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N.C. songwriter gaining attention from bluegrass
and acoustic artists
By Paulette Isaacs
“In whatever musical context she chooses, Donna has the potential
to go as far as she wants. I truly believe
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North Carolina singer-songwriter
is quickly gaining a national following due to her strong
new album, Gaining Wisdom.
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this album is going to amaze everybody,” writes Tony Rice
in the liner notes of Donna Hughes’ first nationally-released
album that was made available in February of 2007. Rice’s
statement that the album will amaze everybody has pretty much
been the case, but folks were smitten by Hughes’ songwriting
abilities long before Gaining Wisdom came out.
Barry Bales, bassist for Alison Krauss and Union Station, wrote,
“Good things turn up in the strangest places. One rare fall
Saturday at home, I was listening to ‘Goin’ Across the
Mountain,’ a bluegrass show on WNCW out of Spindale, NC.
I don’t remember what I was doing exactly. I do remember
that all of a sudden, I was drawn to the song being played on
the radio enough to stop whatever it was. I’ve listened to
and played bluegrass music as long as I can remember - I thought
I knew everybody. But this was something fresh, sung by a voice
I hadn’t heard before. I immediately got on the phone to
DJ Dennis Jones and asked who that was I had just heard. He informed
me that it was Miss Donna Hughes from the great state of North
Carolina, and this was a CD she had put out herself, having written
every song on it. Well now…it just so happened that our band
was about to head into the studio to begin a new project and we
needed some material. This one could definitely work. After getting
her number, I called and left a message asking her to send me
all the material she had. I wasn’t prepared for what I received.
Not one, but three CDs full of great new songs written by Donna
(liner notes from album). From those CDs, Alison Krauss chose
“My Poor Old Heart” to appear on Lonely Runs Both Ways.
Producer Tony Rice had called Donna shortly after hearing her
self-released album Same Old Me at a friend’s house. The
song that inspired Tony Rice to produce the album is “Hold
On,” which features piano. He asked her personally if he
could produce her next album and Donna recalls, “It was such
a welcome relief to get recognition from such an extraordinary
musical hero, after all of my hard work” (press release from
Rounder Records). Growing up in Trinity, NC, she had always had
an interest in music, starting around age three. According to
Hughes, she had never performed in front of an audience until
singing in church in 1996. After that performance, she found that
she loved the experience and went on her way performing just about
anywhere she could get folks to listen. Shortly thereafter, she
embarked on doing some serious songwriting and recording. An accomplished,
classically-trained pianist, Hughes adds this dimension to five
of her songs on Gaining Wisdom. “Father Time” tells
of how no one is immune to the effects of time. Hughes states,
“I hope the dark sound of ‘Father Time’ might remind
the listener to stop, and be more grateful of each moment, each
day” (taken from artist bio from Rounder Records). “Not
Anymore” is a heartbreaking song about a once-strong love
that’s gone and the truth that time heals everything. Tim
Stafford’s (Blue Highway) song, “Find Me Out On a Mountaintop”
is beautifully done with piano, cello, and fiddle, and anyone
who has heard Blue Highway’s version will be equally impressed
with Donna’s. “Talking to the Wind” (which happens
to be one of this writer’s personal favorites) is truly a
haunting story of the Indian and his displacement. Though no one
will debate that the piano is not a bluegrass instrument, it is
presented tastefully on these songs and fits what she is hoping
to accomplish - her own style without the boundaries of a genre.
Bluegrass songs (those with banjo) include, “Where Are You
Darlin’?,” “Too Many,” “Bottom of a Glass”
(which is currently charting #20 for Bluegrass Unlimited’s
National Bluegrass Survey Top 30 Single Chart, #3 for Bluegrass
Music Profiles’ Top 20 Single Chart, and #24 on XM Radio’s
Bluegrass Junction Top 40 Single Chart), “Sad Old Train”
(also recorded recently by Seldom Scene on their Scencronized
project), and (hey 80’s music fans, pay attention!) Cyndi
Lauper’s #1 hit in 1984, “Time After Time.” Listeners
of bluegrass music cannot escape the fact that almost any good
and tasteful song can be brought under the reins of bluegrass.
The remaining cuts on the album penned by Hughes are “One
More Time,” “What I’m Looking For,” “Scattered
to the Wind,” and “Letters.”
Other artists lending talents to the album vocally are Carl Jackson,
Mary Chapin Carpenter, Alison Krauss, Sonya Isaacs, Lona Heins,
Alecia Nugent, John Carroll, Kati Penn, and Rhonda Vincent. Instrumentally,
contributions are made by Barry Bales, Tony Rice, Tim Stafford,
Rob Ickes, Mike Bub, Sam Bush, Ron Stewart, Wyatt Rice, Bryn Bright,
Rickie Simpkins, Donna Hughes, Wayne Benson, Scott Vestal, Kati
Penn, and Obil Perez.
Donna explains her songwriting inspirations in her biography from
Rounder Records. “Whatever moves me, moves me to write. My
songs are always about something I have seen, done, or felt -
or something that I saw someone else do or go through. There is
always truth to every song I write, even if it isn’t my truth.”
Her perspective of these truths are certainly not run-of-the-mill.
The lyrics give the listener a new appreciation for life - good
or bad. More information on Donna Hughes may be found at www.donnahughes.com
or at Rounder Records’ website at www.rounder.com
Local musicians are invited to send in your materials for a review
by Paulette Isaacs. They may be mailed to 286 Phillip Road, Elk
Park, NC 28622. Sorry, materials cannot be returned. For more
information, you may email Ro:dpisaacs@localnet.com. |
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