The story is full of all kinds of details that stick, if you get Nashville, but I thought it really needed one or two additional paragraphs, or at least a few extra lines. Yes, this is Nashville, so we are talking about a religion ghost that slipped into this story, but was given very little attention.<\/p>\n
Now, the whole key to this story is that the life of a musician in Nashville \u2014 the pop-culture capital of the Bible Belt \u2014 is somewhat different than life in a place like Los Angeles. In the country music biz artists need to court a broader audience, including the people who run radio stations. It\u2019s a place where even the big stars are expected to project a bit of down-home attitude. <\/p>\n
Like I said, this story gets that down, starting with some advice from a guy named Brad, who urged her to go country for keeps:<\/p>\n
Crow thought about it and Paisley\u2019s message took hold. But it meant she would have to change things up and embrace Nashville\u2019s country music culture. Eventually, he helped kick start the new record, suggested producer Justin Niebank and introduced her to songwriter Chris Dubois, who served as a co-writer and informal song editor. She changed her songwriting tack, looking to match the more visceral, story-telling style of the genre.<\/p>\n
And no one succeeds in country music without courting radio \u2014 thus the bus. Most of country music\u2019s biggest stars started that way and Crow \u2014 20 years after releasing her first album, the five times platinum \u201cTuesday Night Music Club\u201d \u2014 didn\u2019t see herself as exempt, no matter how many millions of albums she\u2019s already sold.<\/p>\n
The first day of radio tour she hit larger markets like Knoxville and Chattanooga in Tennessee, Atlanta, Orlando, Fla., and some privately owned stations in smaller towns, too. One day, three states. Welcome to country.<\/p>\n
\u201cI say that it\u2019s fun, but it\u2019s the hardest thing I\u2019ve ever done,\u201d Crow said. \u201cBecause sitting on the bus and only getting the gratification of only playing like a couple of songs, and then driving for two more hours and then getting to play a couple more songs. It\u2019s really hard, but it\u2019s great, you know? \u2026 I\u2019ve felt really embraced.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So the musician is adapting.<\/p>\n
But what about the woman whose private life has, on occasion, been the stuff of tabloid headlines? How\u2019s she doing?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Suffice it to say that the title of her first country album is \u201cFeels Like Home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, read this next little slice of the story and spot the amazing detail that just flies past.<\/p>\n
The title could easily refer to her new life in Nashville, where she moved seven years ago after beating breast cancer. She\u2019s since adopted two young sons, Levi and Wyatt, and settled into the creative community. Her kids go to school with the kids of other artists \u2014 she recently held a fundraiser for a local school \u2014 and they all see each other at church.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really idyllic,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd the other great thing about it is I can get off the airplane and there\u2019s no paparazzi.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So Crow\u2019s kids also hang out with their school buddies \u2014 at church?<\/p>\n
Yes, that\u2019s Nashville, alright. <\/p>\n
I don\u2019t know about you, but I\u2019d like to know more about where Crow \u2014 after seven years in town and surviving a brush with death \u2014 goes to church. Guitar town has plenty of amazing churches, including some very alive and vital congregations that remain aligned with more progressive denominations.<\/p>\n
This is a city in which even some of the biggest of stars slip quietly in and out of the balconies of major churches and some have been known to get involved at the level of social causes, helping the poor, youth group concerts, etc.<\/p>\n
So I\u2019ll ask the question that just about everybody asks newcomers when they hit Nashville, the question that methinks the AP team should have been bold enough to ask in this case: So, Ms. Crow, where do you go to church?<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While I have not lived in Nashville (yet), I have spent a lot of time there and know quite a bit about the town. Thus, I really enjoyed the new Associated Press feature about rocker Sheryl Crow\u2018s decision to move \u2014 as in pack up her life and really move \u2014 to Guitar Town and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":610,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7,16,18,11],"tags":[869,1691,1692],"class_list":["post-105882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-godbeat","category-journalism","category-music","category-people","category-pop-culture","tag-country-music","tag-nashville","tag-sheryl-crow"],"yoast_head":"\n
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