In 1984 , Johnston adopted the stage name " Michelle Shocked , " a play on the expression " shell shocked , " she said in a 1992 interview with '' Green Left Weekly '' : " The term ' Miss shell shocked ' is a direct reference to the thousand-yard stare , which was a term that they first used to describe the victims of shell-shock in World War I . These people from outward appearances had survived the war quite well when in fact inside their minds were blown . I first used that name in 1984 at the Democratic Convention in San Francisco where I was arrested for protesting and demonstrating against corporations who contribute money to both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party campaigns . " Shocked received her first international exposure after Pete Lawrence recorded her performance on a portable tape recorder at the Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas . Lawrence released the tape in Europe as '' The Texas Campfire Tapes '' ( 1986 ) ( later released as '' The Texas Campfire Takes '' ) . The album 's success brought major labels asking her to sign a contract . Shocked was resistant to what she saw as the machinations of the music industry , and worked to retain a degree of creative control
Democratic Convention
1984 Democratic National Convention
Michelle Shocked