Style Wadhams, Nathan, and Lindsay describe the style of the Shirelles early work as "tight, almost doo-wop harmony". Owens's vocals, described by rock n' roll writer Alwyn W. Turner as being "wonderfully expressive", were capable of sounding "almost, but not quite" out of tune, which in his opinion lent Owens an innocent sound in her songs; music critic Albin Zak describes her vocals as being able to intone desire and vulnerability. The other members, singing backup, also convey what Michael Campbell, a professor of music at Western Illinois University, calls a "naive schoolgirl sound". The lyrics sung by the Shirelles tended to be fairly simple and "barely" concealed the subtexts of the songs. The songs were implicitly directed at female listeners, with the male subjects of songs being referred to as "he" instead of "you"; this was a change from previous female-written songs, which tended to be more gender neutral, and helped pave the way for the "confessional" songs of 70s singers like Joni Mitchell and Carole King.
style wadhams nathan and lindsay describe the style of the shirelles early work as "tight almost doo-wop harmony" owens's vocals described by rock n' roll writer alwyn w turner as being "wonderfully expressive" were capable of sounding "almost but not quite" out of tune which in his opinion lent owens an innocent sound in her songs; music critic albin zak describes her vocals as being able to intone desire and vulnerability the other members singing backup also convey what michael campbell a professor of music at western illinois university calls a "naive schoolgirl sound" the lyrics sung by the shirelles tended to be fairly simple and "barely" concealed the subtexts of the songs the songs were implicitly directed at female listeners with the male subjects of songs being referred to as "he" instead of "you"; this was a change from previous female-written songs which tended to be more gender neutral and helped pave the way for the "confessional" songs of 70s singers like joni mitchell and carole king