Pretty Bird
Studio album by
Kathy Mattea
ReleasedSeptember 7, 2018 (2018-09-07)
Genre
Length49:28
Label
ProducerTim O'Brien
Kathy Mattea chronology
Calling Me Home
(2012)		 Pretty Bird
(2018)
Singles from Pretty Bird
  1. "I Can't Stand Up Alone"
    Released: July 13, 2018
  2. "Ode to Billie Joe"
    Released: July 13, 2018
  3. "St. Theresa"
    Released: August 24, 2018
  4. "Mercy Now"
    Released: August 24, 2018

Pretty Bird is a studio album by American country artist, Kathy Mattea. It was released on September 7, 2018 via Captain Potato Records and the Thirty Tigers label. It marked the first album of new material by Mattea in several years after enduring several vocal challenges in previous years. The album contained 11 tracks that mixed cover tunes with original material. Pretty Bird received positive reviews from critics upon its release and included four singles.

Background

Kathy Mattea was among country music's most commercially-successful artists during the eighties and nineties. She had a series of top ten and 20 singles on the American country charts, along with having albums certify gold and winning a Grammy Award.[3][4] In 2002, she left her long-time Nashville record label in pursuit of other recording companies that would allow her to explore more creative musical avenues. She released a series of albums during the 2000s decade that included styles of Celtic, folk and Appalachian music.[3] During the 2010s, Mattea began experiencing vocal problems that made her question whether she should continue performing.[5] "It was emotionally really difficult because, when I felt my voice start to change, I thought, ‘Okay, so is this be beginning of the end? Or is this just a change?’," she told Billboard.[6]

Mattea then found a Jazz vocal coach who helped her explore new ways for her to use her singing voice.[7] She also began attempting to sing new material with her long-time guitarist, Bill Cooley.[4] Her manager helped her find more shows where Mattea could perform and try out material, which ultimately helped give her the confidence to record a new album again. The result was her first new album in six years, Pretty Bird.[6]

Recording and content

Pretty Bird was produced by Tim O'Brien. According to O'Brien, the album took about six months to create as both individuals had separate commitments to their own music careers.[8] The disc contained a total of 12 tracks which mixed original material with covers of songs by other artists.[9] The album mixed aspects of folk music, with Americana and country.[1][2][10] The opening track, "Chocolate on My Tongue", was a cover of the original by The Wood Brothers.[7] The second track, "Ode to Billie Joe", was first recorded and made popular by Bobbie Gentry.[5] Also included is a cover of the traditional folk song, "He Moves Through the Fair", whose theme is centered on murder.[6] Mattea also covers Mary Gauthier's "Mercy Now", which reflected the current political climate. "At their best, songs make us feel so not all alone when we’re going through something that’s really hard," Mattea commented.[5] The title track (which is the closing song on the album) was first recorded and penned by Hazel Dickens.[8] Songwriter (and Mattea's husband), Jon Vezner, contributed two new tracks to the album: "October Song" and "Tell Me What You Ache For".[5]

Release, singles and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
PopMatters7/10

Pretty Bird was released on September 7, 2018 on Captain Potato Records in conjunction with the Thirty Tigers label. The album was offered as a compact disc or as a digital release.[9][11] Four singles preceded the album's release. Both "I Can't Stand Up Alone" and "Ode to Billie Joe" were issued as singles on July 13, 2018.[12][13] It was then followed by the release of "St. Theresa" and "Mercy Now" as singles on August 24, 2018.[14][15]

Pretty Bird received a mostly positive response from critics following its release. Bobby Moore of Wide Open Country commented that the disc is the "studio equivalent of a Nashville cafe's resident singer-songwriter adding less-obvious covers to her expected set."[1] Steve Horowitz of PopMatters rated the album 7/10, praising the album's production by noting a difference in Mattea from previous works: "Mattea has been through a lot over the past half dozen years. It’s good she’s back, but she’s not the same as she once was."[10] Jim Hynes of Country Standard Time praised Mattea's newfound vocal delivery in his review: "Age had helped open Mattea's lower register, and songs she'd previously shied away from suddenly emerged with a new vibrant life. Thankfully Mattea is back."[7]

Track listing

CD and digital versions[11][9]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Chocolate on My Tongue"Oliver Wood3:48
2."Ode to Billie Joe"Bobbie Gentry5:24
3."Mercy Now"Mary Gauthier5:27
4."Little Glass of Wine"Jesse Winchester4:01
5."He Moves Through the Fair"Traditional3:51
6."St. Theresa"
4:19
7."This Love Will Carry"Dougie MacLean4:16
8."October Song"
3:16
9."Tell Me What You Ache For"
  • Vezner
  • Whitsett
3:16
10."Holy Now"Peter Mayer4:13
11."I Can't Stand Up Alone"Martha Carson3:44
12."Pretty Bird"Hazel Dickens3:07
Total length:49:28

Personnel

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Pretty Bird and AllMusic.[9][16]

Release history

Region Date Format Label Ref.
North America September 7, 2018
  • Compact disc
  • digital
  • Captain Potato Records
  • Thirty Tigers
 [9][11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Moore, Bobby. "Album Review: Kathy Mattea's 'Pretty Bird' Displays Her Song Interpreter Chops". Wide Open Country. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Pretty Bird: Kathy Mattea: Songs, reviews, credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  3. 1 2 Huey, Steve. "Kathy Mattea Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 Edes, Alyssa; Louise Kelly, Mary (September 19, 2018). "How Kathy Mattea Got Her Voice Back With 'Pretty Bird'". NPR. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Bett, Stephen L. (October 1, 2018). "Kathy Mattea on New Album, Voice Struggles, Grappling With Loss". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 Dauphin, Chuck (October 4, 2018). "After Almost Losing Control of Her Voice, Kathy Mattea Returns with 'Pretty Bird'". Billboard. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 Hynes, Jim. "Kathy Mattea -- Pretty Bird". Country Standard Time. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  8. 1 2 Thanki, Juli (September 7, 2018). "After having to relearn to sing, Kathy Mattea soars on 'Pretty Bird'". The Tennessean. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Mattea, Kathy (September 7, 2018). "Pretty Bird (Album Information)". Captain Potato Records/Thirty Tigers. 89277CD.
  10. 1 2 Horowitz, Steve. "Kathy Mattea Flies Like a 'Pretty Bird'". PopMatters. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  11. 1 2 3 "Pretty Bird by Kathy Mattea". Apple Music. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  12. ↑ ""I Can't Stand Up Alone" -- Single". Spotify. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  13. ↑ ""Ode to Billie Joe" -- Single". Spotify. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  14. ↑ ""St. Theresa" -- Single". Spotify. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  15. ↑ ""Mercy Now" -- Single". Spotify. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  16. ↑ "Pretty Bird: Kathy Mattea: Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
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