Robert Gregory Shaw

"A superb songwriter and musician...in touch with the good things of the Earth...This songwriter has a novelist's mind: able to see the big picture, to take in the underlying themes, get at the essences of life..."- Norm Julian, The Dominion Post

"A charmer in a 'backporch philosopher' style... his songs draw you in like a well-spun yarn."- Freetime Magazine (Rochester, NY)

With my family, I spent a dozen years in the Caribbean and Latin America, singing in Spanish as often as English. I'm proud to have heard my songs recorded by artists in Guatemala, Panama, Colombia, El Salvador, and the U.S. of A. I've found the lyrics reprinted in songbooks as far away as Germany and Alaska. A Norwegian website includes the words to "Hoy es el Día," a song still sung in Baha'i communities around the world.

Since returning to my native West Virginia in 1990, I've used my songwriting to chronicle the history and heritage of the Mountain State. I prefer to think of myself as a storyteller, rather than a singer, and I limit public appearances to those venues where the audience can hear and reflect upon the words of the songs. Coal field battles, river trails, the Allegheny hills and the back roads that wind through them are some of the subjects I sing about. And most performances include a piece of poetry, where the words stand alone in the spotlight.

And since 2005, I am playing keyboards for a classic country band, 340 West.

There's many a tale a-sleepin' in the mountains. There's many a story waiting to be sung...

Some of what I do

"If you're afraid I wouldn't go over in your lodge or party, you are possibly right. In such case, just mail me $15 and I won't come. When I perform, I cut it down to $10. When for a good cause, $5. When for a better cause, I come free. If you can think of a still better one, I'll give you my service, my guitar, my hat, and sixty-five cents cash money." - Woody Guthrie

Robert Greg Shaw
248 Achilla Terrace, Martinsburg, WV 25401
(304)262-8734

• Befriended Stranger
• Commune With My Spirit
• Contentate Conmigo
• Purge Thy Heart
• Tell the Rich
• Thou Art My Lamp
• Wouldst Thou Have Me

Note: Geocities Server permits only two music downloads (4 MB) per hour

Hobo's Homecoming, a folk music operetta by Chris Haddox and R.G. Shaw, had a wonderful run of performances in 2002. Performances followed in Fairmont and Morgantown. The cast went into a recording studio to recreate the music on CD.

"It was a wonderful message....Chris Haddox and Rob Shaw should be very proud of their play and the cast. They should likewise be proud of their performances." - The Compass (Scott's Run, WV)

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