![]() The album's title track and "A Few Good Things Remain" both hit the Top Ten, but overall the album's singles didn't chart as well as was usual. Her own music kept getting rootsier and more eclectic, and 1991's ambitious Time Passes By featured guest spots by Emmylou Harris, folkies the Roches, and Scottish singer/songwriter Dougie MacLean. Released in 1989, Willow in the Wind boasted an even stronger folk influence, and it became her first album to go gold on the strength of the number one hits "Burnin' Old Memories" and "Come from the Heart," and the number two "She Came from Fort Worth." Additionally, the album's Top Ten hit "Where've You Been," co-written by her new husband Jon Vezner, won her a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal.nnSeeking to keep her music fresh by returning to its roots, Mattea made several trips to Scotland in the early '90s, studying the links between country music and traditional Scottish folk. Her cover of Nanci Griffith's "Love at the Five and Dime" was her first Top Five hit, and the record produced three other Top Tens in the title track, "Train of Memories," and "You're the Power." 1987's follow-up album, Untasted Honey, confirmed Mattea's newfound stardom, featuring two number one country hits in "Goin' Gone" and "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" "Untold Stories" and "Life as We Knew It" also made the Top Five. After a six-year hiatus she re-emerged in 2018 with Pretty Bird.nnHowever, Mattea's third effort, 1986's folky Walk the Way the Wind Blows, proved to be her breakthrough both critically and commercially. ![]() While her 21st century albums didn't reach the same commercial peaks, they were nonetheless critically acclaimed and sold better in the United Kingdom than they did back home, including 2012's Calling Me Home. ![]() Her self-titled debut was released in 1984, and the follow-up, From My Heart, appeared the following year none of the singles from either record managed to breach the Top 20. She worked odd jobs and perfected her songwriting, and in 1983 she landed a deal with Mercury on the strength of her demo tape. In 1976, while in college, she joined the bluegrass band Pennsboro and two years later dropped out of school to move to Nashville. Her 1993 album Walking Away a Winner became her most successful of the decade.nnMattea was born in Cross Lanes, West Virginia, in 1959 and received classical voice training starting in junior high she also took up the guitar when she discovered folk music. Single after single and album after album landed inside the Top 20. As her repertoire expanded in the '90s, so did her grasp on the country charts. She offers the same commitment to country pop as she does to mining songs, honky tonk, and Celtic ballads as displayed buy her stellar Willow in the Wind from 1989. Kathy Mattea is one of the most respected female country stars of her era, a commercially successful hitmaker who was able to bring elements of folk, bluegrass, gospel, and singer/songwriter intimacy to her music.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |