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Saturday, 2 June, 2007 9:39 PM
CMA New Artist Spotlight: Sunny
Sweeney
PHOTO
BY GREG VANDERPOOL
Big
Machine recording artist Sunny Sweeney.
| By
Kristin Scherer |
| ©
2007 CMA Close Up News Service |
Sunny Sweeney has one
of those unmistakable East Texas accents when she speaks, and when
she opens her mouth to sing, that accent just gets thicker. That's
one of the reasons listeners never have to guess where this singer
is coming from. Sweeney delivers every song on her debut album,
Heartbreakers Hall of Fame, with a sweet southern drawl.
Growing up in the small
town of Longview, Sweeney's first taste of Country came in the pop-leaning
1980s. It was only later, when she stumbled upon more traditional
singers including Merle Haggard and Loretta Lynn that she knew the
kind of Country she was born to sing.
Initially she pursued
a different kind of creative career, in theater and comedy. After
spending a few years in New York City, Sweeney returned to her home
state, joining an improvisational comedy troupe in Austin. Basking
in that city's thriving live music scene and heeding the advice
of her fellow comedians, she soon found her true calling in the
local clubs and began making her way toward her debut album.
Initially released on
her own independent label, Heartbreakers Hall of Fame found a passionate
believer in Music Row executive Scott Borchetta, who licensed the
album for a March 6 release on his Big Machine Records label. The
album, co-produced by Sweeney and Tommy Detamore (guitar, pedal
and lap steel, Dobro) and Tom Lewis (drums) and featuring three
songs written or co-written by Sweeney, promises to deliver a slice
of pure honky tonk music to the Country landscape.
IN HER OWN WORDS:
Who is your musical
hero?
"I have two: Merle Haggard and Loretta Lynn."
Which song would
you like to cover?
"[Merle Haggard's] 'Misery and Gin.'"
What actor would
portray you in a biopic about your life?
"I don't really care, just as long as she is kind of hot!"
What song do you
wish you had written?
"'Angel from Montgomery.'"
Who is your dream
duet partner?
"Merle or Dwight Yoakam, assuming that if I got that chance,
I wouldn't pass out on the stage."
When they look back
on your life in 50 years, what do you hope people say about you?
"I hope they say, 'Dang, that girl sure had fun and she always
sang that real Country Music.'"
On the Web:
www.sunnysweeney.com
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