Nanci Griffith
Nanci Griffith is an artist at the top of her game. Her continual growth as a writer and as a citizen of the world can be a source of illumination to us all. Whether performing her own poetically evocative material or the compositions of her peers, Nanci possesses a powerful gift for inhabiting the song she sings. A self-styled “folkabilly” singer, Nanci has always embraced different musical genres to pay her respects, but never straying too far from her roots.
Nanci got an early start on her musical path. At the age of 6 she began to write songs, thinking of it as “part of the process of learning how to play guitar.” While she doesn’t remember many of her earliest songs, she does recall that “the first original song my mother commented on…was a song about Timothy Leary.” Then at the age of 14, when a campfire turn at the Kerrville Folk Festival caught the ear of singer-songwriter Tom Russell, she was on her way. Having recorded 18 albums and performed concerts all over the world, it’s safe to say that she’s never looked back.
Straddling the fine line between folk and country music, Nanci has become as well-known for her brilliant confessional song writing as her beautiful voice.The country scene took her to heart in the mid-’80s, giving her a reputation as a quality songwriter through hit covers of Griffith’s songs by Kathy Mattea and Suzy Bogguss. Mattea’s cover of “Love at the Five & Dime” reached number three in the country charts.
Griffith signed with MCA and released her major-label debut, Lone Star State of Mind, in 1987. With it, she popularized the Julie Gold song “From a Distance” — later covered by Bette Midler — but also gave Griffith her first country Top 40 hit, the title song.
A move to Elektra in 1992 marked a return to form for Griffith; her 1993 LP Other Voices, Other Rooms was a tribute to her influences, and several of them — including Emmylou Harris, Chet Atkins, and John Prine — made appearances. A compilation release of her best from the MCA years also appeared in 1993. The following year, Griffith’s tenth studio album, Flyer, continued her dedication to folk. In March of 1997, Griffith released Blue Roses From the Moons; Other Voices, Too (A Trip Back to Bountiful) followed a year later, trailed in 1999 by Dust Bowl Symphony.
Perhaps the most striking song on her latest release, The Loving Kind , is “Not Innocent Enough” – a poignant statement against the death penalty. The song deals with the story of Philip Workman, accused of murdering a police officer, and convicted – with tainted testimony. “I started writing this song long before Philip was executed but just couldn’t finish it until that final injustice took place,” Griffith explains. In the song, the focus is on human imperfection – and the finality of the looming punishment. “I am a total abolitionist on the death penalty. I just hope [the song] makes a difference.”
When the cause is championed with the eloquence Nanci Griffith brings to it, it just might.
