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| Nanci Griffith |
Nanci Caroline Griffith unexpectedly passed away on August 13th of this year. She was a beloved American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Griffith was born in Seguin, Texas and raised in Austin. She lived in Nashville Tennessee.
Her career spanned a variety of musical genres, predominantly country, folk, and what she termed "folkabilly." Griffith won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album in 1994 for her recording, ”Other Voices, Other Rooms”. This album features Griffith covering the songs of artists who were her major influences.
One of Griffith's better-known songs is "From a Distance" which was written and composed by Julie Gold. Though Bette Midler's version achieved greater commercial success, Nanci’s version was wonderful and reached a different audience.
In 1990, Griffith appeared on the Channel 4 programme Town & Country with John Prine, where she performed at The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, along with Buddy Mondlock, Robert Earl Keen, and Barry "Byrd" Burton.
In 1994, Griffith teamed up with Jimmy Webb to contribute the song "If These Old Walls Could Speak" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization.
She kept her career fresh by touring with various other artists, including members of Buddy Holly's band, The Crickets; John Prine; Iris DeMent; Suzy Bogguss; and Judy Collins.
Griffith recorded duets with many artists, among them Emmylou Harris, Mary Black, John Prine, Don McLean, Jimmy Buffett, Dolores Keane, Willie Nelson, Adam Duritz (singer of Counting Crows), The Chieftains, John Stewart; and Darius Rucker (lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish).
After several months of limited touring in 2011, Griffith's bandmates The Kennedys (Pete & Maura Kennedy) packed up their professional Manhattan recording studio and relocated it to Nashville, where they installed it in Griffith's home.
On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Griffith among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
These guitars came with a solid Engelman Spruce top, and mahogany back and sides. The body had a Florentine cut-away and a faux tortoise shell pick guard. It was bound on the top with white and black binding, and on the back with black binding. The rosette was inlaid with abalone. The neck was inlaid with diamond position markers. The tuners were gold -plated. These are beautiful deluxe instruments with features not found on most 500 series Taylor instruments.
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| A much younger photo |
Another of Griffith’s best loved songs is "Love at the Five and Dime", which she recorded, however Kathy Mattea had a top country music hit with this song.
Another song that she wrote that became a hit for Suzy Bogguss was “Outbound Plane”. Nanci Griffith wrote this song with Tom Russell.
Nanci Griffith appeared many times on the PBS music program Austin City Limits starting in 1985.
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| Nanci Griffith with John Prine |
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| Nanci Griffith with Jimmy Webb |
In 1994, Griffith teamed up with Jimmy Webb to contribute the song "If These Old Walls Could Speak" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization.
Griffith was a survivor of breast cancer which was diagnosed in 1996, and thyroid cancer in 1998.
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| Nanci Griffith and The Crickets |
She kept her career fresh by touring with various other artists, including members of Buddy Holly's band, The Crickets; John Prine; Iris DeMent; Suzy Bogguss; and Judy Collins.
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| Nanci Griffith with Emmylou Harris |
Griffith recorded duets with many artists, among them Emmylou Harris, Mary Black, John Prine, Don McLean, Jimmy Buffett, Dolores Keane, Willie Nelson, Adam Duritz (singer of Counting Crows), The Chieftains, John Stewart; and Darius Rucker (lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish).
She also contributed background vocals on many other recordings.
Griffith suffered from severe writer's block almost five years starting in 2004, lasting until the 2009 with the release of her "The Loving Kind" album, which contained nine selections that she had written and composed either entirely by herself or as collaborations.
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| Nanci Griffith with The Kennedys |
After several months of limited touring in 2011, Griffith's bandmates The Kennedys (Pete & Maura Kennedy) packed up their professional Manhattan recording studio and relocated it to Nashville, where they installed it in Griffith's home.
At this home studio, with her backing group, including Pete & Maura Kennedy and Pat McInerney, she co-produced her album Intersection over the course of the summer.
The resulting album included several new original songs and was released in April 2012 on Proper Records.
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| Nanci Griffith |
On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Griffith among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
Despite her health issues, her death was listed as natural causes.
Through the years Nanci Griffith played a variety of guitars. In her early publicity photos she is posing wth her Guild F-40.
In the 1984 Austin City Limits episode she is seen playing a Martin D-28.
In the mid 1990's Griffith was playing Taylor guitars.
In 1996 she signed a deal with Taylor Guitars to produce her own artist model, which was known as The "Nanci Griffith" Taylor 512-NG. Only 100 units were made over a period of a few years. These all were signed by Griffith. There were six extra guitars built as 512-NG's but did not have her signature.
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| Back of the Taylor 512-NG's |
These guitars came with a solid Engelman Spruce top, and mahogany back and sides. The body had a Florentine cut-away and a faux tortoise shell pick guard. It was bound on the top with white and black binding, and on the back with black binding. The rosette was inlaid with abalone. The neck was inlaid with diamond position markers. The tuners were gold -plated. These are beautiful deluxe instruments with features not found on most 500 series Taylor instruments.
The photos show two Taylor 512-NG's that were signed on the back by Nanci Griffith after a 2004 performance.
Click on the links under the pictures for sources. Click on links in the text for further reading.
©UniqueGuitar Publications 2021 (text only)
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