|
By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com
New album inspires confidence in solo
career
Though she may be best known for her
contributions to the glam-country outfit
The Blacks, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire,
the New  Pornographers,
Jeff Tweedy and Neko Case, it would
be unjust to think of Nora O'Connor
as just another backup singer. Few vocalists
have the pipes, let alone the brass,
to stand side-by-side with the likes
of fellow Chicago songstresses Mavis
Staples and Kelly Hogan and deliver
the kind of soul-stirring performances
O'Connor has become known for over the
past eight years. Some voices need to
be heard, front and center, and O'Connor's
is one of them.
No longer a recording artist's bridesmaid,
O'Connor graduated from longstanding
engagements as an in-demand session
and touring singer to a full-fledged
solo artist with the release of her
2004 Bloodshot Records' debut, "Til
the Dawn." The album is an infallible
collection of urban honky-tonk tunes
and tasteful folk-rock ballads, as organic
and subtle as O'Connor's progression
to center stage. And the first-generation
Irish-American born and raised on Chicago's
South Side says it is representative
of her roots.
"I grew up in an Irish culture
where there was a lot of Irish and country
music in my house," O'Connor says.
"I remember going to house parties
with my parents and there were always
people singing, so my songs have similar
melodies and textures."
"Til the Dawn" also is the
result of O'Connor's burning desire
to record songs she's been singing for
a number of years. To sweeten the experience,
she recruited a number of friends, like
Hogan and Bird, and their band members.
"I wanted to record it with people
I love," she says. "People
I work with all the time and admire."
Most of the album includes covers
by her peers like James Mathus, the
Handsome Family and the Drapes, but
they include O'Connor's indelible stamp
of artistry. "I'm always looking
for a good song to interpret,"
O'Connor says. "I'm fortunate there's
a lot of good songwriters in my life."
Still, O'Connor says she had the most
fun recording a pair of original tunes,
adding that she hopes to build upon
her repertoire of original material
for the next album. "Those songs
ended up being my favorites because
we built them from scratch," she
says. "This album inspired me to
hope for more originals on the next
one."
When that next album will be released
is unclear at this time. O'Connor is
pregnant with her first child and she
plans to stop touring in the next month
or two. "It's really hard being
on the road," she says. "I'll
do it until I can't carry a guitar anymore."
Though O'Connor has also worked as
a bartender and a midwife's assistant
(she's also an ordained minister and
performs wedding ceremonies for friends),
she doesn't see herself returning to
9-to-5 jobs after her baby is born.
She says the release of "Til the
Dawn" has inspired her to further
her career as a solo artist.
"I really did this record for
me," she says. "I hate to
be selfish like that, but I didn't think
I was going to do the record because
I thought after touring with other people
for a long time I would settle down
and make music my hobby, not my profession.
"I wanted to see if I could do
it and I was loving the songs. I was
also hoping it would motivate me to
do another album and I just might do
that, even if it means taking my family
out on the road with me. I'm having
a blast." CV
Comment
on this story | Return
to top | 
