ABOUT
PHOTO BY GRAHAM WASHATKA
STACI GRIESBACH (Long-form artist bio)
(Pronounced "STAY-cee GREECE bahk" / "Greece" "Bach")
Staci Griesbach is a Los Angeles-based vocalist bringing together her passion for Country Music and Jazz as she specializes in reimagining the Great American Songbook of Country Music in the style of Jazz. Griesbach’s Songbook series features the music of Patsy Cline, Shania Twain, Dolly Parton, and her most recent full-length album, My George Jones Songbook.
Rolling Stone lauded Griesbach’s first single “Walkin’ After Midnight” off her 2019 debut album My Patsy Cline Songbook as “a gorgeous jazz interpretation.” DownBeat magazine gave her George Jones album a four-star review and has said “Griesbach achieves her aim of paying tribute not through imitation, but by exploring new possibilities through new artistry.”
Griesbach’s mission is to celebrate and bridge together two beloved American Art forms: Country Music and Jazz. Her interpretations demonstrate the strength and versatility of the Songbook of Country Music, as the arrangements add layers and depth to the pure and honest three chords and the truth. Griesbach’s Songbook celebrations are inspired by the work of the great producer Norman Granz, who steered Ella Fitzgerald in her series of releases honoring the songwriters of the Great American Songbook. Griesbach also serves as producer for her Songbook series and oversees releasing, marketing and creative for her independent label.
Griesbach’s latest Songbook album was released in September of 2021 celebrating the 90th birthday of legendary country music star George Jones. My George Jones Songbook is her third album featuring 14 of Jones’ classic hits. The album has drawn critical acclaim from the Country music community as well as mainstream and Jazz critics. Songwriter Bobby Braddock calls the album, “genius” and penned the inside liner notes for the physical release. All About Jazz says “this recording is by a vocalist who has taken risks and succeeded. Griesbach’s vocal range is exceptional.” As the third in the series, Griesbach finds her home on this album stretching her boundaries further both as an artist and a producer.
Griesbach’s debut album My Patsy Cline Songbook debuted in August of 2019 and kicked off her Songbook series honoring Nashville’s most renown songwriters such as Hank Cochran, Harlan Howard, Bob Wills, Willie Nelson and more, who contributed greatly to building the Nashville Sound catalog; arguably in the same way Irving Berlin and Cole Porter contributed to the foundation of the traditional jazz standards and the Songbook series of Ella Fitzgerald. As her first inspiration, Griesbach points out that Patsy Cline has arguably shaped and influenced nearly every female Country singer today, much as Ella has in the Jazz landscape. My Patsy Cline Songbook features 15 popular Cline classics reimagined including “She’s Got You,” “I Fall to Pieces,” and “Walkin’ After Midnight” and marks the first-ever, full-length Patsy Cline tribute album presented in a Jazz and contemporary style. In the ultimate of compliments, music critic Amos Perrine at No Depression magazine called the release “an album worthy of being added to the Great American Songbook.”
Griesbach’s sophomore album celebrated the 25th anniversary of Shania Twain’s The Woman In Me, which was a true “coming of age” album for Griesbach growing up in rural Wisconsin. Rick Moore of American Songwriter commented, “In what would be difficult for most singers, Staci Griesbach somehow manages to combine the swing of Ella and Dinah with the country playfulness that Shania brought to these songs a quarter-century ago.” Released in December of 2020, My Shania Twain Songbook features collaborations with top Jazz composers and arrangers as well as top musicians including Tamir Hendelman (Barbra Streisand, Clayton-Hamilton Orchestra), Michael O. Mitchell (Leslie Odom Jr.), Grammy winner Otmaro Ruiz (Diane Reeves), Rahsaan Barber (Kelly Clarkson) and Stuart Duncan (Diana Krall, Goat Rodeo).
In a celebration of Dolly Parton’s 50th anniversary of “Coat of Many Colors,” Griesbach released a Digital 45 honoring the iconic singer/songwriter also in 2021. The release also featured an interpretation of Parton’s “Here You Come Again,” written by the great Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann, famous for some of the biggest hits in American pop music.
Griesbach also released a signature series of Songbook Singles™ honoring the great composers, songwriters and artists of the 20th Century, and also to continue showcasing the traditional Great American Songbook, which made her fall in love with the art form of Jazz. Launched in June of 2021, Griesbach’s new series includes songs ranging from the classic Great American Songbook to songs spanning genres from jazz and country music to musical theatre to rock and roll. The collection launched with two celebrated hits from the stage and silver screen including Academy Award-nominated 1951 Best Original Song “A Kiss To Build A Dream On” and “Moon River,” which took home the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1961 as well as the Grammy for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
Raised on a working farm raising dairy replacement heifers in rural Wisconsin, Staci grew up studying piano, alto saxophone and voice throughout her childhood and started swinging into jazz through performing groups in her formative years, of which included playing alto saxophone in the high school jazz band.
Staci developed a love for musical theatre as well, taking on lead roles in her school’s musical theater program and performing as a singer/dancer in the Wisconsin Singers, a Broadway revue-style show for several years while enrolled at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Staci started honing in on jazz studies with the Santa Monica College Vocal Jazz Ensemble and private studies with some of the jazz community’s finest teachers. In 2015, Staci started gigging locally in Los Angeles with a trio, and quickly realized she wanted to create a unique project where she could connect with audiences in an authentic way. While thinking about a recording, Staci wanted something authentic that she could perform and share with audiences, so she went back to her roots in Classic Country music. By the fall of 2015, Staci started working on arrangements with Michele Weir, studying with Brazilian artist and arranger Celia Vaz in Rio De Janeiro in February of 2016.
In 2017, Staci took a break from the Patsy Cline tribute project to launch a You Tube series called "Staci Sings Ella," (#StaciSingsElla) celebrating the legacy of Ella Fitzgerald by singing 100 songs in 100 days for 100 years to commemorate the First Lady of Song's centennial in April of 2017. The three-month venture resulted in a benefit concert raising money for the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation.
Staci has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall, the Country Music Hall of Fame, Birdland, Catalina Jazz Club, Feinstein’s at Vitello’s, Rudy’s Jazz Club, the Nashville Jazz Workshop and more. She holds a Bachelors of Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has a Music Performance Certificate from Berklee School of Music Online. For nearly 15 years, Staci worked in marketing for the entertainment business at Sony Pictures Entertainment and still very much enjoys sitting back and watching a good movie -- especially with a good soundtrack. Griesbach is currently touring in support of her Songbook series.
Short artist bio / boilerplate
About Staci Griesbach
Staci Griesbach is a Los Angeles-based vocalist bringing together her passion for Country Music and Jazz as she specializes in reimagining the Great American Songbook of Country Music in the style of Jazz. Griesbach’s Songbook series features the music of Patsy Cline, Shania Twain, Dolly Parton, and her most recent full-length album, My George Jones Songbook. Rolling Stone lauded Griesbach’s first single “Walkin’ After Midnight” off her 2019 debut album My Patsy Cline Songbook as “a gorgeous jazz interpretation.” DownBeat magazine gave her George Jones album a four-star review and has said “Griesbach achieves her aim of paying tribute not through imitation, but by exploring new possibilities through new artistry.”
Griesbach has performed at iconic venues including Carnegie Hall, Birdland, the Country Music Hall of Fame, Catalina Jazz Club as well as Rudy’s Jazz Room and the Nashville Jazz Workshop. In 2021, Griesbach launched Songbook Singles™, a signature line of music honoring the classic Great American Songbook standards and 20th century composers, songwriters and artists. Griesbach is currently touring in support of her Songbook series.
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