It's always about the songs

'it's always about the songs'

Country's Kathy Mattea reaches beyond genre for 'the best'

BY DAVID HOROWITZ

At a time when singers are too often judged by what they wear or how many dance moves they have, Kathy Mattea, appearing Sunday at the Power Center in the Ann Arbor Summer Festival’s final show, just sings the heck out of a song.

While her CDs may be filed in the country section, her work shows a wealth of influences and a voice one critic called “a rare blend of warmth and power.”

“It’s always about the songs,” said Mattea over the phone from her Nashville home. “The hardest thing to do if you don’t write your own songs is to hold out for the good ones. I listen to hundreds of songs looking for one to record, and it can be daunting. In the end, it’s up to me to hold out for the best songs, the ones that hit me on a gut level, the ones that stop me in my tracks and I just have to play again.”

In a 20-plus-year career, the West Virginia native has become known for picking songs that speak straight about the human condition, from the independent spunk in “Walking Away a Winner” to the haunting “Love Chooses You,” to the touching “Where’ve You Been,” a Country Music Association Song of the Year and testament to lasting love.

She’s also charted with her cover of Nanci Griffith’s “Love at the Five and Dime” and the No. 1 hits “Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses” and “Going Gone.” A two-time Grammy winner, she’s also received two Country Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year awards.

SEE MATTEA, B2

PREVIEW
Kathy Mattea

Who: Two-time Grammy winner, two-time CMA Female Vocalist of the Year winner.

What: Country-folk.

When: 8 p.m. Sunday

Where: Power Center, 121 Fletcher St.

How much: $18-$38.

Tickets and information: Tickets are available at the Michigan League Ticket Office, 911 N. University Ave., online at www.tickets.com, (734) 764-2538.