According to singer-songwriter Laura Burhenn, she'd long imagined a band that sounded like Neil Young playing Motown. After recording some songs with friends from Omaha, Neb., she named her new group The Mynabirds — only later, she says, did Burhenn discover that Neil Young had made music with Rick James in 1960s Motown. The name of that band: The Mynah Birds.
Here at NPR Music, we remember Burhenn from her previous group, Georgie James. She and then-partner John Davis came to NPR to participate in Project Song, for which they wrote and recorded a terrific song in two days. You can watch that video here.
Burhenn's singing with Georgie James was more pop-oriented, but in The Mynabirds, her voice has more soul and a bit more grit on the group's debut, What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood. With the aid of her full band — including some glorious backing vocals — Burhenn performs three of the album's songs in this, her return to the NPR Music offices.
To watch the most recent Tiny Desk Concert, featuring Zuill Bailey, click here.
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