The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter plays Grand Rapids’ St. Cecilia Music Center Thursday, touring behind her “Uncovered” album with a Steve Earle duo project on the horizon. Read the Local Spins interview.
Shawn Colvin released her debut album, “Steady On,” back in 1989.
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Fast-forward 27 years, three Grammy Awards, seven Grammy nominations and nine records later, and Colvin is still touring as one of America’s most influential folk singer-songwriters.
Colvin’s U.S. tour stops in Grand Rapids at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Cecilia Music Center for the Acoustic Café Folk Series held inside Royce Auditorium, Tickets are $40 and $45, available online here.
While the current tour comes in support of Colvin’s 2015 album, “Uncovered,” a collection of 12 diverse and carefully crafted covers, ranging from Bruce Springsteen to Stevie Wonder, she’s also preparing for another major release: Colvin and singer-songwriter Steve Earle on June 10 plan to unveil a duo recording featuring four covers and six original songs written by Colvin and Earle.
What kind of theme to expect? Colvin’s first reaction was laughter.
“Oh…fun,” she said during an interview with Local Spins, and then paused. “There’s a couple of dark things here and there, but it was a lot of fun. I think there’s a lot of good energy in it.”
As for the “Uncovered” project, Colvin said she “just wanted to do a set of well-done material that might bring something a little different to what you were thinking you knew about the song or you heard in the song. I wanted to put different spins on things, and pay respect to all the songwriters, or at least some of them, that are my heroes.” (Watch a video of Colvin’s rendition of Bruce Springsteen’s “Tougher Than the Rest” below.)
Colvin said the recording provided a “golden opportunity” to work with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee David Crosby, who collaborated with her on Gerry Rafferty’s “Baker Street.”
“It was brand new,” she said. “I hadn’t tried it. It took a few passes at it to get the right dynamic: how hard to play it, how soft to play it, what kind of emotional sort of bend to have on it. It turned out to be pretty melancholy, which is not unusual for me.”
Colvin showcased her talent and bravery by selecting Stevie Wonder’s soulful “Heaven is Ten Zillion Light Years Away.” Although the original had a fervent gospel sound, her acoustic twist on the song is eloquent and stirring.
“I mean that was a pretty bold move to make,” she said. “I hope that it works for people. It’s such a great song. It’s crazy to take on a Stevie Wonder song because who could possibly sing that better than him? But I just choose songs that I love to sing, and I’ve loved that song for a long time.”
The record ends with Tammy Wynette’s “Till I Get It Right.” The empowering lyrics are Colvin’s last statement of self-strength.
GROWING AS AN ARTIST AND PLAYING WITH HER HEROES
“In a way, it would be appropriate to say it’s a theme song of mine,” she said. “Plus a little bit of chuckle, because most of my songs are kind of heartbreak and breakup songs. I just love that song. What a hopeful person saying that I’ve had bad luck but I’m not going to stop trying.”
Colvin isn’t a stranger to playing covers. In 1994, she released her first collection of covers, “Cover Girl.” However, she said she now has more confidence in the recording process.
“They’re basically one take, which isn’t to say we didn’t rehearse it a few times, but to have the confidence to just know you can play and sing a song all the way through and put it to tape … is the way I’ve grown as an artist.”
Last fall, Colvin toured with The Eagles’ Don Henley and two sidemen, Steuart Smith and Milo Deering. She usually plays solo at concerts, but Smith, Deering (who played on “Uncovered”) and others from The Eagles’ orbit accompanied her, creating a great memory. “It was a match made in heaven,” Colvin cooed about the band.
Colvin, 60, learned to play guitar while growing up in Ontario and Illinois. She connected to folk scenes in Austin and California before moving to New York City. She earned Grammy Awards in 1991 for the album “Steady On” and in 1998 for the song “Sunny Came Home.”
Making music with heroes such as James Taylor and Jackson Browne, she noted, have been rewarding experiences, as well as connecting with fans.
“The fact that people will come up to me and say, ‘You know, you were the soundtrack for my college years or my divorce or this part of my life,’ ” Colvin said.
“We all have that experience. When I think about the soundtracks to my life, those are sensual experiences, the music that gets you through. And you hear it again, and it takes you back. It’s a touchstone for you. I treasure those songs and artists that have been part of my soundtrack.
“So if I’m part of somebody else’s soundtrack, that’s pretty damn fulfilling.”
VIDEO: Shawn Colvin, “Tougher Than the Rest” (Bruce Springsteen)
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