Madisen Ward & the Mama Bear “Silent Movies” released on debut album

Silent Movies Madisen Ward & the Mama Bear

Writer(s): Madisen Ward, Ruth Ward (see lyrics here) Released: May 14, 2015 (album cut) First Charted: -- Peak: -- (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.93 video, 5.93 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear are an acoustic duo from Independence, Missouri with “a penchant for wildly original songs drawing from timeless American genres such as roots, folk, Americana, and blues.” MW Madisen Ward is a singer/songwriter and guitarist. His mother, Ruth Ward (Mama Bear), plays guitar and sings. She started out busking in the coffeehouse scene in Albuquerque, New Mexico, performing the songs of Joan Baez; Crosby, Stills & Nash; Peter, Paul & Mary; and Simon & Garfunkel. MW When she moved to Missouri, she put her music on hold while raising a family. Her son, Madisen, took up electric guitar as a pre-teen but found it limiting and switched to acoustic. He started writing and singing and was soon performing between Mom’s sets and eventually joining her. He developed a vocal style which referenced artists like Nick Drake, Elliott Smith, and Tom Waits. MW NPR says the duo “come off as real, goodhearted people with a sound to match.” NPR Amazon.com called them “the new darlings of the Americana world.” AZ They released their debut album, Skeleton Crew, in 2015. It was produced by Jimmy Abbiss, who’s also worked with Adele and the Arctic Monkeys. The album didn’t chart in the United States, but they did start performing on national television shows, including Late Show with David Letterman, CBS News’ Sunday Morning, and NBC’s Today. In the UK, they perfomrned on Later…with Jools Holland and BBC Breakfast News. Their album reached #50 on the UK charts. The album captures “the tranquil intimacy of sublime acoustic-guitar-and-vocals-only story songs” AZ that include “poppier toe-tappers like lead-off single ‘Silent Movies.’” AZ NPR calls it “a great introduction to their sound.” NPR It is the duo’s most-streamed song on Spotify and most-played video on YouTube. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Madisen Ward & the Mama Bear AZ Amazon.com album review MW MaidsenWardandtheMamaBear.com NPR NPR.org (2/21/2015). “Songs We Love: Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, ‘Silent Movies’” by Russ Borris WK Wikipedia page for Madisen Ward & the Mama Bear First posted 12/29/2022.