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The Chicks

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Template:Infobox musical artist 2 The Dixie Chicks are an American all-female country music trio comprising Emily Robison, Martie Maguire and Natalie Maines. They are the second highest-selling female group in any musical genre, behind Destiny's Child.[1]

The group formed in 1989 in Dallas, Texas. After years of struggle and personnel changes, the Dixie Chicks achieved massive country and pop success starting in the late 1990s with hit songs such as Wide Open Spaces, Cowboy Take Me Away and Long Time Gone. By 2007, they had won 14 Grammy Awards for their recordings. The group became well-known for their lively persona, instrumental virtuosity, fashion sense, and outspoken political comments.

In particular, lead vocalist Natalie Maines's public criticism of United States President George W. Bush on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq led to considerable controversy for the group, and cost them half of their concert audience attendance in the United States[2] as chronicled in the 2006 documentary Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing.

At the 49th Grammy in 2007, the Chicks won all five categories for which they were nominated, including Album of the Year, in a vote they interpret as partly a reaction to the storm from Maines' comment.[3]

Early incarnations

The Dixie Chicks was founded by the sisters Martie and Emily Erwin along with Laura Lynch and Robin Lynn Macy. The Erwin sisters have since married and changed their names to Martie Maguire and Emily Robison, respectively. The Erwin sisters provided the instrumental firepower for the band while Lynch and Macy were the lead singers. All four original members of the Dixie Chicks graduated from Greenhill School in Addison, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.[citation needed]

The group began with a largely bluegrass sound, and released their first album Thank Heavens for Dale Evans (named after the pioneering, multi-talented female performer Dale Evans) on independent label Crystal Clear Sound in 1990. The album included two instrumentals, showing the group's strength; Martie had taken third place at the National Fiddle Championships the year before. The Chicks gained some positive notices, winning the best band prize at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and earning opening act spots in support of Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, and George Strait, but found no airplay outside of public radio.

The Chicks released the Christmas single Home on the Radar Range in late 1991, and their second album, Little Ol' Cowgirl, in 1992. Steel guitar legend Lloyd Maines played on both of these, and portions of the second album contained a more contemporary country sound. The Dixie Chicks continued to appear at various events in the Texas and Nashville areas, gaining positive critical reviews but sparing commercial success outside of some Dallas area radio airplay.

Robin Lynn Macy left in late 1992, preferring a "purer" bluegrass approach, and remained active in the Dallas music scene.

Now a trio, the Chicks released their third album in 1993. Shouldn't a Told You That featured Lynch as the sole lead singer and pushed bluegrass to the background. Despite constant touring and appearances at higher-profile events such as President Bill Clinton's Inauguration and the national television show CBS This Morning, no hit emerged and a commercial breakthrough eluded the Chicks. [2].

A new singer and commercial success

Laura Lynch was replaced in late 1995 by Natalie Maines, the daughter of producer, steel guitar player, and former Chicks session player Lloyd Maines. Around the same time, Sony scouted the Chicks and signed them to the newly revived Monument Records label.

The new Dixie Chicks lineup consisted of group leader Martie (Erwin) Siedel (fiddle, mandolin and vocals), Emily Erwin (guitar, dobro, banjo and vocals), and Natalie Maines (lead vocal and in concerts, guitar). Natalie added a strong and distinctive voice to the sisters' musicianship and harmony vocals, and the combination clicked.

A single, I Can Love You Better, was released in October 1997 with major label promotion. It climbed into the Top 10 on the country music charts. The album Wide Open Spaces was released in January 1998. Over the space of a year, the next three singles from Wide Open Spaces all hit No. 1 on the country charts: the bouncy There's Your Trouble, the statement-of-purpose Wide Open Spaces, and the radio-pleasing ballad You Were Mine. Wide Open Spaces went on to sell more than 12 million copies, becoming one of the 50 best-selling albums in American history. In the summer of 1999, the Dixie Chicks served as the opening act for Tim McGraw's concert tour.

The Dixie Chicks proved their hits were no fluke with another smash hit album, Fly in 1999. Nine singles emerged from it, including country No. 1's Cowboy Take Me Away and Without You. Fly went on to sell 10 million copies, a rare repeat diamond album. The Chicks also staged the Fly Tour, their first as the headlining act and already performing in arenas.

The source of the Dixie Chicks' commercial success during this time came from various factors: they wrote or co-wrote about half of the songs on Wide Open Spaces and Fly; their mixture of bluegrass and mainstream country music appealed to a wide spectrum of record buyers; their visual image ranged from pretty to jokey to fiery, which further enhanced their general appeal; and lyrically, the Chicks' ethos struck a resonance with the public:

She needs wide open spaces
Room to make her big mistakes

This romantic, adventurous sense of independence was a major theme in the first two Dixie Chicks albums featuring Maines as the lead singer. The romantic theme is strongly evident in Cowboy Take Me Away, another of their signature songs.

The Chicks also delivered gleeful revenge epics such as Goodbye Earl, the tale of a woman who murders her abusive husband and gets away with it, or raucous, ribald numbers such as Sin Wagon, a concert staple rave-up. Both of these tracks contained thematic elements that led to some radio stations removing the Chicks from their playlists, but the group was consistently unapologetic.

Continued success with a "non-commercial" sound

The Dixie Chicks debuted their quiet, unadorned song "I Believe in Love" on the America: A Tribute to Heroes telethon following the September 11, 2001 attacks. It was a harbinger of a change in musical direction.

The Dixie Chicks became involved in a dispute with their record label regarding royalties and accounting procedures. After the trio quit in disgust, Sony sued the group for failure to complete their contract. The group countersued.[4]

After the two parties reconciled their differences, Home, independently produced by Lloyd Maines, was released in 2002. For tracks not written by the group, outside songwriters were solicited for personal songs that were considered "uncommercial". Unlike the Chicks two previous records, Home was recorded without drums and is dominated by very up-tempo bluegrass and pensive ballads. In addition, the lyrics of the opening track and first single, "Long Time Gone", explicitly attacked contemporary country music radio, accusing it of ignoring the soul of the genre as exemplified by Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, and Hank Williams.

"Long Time Gone" became the Chicks' first top ten hit on the U.S. pop singles chart and peaked at #2 on the country chart, becoming a major success. Over 6 million copies of Home were sold in the U.S.[5]

The group's sense of independent spirit was still alive and well in their cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide", which duplicated the top ten country and pop achievements. However, a key track from Home contrasted with past albums; a rendering of Patty Griffin's "Top of the World", for which the subsequent tour was named, featured a startlingly unusual point of view and sought to portray an almost unbearable sense of regret.

Home dominated the 2003 Grammy Awards by winning four awards

Tickets for the associated Top of the World Tour often sold out within hours. The Chicks were at the top of the music industry.

Political controversy

"Just so you know, we're ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas."

Natalie Maines, 10 March 2003[6]

During the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, several weeks after their Grammy success, the Dixie Chicks performed in concert in London. On March 10, 2003, at the Shepherd's Bush Empire theatre in London, Natalie Maines, a Texas native, said between songs, "Just so you know, we're ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas".

The comment about President Bush, who moved to Texas from Connecticut at age two, was reported in The Guardian's review of the Chicks concert.[6] Shortly thereafter, the U.S. media picked up the story and controversy erupted. [7]

Maines's remark sparked intense criticism; many Americans believed that she should not criticize her country's head of state on foreign soil, or criticize the Commander-in-Chief while the country was on the verge of war. Maines insists, however, "I said it there 'cause that's where I was."[8]

The comment angered many country music fans and was financially damaging. Following the uproar and the start of a boycott of the Dixie Chicks' music, Maines attempted to clarify matters on March 12 by saying, "I feel the President is ignoring the opinions of many in the U.S. and alienating the rest of the world."

This statement failed to quiet her critics, and on March 14 Maines issued an apology: "As a concerned American citizen, I apologize to President Bush because my remark was disrespectful. I feel that whoever holds that office should be treated with the utmost respect. We are currently in Europe and witnessing a huge anti-American sentiment as a result of the perceived rush to war. While war may remain a viable option, as a mother, I just want to see every possible alternative exhausted before children and American soldiers' lives are lost. I love my country. I am a proud American."[9]

Some fans discontinued their support of the Dixie Chicks' albums and concerts as well as their sponsor Lipton. Others were disappointed that Maines apologized at all. In one famous anti-Dixie Chicks display, former fans were encouraged to bring their CDs to a demonstration at which they would be crushed by a bulldozer. The degree of hatred directed toward the Chicks provoked concern among the band about their safety and that of their families. Bruce Springsteen and Madonna even felt compelled to come out in support of the right of the band to express their opinions freely. (Although Madonna herself was pressured to postpone and then alter the April 1 release of her "American Life" video in which she threw a hand grenade toward a Bush look-alike, after witnessing the backlash against the Chicks.)[10]

File:Ewdixiechicks.jpg
The Dixie Chicks featured on the May 2, 2003 cover of Entertainment Weekly.

On April 24, the Dixie Chicks launched a publicity campaign to explain their position. During a prime-time interview with TV personality Diane Sawyer, Maines said she remained proud of her original statement. The band also appeared naked (with private parts strategically covered) on the May 2 cover of Entertainment Weekly magazine with slogans such as "Traitors," "Saddam's Angels," "Dixie Sluts", "Proud Americans," "Hero," "Free Speech", and "Brave" printed on their bodies. The slogans represented the labels (both positive and negative) that had been placed on them in the aftermath of Maines's statement.

President Bush responded to the controversy surrounding the Dixie Chicks in an interview with Tom Brokaw on April 24:

[T]he Dixie Chicks are free to speak their mind. They can say what they want to say ... They shouldn't have their feelings hurt just because some people don't want to buy their records when they speak out ... Freedom is a two-way street ... I ... don't really care what the Dixie Chicks said. I want to do what I think is right for the American people, and if some singers or Hollywood stars feel like speaking out, that's fine. That's the great thing about America. It stands in stark contrast to Iraq...[11]

At the first concert of their nationwide Top of the World Tour the Dixie Chicks received a positive reception. The concert was held in Greenville, South Carolina on May 1, and was attended by a sell-out crowd of 15,000 (tickets for most of the shows had gone on sale before the controversy erupted[12]). The women arrived prepared to face opposition — and Maines invited those who had come to boo to do so — but the crowd erupted mostly in cheers.

Nevertheless, the Dixie Chicks remained controversial. On May 6 a Colorado radio station suspended two of its disc jockeys for playing music by the Dixie Chicks in violation of a ban on their music.[13] On May 22, at the Academy of Country Music (ACM) awards ceremony in Las Vegas, there were boos when the group's nomination for Entertainer of the Year award was announced. However, the broadcast's host, Vince Gill, reminded the audience that everyone is entitled to freedom of speech. The Academy gave the award to Toby Keith, an outspoken critic of the group.

By the time of the Dixie Chicks August 3 Atlanta show, Maines remarked that they had not heard any boos for a couple of shows; some were heard that night, but the Chicks felt that it was okay, as they supported freedom of speech.[citation needed]

In the fall of 2003 the Dixie Chicks starred in a broadcast TV commercial for Lipton Original Iced Tea, which made a tongue-in-cheek reference to the corporate blacklisting and the grassroots backlash. In the commercial, the Chicks are about to give a stadium concert when the electricity suddenly goes out. They continue anyway, performing an a cappella version of "Cowboy Take Me Away" to the raving cheers of the fans.

In a September 2003 interview, Maguire told the German magazine Der Spiegel: "We don't feel a part of the country scene any longer, it can't be our home anymore." She noted a lack of support from country stars, and being shunned at the 2003 ACM awards. "Instead, we won three Grammys against much stronger competition. So we now consider ourselves part of the big rock 'n' roll family." However, in an open letter to fans on the Chicks' Web site, Maines said Maguire had been misquoted.[citation needed]

Also in 2003, the American Red Cross refused an 1 million USD offer from the Dixie Chicks. The organization did not publicize the refusal; it was revealed by the Chicks themselves in a May 2006 interview on the Howard Stern Show on SIRIUS Satellite Radio. [3] According to National Red Cross spokesperson Julie Thurmond Whitmer, the band would have made the donation "only if the American Red Cross would embrace the band's summer tour," writes Ms. Whitmer, referring to the group's 2003 U.S. tour after the London incident.

The Dixie Chicks controversy made it impossible for the American Red Cross to associate itself with the band because such association would have violated two of the founding principles of the organization: impartiality and neutrality...Should the Dixie Chicks like to make an unconditional financial donation to the American Red Cross, we will gladly accept it.[14]

In October 2004, the Dixie Chicks joined the Vote for Change tour, performing in concerts organized by MoveOn.org in swing states. The efforts to mobilize votes for John Kerry, and against Bush, ultimately failed. While the Dixie Chicks' artistic collaborations with James Taylor went well, sharing the stage on many occasions, Maines's comments during the concerts revealed a certain amount of nervousness over the future career path of the Dixie Chicks.[citation needed]

File:Timedixie.jpg
The Dixie Chicks featured on the May 29, 2006 cover of Time Magazine.

In June 2006 an article in the Telegraph quoted Emily Robison on the lack of support from other country music performers, "A lot of artists cashed in on being against what we said or what we stood for because that was promoting their career, which was a horrible thing to do." Robison continued, "A lot of pandering started going on, and you'd see soldiers and the American flag in every video. It became a sickening display of ultra-patriotism." Maines commented, "The entire country may disagree with me, but I don't understand the necessity for patriotism. Why do you have to be a patriot? About what? This land is our land? Why? You can like where you live and like your life, but as for loving the whole country ... I don't see why people care about patriotism."[15]

Wikinews has related news:

At the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival, Cabin Creek Films, the production company of award-winning documentarian Barbara Kopple, premiered Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing. Distributed by the Weinstein Company, the documentary follows the Chicks over the three years since the 2003 London concert remark.

Not Ready to Make Nice: The Chicks return

In September 2005 the Dixie Chicks debuted their song "I Hope" on the Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast telethon following Hurricane Katrina, and subsequently made it available as a digital download single with proceeds to benefit hurricane relief.

On March 16, 2006, the Dixie Chicks released the single "Not Ready to Make Nice" in advance of their upcoming album. Written by all three Chicks alongside Dan Wilson, it directly addressed the political controversy that had surrounded the group for the past three years:

I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell and I don’t have time to go 'round and 'round and 'round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should

and, in criticism of the death threats the women (particularly Maines) received,

It’s a sad sad story when a mother will teach her daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
And how in the world can the words that I said
Send somebody so over the edge
That they’d write me a letter sayin’ that I better shut up and sing or my life will be over

In a press release, Robison said, "The stakes were definitely higher on that song. We knew it was special because it was so autobiographical, and we had to get it right. And once we had that song done, it freed us up to do the rest of the album without that burden."

The question of how the group's new record would fare commercially attracted intense media interest. A March 27 Associated Press story indicated that country radio reaction was so far mixed, with some major stations playing it, a few avoiding it, and others adopting a wait-and-see attitude. [16]. By April, although still not popular in the United States, the song received heavy airplay on country and - by summer - on adult oriented rock stations in Canada and on Canadian video television networks MuchMoreMusic and CMT. However, due to digital sales, the single hit the Billboard Hot 100 at number 28, the week's highest new entry for the week ending May 6, 2006. The following week it nudged up to #23. By May 22, UPI reported that "The first two singles from the album are not getting widespread airplay, Billboard.com reported Monday. The first single, only peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and the second single, 'Everybody Knows', is moving rapidly downward after its peak at No. 48." UPI also reported that program managers for WKIS-FM in Miami and KUBL/KKAT in Salt Lake City had junked the singles due to listener complaints or their own distaste. Also, few pop radio stations opted to take a chance on "Not Ready To Make Nice," although Atlanta CHR radio station WSTR did add the song to its playlist belatedly in June 2006. The song topped VH1's fan voted top 20 video countdown for 13 straight weeks, making it the longest running video at the #1 spot on the countdown.

The Chicks' new album, entitled Taking the Long Way, was released in stores and online May 22, 2006. The album was produced by Rick Rubin (who had worked with Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash, Neil Diamond, and the Beastie Boys among others) and was publicized to be more rock-intensive than country-oriented. [17] [18] All 14 tracks were co-written by the three Chicks, alongside various other songwriters. The album contained additional tracks that seemed to indirectly reference what the group called "The Incident", and the group remained defiant. For instance, in the May 29 issue of Time, Maguire said, "I'd rather have a smaller following of really cool people who get it, who will grow with us as we grow and are fans for life, than people that have us in their five-disc changer with Reba McEntire and Toby Keith. We don't want those kinds of fans. They limit what you can do." Maines also retracted her earlier apology to Bush, stating, "I apologized for disrespecting the office of the President, but I don't feel that way anymore. I don't feel he is owed any respect whatsoever." [19]

Despite minimal airplay, Taking the Long Way debuted at number one on both the U.S. pop albums chart and the U.S. country albums chart, selling 526,000 copies in the first week (the year's second-best such total for any country act) and making it a gold record within its first week. The Chicks became the first female group in chart history to have three albums debut at #1.[20]

In Europe, both singles from their Taking the Long Way were well received by country radio, remaining on the European Country Charts for more than 20 weeks each: "Not Ready To Make Nice" peaked at #13 and "Everybody Knows" at #11.[21]

The group's Accidents & Accusations Tour began in July 2006. Ticket sales were strong in Canada and in some Northeastern markets, but notably weak in other areas. A number of shows were cancelled or relocated to smaller venues due to poor sales, and in Houston, Texas, tickets never even went on sale when local radio stations refused to accept advertising for the event [22]. In August, a re-routed tour schedule was announced with a greater emphasis on Canadian dates, where Taking the Long Way had gone five-times-platinum. The tour's shows themselves generally refrained from any explicit verbal political comments, letting the music, especially the central performance of "Not Ready to Make Nice", speak for itself. At a Nov. 5, 2006 concert in Calgary, Alberta the Chicks received a thunderous ovation when the song was over, and the band held up a handwritten sign from a fan that read "Nobody likes a nasty Bush."

During 2006, the Dixie Chicks became the first major band to hire a designated blogger to be embedded with them for their promotional activities and tour. They partnered with Microsoft and hired Junichi Semitsu, a Professor of Law at the University of San Diego, to write first-hand accounts for their Accidents & Accusations Tour at the website http://dixiechicks.msn.com.[23]

In 2006, Taking the Long Way was the ninth best-selling album in the United States. It won the 2007 Grammy Award for Best Album, Best Record & Best Song (for Not Ready To Make Nice), and Best Country Album on February 11, 2007. Unfortunately, this did not equate to ticket sales as most of the southern leg of their US tour was canceled in 2006.

Shut Up and Sing

An ad for Shut up and Sing, a documentary about the furor over Maines's comment, was turned down by NBC on 27 October 2006, citing a policy barring ads dealing with "public controversy". Ads for the documentary were rebuffed by the smaller CW network as well; local affiliate stations of all five major broadcasters, including NBC and CW, ran promotional spots for the film in New York and Los Angeles, the two cities where it opened that day. "It's a sad commentary about the level of fear in our society that a movie about a group of courageous entertainers who were blacklisted for exercising their right of free speech is now itself being blacklisted by corporate America," the film's producer Harvey Weinstein said in a statement.[24]

Discography

Actual set list from Dixie Chicks concert on the Top of the World Tour: Madison Square Garden, June 20, 2003.
Main article: Dixie Chicks discography

Awards

American Music Awards

  • 2003: Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group
  • 2003: Favorite Country Album - Home
  • 2001: Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group

Billboard Music Awards

  • 2002: Country Duo/Group of the Year

Country Music Association Awards

  • 2002: Vocal Group of the Year
  • 2000: Album of the Year - Fly
  • 2000: Entertainer of the Year
  • 2000: Vocal Group of the Year
  • 2000: Music Video of the Year - "Goodbye Earl"
  • 1999: Single of the Year - "Wide Open Spaces"
  • 1999: Vocal Group of the Year
  • 1999: Music Video of the Year - "Wide Open Spaces"
  • 1998: Horizon Award
  • 1998: Vocal Group of the Year

Grammy Awards

MTV's Rock the Vote

  • 2004: Patrick Lippert Award for "protecting freedom of speech".

People's Choice Awards

  • 2002: Favorite Musical Group or Band

Tours

As an opening act

Benefits

Festivals

Headlining tours

Further reading

  • Dickerson, James L. (2000). Dixie Chicks: Down-Home and Backstage. Taylor Trade Publishing. ISBN 0-87833-189-1.

See also

Official
Other

Notes

  1. ^ Sony, though the Chicks' site may disagree.
  2. ^ "Dixie Chicks 'Shut Up and Sing' in Toronto". MSNBC. Retrieved 2006-10-08.
  3. ^ http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/entertainment/movies/16677679.htm
  4. ^ http://www.aimeemanninprint.com/2001/bg100701.htm
  5. ^ http://www.riaa.com/gp/database/search_results.asp
  6. ^ a b Clarke, Betty (2003). "The Dixie Chicks" Guardian Unlimited (accessed January 22, 2007)
  7. ^ Campbell, Duncan (2003). "'Dixie sluts' fight on with naked defiance" Guardian Unlimited (accessed April 13, 2006)
  8. ^ http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,1196419,00.html
  9. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/2867221.stm "Dixies dropped over Bush remark" BBC News (Accessed: October 30, 2006)
  10. ^ http://dir.salon.com/story/ent/music/feature/2003/04/03/madonna/index.html
  11. ^ (2003). http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/25/international/worldspecial/25BUSH-TEXT.html?pagewanted=all (accessed April 13, 2006)
  12. ^ CMT, Dixie Chicks biography (accessed December 3, 2006)
  13. ^ DJs suspended for playing Dixie Chicks last accessed February 12, 2007.
  14. ^ http://www.pe.com/sharedcontent/features/country2/052806ccdrMUSICnatalie.3a3fb996.html
  15. ^ (2006). [1] (accessed January 22, 2006)
  16. ^ AP (2006). "Radio still uneasy with Dixie Chicks"
  17. ^ Barger, Al (2006). "Single Review: Dixie Chicks - 'Not Ready to Make Nice'" Blogcritics.com (accessed April 13, 2006)
  18. ^ (2006). "Dixie Chicks: 'Taking the Long Way'" MSN.com (accessed April 13, 2006)
  19. ^ Tryangiel, Josh (May 29, 2006). "In the Line of Fire". Time Magazine.
  20. ^ "Dixie Chicks New Album, Taking The Long Way, Debuts At #1 On Billboard Top 200". Open Wide/Columbia Records (Press Release). May 31, 2006.
  21. ^ European CMA
  22. ^ "Radio, promoter each blames other for cut in Chicks tour". Houston Chronicle. August 15, 2006.
  23. ^ "Chicks Magnet". Washington Post. June 19, 2006.
  24. ^ http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/entertainment/2006-10/29/content_719231.htm

Archived news articles

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