Grace Potter | |
|---|---|
 Potter in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Grace Evelyn Potter (1983-06-20)June 20, 1983 (age 42) |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 2002–present |
| Labels | Fantasy |
| Formerly of | Grace Potter and the Nocturnals |
Spouse(s) | |
| Website | gracepotter |
Grace Evelyn Potter (born June 20, 1983) is an American singer-songwriter and musician.[1] She has released five solo albums:Red Shoe Rebel (2002),Original Soul (2004),Midnight (2015),Daylight (2019), andMother Road (2023). She has also released four studio albums withGrace Potter and the Nocturnals, a band she formed in 2002, which disbanded in 2015 upon her divorce from her bandmate:Nothing but the Water (2005),This Is Somewhere (2007),Grace Potter and the Nocturnals (2010), andThe Lion the Beast the Beat (2012).[2]
Potter was born on June 20, 1983, inWaitsfield, Vermont. Both of her parents, Peggy and Sparky Potter, were involved in professionalwoodworking; her mother was also a piano teacher. Her older sister, Charlotte Potter, is an artist who works with glass.[3] She was exposed to the arts at a very young age[3] and was encouraged by her parents to work with her hands.[4] Potter grew up legally blind in one eye and got bad grades. She was expelled from bands because she could not read music.[5]
In 1999, while attendingHarwood Union High School, Potter was chosen to attend the three-week Governor's Institute on the Arts session atCastleton University. There, she learned from artists such as poetVerandah Porche.[3]
She attended toSt. Lawrence University, but dropped out after her sophomore year to pursue a career in music.[1]
While in college, Potter met Matt Burr, a drummer and her future husband, who convinced her to form a band. They started playing at theJava Barn. The band could only find space to rehearse at 2AM, inspiring the band name,Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. They would stay up all night rehearsing and then go to class.[6] The band included Scott Tournet on guitars (includingslide guitar and harmonica), drummer Matthew Burr, Michael Libramento on bass guitar and keyboards, and Benny Yurco on electric guitar and vocals. Bryan Dondero played bass guitar, upright bass, andmandolin with the group until his departure in early 2009.
In 2002, she released her first album,Red Shoe Rebel. Her second album,Original Soul followed in 2004.[7]
The group independently recorded and released one album,Nothing but the Water in 2005 with sound engineer Lane Gibson, who recorded and masteredOriginal Soul (2004). The band signed a deal withHollywood Records in December 2005 and re-releasedNothing but the Water in May 2006.
In 2005, the band was nominated in two categories at theBoston Music Awards, for "Best Local Female Artist" and also for "Best New Local Act".
In 2006, the band won theJammy Award for "Best New Groove". At theBoston Music Awards, the band was nominated for Album of the Year (major) for the re-release ofNothing but the Water and Potter was nominated for Vocalist of the Year.[8]
The group released its second album,This Is Somewhere, on August 7, 2007, on Hollywood Records and was theopening act forGov't Mule on its October and November North American tour.[9][3]
In August 2007, the band made appearances onThe Tonight Show with Jay Leno,Good Morning America, andThe Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.
In June 2008, the band was theopening act for theDave Matthews Band as well as forThe Black Crowes.
In 2010, the band'scover version ofJefferson Airplane's song "White Rabbit" was included onAlmost Alice, the companion soundtrack forTim Burton's feature filmAlice in Wonderland.
The group released their third studio recording,Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, in June 2010. It included the song "Paris (Ooh La La)". On the album,Catherine Popper replaced Libramento on bass.
In 2011, Potter earned her firstGrammy nomination for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for "You and Tequila" withKenny Chesney.[10][11][12]
In July 2011, Potter was a guest onChelsea Handler's showChelsea Lately.
In July 2012, she joinedThe Flaming Lips during their show at The Lyric inOxford, Mississippi, which was part of their attempt to break theGuinness World Record for Most Concerts Played in different cities in a 24-hour period.[13][14] That same year, Potter and The Flaming Lips collaborated on a recording of "My Mechanical Friend", which she also wrote, for the companion soundtrack toDisney andTim Burton's filmFrankenweenie.[15] In 2014, she contributed to their cover ofThe Beatles' "Good Morning Good Morning" for theirWith a Little Help from My Fwends album.
Potter made guest appearances onThe Chew in November 2012 and December 2015.[16][17]
After Potter's divorce from Burr, the band disbanded.[18]
In June 2015, Potter was theopening act forthe Rolling Stones during theZip Code Tour, and joined them onstage to perform "Gimme Shelter".
Potter's next solo album,Midnight, was released in August 2015 onHollywood Records, produced byEric Valentine. Several notable artists contributed to the album:Rayland Baxter,Audra Mae,Noelle Scaggs ofFitz and the Tantrums,Wayne Coyne ofThe Flaming Lips, andNick Oliveri ofQueens of the Stone Age.[19]
In September 2015, Potter performedThe Star-Spangled Banner during theNew England Patriots' season opener.[20]
In 2016, her collaboration on the song "Wild Child" on Kenny Chesney's albumThe Big Revival garnered award nominations from theAcademy of Country Music,CMT Music, and theCountry Music Association.[21][22][23][24]
Potter was the musical guest on the episode ofConan that aired on January 25, 2016.[25]
Daylight, produced byEric Valentine, was released in October 2019 onFantasy Records.[26] It features guest musiciansJess Wolfe and Holly Laessig ofLucius, andBenmont Tench.[26]
In 2020, during theCOVID-19 pandemic, Potter launched weeklystreaming media performances from her home in California and her childhood home in Vermont and performed a special episode on the set of the originalStar Trek.[27]
Potter's fourth solo album,Mother Road, was released in August 2023 on Fantasy Records.[5]
On guitars, Potter primarily plays theGibson Flying V; however, she also playsclassical guitars with nylon strings.[5] On keys, she plays theHammond organ.[28] Her voice has been described as soulful and bluesy and she has been compared toBonnie Raitt andJanis Joplin.[29] She has also been described as a "grittierPatty Griffin".[28]
Potter's song "Apologies", was used in an episode ofOne Tree Hill; Potter also made a cameo appearance as a street performer in the episode. "Apologies" was also featured onAll My Children,Kyle XY, andBrothers & Sisters.
The song "Falling or Flying" was featured onER andGrey's Anatomy and appeared onVolume 3 of the latter's soundtrack.
In 2010, Potter re-recorded "Something That I Want" with altered lyrics for the end credits toDisney's animated featureTangled.
In December 2011, Potter was the voice of Carol in Disney'sPrep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice, for which she also wrote and recorded "Naughty, Naughty Children (Better Start Actin' Nice)."
In 2011, the song "Paris (Ooh la la)" was featured in the Season 2 promo for the TNT television seriesRizzoli & Isles.
In 2012, the song "Nothing but the Water" was used in trailers for the short-lived 2012 ABC dramaLast Resort.
Potter's version of theStealers Wheel song "Stuck in the Middle with You" was used as the theme song for theNetflix seriesGrace and Frankie (2015–2020).[30]
In June 2017, her song "Instigators" was featured in the video gameDirt 4.[31]
In 2019, the song "The Lion the Beast the Beat" was featured in the season 2 episode ofCloak & Dagger titled "Vikingtown Sound".
Potter married bandmate Matt Burr on May 11, 2013.[32] They divorced in 2015, at which time the Nocturnals disbanded.[18]
Potter married her current husband,[33] record producerEric Valentine, in 2017. They have one son, born in 2018.[34][35]
Potter lives inTopanga, California. She previously lived inLaurel Canyon, Los Angeles, where she owned a 1920s Spanish bungalow that she refurbished; she sold the house in 2017.[4]
Potter has supported and fundraised for theAlzheimer's Association in honor of her paternal grandfather's battle withAlzheimer's disease.[37][38]
In June 2015, Potter was presented the "ASCAPHarry Chapin Vanguard Award" byWhyHunger for her work towards defeating world hunger.[4]
Potter is legally blind in one eye.[39]
Potter said that she doesnot belong to any religious group but values a spiritual life.[40]
In 2011, Potter founded theGrand Point North music festival inBurlington, Vermont.[41]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [42] | US Rock [43] | US Taste. [44] | ||||||
| Red Shoe Rebel | Track list
| — | — | — | ||||
| Original Soul | Track list
| — | — | — | ||||
| Midnight | 26 | 4 | 3 | |||||
| Daylight | 74 | 9 | 20 | |||||
| Mother Road |
| — | — | — | ||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [55] | US AAA [55] | US Country [56] | US Country Airplay [57] | CAN [58] | CAN Country [59] | |||||||
| "I Want Something That I Want" | 2008 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Music from One Tree Hill | ||||
| "Wild Child" (with Kenny Chesney) | 2015 | 56 | — | 9 | 1 | 69 | 3 |
| The Big Revival | |||
| "Alive Tonight" | — | 29 | — | — | — | — | Midnight | |||||
| "Empty Heart" | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "Love Is Love" | 2019 | — | 8 | — | — | — | — | Daylight | ||||
| "Back to Me" (featuringLucius) | — | 28 | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "Mother Road" | 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Mother Road | ||||
| "Good Time" | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||||||||
| Single | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [55] | US Country [56] | US Country Airplay [57] | CAN [58] | CAN Country [59] | ||||
| "You and Tequila" (Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter) | 2011 | 33 | 3 | 3 | 62 | 5 | Hemingway's Whiskey | |
| Title | Year | Other performer(s) | Album | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Wellwisher" | 2009 | Phonograph | OKNO | |
| "Ordinary Man" | Gregory Douglass | Battler | ||
| "Something That I Want" | 2010 | none | Tangled | also credited as co-writer |
| "Naughty Naughty Children (Better Start Actin' Nice)" | 2011 | Prep & Landing: Naughty vs Nice: The Complete Soundtrack | ||
| "My Mechanical Friend" | 2012 | The Flaming Lips | Frankenweenie Unleashed! | |
| "You and Tequila (Live at Red Rocks Amphitheatre)" | Kenny Chesney | Welcome to the Fishbowl | ||
| "I Shall Be Released" | 2013 | Don Was, Matt Burr | Love for Levon: Benefit to Save the Barn | |
| "Whisper in Your Soul" | Gov't Mule | Shout! | ||
| "Good Morning Good Morning" | 2014 | The Flaming Lips,Zorch, Treasure Mammal | With a Little Help from My Fwends | |
| "Gold Dust Woman" | 2015 | Warren Haynes,Railroad Earth | Ashes & Dust |
Studio albums
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