Stumble into Grace

Submitted by nonesuch on Thu, 05/29/2008 - 19:14
Release Date
DescriptionExcerpt

Harris offers her second consecutive album of original material and is joined by such guests as Linda Ronstadt, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Gillian Welch, and Jane Siberry. Newsweek declares, “Her stellar voice takes on new depth when tied to songs this personal.”

Description

“Behind the air of fragility is the serene confidence of a singer who knows the power of reticence to draw a listener closer. Ms. Harris’s voice inhabits her songs like a wraith, intangible but omnipresent.” —New York Times

Eleven-time Grammy-winner and Billboard Century Award–recipient Emmylou Harris, long known for her legendary singing voice, is now emerging as a songwriter of distinction. Harris’s highly anticipated Stumble into Grace is her second consecutive record (and only the third in her celebrated career) composed almost entirely of songs she has written or co-written.

Stumble into Grace follows Harris’s critically acclaimed Nonesuch debut, Red Dirt Girl (2000), which won a Grammy Award and was the artist’s best-selling album in 20 years. That record was only the second one for which she had written the lion’s share of the songs (the first was 1985’s Ballad of Sally Rose).

Stumble into Grace was produced by Malcolm Burn, as was Red Dirt Girl. Like its predecessor and 1995’s Wrecking Ball, which was engineered and mixed by Burn, Stumble into Grace shows Harris working in a sonic landscape far removed from the more traditional sound of her 1970s and '80s recordings—with her sophisticated songwriting adding an additional dimension to the music. As Newsweek says, “Her stellar voice takes on new depth when tied to songs this personal.”

Harris’s personal history is inscribed in Stumble into Grace via the participation of female artists from within her vital musical community. Longtime collaborator and friend Linda Ronstadt sings on “Strong Hand,” which is dedicated to the late June Carter Cash. Kate and Anna McGarrigle co-wrote “Little Bird,” as well as the traditional “Plaisir d’Amour”—and also join in on both songs’ vocals—in a reciprocation of Harris’s contribution to their celebrated album, The McGarrigle Hour. “I Will Dream” features Jane Siberry, who also sings on “Lost Unto This World.” Julie Miller sang on “Here I Am,” and Jill Cuniff of Luscious Jackson co-wrote “Time in Babylon.”

Shortly after the release of Stumble into Grace, Emmylou Harris participated in a cross-venue Carnegie Hall festival, for which she curated four concerts in the new, intimate Zankel Hall. The Zankel performances featured Steve Earle, Patty Griffin, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Buddy and Julie Miller; the mini-festival culminated with Harris’s own performance in Carnegie's main stage, Stern Auditorium.

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Produced by Malcolm Burn
Recorded by Josh Muncy, Joe West and Todd Vos with assistant engineering/documentation by Dean Norman
Recorded February-June 2003 at Le Maison Bleu Studio, Kingston, NY; Masterlink Studio, Sound Emporium and Ocean Way Studios, Nashville, TN
Assisted by Chris Scherbak and Brando Marius at Masterlink and Rob Clark at Ocean Way
Mixed by Malcolm Burn with Josh Muncy at Sound Emporium, except track 5 mixed in Freda’s house, Deep River, Ontario
Mastered by Greg Calbi, Sterling Sound, New York, NY (Greg, we trust your ears!!)
Production Coordination by Kathi Whitley

Design by Barbara deWilde
Photography by Veronique Rolland

Nonesuch Selection Number

79805

Number of Discs in Set
1disc
ns_album_artistid
55
ns_album_id
536
ns_album_releasedate
ns_genre_1
0
ns_genre_2
0
Album Status
Artist Name
Emmylou Harris
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Emmylou Harris, vocals (1-11), backing vocals (1, 2, 6, 7, 11), acoustic guitar (1-5, 8-11), 6-string bass guitar (6)

Tony Hall, bass (1, 3-5, 7, 10, 11), guitar (1)
Brady Blade, drums (1, 3, 4, 7, 11), percussion (3, 7, 10), backing vocals (7)
Ethan Johns, electric guitar (4, 5), drums (1, 4, 5, 11)
Julie Miller, backing vocals (1, 7, 11)
Malcolm Burn, backing vocals (4, 5, 10) , electric guitar (2) , bass (2) ,  piano (2, 3) , B2 organ (10, 11), Fender Rhodes (5, 11) , percussion (5) , harmonica (5) ,whistling (3), churanga (3) , various (1, 7, 8), arrangement (6)
Jane Siberry, backing vocals (2, 4, 5, 10)
Buddy Miller, acoustic guitar (3, 11), electric guitar (3-5, 7, 11)
Kate McGarrigle, backing vocals (3, 9, 11), acoustic guitar (9), violin (9), accordion (3, 8)
Anna McGarrigle, backing vocals (3, 8, 9), accordion (9)
Daryl Johnson, backing vocals (5, 7), bass (5, 11), drums (7), percussion (4, 5)
Daniel Lanois, backing vocals (5, 7, 10), pedal steel guitar (5), electric orchestra (10)
Bernie Leadon, electric guitar (5)
Linda Ronstadt, backing vocals (6)
Kevin Salem, electric guitar (6, 10)
Colin Linden, electric guitar (7)
Gillian Welch, backing vocals, Tony Hall, backing vocals (7)
Jill Cunniff, backing vocals (8)

Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
CD+MP3
UPC
075597980523BUN
Label
MP3
Price
9.00
UPC
075597980561
  • 79805

News & Reviews

  • Emmylou Harris is the inaugural guest on Margo Price’s new podcast Runaway Horses from Sonos, featuring guests who've "made music that says something raw and beautiful and cathartic about the human experience." Harris is "one of my biggest inspirations, one of my favorite musicians of all time," says Price, "a true living legend … She has never been afraid to follow her creative instinct, embrace risks, and pursue the unexpected.” You can hear their conversation here.

  • Emmylou Harris and the Nash Ramblers' Ramble in Music City: The Lost Concert is out now on Nonesuch. The album features the 1990 Nashville debut of the acoustic all-star group—Sam Bush, Roy Huskey Jr., Larry Atamanuik, Al Perkins, Jon Randall Stewart—at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC). The concert was recorded and shelved until now, when it has been unearthed and will be released for the first time. The set features entirely different songs from the band's acclaimed live album At the Ryman, with music by A.P. Carter, Rodney Crowell, Ruth Franks, the Louvin Brothers, Doc Pomus, Paul Simon, Townes Van Zandt, and Harris herself. Nonesuch Store pre-orders include an exclusive print autographed by Harris, while they last. You can watch the band's 1993 Austin City Limits performance of three album tracks here.

Buy Now

  • About This Album

    “Behind the air of fragility is the serene confidence of a singer who knows the power of reticence to draw a listener closer. Ms. Harris’s voice inhabits her songs like a wraith, intangible but omnipresent.” —New York Times

    Eleven-time Grammy-winner and Billboard Century Award–recipient Emmylou Harris, long known for her legendary singing voice, is now emerging as a songwriter of distinction. Harris’s highly anticipated Stumble into Grace is her second consecutive record (and only the third in her celebrated career) composed almost entirely of songs she has written or co-written.

    Stumble into Grace follows Harris’s critically acclaimed Nonesuch debut, Red Dirt Girl (2000), which won a Grammy Award and was the artist’s best-selling album in 20 years. That record was only the second one for which she had written the lion’s share of the songs (the first was 1985’s Ballad of Sally Rose).

    Stumble into Grace was produced by Malcolm Burn, as was Red Dirt Girl. Like its predecessor and 1995’s Wrecking Ball, which was engineered and mixed by Burn, Stumble into Grace shows Harris working in a sonic landscape far removed from the more traditional sound of her 1970s and '80s recordings—with her sophisticated songwriting adding an additional dimension to the music. As Newsweek says, “Her stellar voice takes on new depth when tied to songs this personal.”

    Harris’s personal history is inscribed in Stumble into Grace via the participation of female artists from within her vital musical community. Longtime collaborator and friend Linda Ronstadt sings on “Strong Hand,” which is dedicated to the late June Carter Cash. Kate and Anna McGarrigle co-wrote “Little Bird,” as well as the traditional “Plaisir d’Amour”—and also join in on both songs’ vocals—in a reciprocation of Harris’s contribution to their celebrated album, The McGarrigle Hour. “I Will Dream” features Jane Siberry, who also sings on “Lost Unto This World.” Julie Miller sang on “Here I Am,” and Jill Cuniff of Luscious Jackson co-wrote “Time in Babylon.”

    Shortly after the release of Stumble into Grace, Emmylou Harris participated in a cross-venue Carnegie Hall festival, for which she curated four concerts in the new, intimate Zankel Hall. The Zankel performances featured Steve Earle, Patty Griffin, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Buddy and Julie Miller; the mini-festival culminated with Harris’s own performance in Carnegie's main stage, Stern Auditorium.

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Emmylou Harris, vocals (1-11), backing vocals (1, 2, 6, 7, 11), acoustic guitar (1-5, 8-11), 6-string bass guitar (6)

    Tony Hall, bass (1, 3-5, 7, 10, 11), guitar (1)
    Brady Blade, drums (1, 3, 4, 7, 11), percussion (3, 7, 10), backing vocals (7)
    Ethan Johns, electric guitar (4, 5), drums (1, 4, 5, 11)
    Julie Miller, backing vocals (1, 7, 11)
    Malcolm Burn, backing vocals (4, 5, 10) , electric guitar (2) , bass (2) ,  piano (2, 3) , B2 organ (10, 11), Fender Rhodes (5, 11) , percussion (5) , harmonica (5) ,whistling (3), churanga (3) , various (1, 7, 8), arrangement (6)
    Jane Siberry, backing vocals (2, 4, 5, 10)
    Buddy Miller, acoustic guitar (3, 11), electric guitar (3-5, 7, 11)
    Kate McGarrigle, backing vocals (3, 9, 11), acoustic guitar (9), violin (9), accordion (3, 8)
    Anna McGarrigle, backing vocals (3, 8, 9), accordion (9)
    Daryl Johnson, backing vocals (5, 7), bass (5, 11), drums (7), percussion (4, 5)
    Daniel Lanois, backing vocals (5, 7, 10), pedal steel guitar (5), electric orchestra (10)
    Bernie Leadon, electric guitar (5)
    Linda Ronstadt, backing vocals (6)
    Kevin Salem, electric guitar (6, 10)
    Colin Linden, electric guitar (7)
    Gillian Welch, backing vocals, Tony Hall, backing vocals (7)
    Jill Cunniff, backing vocals (8)

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    Produced by Malcolm Burn
    Recorded by Josh Muncy, Joe West and Todd Vos with assistant engineering/documentation by Dean Norman
    Recorded February-June 2003 at Le Maison Bleu Studio, Kingston, NY; Masterlink Studio, Sound Emporium and Ocean Way Studios, Nashville, TN
    Assisted by Chris Scherbak and Brando Marius at Masterlink and Rob Clark at Ocean Way
    Mixed by Malcolm Burn with Josh Muncy at Sound Emporium, except track 5 mixed in Freda’s house, Deep River, Ontario
    Mastered by Greg Calbi, Sterling Sound, New York, NY (Greg, we trust your ears!!)
    Production Coordination by Kathi Whitley

    Design by Barbara deWilde
    Photography by Veronique Rolland