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Lydia
Miller
© 2002 Pacific Records Soundbytes
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Born in Oregon to tenant farmers, Lydia has been playing to crowds at fairs, rodeos and festivals since the age of nine and has opened for acts like Doug Stone, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Billy Dean, Western Flyer, Ken Mellons and the Bellamy Brothers. After much prompting, she flew to Nashville to record a few songs, one of which was released by Bryan White. "I'm Not Supposed to Love You Anymore" has become very successful but it's Lydia¹s female version, which was recorded first. Lydia say's "Lately, I've been working on some songwriting. It's a very important part of the business. Very few aren't writing their own songs anymore." This self-titled debut album, released on the independent Pacific Records and produced by famed Nashville songwriter Tim Johnson, whose recent writing credits have included 'Maybe He'll Notice Her Now' (Mindy McCready), 'I Let Her Lie' (Daryle Singletary), 'Thank God For Believers' (Mark Chesnutt), 'Someone You Used To Know' (Colin Raye), and 'She Misses Him' (Tim Rushlow) to name but a few, has so far produced two singles that have both enjoyed moderate success. The CD is also 'Enhanced' and contains a video of Before The Next Teardrop Falls, which has been heavily programmed on CMT. Although Lydia is writing herself, there are no self-penned songs on the album. Instead, she relies heavily on the songwriting talents of Tim Johnson, who provides 2 solo and 7 co-writes. I particularly liked the powerful and moving, "She Misses Him," a song that tells of caring for a husband who has lost his mind as he has grown old. The song is one of the two solo penned efforts from Tim Johnson with "She Made The Devil Cry," a song in which she resists the temptation to cheat on her man, being the other. Two excellent songs that, along with Lydia's excellent cover of Freddy Fender's "Before The Next Teardrop Falls" ………sung partly in Spanish …….. make up 3 of my favourite tracks on this superb album. Tim and Megan Johnson provide "You Could Have Used Me Last Night," a song that has her thanking an acquaintance for not taking advantage of her when she was the worse for drink, while the up-tempo "Golden Chains" and "Thought You Were Never Gonna Love Me" are a couple of country/rockers written by Tim with Mark Beeson. From the opening track, "Singin' To The Scarecrow," …..another favourite track on here……….a Dennis Linde composition that, wouldn't sound out of place on a Reba McEntire album, the first thing that struck me was the quality of Lydia's voice. This lady sure can sing!!! What surprises me is that Lydia Miller is on an independent label. For me, she is right up there with the best that the major's can offer and I'm sure it's only a matter of time before they are knocking at her door! Lydia is preparing for her first UK visit in late April (2002) in partnership with her Producer Tim Johnson, Tim and Lydia are also beginning to write together. Recent opening slots have included work with Merle Haggard, Lonestar, Trisha Yearwood, and Clint Black. Check out Lydia's website www.lydiamiller.com where you can listen to a soundbyte and get along to one of her shows if you can. She's terrific!!!! Tour dates can be found on the 'TOURS' page of this site. Website; www.lydiamiller.com |
