time being. She relocated from Texas to Nashville, where she and Justin Townes Earle started playing in a dive bar for tips. According to Earle, "Amanda has the spirit of Spade Cooley. With a voice that whispers Dolly and lyrics that scream Faulkner, this girl shines like a diamond, but she's pure Pearl."
