Kim Richey, with Hannah Schneider
WHERE: Canal Street Tavern, 308 E. First St., Dayton
WHEN: 9:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 22
COST: $12 advance, $14 day of show
MORE INFO: (937) 461-9343 or www.canalstreettavern.com
ARTIST INFO: www.kimrichey.com
Kim Richey always has been something of a wandering spirit. She left Kettering shortly after graduating from the former Fairmont East High School in 1975 and bopped around the globe before settling down in Nashville in 1988.
Today, she has become something of transcontinental songwriter for hire. She keeps homes in Nashville and London, but could just as easily be touring with her band or on a song writing trip to Australia or Sweden.
“It’s really great because when I go to Australia and other places, I’m still playing shows, but I’m there writing with people as well,” Richey said. “I’m trying to do a bit of both and it’s been really fun. Sometimes when you’re just touring, you don’t see very much of a place because you’re so busy all the time.
“I was recently in Sweden in three weeks so I got to stay in Stockholm for a couple of weeks,” she continued. “I played a few shows and also stayed and wrote with people so you get to know the city a little bit.”
Richey’s latest album, “Wreck Your Wheels,” was released Sept. 14. Not surprisingly, the lyrics continue to explore interpersonal communication and human behavior.
“It seems like I’ve always written about the same things like relationships, but I try to be thoughtful,” she said.
“That’s kind of why I started writing songs, too, because I had so much stuff going on in my head. I was just trying to express myself. Maybe it was hard for me to say things to people, but I could do that in song writing.”
Richey’s previous album, “Chinese Boxes,” was well planned out before she entered a state-of-the-art studio with producer Giles Martin. By contrast, “Wreck Your Wheels” was a laidback, no-frills affair recorded at the modest home studio of Neilson Hubbard.
“There wasn’t any label involved,” Richey said. “Not that I’ve been pressured or watched over when I was making records for labels, because I’ve always been given a lot of freedom, but they’re still there hovering. You still know they’re there.
“I had a great time making this record and it was purely to make the music,” she added. “We weren’t really sure it would even turn out to be an album. I was kind of at loose ends at the time. I wasn’t sure what I was doing so Neilson said, ‘Let’s do some recording.’ I said, ‘Well, alright. We’ll give it a try and see how it works.’ And it worked way better than I ever imagined.”
CONTACT contributing arts and music writer Don Thrasher at donaldthrasher8@aol.com.
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