Rodney Crowell

Rodney Crowell, a Grammy-winning songwriter, producer, and artist, brings poetry and earthy tautness to the soundtrack of people in the cracks, carving out lives that matter - if only to themselves and the people they know. Born in Houston, Texas, his songwriting led him to Nashville – where Emmylou Harris heard the young writer’s songs. Crowell soon became a potent alchemic property in the sound the queen of hippie country was conjuring. It was only a matter of time until Crowell struck out on his own, producing Rosanne Cash’s seminal Seven Year Ache, which marked a new wave in country – and providing hits for Bob Seger, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Waylon Jennings and Crystal Gayle, among others. Crowell’s own albums established a benchmark of what was possible in the ground between Ray Price, Hank Williams and the Rolling Stones, Johnny Cash and Elvis. Diamonds & Dirt, considered the definitive album of the new traditionalist movement, was country’s first album to yield five No 1’s. His acclaimed autobiographical album, The Houston Kid, marked a landmark for Crowell as he broke free from the constraints of writing songs for commercial radio. Signaling another artistic watershed, Crowell’s memoir, Chinaberry Sidewalks, was published by Knopf in January of 2011.