Bluegrass pioneer Laurie Lewis sings songs with ‘grit and grace’
Laurie Lewis is among the most insightful, multi-talented artists in bluegrass. Twice honored as bluegrass Female Vocalist of the Year, Lewis is an award-winning songwriter, fiddler, guitarist, producer, bandleader and teacher. She’s a Grammy winner, too.
Lewis and her band, the Right Hands, will perform Feb. 8, at Carrboro’s ArtsCenter.
Lewis, who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where she was born and raised, released her debut album, “Restless Rambling Heart,” in 1986, a time when bluegrass artistry was still a man’s world.
Following the lead of Hall of Fame duo, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, who torched the so-called “grass ceiling” before her, Lewis answered her muse and launched a career yielding some 20 albums, earning an international coterie of fans. With her latest Grammy-nominated CD, “The Hazel and Alice Sessions,” Lewis pays homage to Gerrard, who lives in Durham, and the late Dickens.
Lewis’ songs are personal and penetrating, often informed by her observations during nature hikes or rafting trips which serve as inspiration and relaxation. Linda Ronstadt has said of Lewis, “Her voice is a rare combination of grit and grace, strength and delicacy. Her stories are always true.”
Her cover of Kate Long’s “Who Will Watch the Home Place” won IBMA’s Song of the Year in 1994. One of her most popular compositions, “Love Chooses You,” was recorded by Kathy Mattea. And, at last year’s World of Bluegrass concert in Raleigh’s Red Hat Amphitheater, “Swept Away,” from her album, “True Stories,” was performed by the First Ladies of Bluegrass supergroup.
Speaking by phone from the Big Island, Hawaii, where she and her partner, Tom Rozum, were in the midst of their 25th annual Hawaiian tour, Lewis discussed with The News and Observer her career, legacy and future plans.
Q: Besides enjoying Hawaii’s pineapple, poi, and sunshine, what else are you up to these days?
Lewis: Well, I’m playing in my band and still doing some gigs with Tom (Rozum). And I just finished a small tour with a couple of other songwriters and a great guitarist, Nina Gerber. It’s called “Words and Music.” The other writers were Don Henry and Claudia Russell. It was so enjoyable to sit and concentrate on the songs.
The songwriting tour is all about the song. In the band, it’s not only about the song, but about the harmonies and how beautifully everybody plays. All that stuff I love. But if you take something down to the bare bones, it’s very revealing.
Q: Your songs often have themes from nature. I’m thinking of “Lark in the Morning,” “Texas Bluebonnets” and “Haven of Mercy,” as examples. You seem to use nature as a window into larger concerns.
Lewis: We’ve heard of “Nature Deficit Disorder.” I really feel that we as a society are suffering from that. Hiking and being outdoors when I’m not on tour, I’ve been writing more songs that have a localized nature appeal.
For instance, one of my songs is about pikas. They’re a small mammal that resemble their close cousin, the rabbit, but with shorter ears. They live in mountainous countries in Asia, and there are also two species in North America. They live in the high Sierra above the timberline. Their habitat is endangered because of climate change. There’s something about reconnecting or just connecting with the natural world that puts everything in perspective. That’s where I try to come from.
Q: In 2013, you produced Alice Gerrard’s album, “Bittersweet,” and released your own “The Hazel and Alice Sessions” in 2017. What do you have in mind for your next project?
Lewis: I’m looking at doing another album now, which is all duets. It’s really fun to do. I think the working title of it is, “And Laurie Lewis.” I went to North Carolina and recorded with Craig Smith, my wonderful banjo-playing buddy. I recorded a couple with (bassist) Todd Phillips and a couple with (Durham’s) Tatiana Hargreaves. One with Molly Tuttle, and we have another one planned.
Q: In the last few years, a host of young, brilliant female musicians have emerged on the acoustic scene. Their numbers include Sarah Hull, Tatiana Hargreaves, and of course, Molly Tuttle. As one who came along when bluegrass included few women musicians, what are your thoughts on these young players who are shaping the future of bluegrass?
Lewis: I think it’s fantastic. I love what young women are doing in acoustic music. I think it’s still an uphill struggle. I get these notices on Instagram showing a festival lineup with only the bands with at least one woman. At some of the festivals, out of 10 bands, two have a woman. Maybe that’s because you have to wait for the women in the bluegrass pipeline to catch up. There’s always been women musicians, but it’s always been a man’s world. I think it’s becoming less of one, but it’s slow.
Q: Unlike many of your peers, you’ve chosen to remain in California’s Bay Area rather than moving to Nashville. California is not known as a bluegrass state, yet you’ve established an accomplished and award-winning resume. How has the decision to remain at home influenced your career?
Lewis: It’s the community that nurtured me. It’s not particularly competitive. It was welcoming and embraced everybody who wanted to play this music. When I decided to start touring and having my own band late in life — I was in my late 30s — I hadn’t realized how sexist and “old boys club” the scene really was because I did not experience that in California, or very little. So it made me the person I am. I wish more people knew my songs and more people would sing my songs, but I’m not out there pushing them.
It’s been a very crooked road, I’d say. I haven’t made choices that have been best for my career. I’ve stayed playing bluegrass music, and the San Francisco Bay Area is not a hotbed of bluegrass. The overall bluegrass community has been historically dismissive of California. They shouldn’t be, because so many of the great players come from there, including Molly Tuttle and Stuart Duncan. I made choices to stay in Berkeley and follow a different career path than going to Nashville, which is what everybody told me I should do. Although I might have found more overall fame, I’m much happier being who I am and keeping my roots dug in deep out here in the West.
Details
Who: Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands
When: 8 p.m. Feb. 8
Where: 300-G E Main St., Carrboro
Cost: $28
Info: artscenterlive.org
This story was originally published February 6, 2019 at 12:00 AM.