 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||
| Your account |  |
Today's news index | |
Weather | |
Traffic | |
Movies | |
Restaurants | |
Today's events | ||
|
||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
Monday, November 01, 2004 - Page updated at 12:00 A.M. Spirited singer-songwriter Mindy Smith is on the brink of stardom By Patrick MacDonald
Mindy Smith is so small and waifish, and has such a sweet, angelic singing voice, it's hard to think of her as a fighter. But she is. One of the most acclaimed new singer-songwriters to come along in years, Smith, 32, endured a difficult childhood and aimless youth before moving to Nashville to pursue a songwriting career in 1998. While composing songs for a music publisher and singing in local clubs, she took a series of day jobs, including nanny, waitress and record-store clerk. But then a producer for Vanguard Records heard her demo tape of "Come to Jesus," a haunting song of salvation in a pop/folk vein. The kicker of the song is that its narrator is singing from a heavenly viewpoint — because she's dead. Smith got signed to the label, which then got her involved in a Dolly Parton tribute album, "Just Because I'm a Woman." Smith recorded Parton's "Jolene," the tale of an insecure woman begging another not to "take my man." When Parton heard it, she got involved, recording a harmony track. She then appeared in a video of the song, the first single released from the tribute disc, and Smith's career shifted into high gear.
The Parton connection built interest in Smith, so much so that when her debut album, "One Moment More," was released in January, country radio immediately picked up on it. "Come to Jesus" became an improbable country hit, being played in-between rock-influenced songs by such "young country" stars as Kenny Chesney, Gretchen Wilson and Tim McGraw. A rock 'n' roll dog
We caught up with her somewhere outside Boulder, Colo., where she was riding in her tour bus. "It's much better than riding in a van," she said over the phone, raising her voice to be heard over the din of music, laughter and talking in the background. "But it's funny," she explained, "I live with eight men and a dog, so the bus is feeling smaller and smaller as the days go by." The dog, by the way, is the same cute, shaggy little mutt who makes a cameo in the "Come to Jesus" video. "It's my dog," Smith said proudly. "She's a very profound part of my life. This is the first time I've been able to take her out for a whole tour and she's done so well. The guys in the band love her, she's so easy and laid back. She's more more fun to be around than I am, actually. "At one of my shows, she walked out on stage during 'Falling' and sat next to me. The people just went nuts. She stole the show in the matter of one song, my last song of the night. She's a little charmer. I've had her for, like, eight, nine years. She's been through it all with me. A rock 'n' roll dog." High praise from Dolly
Smith insisted she was serious about the dog being more fun to be around than she is. She said she is still working out personal problems, relating to her being adopted, losing her mother to cancer when Smith was only 19 (the album's moving title song is about watching her mother die), and following her foster father, a preacher, to church assignments in various states. Smith attended Cincinnati Bible College before dropping out to do music. Like Parton, Smith deals with the sometimes painful memories of childhood through her songs. "Raggedy Ann," a cut on Smith's album, is about having to wear hand-me-downs and enduring schoolyard teasing because of it — much like Parton's classic "Coat of Many Colors." "She's been very supportive," Smith said of Parton. "She's been a fantastic mentor for me this year. She's much cooler than I am. I'm a little more self-involved." Parton has high praise for Smith, issuing a statement that said, "Even though Mindy is still young and new to the music business, I believe she will leave her mark as one of our greatest writers and singers ever." Smith said Parton encourages her to work things out through songwriting. "That's how I deal with everything," she confessed. American roots Smith noted that the Parton tribute album was quite successful and thinks it has helped put into focus what a great songwriter Parton is. "I got to participate in making that happen," she said, "among great artists like Alison Krauss, Norah Jones, Melissa Etheridge, Emmylou Harris. I was lucky to participate." It's telling that Smith's cut was the most successful of all from the disc. Among the many other exciting things that have happened to Smith this year is winning the best-new-artist award at the third annual Americana Honors & Awards in Nashville in September. She likes the term "Americana" rather than country or folk. "I think it's a lovely explanation of what I'm about," she explained. "It's open enough to be experimental and do other things musically. I don't necessarily like to be put in any box, but I think 'Americana' is appropriate for what I'm doing. I'm more roots-based, and a lot of my influences are gospel, blues, bluegrass and old-school roots music." Smith said she is excited about being asked to sing at the Grand Ole Opry, and hopes to have some down time over the holidays, because she wants to get back to songwriting. "But we're going to be working this record for a long time," she said. "Well into next year. Which is great. I'm working super-hard. But I've still got a lot of hard work to do." Patrick MacDonald: 206-464-2312 or pmacdonald@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company
|
|
|
  |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
seattletimes.com home
Home delivery
| Contact us
| Search archive
| Site map
| Low-graphic
NWclassifieds
| NWsource
| Advertising info
| The Seattle Times Company
Back to top