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Liz Carlisle: From Big
Sky Country to "Big Dreams," this Montana bred,
Harvard educated singer/songwriter stirs up an eclectic
blend of contemporary and classic Country, Pop, Folk and
Americana on her first Nashville recorded album as she tours
New Mexico this Summer.
As “Let Me Be The One,” the first
single from ‘Big Dreams’ hits Country radio, Carlisle will be
touring extensively this
summer, playing festivals and opening for Josh Turner, Billy Currington,
Jack Ingram, The Wreckers and Heartland.
The Phi Beta Kappa and Summa cum Laude
graduate in Ethnomusicology has opened shows for LeAnn Rimes, Sugarland, Travis Tritt, Lonestar,
Diamond Rio, Steve Holy, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town and Joe
Nichols. |
Liz Carlisle is a poster child for a new generation of country
music, a true renaissance woman who quotes George Jones as
effortlessly as George Washington and George Orwell. Born and raised
in Missoula, Montana, the 23-year-old singer/songwriter recently
graduated from Harvard University, where she became an award-winning
undergraduate scholar in ethnomusicology. Far from leaving her roots
behind, however, Liz chose to study American music. And she brought
her boots, hat, and guitar with her. She’s a young woman with Big
Dreams, an apt title for her first release on Wildground Records. Set for release on May 18, less than a year after Liz gave the
undergraduate address at her commencement, the compelling,
multi-faceted recording was co-written and produced by Carlisle’s
longtime collaborator, Russell Wolff. The album’s first single “Let Me Be The One” is set to ship to
commercial country radio on April 30, while the collection as a
whole will also be marketed to public radio, college radio, Triple
AAA and Americana outlets nationwide. Liz has already scheduled nearly 20 tour dates this summer,
including several large music festivals (including the Moondance
Country Jam in Walker, Minnesota and the Bethlehem Musikfest in
Pennsylvania) and opening spots for well-known country acts like
Josh Turner, Billy Currington, Jack Ingram, The Wreckers, Heartland
and Lonestar. The line-up of dates will be announced shortly. Both Liz’s music and the way in which her career developed say much
about the modern audience for country music. The young
singer/songwriter began as a darling of the acoustic music scene in
Cambridge, a storied hotbed of sixties folk music that has since
launched the careers of artists like Tracy Chapman and Jewel. As her
career developed, however, she was equally comfortable opening large
stage shows for major country artists in both rural and urban
communities across the United States. “I think most people have come to the long overdue realization that
country music is not hick music,” Liz says. “It’s an incredibly rich
tradition with a lot of wisdom about humanity, and I think people of
all backgrounds are attracted to that.” Her unique contribution to this tradition demonstrates its widening
scope. Among the songwriter’s influences are her father’s James
Taylor records, as well as the pop and rock music of her own
formative years. But there is no question as to where Big Dreams is
rooted. “I like country music that sounds like country music,” Liz
says. “Dolly, Reba, a big loud pedal steel guitar. There’s so much
emotion packed into that sound.” Considering the depth of the lyrics of the songs on Big Dreams, it’s
hard to believe that these songs came from a songwriter fresh out of
college. (Liz co-wrote much of the material with Wolff, but penned
most of the words herself). By the second track, “Maybe in the Next
Life,” Liz is already delving into the challenges faced by her
parents, who were both divorced with children when they began
dating. “Hey California,” while tongue-in-cheek in its country-rock
poke at city slickers, takes on serious issues faced by growing
rural communities. “Let Me Be The One” is a straightforward love
song, but the catchy track is still chock-full of mature
observations. Nashville’s top studio talent was tapped for the recording of this
album, and it shows. Mixer Bart Pursley (Big & Rich, Gretchen
Wilson) put together a stellar band with a collective resume
spanning Johnny Cash to Vince Gill to Alison Krauss to Dierks
Bentley. Sessions were held at John and Martina McBride’s Blackbird
Studios (where The White Stripes and Martina herself were also
recording at the time) and The Tracking Room. With all the Music
City muscle behind Big Dreams, however, much of the credit for the
album’s strength goes to its producer Wolff, an alt-pop
singer-songwriter based in New England. Although Big Dreams is destined for even more national attention,
Liz’s first full album, also produced by Wolff, garnered much praise
– particularly for an independent debut (and considering that the
artist still had to finish her senior thesis while promoting it).
Five Star Day, released in 2005, garnered favorable reviews from
such media outlets as The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, The
Associated Press, and The BBC. The single “Montana” continues to
play on commercial country radio, and the full album has received
heavy airplay at public radio stations around the world. On the
strength of this album, Liz received several songwriting awards,
toured England and Scotland for three consecutive summers, and sang
the national anthem at a New England Patriots game. Last summer, just two months after graduation, she landed her first
opening gig for a major country artist. Her show at Hampton Beach
Casino in New Hampshire with Sugarland was a resounding success,
leading to shows in larger venues with a virtual who’s who of
country music: LeAnn Rimes, Travis Tritt, Little Big Town, Lonestar,
Diamond Rio, Steve Holy, Miranda Lambert and Hal Ketchum. Four years of nonstop touring – the last two at nearly 100 dates per
year – clearly separate Liz from many debut country artists whose
stage experience is limited to Nashville showcases or their own
regional circuit. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” admits booking
agent Jake Kennedy. “I thought Liz was a great talent from the
beginning, but even I was surprised to see the response from the
venues, agents, and management companies I work with – not to
mention the audiences. She walks in there as an unknown, no make up,
no radio single yet, and just her and Russell on stage – and she
walks out with 5,000 new fans all asking for her autograph. That’s
when you know it’s more than just great songs.” The genuineness and positive energy that Liz projects on stage are a
big part of what Big Dreams is all about. “This is a celebration of
the human spirit,” Liz says of her budding life’s work. “That is the
starting point of all our goals and aspirations, whether we’re
trying to be President or just be a good mother, daughter, or
spouse. I want to connect on a human level with everyone there. I
want to help create that environment in which those dreams can
flourish.”
Carlisle may be seen August 1, 2007, in Albuquerque, at Expo New
Mexico with Emerson Drive, and August 18, in Clovis at the Curry
County Fairgrounds with Jack Ingram. |
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