Nanci Griffith got an early start on her path to performing and songwriting. 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. The Loving Kind (available June 9 on Rounder Records) finds Nanci Griffith at the top of her game as a songwriter, interpreter, and singer. Featuring nine songs written by Griffith and her collaborators, and four well-chosen covers, the album takes its place alongside the consistently acclaimed work of this Grammy® Award-winning, genre-defying artist.
Griffith says that her approach to songwriting hasn’t changed over the years. “I just never know, any given day, what I’m going to wake up to.” Once she’s inspired, “it just all comes at once.” Even when working with collaborators, the idea driving the session has to be very strong. “If we don’t get something in twenty minutes, I’m done. It’s a very unique process and I don’t write with a lot of people. Charley Stefl, I’ve known since I was 16 years old and writing with him is always a joy. Thomm Jutz…is very easy to write with because he’s also my guitar player and he just knows my brain, and knows me musically.” Her latest album, which skillfully touches on newsworthy issues as well as matters of the heart, proves that such a writing style can capture life at its most complex.
