Grammy-winning artist Amy Grant Grateful and Blessed for Life in Music

American singer-songwriter Amy Grant is perhaps best known for performing Christian music, gaining fame in the 1980s with hits such as “Father’s Eyes,” “El-Shaddai,” and “Angels.” Grant later found success in mainstream pop music as well, releasing the 5x platinum album “Heart in Motion” in 1991, which yielded the hits “Baby, Baby,” “Every Heartbeat,” and “I Will Remember You.” Grant has collaborated and recorded with numerous well-known artists, including fellow Christian singer-songwriter and friend Michael W. Smith. She remains the best-selling contemporary Christian music singer ever, having sold over 30 million records worldwide.

 

Born in Augusta, Georgia, the Nashville resident grew up loving everything that was on the radio and was constantly sneaking her older sisters’ records out of their room and into hers. She loved Joni Mitchell, Carole King, James Taylor, the Beatles, Aretha Franklin, and Elvis Presley. “Everything was new then,” Grant said. “Pop music was totally unexplored, and then there was the British invasion with the Beatles, and also Blood, Sweat and Tears.”

Recently, Grant and her husband, country singer-songwriter Vince Gill, were going through their LP collection and listened to one of Blood, Sweat and Tears’ early records. She hadn’t realized that the record was produced by James William Guercio, who owned Caribou Ranch, a recording studio near Nederland, Colorado that was heavily damaged by a fire and shut down in March 1985. Many famous artists had recorded at the studio, including the jazz-rock group Chicago, which recorded five albums there in the 1970s.

In the fall of 1981, Grant recorded her first album at Caribou Ranch, “Age to Age,” which was released in the spring of 1982. Guercio, the former Chicago manager/producer, stopped in the studio while Grant was recording the gospel album. “I remember Jim coming into the studio, and he said, ‘this record is going to sell a million copies,’” she said. “And I hadn’t even done more than 25 percent of it. I said ‘you’re off your rocker.’” But the album did sell a million copies and became one of the fastest-selling Christian albums ever released. Featuring the single “El-Shaddai,” the album became certified platinum and was named Gospel Album of the 1980s by Billboard magazine. Grant would record three more albums at Caribou and was set to record a fifth album there the day the studio was destroyed.

In 1985, Grant released “Unguarded,” an album that surprised fans with its very mainstream sound. The hit single “Find a Way,” became the first non-Christmas Christian song to hit the Billboard Top 40 list, also reaching No. 7 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The album gave Grant more exposure and the music world began to take notice of her talents as a pop singer as well.

Ironically, one year later in 1986, Grant was visiting a college friend in Atlanta, when she got a phone call from a record producer whom she had met before, Michael Omartian. Omartian was producing a solo album for former Chicago lead singer and bassist Peter Cetera. Grant had never worked with Omartian before, but he asked her if she would do a song with Cetera. “Chicago was at the top of their game, and Peter, he was doing some solo work and I remember thinking, ‘Why did he call me?’” she said. “I was completely knocked sideways. I thought, ‘How in the world did I get invited to this party?’ I just said ok. I just couldn’t believe it.”

“The Next Time I Fall” was released from Cetera’s album “Solitude/Solitaire,” and the duet became a No. 1 hit in the fall of 1986. It was Grant’s first foray into the secular music field, after scoring several No. 1 singles in Contemporary Christian music previously. This eventually led Grant to change direction and crossover into pop music, and in the process, widening her fan base and making her a household name.

Throughout the 1990s, Grant continued her success in pop music, with the albums “Heart in Motion” (1991), featuring Grant’s second No. 1 hit “Baby, Baby,” “House of Love” (1994), and “Behind the Eyes” (1997). In 2002, Grant returned to her roots, releasing an album of hymns titled “Legacy…Hymns and Faith.”

In 2013, Grant released her first full-length album of all new material in 10 years, “How Mercy Looks from Here.” The album was inspired by a conversation Grant had with her mother just a couple months before she died in April 2011. Though her mother was suffering from dementia, her advice to her daughter to sing songs that mattered compelled Grant to do an album of songs where each one tells a different story. “I had songs that I had written years earlier, and I got to just sort of cherry-pick what I thought were the best things from the five or six years prior to that,” she said. “But I just feel like the history behind each of the songs mattered. I’ve had great response to the record.”

Whether recording gospel or pop albums, performing duets or singing solo, Grant feels truly blessed to have the success she’s had, and all of the people with whom she’s worked with who have made it all possible. “I guess it’s fair to say that I love making music, but I’ve never felt like I was steering my career,” she said. “I felt like I just sort of happily wound up in some really magical places.”

At 53, Grant feels she has had her run and she has loved every minute of it. But what gets her heart racing more than anything is knowing that it’s her turn to lift up the people coming after her. In the same way that she applied her creativity to making music, Grant is just trying to open up her mind and look at the resources that she has.

“My life and especially my recording career, has been so impacted by people who let me dream and supported those dreams,” Grant said. “And I don’t know what it’s going to look like, but what I look forward to the most is pouring my energy into the dreams of artists coming after me. And all of that possibility is thrilling for me.”

As it does in music, Grant believes that nothing happens with anything in life unless you start talking about it, say it, and open yourself up for direction. “I guess that’s what I’m really anticipating most,” she said. “I want to give back and pour encouragement into young artists.”

Violin Remains Distinctive Element in Sound and Success of Kansas

The 1970s may be mostly identified as an era for iconic singer-songwriters, but the decade also became known for its progressive, album-oriented American rock bands that would dominate the rock music scene well into the 1980s.

A fixture of Classic Rock radio and known for their hit singles “Carry On Wayward Son,” “Dust in the Wind,” and “Point of Know Return,” Kansas has produced eight gold albums, three sextuple-Platinum albums, and played to sold-out arenas and stadiums throughout North America, Europe and Japan.  

Kansas first formed in 1970 in their hometown of Topeka, Kansas. Early incarnations of the band performed under different names and included Phil Ehart on drums and percussion and guitarist Rich Williams, both of whom remain with the group today. The band evolved even further as it began to adopt its own identity, as later additions to the band included lead vocalist Steve Walsh, guitarist Kerry Livgren, and bassist David Hope.

In 1974, the band released their self-titled debut album, an album that defined the band’s signature sound, a mix of American-style boogie rock and complex, symphonic arrangements with changing time signatures. In 1976, Kansas rose to national prominence with their fourth album, “Leftoverture,” which spawned the band’s first hit single, “Carry On Wayward Son.” Their follow-up album, “Point of Know Return” in 1977, brought Kansas even more success. The record produced the top ten certified gold single, “Dust in the Wind,” which peaked at #6 and helped the band to appear on the Billboard charts for over 200 weeks throughout the 1970s and 1980s. The band’s continued success carried over into the 1980s, with more of a pop approach than the band’s previous recordings. The album “Power” was released in 1986, yielding the #19 pop hit “All I Wanted,” the last Kansas single to hit the Billboard Top 40 chart.

Violinist Robby Steinhardt provided a distinctive element to the group’s sound, being defined more by heartland rock than the jazz and classical influences which had been followed by most rock violinists. After leaving Kansas in 1982, Steinhardt fronted his own band. He later returned in 1996, only to leave a second time in 2006. During his departure from Kansas, violinist David Ragsdale replaced Steinhardt. Over the years the band has had a revolving door, but Ragsdale now seems to be a permanent fixture in the current lineup performing the classic repertoire of Kansas songs. The band’s current lineup includes, Ehart, Williams, Ragsdale, Billy Greer on bass, Ronnie Platt on lead vocals and keyboards, and the group’s former lighting director David Manion on keyboards. 

Growing up in Columbus, Georgia, Ragsdale began playing the violin at a very young age. Though he was much more interested in the guitar than the violin, Ragsdale soon realized how many good guitar players there were, so he thought it may not be a bad idea to go back to the violin and have both. Ironically, it was the band Kansas that attracted Ragsdale back to the violin.

“When I was a junior in high school I was driving down in Columbus and heard Kansas for the first time on the radio, and it was the song ‘Can I Tell You,’” he said. “It was a rock band playing a rock song with a violin, and it was rocking. I thought ‘this is pretty cool.’”

Ragsdale, 56, graduated from the University of Tulsa and played in the Tulsa Philharmonic. After playing with Louise Mandrell in Nashville, he joined Kansas in 1991. After years of touring, Ragsdale decide to take a break, leaving the band in 1996, before rejoining them in 2007.

Ragsdale defines the band’s distinctive sound and believes the violin to be the one instrument that makes everything work. “It’s made a couple of elements really accessible to Kansas that might not come as easily to bands that don’t have that texture,” he said. “There’s that early American, pre-Civil War violin melody or element that is introduced there, along with massive symphonic arrangements. Kerry Livgren listened extensively to symphonic music and borrowed heavily from it. The violin is an instrument admirably suited to those contributions.”

This past July, Steve Walsh announced his retirement from the band after 41 years. His last performance with Kansas was at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Sioux City, Iowa on August 16. Though the band has soldiered on and wishes him only the best in his future endeavors, Ragsdale and his bandmates know it’s impossible to replace a legendary vocalist like Walsh.

“Well, you don’t replace Steve Walsh – he is succeeded,” Ragsdale said. “But we were very fortunate. Ronnie Platt is our new singer, and he is outstanding. I don’t believe we have missed a beat yet.”

In 2009, Kansas celebrated their 35^th Anniversary with a symphonic concert in their hometown of Topeka, Kansas, accompanied by the Washburn University Symphony Orchestra. Inspired by this live performance and its DVD release, Kansas conducted their “Collegiate Symphony Tour” from 2010-2012, performing their hits accompanied by various college and university symphonies throughout the United States.

“More than anything we were doing it as a fundraiser for the music departments of those universities,” Ragsdale said. “The kids in those orchestras were just so excited to be doing it. It was very rewarding, and it worked out really well.”

This year marks Kansas’ 40^th year in the business, and they were rewarded with induction into both the Kansas Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame, recognizing their career achievements for both their native state and adopted home state. 

With the days of performing before thousands of people in large stadiums long gone, Ragsdale appreciates the intimacy that a small theater provides for the artist, and for the fans. “It’s my favorite venue – the small theater. It’s what I really enjoy,” he said. “The acoustics are always great. It doesn’t bounce around and turn it into a gymnasium like the large venues do. The people are right there where you can get at them. You can make eye contact, you can feed off of them, and there’s an energy exchange that starts to happen between the band and the audience that’s an awful lot of fun when it gets going.”

At this point in his career, Ragsdale seems to be taking everything in stride by just working hard on his craft every day. “I just want to get better as a violinist,” he said. “I still want to go a little further – as far as I can go. I’m certainly not thinking about retirement or anything even remotely like it. As long as I can do it and continue to improve, that’s enough.”

One of the most exciting things for Ragsdale and his bandmates is seeing parents who grew up with their music now bringing their kids to the shows. “You can pick out one guy – one 14-15 year old kid and watch him just be absorbed in what’s going on,” he said. “I feel that it has largely to do with the fact that today’s popular music so excludes music. There aren’t any musicians, everything is programmed, everything is sequenced, the vocals are all auto-tuned, and there’s no musical exploration. Here all of a sudden are these guys up on stage playing things he’s never seen before, and it’s so fun to watch.”

Knowing there are benefits and pitfalls to what he does for a living, Ragsdale feels extremely fortunate when he observes the world around him. “That question is most easily answered by me anytime I get into a traffic jam,” he said. “I look around and think about the people who are in this traffic jam at this time every day, every single day. I get to avoid that by and large. What we do is tedious but it’s very cool. Compared to what else I could be doing, this is pretty good.”

Ageless Crooner Tony Bennett Has Still Got It After Six-Decade Career in Music

After a six-decade recording career that has seen him become one of the most celebrated performers of our time, Tony Bennett has proven that time truly does stand still for some.

The ageless crooner gave an amazing performance Thursday night in Williamsport in front of a packed Community Arts Center, filled with fans of all ages, proving that Bennett’s music and popularity have truly transcended multiple generations.

The evening began with a performance by Bennett’s lovely daughter Antonia, who paid tribute to her father on a number of tunes.

A nice touch was added to the show as the jazz and pop singer was introduced by an old recording of Frank Sinatra’s voice. Backed by a lineup of stellar musicians, Bennett sang many old favorites, including “Because of You,” “Just the Way You Look Tonight,” “The Shadow of Your Smile,” “For Once in My Life,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” and of course his signature song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.”

 

At 87 years old, Bennett proved that he can still belt it out with the best of them. His vocal range after all of these years is absolutely astounding, going from smooth and low to powerful and soaring, all in one line of a song.

Many of his songs received standing ovations, as the audience and myself were not only in awe of his singing, but of his energy and stamina, as the crooner still showed some nifty dance steps during a few numbers.

Bennett performed a number of encores, walking off the stage several times, and fooling the audience and myself that he was finished for the evening. Lo and behold, the singer would return back onto the stage for another go at it, showing his sense of humor as well.

Tony Bennett’s performance on this night was truly entertaining, but also inspiring. He has said that he still performs for all the same reasons he did when he began his amazing musical journey; and he shows no signs of slowing down. Bennett believes that performing for people is a noble profession to be in, and he wants people to forget their problems and leave the show feeling good. For as long as Bennett has been performing, it is clearly evident that being on stage after all of these years is still making him feel good too.

Ageless Jazz and Pop Singer Tony Bennett Still Going Strong at 87

Well known for popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz, legendary jazz and pop singer Tony Bennett is perhaps best known for his signature song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” recorded in 1962.

Still hip with audiences young and old at age 87, the iconic pop and jazz crooner has performed for more years and at a higher level of excellence than perhaps any other artist in popular American music. Bennett reached an artistic peak in the late 1950s with albums such as “The Beat of My Heart” and “Basie Swings, Bennett Sings” with the Count Basie Orchestra. His career then suffered a downturn during the height of the rock music era, but regained popularity in the late 1980s and ‘90s. Most recently, Bennett has experienced a kind of a renaissance, after his various duet albums with modern rock singers.

During his illustrious six-decade career, Bennett has won 17 Grammy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and has sold over 50 million records worldwide. Aside from music, Bennett is also an accomplished painter, with works on permanent public display in several institutions. He is the founder of the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in New York City.

 

Bennett recalls growing up in the Depression, a time when there was not a lot of money to spend on entertainment. If you bought a record you had to make sure that the entire family would enjoy it. “I remember one of the first records I purchased was of Enrico Caruso, and I had an uncle who was connected to Broadway so I got to see theatrical productions as a result,” he said. “But it was jazz music that hit me hard and the first time I heard it I just fell in love with it and feel that way now. It's America's classical music and it's an art form that we invented in this country.”

After being a foot solider in World War II, Bennett came home and was fortunate enough under the GI Bill of Rights to be able to attend classes at The American Theatre Wing, where one of his vocal coaches, Mimi Speer, gave him some advice that greatly influenced him as a singer.  “She told me not to imitate any other singers as then I would just become one of the chorus and instead told me to listen to jazz musicians that I admired and try to emulate their instrumental style,” he said. “I have always loved the pianist Art Tatum as he had a very unique style where he would build each song into its own finale layer by layer, creating a mini-monument of each song he performed; and I studied his style and used that in my own song performances.”

Throughout his extraordinary career, Bennett has had the pleasure to record and perform with a wide array of artists, including Judy Garland, K.D. Lang, and most recently Amy Winehouse and Lady Gaga, with whom he has recorded a complete album, which will be released in September. But if there is one artist Bennett regrets never having the honor to perform with, it’s a certain New Orleans jazz legend. “I will say that the one performer I never got a chance to sing with and would have loved to have had that opportunity is Louis Armstrong,” he said. “He was a consummate performer and he truly taught us all how to sing.”

When Bennett signed with Columbia Records in 1950 his premise from the beginning was to create a ‘hit catalog’ and not just go after ‘hit records’ – many of which were novelty songs that would be popular for a relatively short time and then be instantly forgotten. A few years ago, Columbia released the biggest boxed set ever of Bennett’s work and when going over all the music for the set, he was so thrilled that there wasn't a single track that he felt didn't belong. “I fought pretty hard over the years to only record the best popular music I could find,” he said. “I think not compromising on quality is really something I consider a career highlight.”

He doesn’t perform as much now as when he was first starting out over six decades ago, when he had to sing seven shows a day at the Paramount Theatre, but the thrill and spontaneity of being in front of a live audience is still what he loves best. “Being on the road for so many decades has given me an education of the world that I would never be able to have achieved any other way,” Bennett said. “And as a visual artist, I have painted and sketched in all the cities and countries that I have travelled to, so that has been a great advantage; and to have been able to go to all the magnificent museums and art galleries around the world.”

Bennett has performed in Pennsylvania many times through the years and always loves coming back to the area. “I get a chance to do some sketching if I can while I am here,” he said. “It’s a very warm and welcoming place to perform for very intelligent audiences.” 

With a career that spans seven decades, Bennett still performs for all the same reasons he did when he began this musical journey; and he shows no signs of slowing down. “I just love it – as much today as when I was first starting out,” he said. “I think it is a very noble profession to perform for people and for a few hours they forget their own problems, and if they leave the show and feel good, that to me is a great compliment.”

Country Legend Clint Black Still ‘Killin’ Time’ with His Musicianship

Country music singer Clint Black’s debut album “Killin’ Time” in 1989 made him an instant success during an era in country music that saw numerous top flight artists make their mark on the industry, such as Alan Jackson, Vince Gill, Garth Brooks, and Brooks & Dunn.

A country music singer-songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and occasional actor, Black has had more than 30 singles on the U.S. Billboard country charts, twenty-two of which have reached number one, in addition to having released nine studio albums and several compilation albums. In 2003, Black founded his own record label, Equity Music Group.

 

Born in Long Branch, New Jersey in 1962, Black and his family moved to Texas where his father had been raised. With music always present in the house, it’s no wonder by age 13 Black taught himself the harmonica and wrote his first song at age 14. Eventually, Black learned to play the guitar, and as a teenager, dropped out of high school to join his older brothers in a band before becoming a solo act.

Initially drawn to a variety of musical genres, Black chose to focus on country music, in the style kept alive by George Jones and Merle Haggard. In 1989, Black’s debut album “Killin’ Time” was an instant success upon its release, establishing him as one of the biggest new stars in country music. The certified triple-platinum album spawned four consecutive number one singles, including the title track “Killin’ Time,” “A Better Man,” “Nobody’s Home,” and “Walkin’ Away.”

Black would go on to release six more studio albums throughout the 1990s, with such favorites as “Put Yourself in My Shoes,” “The Hard Way,” “No Time to Kill,” and “Nothin’ but the Taillights.” Additional hits such as “Loving Blind,” “When My Ship Comes In,” “Like the Rain,” and duets like “A Bad Goodbye” with Wynonna Judd and “When I Said I Do” with his wife, actress Lisa Hartman, further established Black in the hearts of country music fans as a legend in his prime. 

Throughout his nearly three-decade career of recording and performing, Black has collaborated with a number of well-known artists, making quite a few friends in the process. Among his favorites are Haggard, Jones, Roy Rogers, David Crosby, and Steve Wariner. With a list of legends such as this, it’s hard for Black to choose his absolute favorite to work with, but if he could choose an artist with whom he hasn’t worked, who would it be? “I’d love to do something with Willie (Nelson) or James Taylor,” he said. “But I’ve been spoiled thus far, so who could ask for more?”

In 2013, Black released the CD “When I Said I Do,” a mix of re-recorded favorites plus a few new tracks. It was an opportunity for Black to share a little of the new music he had been working on through a partnership with Cracker Barrel restaurants. “I loved working with them; great company and great people,” he said. “I did enjoy revisiting some of the older songs, but I was very anxious to get a little sample of the new stuff out.”

As far as leaving a legacy one day, Black would above all hope that his songwriting might be what defines his greatness. “I’ve worked very hard to write all of this music and keep up with my recording schedule, along with the pressure that came from the record companies to ‘not’ write my own songs,” he said. “I never thought after the success of ‘Killin’ Time’ that I would have to fight to keep writing my songs, but it happened. To this day, there are companies who would love to sign me to their label, if only I would let Nashville writers write my songs. Not going to happen!”

After nearly 30 years in the music business, it’s difficult for Black to name the single most important highlight of his fabulous career, but he does narrow it down to just a few great memories he’s had along the way. “It’s so hard to pinpoint just a few, but I would say the movies I’ve made with my wife, Lisa Hartman Black, and the one with our daughter, Lily,” he said. “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, all of the shows on military bases, including Somalia and the Balkans, and writing songs with Haggard, (Jimmy) Buffett, and Michael McDonald were great moments for me as well.”

 

Black hasn’t released a full album of all new material since 2005’s “Drinkin’ Songs and Other Logic,” but indicated he may have a new record already in the works. “I’m not sure what my management has lined up, but I’m putting the finishing touches on it along the way and hope to have it wrapped up and ready for release by summer,” he said.

While Black admits it isn’t always easy traveling and being away from home, it’s the time on stage that makes it all worthwhile. “The biggest advantage to touring this much is we don’t get rusty,” he said. “I can practice at home and in the studio, but being on stage in front of an audience is the best training and we’re getting a lot of training right now.”

This year marks the 25^th anniversary of Black’s debut smash hit album “Killin’ Time.” Since then, a new wave of younger artists have come through the country music scene and provided plenty of competition along the way. But at 52, Black feels that he has never been better as a musician and continues to hone his craft. “As a singer and guitarist, I feel like I’m in my prime right now,” he said. “I think as long as I feel that way, I’ll keep going. My vocal cords have never felt stronger, and I practice way more on guitar now than ever before. My fingers are crossed for continuing that trend.”

At Long Last: Ronstadt Makes Class of 2014

Finally, the miracle we've all been waiting for has happened. The Queen of Rock has earned her rightful place in music history and will be rewarded for her extraordinary career.

The powers-that-be at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame have finally recognized what has been in front of their faces all along. On April 10, singing superstar Linda Ronstadt will finally be inducted at a ceremony at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Joining Ronstadt for the class of 2014 are Daryl Hall & John Oates, Peter Gabriel, Cat Stevens, Kiss, and Nirvana.

While I am thrilled that Linda is at long last getting her due, I am saddened that it took so long for her get in. If I could've had it my way, and I'm most definitely sure I'm not alone in feeling this way, Linda would've been inducted in 1998, when her original back-up band, the Eagles were honored. This woman deserves a lot of credit for helping to form possibly the greatest American rock band ever. But Linda did quite well all on her own. She has mastered more musical genres than any other artist I can think of.

Besides being an incredible singer and performer, Linda has always impressed me as a person as well. Being a great fan and admirer of hers, I may be a little biased. But to me, Linda is the perfect example of what a human being should be. She has all the qualities that have made her so loved for so many years by so many fans. She is beautiful, intelligent, talented, warm, genuine, modest, and sincere. Despite her struggle with Parkinson's Disease, I truly hope that Linda will be able to attend the induction ceremony and bring some class and grace to an organization that is in dire need.