A Conversation with Kathleen Edwards

Puremusic: Hi Kathleen, how are you?

Kathleen Edwards: Good, Frank, how're you doing?

PM: Thank you for spending the time today.

KE: Oh, it's my pleasure, absolutely.

PM: Good--although we got kind of a buzz in the background, I don't know what that is--

KE: You know what? It's a frickin beer truck.

PM: Get the hell out of here.

KE: I'm at a pay phone in front of a club--

PM: [laughs]

KE: --and so there's this beer truck here. I think they're going to move momentarily.

PM: Okay.

KE: So we'll just kind of get through it, if that's okay.

PM: Where have I found you? Where are you?

KE: I'm in West Palm Beach, in Florida.

PM: Oh, yeah? I just got off the line with my brother who's down in Miami Beach where I hope to go in a couple days.

KE: Oh, wow. Yeah, the weather is amazing here. It's so -- I totally get why Canadians move here. Are you in Nashville today?

PM: Yeah, and of course the weather blows here, but that's traditional. [It's actually been awfully nice lately, but that won't last.]

KE: Really?

PM: Yeah, the Indians call it the "Valley of the Fevers."

KE: Oh...

PM: So yeah, well, let me pick our conversation up right where we began, which was that you certainly did kick everybody's ass at that Americana awards show.

KE: Thanks. I totally fell in love with Allison Moorer that night. I thought she was amazing.

PM: She's really something.

KE: She was really cool. And that was the first time I'd heard her and seen her play. I was so disappointed that I only got to see one song, because I really loved what she did. I'm looking forward to getting her next record.

PM: Your boyfriend's a nice guy and a bad ass guitar player.

KE: Yeah, he's unbelievable. I'm really lucky to have him.

PM: When and where did he join the pack and all that?

KE: Well, the guy who played on my record, Jim Bryson--

PM: And we're going to talk about him. [We didn't get his CD in time, but he will be in the December issue.]

KE: Okay. Jim had been in my band. And he, of course, does his own thing, and so there were a bunch of shows where he was away in Europe touring, and I needed somebody to fill in. And so all these people had recommended Colin [Cripps], and I got him to come in for a few shows, and I immediately thought he was pretty much the shit, of course.

PM: And good looking to boot.

KE: And yeah, to boot, yes, pretty hot.

PM: So how long did it take to get together as a couple?

KE: Well, it took a while, definitely. It wasn't like right off or anything. It was kind of--it took a few days. [laughs] No, it wasn't immediate. We definitely connected as friends. And he and I obviously really got along in terms of how we connected musically, so...

PM: Where had he come from? Who'd he been with?

KE: Well, he's from Hamilton, Ontario, which is just south of Toronto. His earliest stuff that you probably would have heard was in a band called Crash Vegas. He played in Crash Vegas for a few years.

PM: Oh, right.

KE: And he was one of the songwriters in that band. Then he played in a Canadian band called Junk House, which was kind of like a rock band. They didn't tour the U.S. because I think most of them had criminal records.

PM: [laughs] Oh, that.

KE: Yeah, really good. And then he's produced and recorded for Oh Susannah, and he's worked with Jim Cuddy, who's very well known in Canada--he's in a band called Blue Rodeo.

PM: Okay. [We are remiss in not yet having covered this very important Canadian country rock band, but are seeking to remedy that at the moment.]

KE: Yeah. And Colin produced some other records here and there, rock, pop. And so that's sort of where he was heading.

PM: Because he certainly has the gear and the tone, the stance and the chops of a rocker.

KE: Absolutely. But he's also got an amazing ear, and does really slick pop records, too, that are amazing. I'm really into them.

PM: Everything he played at the show was great. I was terribly impressed with his whole thing, every note. It was awesome.

KE: Oh, that's so cool. I'll tell him you said that.

PM: On top of the fact that, as you noted, that was a hell of a suit. [a Nudie]

KE: Yeah, I know. You should have seen the way people looked at him when he came in.

PM: [laughs]

KE: It was like, "Who's this star?" Like, it's not me. It's Colin.

PM: [laughs]

KE: Yeah, it was pretty amazing.  continue

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