Rodney Crowell

Biography

Rodney Crowell (born August 7, 1950) is an American musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music. Crowell has had five number one singles on Hot Country Songs, all from his 1988 album Diamonds & Dirt×Diamonds & Dirt16 March 1988 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Crazy Baby3:072I Couldn't Leave You If I Tried3:193She's Crazy For Leavin'3:174After All This Time4:285I Know You're Married3:316Above and Beyond2:297It's Such a Small world3:228I Didn't Know I Could Lose You3:219Brand New Rag3:0810The Last Waltz5:12. He has also written songs and produced for other artists.
He was influenced by songwriters Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt. Crowell played guitar and sang for three years in Emmylou Harris' Hot Band.
He has won two Grammy Awards in his career, one in 1990 for Best Country Song for the song "After All This Time" and one in 2014 Best Americana Album for his album Old Yellow Moon.

Early life

Crowell was born on August 7, 1950, in Houston, Texas, to James Walter Crowell and Addie Cauzette Willoughby.
He came from a musical family, with one grandfather being a church choir leader and the other a bluegrass banjo player. His grandmother played guitar, and his father sang semi-professionally at bars and honky tonks. At age 11, he started playing drums in his father's band. In his teenage years, he played in various garage rock bands in Houston, performing hits of the day alongside a few country numbers.

1972–1986: Early career

In August 1972, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in search of a musical career and got a job as a songwriter after being discovered by Jerry Reed. He later met and befriended fellow songwriter Guy Clark, who became a major influence on his songwriting and vice versa. While there, he said, "I got a real cold splash in the face of what real songwriting is about. I started filling my mind with as many symbols and images as I could. I started reading. I got real hungry to have something to contribute". Emmylou Harris had recorded one of Crowell's songs, "Bluebird Wine", on her Pieces of the Sky album and requested to meet him. After he sat in with Emmylou at her gig at the Armadillo World Headquarters in early January 1975, she asked him to play rhythm guitar in her backing band, The Hot Band. He accepted and left the following day to join Emmylou in Los Angeles.

In 1977, as a side project, he formed a musical group, The Cherry Bombs, together with Vince Gill, Tony Brown, and others. One year later, he signed a solo deal with Warner Bros. Records and in August 1978, released his debut album, Ain't Living Long Like This.
His debut album, as well as his following two albums, But What Will the Neighbors Think×But What Will the Neighbors Think1980 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Here Come the 80’s2:42A2Ain’t No Money4:02A3Oh, What a Feeling2:57A4It’s Only Rock ’n’ Roll3:17A5On a Real Good Night3:53B1Ashes by Now0:29B2Heartbroke2:42B3Queen of Hearts3:31B4Blues in the Daytime4:20B5The One About England3:35 and Rodney Crowell, were not commercially successful despite garnering a huge cult following. Crowell himself criticized his debut album for not translating onto vinyl the same clarity and energy he felt in the studio. His single "Ashes by Now" from "But What Will the Neighbors Think" reached No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980.
Though he had already several country hits by artists covering his songs (including "I Ain't Living Long Like This" by Waylon Jennings, "Leaving Louisiana..." by the Oak Ridge Boys, and several covers by Johnny Cash, Rosanne Cash, Emmylou Harris, Jerry Reed and others), Crowell got his first big taste of pop songwriting success with "Shame on the Moon". "Shame on the Moon" was recorded on the 1982 album The Distance by Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band. Glenn Frey joined Seger on background harmony on the song. Appealing to a broad cross-section of listeners, the song spent four weeks at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart, topped the adult contemporary chart, and placed in the Top 15 of the country chart in early 1983. The song's dark, poetic and hypnotic style helped boost Crowell's cult status.
The album Rodney Crowell was released in 1981 (see 1981 in country music) by Warner Bros. Records and was his last album on that label before switching to Columbia. It was also the first album Crowell produced by himself. The album reached No. 47 on the Top Country Albums chart and No. 105 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The songs "Stars on the Water" and "Victim or a Fool" were released as singles. "Stars on the Water" reached No. 30 on the Hot Country Songs chart, Crowell's highest charting song up to that point. It peaked at No. 21 on the Canadian country charts. "Victim or a Fool" reached No. 34 in the U.S.
In 1981, Crowell put his career on hold to produce several of his wife Rosanne Cash's albums.
In 1983, Crystal Gayle had a number one country single with his song "'Til I Gain Control Again" from her first Elektra album, True Love. The song was first recorded in 1975 by Emmylou Harris and appeared on Elite Hotel that year.
In 1984, Crowell returned to working on his own music career and recorded what was to be a new album for Warner Bros., Street Language×Street Language1986 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Let Freedom Ring4:332Ballad of Fast Eddie3:513When I'm Free Again3:534She Loves the Jerk3:435When the Blue Hour Comes4:186Oh King Richard4:187Looking for You4:368Stay (Don't Be Cruel)3:509The Best I Can2:4610Last Like a Mask4:13. That album, a pop-sounding effort co–produced by David Malloy, was rejected by Warner Bros and never released. Warner Bros. requested a more Nashville-friendly record, but Crowell negotiated a release from his contract and moved to Columbia Records.

1986–1995: Columbia Records and mainstream success

After producing Rosanne Cash's Rhythm & Romance, Crowell signed to Columbia Records in 1986. His first album for that label was reworked Street Language×Street Language1986 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Let Freedom Ring4:332Ballad of Fast Eddie3:513When I'm Free Again3:534She Loves the Jerk3:435When the Blue Hour Comes4:186Oh King Richard4:187Looking for You4:368Stay (Don't Be Cruel)3:509The Best I Can2:4610Last Like a Mask4:13, co-produced with Booker T. Jones and featuring a blend of soul and country music. The album did not chart.
Although best known as a songwriter and alternative country artist, Crowell enjoyed mainstream popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s. His critically acclaimed 1988 album, Diamonds & Dirt×Diamonds & Dirt16 March 1988 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Crazy Baby3:072I Couldn't Leave You If I Tried3:193She's Crazy For Leavin'3:174After All This Time4:285I Know You're Married3:316Above and Beyond2:297It's Such a Small world3:228I Didn't Know I Could Lose You3:219Brand New Rag3:0810The Last Waltz5:12, produced five consecutive No. 1 singles during 17 months in 1988 and 1989: "It's Such a Small World" (a duet with Cash), "I Couldn't Leave You If I Tried," "She's Crazy For Leavin'," "After All This Time" and "Above and Beyond" (a cover of Buck Owens' 1962 hit). Crowell's "After All This Time" won the 1990 Grammy Award for Best Country Song. His follow-up album, 1989's Keys to the Highway×Keys to the Highway10 October 1989 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1My Past Is Present2:482If Looks Could Kill3:263Soul Searchin'3:584Many a Long & Lonesome Highway4:165We Gotta Go on Meeting Like This2:556The Faith Is Mine4:307Tell Me the Truth3:358Don't Let Your Feet Slow You Down3:189Now That We're Alone4:1510Things I Wish I'd Said4:0811I Guess We've Been Together for Too Long2:4612You Been on My Mind3:26, produced two top 5 hits in 1990, which were "Many a Long & Lonesome Highway" and "If Looks Could Kill."
After 1992's Life Is Messy, he left Columbia Records and signed to MCA Records, where he released two more albums — Let the Picture Paint Itself×Let the Picture Paint Itself10 May 1994 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Let the Picture Paint Itself4:092Give My Heart a Rest3:333Stuff That Works4:054Big Heart3:415Loving You Makes Me Strong3:436The Best Years of Our Lives2:427I Don't Fall in Love So Easy3:508That Ol' Door4:319The Rose of Memphis3:4110Once in a While4:10 and Jewel of the South×Jewel of the South20 June 1995 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Say You Love Me3:482Candy Man3:063Please Remember Me3:484The Ballad of Possum Potez3:315Thinking About Leaving4:086The Ladder of Love2:567Just Say Yes4:038Storm of Love3:019Love to Burn3:2710Jewel of the South4:5211Que' Es Amor (What Is Love)1:37.

2001–2010: Songwriting success, critical acclaim

Crowell continued to enjoy success as a songwriter in the 1990s and 2000s. Several of Crowell's songs became Top Ten country hits during this period, including "Song for the Life" by Alan Jackson, "Making Memories of Us" by Keith Urban, "Ashes by Now" by Lee Ann Womack, and "Please Remember Me" by Tim McGraw.
In 2001, after a brief hiatus from recording, Crowell released The Houston Kid on Sugar Hill Records, his first studio album since 1995's Jewel of the South×Jewel of the South20 June 1995 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Say You Love Me3:482Candy Man3:063Please Remember Me3:484The Ballad of Possum Potez3:315Thinking About Leaving4:086The Ladder of Love2:567Just Say Yes4:038Storm of Love3:019Love to Burn3:2710Jewel of the South4:5211Que' Es Amor (What Is Love)1:37. Many songs on the album were semi-autobiographical, and the album included a duet Crowell had recorded and released as a single in 1998 with his ex-father-in-law Johnny Cash, "I Walk the Line Revisited". Crowell followed up this effort with Fate's Right Hand in 2003 and The Outsider in 2005, both of which appeared on Columbia Nashville, a division of Sony Music. Leading critics and Crowell consider these three albums his finest solo work.
Rodney Crowell was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003 with fellow inductees Hal Blair, Paul Overstreet and John Prine.
2004 saw the release of The Notorious Cherry Bombs, a reunion of Crowell's 1970s road band, including Vince Gill and Tony Brown. The future Keith Urban hit "Making Memories of Us" was included on this disc. In 2005, Crowell served as producer for established Irish singer-songwriter Kieran Goss on the album "Blue Sky Sunrise".
In 2007, Rodney Crowell was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame.
Crowell released his next album, Sex & Gasoline×Sex & Gasoline2 September 2008 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Sex & Gasoline4:282Moving Work of Art4:303The Rise and Fall of Intelligent Design4:284Truth Decay4:305I Want You #353:316I've Done Everything I Can5:347Who Do You Trust4:088The Night's Just Right3:519Funky and the Farm Boy4:0810Forty Winters4:4311Closer to Heaven5:20, on Yep Roc Records in 2008, ending his relationship with Sony Music. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. Crowell figures prominently in musician-neuroscientist Daniel Levitin's book The World in Six Songs for which he was interviewed, and three Crowell songs, "Shame On The Moon," "I Know Love Is All I Need" and "I Walk the Line (Revisited)×I Walk the Line (Revisited)13 October 1998 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1I Walk the Line (Revisited)2:452Stars on the Water3:41" are featured in the book.
In 2009, Crowell wrote Wynonna Judd's title track to her album Sing: Chapter 1, which was also released in 2009. The song was given several electronic dance music remixes and sent to dance radio as Judd's second release from the album. In August 2009, the single reached No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart.
Crowell produced Chely Wright's 2009 album, Lifted Off the Ground. Wright also made a cameo appearance in Crowell's 2008 music video for his single "Sex and Gasoline".

2011–present

Vintage Books published Crowell's memoir, Chinaberry Sidewalks, in 2011. "Chinaberry Sidewalks" focuses primarily on Crowell's relationship with his parents’ marriage and his own early years growing up in Houston, Texas.
In 2012, Vanguard Records released KIN: Songs by Rodney Crowell and Mary Karr. Karr wrote the lyrics, and Crowell set them to music. KIN was Karr's first foray into songwriting. Crowell performed four tracks on the album; one as a duet with Kris Kristofferson. A variety of other artists recorded the other songs on the album, including Norah Jones, Vince Gill, Lucinda Williams, Lee Ann Womack, Rosanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson and Emmylou Harris.
On February 26, 2013, Crowell and Emmylou Harris released Old Yellow Moon on Harris' longtime label Nonesuch Records. The album reached Number 4 on Billboard's Country albums chart and Number 29 on the Billboard Hot 200 charts. In 2013, the album won the Americana Music Awards' Album of the Year award, and Crowell and Harris were named group/duo of the year. On January 26, 2014, Crowell won his second Grammy Award when Old Yellow Moon won the Grammy for Best Americana Album. On May 11, 2015, Crowell and Emmylou Harris released The Traveling Kind on Nonesuch Records.
Crowell released his first album on New West Records, Tarpaper Sky×Tarpaper Sky11 April 2014 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1The Long Journey Home4:232Fever on the Bayou3:573Frankie Please2:434God I'm Missing You3:545Famous Last Words of a Fool in Love3:506Somebody's Shadow3:297Grandma Loved That Old Man3:438Jesus Talk to Mama3:409I Wouldn't Be Me Without You3:2810The Flyboy & The Kid3:5511Oh What a Beautiful World5:08, on April 15, 2014. Crowell co-produced the record with his long-time collaborator, Steuart Smith. In the fall of 2014, Crowell was hired as music director for the Hank Williams biopic I Saw the Light.
In 2015, Crowell provided background vocals on "It Doesn't Hurt Right Now", a song he co-wrote with Jewel for her album Picking Up the Pieces as well as on "Holy War", a track which appears on I Am the Rain, a 2016 album by Chely Wright. On December 20, 2016, Crowell released a music video for the song "It Ain't Over Yet", which features guest vocals from Rosanne Cash and John Paul White as well as harmonica from Mickey Raphael. The song appears on his album Close Ties×Close Ties31 March 2017 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1East Houston Blues3:372Reckless3:303Life Without Susanna4:114It Ain’t Over Yet5:145I Don’t Care Anymore4:286I’m Tied to Ya3:597Forgive Me Annabelle4:098Forty Miles From Nowhere5:599Storm Warning4:3710Nashville 19723:53, which was released in 2017. The album also features a duet with Sheryl Crow titled "I'm Tied To Ya".
In 2019, Crowell received the Poet's Award from the Academy of Country Music for his achievements in songwriting. He also released a collaborative album, titled TEXAS×Texas15 August 2019 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Flatland Hillbillies3:052Caw Caw Blues3:12356 Fury3:514Deep in the Heart of Uncertain Texas3:185You're Only Happy When You’re Miserable3:256I’ll Show Me4:047What You Gonna Do Now3:178The Border5:359Treetop Slim & Billy Lowgrass3:0110Brown & Root, Brown & Root3:4011Texas Drought, Pt. 13:48 on August 15, 2019.
In 2023, Crowell appeared in the movie All Happy Families.

Personal life

In 1975, Crowell married Martha Dant Watts, and their daughter, Hannah, was born in May 1976. The brief marriage ended in divorce, with Crowell retaining custody of Hannah.
Crowell was subsequently married to Rosanne Cash (daughter of Johnny Cash) from 1979 to 1992, and they influenced each other's careers, with Crowell producing most of her albums during that period and her success influencing his songwriting. They collaborated on a number of duets, including 1988's "It's Such a Small World." Although Crowell and Cash are now divorced, they remain on friendly terms, performing together occasionally. Crowell and Cash have three daughters: Caitlin (b. 1980), Chelsea (b. 1982), and Carrie (b. 1988).
In 1998, Crowell married singer Claudia Church. The couple resides just south of Nashville.