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The Highwomen | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Origin | Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2019 (2019)–present |
| Labels | Elektra |
| Members | |
| Website | thehighwomen |
The Highwomen is an Americancountry musicsupergroup[1][2] composed ofBrandi Carlile,Natalie Hemby,Maren Morris, andAmanda Shires.[3] Formed in 2019,[4] the group'sself-titled debut album was released on September 6 of the same year byElektra Records and was produced byDave Cobb.[1][5]
In 2016, when Shires was finishing her recordMy Piece of Land in music producerDave Cobb's studio, Shires had an idea to create a female country supergroup in homage to the legendaryHighwaymen country supergroup (consisting ofJohnny Cash,Waylon Jennings,Kris Kristofferson andWillie Nelson). At the same time, the lack of representation of women artists on country music radio and at country music festivals had been publicly discussed by many, influenced by theMeToo movement and journalists like Marissa Moss. While on tour in her van, listening to country radio, Shires kept a running list of artists and noticed that there were few women. When she called to request they play more women artists, she was directed to a Facebook page lottery system. Cobb recommended Shires call Carlile, whom she didn't know. Carlile thought it would be fun, and would be an interesting creative project.[4]
The Highwomen project was widely hinted at by Carlile, Morris and Shires before it was officially announced on April 6, 2019. With the name paying homage to The Highwaymen, the Highwomen were originally intended to leave the fourth spot in their line-up vacant to allow other female collaborators to join them, withChely Wright,Courtney Marie Andrews,Margo Price,Janelle Monáe andSheryl Crow mentioned as potential guests.[6] The band, who jokingly refer to the collaboration as a pirate-ship experience, said that they see the project as an incubator project that highlights mentorship and support of fellow women artists.[4]
Morris hadn't worked with Cobb before, and remarked on how much she liked tracking live. The band recorded live vocals, live band, harmonies in unison, where the musicians were recording together live in an organic environment at historicRCA Studio A, which Cobb now owns.[4] As part of the experience, some of the members got matching Highwomen tattoos.[7]
The group made their live debut on April 1, 2019 atLoretta Lynn's 87th birthday concert held at theBridgestone Arena inNashville. There,Natalie Hemby was officially revealed as the final member and the quartet performed "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels".[8] Their debut single, "Redesigning Women", and its associated music video featuring female artists includingTanya Tucker,Cam,Lauren Alaina,Cassadee Pope andWynonna Judd was released on 19 July 2019, with theirself-titled debut album (set for release on September 6) becoming available for pre-order on the same day.[9] The song was promoted by country singerDierks Bentley, who released a comedic reading of the lyrics to hisYouTube Channel, which received praise from Carlile and Morris.[10] Their second single, "Crowded Table", written by band member Hemby andLori McKenna, was released on July 26, 2019.[11]
In July 2019, the Highwomen performed their first ever full live set at the 60th annualNewport Folk Festival, previewing songs from their upcoming album including "If She Ever Leaves Me", written by Shires, her husbandJason Isbell and Chris Thompkins.[12] With Carlile on lead vocals, Isbell described it as "the first gay country song", which elicited applause from the audience. Other songs performed included "My Only Child", an ode to "suburban moms" performed by Hemby, who wrote the track with Shires andMiranda Lambert; "Loose Change", a nod to '70s country written by Morris,Daniel Layus ofAugustana, andMaggie Chapman, featuring Morris on lead vocals; and "Cocktail and a Song", which was written solely by Shires in honor of her father. Carlile later invited the rest of the Highwomen to join her during her headlining set, where, as they originally intended, the group performed alongside other female artists includingAmy Ray,Courtney Marie Andrews,Dolly Parton,Jade Bird,Judy Collins,Linda Perry,Lucy Dacus, Our Native Daughters,Sheryl Crow, The First Ladies of Bluegrass, andYola Carter.[7][13][14] Shires said the plan was always to debut their music at Newport with Dolly Parton. The band wore custom suits byManuel.[7]
Their cover of "The Chain" byFleetwood Mac from the soundtrack of the movieThe Kitchen debuted during the film's first trailer and was officially released on August 2, 2019.[15] The title track of their self-titled debut album was released on August 13, 2019. Written by Carlile and Shires withJimmy Webb, the original writer of "Highwayman", the track that originally inspired the Highwomen's formation, it tells the story of various women throughout history and features guest vocals from British country soul singerYola Carter and backing vocals fromSheryl Crow.[16] The song is a classic answer song.[4]
The band recorded 15 songs, but only 12 tracks made it on the album.[4] Songwriters included the aforementionedJimmy Webb,Rodney Clawson,Maggie Chapman,Lori McKenna,Jason Isbell, Peter Levin,Miranda Lambert,Ray LaMontagne, among many others.[17] Many of the songs flip gender roles, with additions of characters like refugee, preacher, Freedom Rider, and a healer, compared to the characters drawn by the Highwaymen songs.[18]
Following the release of their album, the band have infrequently performed together. In 2022, they performed "Somewhere Down The Road" at theKennedy Center Honors in tribute toAmy Grant, who was one of the honorees. They also performed "Coal Miner's Daughter" during a tribute show onCMT following the death ofLoretta Lynn, withBrittney Spencer standing in for Morris.[19][20]
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Sales | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [21] | US Cou. [22] | US Folk [23] | AUS Dig. [24] | CAN [25] | UK [26] | UK Country [27] | |||
| The Highwomen |
| 10 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 31 | 92 | 2 |
|
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Dig. [29] | US Cou. [22] | US AAA [30] | |||
| "Redesigning Women" | 2019 | — | 50 | — | The Highwomen |
| "Crowded Table" | — | — | 31 | ||
| "Highwomen" | — | — | — | ||
| "The Chain" (fromThe Kitchen) | 46 | —[A] | 28 | Non-album single | |
| "Hold On" (withYola featuringSheryl Crow) | 2020 | — | — | — | |
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Highway Unicorn" | 2021 | Brittney Spencer and Madeline Edwards | Born This Way The Tenth Anniversary |
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| "Redesigning Women" | 2019 |
| "Crowded Table" |
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Academy of Country Music Awards | Group of the Year | The Highwomen | Nominated |
| Americana Music Honors & Awards | Duo/Group of the Year | Won | ||
| Album of the Year | The Highwomen | Won | ||
| Song of the Year | "Crowded Table" | Won | ||
| CMT Awards | Group Video of the Year | Won | ||
| 2021 | Grammy Awards | Best Country Song | Won | |
| Academy of Country Music Awards | Group of the Year | The Highwomen | Nominated |
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