Right by Her Roots

Jewly Hight is a music writer whose work has appeared in No Depression, American Songwriter, Performing Songwriter, Relix, The Nashville Scene, The Christian Century, and a number of other publications. She holds a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt University Divinity School. She lives, writes, drums, and clogs in Nashville, Tennessee.

Lucinda Williams: Life and Death Matters A three-time GRAMMY winner, daughter of a former poet laureate and an Americana archetype. To put it another way, the most influential and cathartic literary southern-folk, rock-and-blues confessor of her generation. Julie Miller: Heart to Heart The deep, empathetic, emotional center of Americana songwriting, who is a coveted song source for discerning mainstream country singers. She and singer/guitarist husband Buddy Miller are widely regarded as the Queen and King of their genre. Victoria Williams: Seriously Free A Louisiana-born, California desert-dwelling, jazzy alternative folk-rock pioneer whose unfettered approach to singing and songwriting has a way of confronting and dissolving even the strongest inhibitions. Michelle Shocked: True to Conscience An intrepid and sharp-witted American roots music sojourner who has fought against the currents of the music industry to follow her social, political, and spiritual convictions. In the process she has become the head of her own small record label and a devoted member of a black church. Mary Gauthier: Outsider Art A folk-country singer-songwriter respected not only for the quality but the heft of her work. She unflinchingly, though not at all unfeelingly, speaks of and to people on the margins of society, identifying with them particularly through her own experience of being orphaned. Ruthie Foster: Don't Be Shy about What You've Got A Texas singer-songwriter partial to blues, spirituals, and soul. Possessed of a big voice, she teaches life-affirming boldness by example, in the spirit of her mother, grandmother, and the caught-up, celebratory church services of her youth. Elizabeth Cook: Staying Down-Home, Getting Somewhere A regular on the Grand Ole Opry, born with a voice for hard country and also drawn to the rawer sounds of rock and roll. As affectionate toward and sustained by her humble familial roots as she is determined to do her own thing beyond them, she writes in a way that embraces both with keen humor. Abigail Washburn: The Joy of Joining In A clawhammer banjo player whose warmhearted embrace of American old-time music, Chinese folk music, and sympathetic musical collaborators aims to stir communal connection... and leads to the occasional international diplomatic role.

In this remarkable book, music journalist Hight offers a perspective rarely seen in books on contemporary music--the stories of women singers and songwriters who have probed deeply and examined their geographical, cultural, familial, and religious roots in their music. Through interviews with Lucinda Williams, Julie Miller, Victoria Williams, Michelle Shocked, Mary Gauthier, Ruthie Foster, Elizabeth Cook, and Abigail Washburn, Hight allows these women to tell of the ways they have used music to go beyond their roots in search of their identities. She splendidly explores each artist's entire catalog, reflecting on the ways their music reveals the struggle to stand right by their roots. For example, Gauthier speaks of and to people on the social margins, identifying with them particularly through her own experience of being orphaned. Hight offers readers a glimpse of the many ways that music can transcend the ordinary to reveal the ongoing spiritual struggles that define an individual's relationship to others and to the world. Verdict This beautifully crafted little book introduces the deeply felt music of many of these women for the first time and brings their music to new audiences. For all collections. -- Henry L. Carrigan, Jr., Evanston, IL -- Library Journal As incisive and insightful as the women she profiles, Jewly Hight has filled these pages with remarkable, creative portraits of remarkable, creative people. -- Peter Cooper, Senior Music Critic -- The Tennessean