Crystal Gayle talks about her career ahead of Saturday concert
BY JENNIFER CHANCELLOR World Scene Writer
Thursday, August 23, 2012
8/23/12 at 4:05 AM
Nobody is quite like Crystal Gayle.
The famed country crossover singer was the youngest of eight kids born into a poverty-stricken family. She is the sister of Loretta Lynn. She has also been singing for as long as she can remember.
Then there is her hair - her iconic, floor-length, flowing mane of ebony locks - which has been her trademark for as long as anyone can remember.
"I still think pretty long and hard about getting rid of it," she said during a recent telephone interview.
"I think about cutting it all the time. ... It grows fast, at least a foot a year. It's my American Indian blood - I'm Cherokee. Heck, honestly, I cut it all the time," she said.
The iconic songbird brings her eclectic roster of favorites to Tulsa for a concert Saturday at the Osage Casino Event Center.
"Gosh, what can people expect in a set? We do all different shows in all different sorts of venues. There's no telling," Gayle said with a laugh. "We could do almost anything."
She definitely has a lot to choose from.
She may be best known for her 1977 country-pop crossover hit, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue," and other popular songs, including "You and I," "Wrong Road Again," "I'll Get Over You," "You Never Miss a Real Good Thing (Till He Says Goodbye)," "I'll Do It All Over Again," "Talking in Your Sleep," "Why Have You Left the One You Left Me For," "If You Ever Change Your Mind," "The Sound of Goodbye," "Makin' Up for Lost Time (The Dallas Lovers' Song)," "Cry" and "Another World," among others.
Her latest album, "All My Tomorrows," is filled with timeless standards and gospel tunes, including "It Had to Be You," "Cry Me a River" and Ray Charles' "Hallelujah I Love Him So."
Few artists today share the versatility and broad audience appeal that Gayle has cultivated in her 40-plus years as a performer.
However, a couple of artists out there remind her of herself when she was first starting out. They've got a few decades to catch up to her, though, career-wise, the 61-year-old said.
"Well, if I really think about it, Shania Twain and her musical style," she said. "But things are a whole lot different today than they were back then. There were so few of us back then. Today, there's so much good new music from young women. It's everywhere."
In the 1970s and '80s, her biggest outlet was country radio and some adult contemporary stations, but today there's the Internet, satellite radio and dozens of other outlets, she said.
She also said the journey of Taylor Swift reminds her of herself, too. "She started out so young and has really grown into herself and expresses herself with originality," Gayle said.
And although Gayle's been singing longer than most of her contemporaries have been alive, that doesn't mean she's anywhere near the end of her career, she said.
She's not the retiring type, she said.
"I have enough stuff recorded right now I could release three albums," she said.
She's ready and working with son Chris, who graduated from Belmont University's acclaimed music engineering program.
"I could sing before I could walk," she said, then laughed. "It's all I've ever wanted to do, besides raise my kids."
CRYSTAL GAYLE
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: Osage Event Center at Osage Casino, 951 W. 36th St. North
Tickets: Must be at least 18 years old to attend. $25, plus fees, available at the box office, by calling 918-699-7667 and online at tulsaworld.com/osagecasino
Original Print Headline: Long on talent
Jennifer Chancellor 918-581-8346
jennifer.chancellor@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Crystal Gayle will perform Saturday at the Osage Event Center. Courtesy
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