Shania Twain
Early Life
Shania Twain was born Eilleen Regina Edwards on August 28th, 1965, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. When she was two years old her parents, Clarence and Sharon, were divorced. Her mother moved her to Timmins, Ontario with her two sisters, Jill and Carrie Ann, where Sharon married Jerry Twain who later adopted the three girls. She also has two half brother Mark and Darryl. Twain began singing at a early age and was performing in local bars to help support the family from as young as eight. At the age of thirteen, while attending Timmins High and Vocational School, she made her first T.V. appearance on CBC’s Tommy Hunter Show. Throughout her later teens Twain continued to perform at local venues as part of the Timmins’s group Longshot. After leaving school she worked at a McDonald's restaurant and planting tree's at her fathers re-forestation plantation before moving to Toronto where she found work as a secretary. She returned to Timmin’s in 1987 to be with her younger siblings following the death of her parents in a road accident. She took care of her family, moving with her half brothers and younger sister Carrie Ann to Huntsville, Ontario, where she supported them by performing at the nearby Deerhurst Resort. A family friend suggested she take a trip to Nashville to cut a demo this led to a number of companies sending scouts to Deerhurst to watch her live. In 1992 she was offered her first recording contract with Mercury Nashville.
Career Highlights
After changing her first name to Shania, she released her self titled debut album in April 1993. Despite receiving widespread praise from music critics in Canada and the U.S. the album was not a commercial success when originally released peaking at #67 on the U.S. Country Albums Chart. However the album has since been certified platinum in the U.S. for shipments of 1 million copies, following the success of her later releases. The album was more successful in Europe, where Twain won the Country Music Television Europe's "Rising Video Star of the Year" award. The album yielded two minor hit singles in the U.S. with "What Made You Say That" and "Dance with the One That Brought You" both peaking at # 55 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.
For her second album Twain teamed up with legendary rock producer Mutt Lange who had previously worked with artists such as AC/DC, Def Leppard and Foreigner. The Woman in Me was released in the Spring of 1995. The album's lead single, "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?" went to #11 on the Billboard Country Chart. Her next single "Any Man of Mine", became her first #1 single. Altogether the album spawned eight singles including the title track which peaked at #14 and three further #1 hits "(If You're Not in it for Love) I'm Outta Here!", "You Win My Love", and "No One Needs to Know". The Woman in Me reached the Top 10 in Canada and the U.K. and peaked at # 5 U.S. Billboard 200. The album was named the Best Country Album of 1996 at the Grammy Awards, the Billboard Music Awards and the Academy of Country Music Awards who also named her Best New Female Vocalist. To date the album has sold 12 million copies in the United States and over 18 million copies, worldwide.
In 1997, Twain released her eagerly anticipated third studio album, Come on Over. The album was originally released in North America only with a remixed pop version released in 1999 for the European market. The album debuted at #2 on the U.S. Billboard 200 selling 172,000 copies in its first week. Come on Over stayed on the U.S. charts for over two years and went on to sell 20 million copies in the U.S. and over 34 million worldwide, making it the biggest-selling album of all time by a female musician, surpassing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill. It reached # 1 in over ten countries. To support the album Twain embarked on an extensive world tour and released a total of twelve singles from the two versions. The first single released, "Love Gets Me Every Time", spent five weeks at # 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. This was followed by "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" which made the Top 5 on the U.S. and Canadian country charts as well as becoming her first Top 10 hit in the U.K. The next two singles, "You're Still the One" and "From This Moment On", peaked inside the Top 10 in all three countries. The singles "That Don't Impress Me Much" and "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" made the Top 5 on the U.S. and Canadian Country charts and saw the most success in Europe both reaching # 3 in the U.K. "When", "Honey, I'm Home","You've Got a Way", "Come On Over", "Rock This Country!" and "I'm Holdin' on to Love (to Save My Life)" were also released as singles but saw less success. Twain received a total of four Grammy awards for the album. In 1999 "You're Still the One" won Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance and in 2000 Best Country Song and Best Female Country Performance for "Come On Over" and "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" respectively.
In early 2002 Twain returned to the studio to record her fourth album, Up!, which was released in November the same year. Three versions of the album, with the same track listing, were released, a country version, a pop version and an international version in the style of Indian film music. The album debuted at # 1 on both the Top Country Albums chart and The Billboard All Genre chart, selling 874,000 million copies in the first week after its release. The first single from the album, "I'm Gonna Getcha Good!" became a Top 10 country hit in the U.S. and reached # 1 in Canada. The follow up single, "Up!", reached the Top 15 on the U.S. country charts and # 2 in Canada. In Europe "I'm Gonna Getcha Good!" reached the Top 20 in the U.K., France, Germany and Italy. The second European single, "Ka-Ching!", become one of Twain's most successful in Europe most notably in the U.K. where it became her sixth consecutive Top 10 single. The romantic ballad "Forever and For Always" was released in April 2003 and peaked at # 4 on the U.S Country Chart, # 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart and reached the Top 10 in Canada and the U.K. The last two singles released in the U.S., "She's Not Just a Pretty Face" and "It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing both charted in the Top 20 Country Songs Chart. Two more songs were released in Europe only, "Thank You Baby" and "When You Kiss Me", the former narrowly missing out on the U.K. Top 10 peaking at # 11. Up! Was named Country Album of the Year at the Billboard Music Awards and by the Canadian Country Music Association. As of January 2009 the album has sold over 16 million copies worldwide.
In 2004, Twain released her Greatest Hits album which debuted at # 2on the Billboard 200 with 530,000 copies sold in the first week. The album contains 21 tracks from her three previous albums as well as three new songs, "Party for Two", "Don't!" and "I Ain't No Quitter". All three were released as singles and charted in the Top 10 on the Canadian Country Chart but did not fare as well outside of her home country with the exception of "Party for Two" which made the Top 10 in the U.S. and the U.K. To date the album has sold just over 3 million copies in the U.S. and around 7 million worldwide. In August 2005, Twain released her last single "Shoes" from the Desperate Housewives soundtrack which peaked at # 29 on the U.S. Country Chart.
Shania Twain Discography
Albums
1993 Shania Twain | 1995 The Woman in Me | 1997 Come On Over | 2002 Up! | 2004 Greatest Hits
Singles
1993 "What Made You Say That", "Dance with the One That Brought You", "You Lay a Whole Lot of Love on Me" | 1995 "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?", "Any Man of Mine", "The Woman in Me (Needs the Man in You)", "(If You're Not in It for Love) I'm Outta Here!" | 1996 "You Win My Love", "No One Needs to Know", "Home Ain't Where His Heart Is (Anymore)", "God Bless the Child" | 1997 "Love Gets Me Every Time", "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" | 1998 "You're Still the One", "From This Moment On", "When", "Honey, I'm Home", "That Don't Impress Me Much" | 1999 "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!", "You've Got a Way", "Come On Over" | 2000 "Rock This Country!", "I'm Holdin' on to Love (to Save My Life)" | 2002 "I'm Gonna Getcha Good!" | 2003 "Up!", "Ka-Ching!", "Forever and for Always", "Thank You Baby!(For Makin' Someday Come So Soon)", "She's Not Just a Pretty Face", "When You Kiss Me" | 2004 "It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing", "Party for Two" | 2005 "Don't!", "I Ain't No Quitter", "Shoes"
Shania Twain Trivia
Shania Twain Links
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