LeAnn Rimes burst into the spotlight at the young age of 13. Her breakthrough song "Blue" flew off the shelves and led to many honors such as Grammys, Billboard and American Music Awards. She married her Northern Lights co-star Eddie Cibrian this past April. Her new album, Lady and Gentlemen, has her "Swingin'" into town and we sat on the porch to talk about it.
Windy City Times: Hi, LeAnn—looking forward to seeing you stay in Chicago for a while.
LeAnn Rimes: Eddie's show, The Playboy Club, is filming there so we are basing out of there, splitting our time between there and L.A. Then I am splitting my time between there and the road. I am going to rack up the miles for sure on the airplane. We started last week and it is quite an adjustment. It's temporary. When it rains it pours. All of a sudden my album is coming out Sept. 27. I am going to be doing press and touring with him and the kids so it is a lot.
WCT: With the new album you re-recorded your hit "Blue," correct?
LR: Yes, we did. It was Vince Gill's idea to rerecord "Blue." When it comes out it will be 18 years since I recorded the original version. It came out when I was 13 years old but I recorded it when I was 11. I turn 29 at the end of the month. It was kind of surreal doing that. I have always had fans come up and ask me if I would rerecord that song.
It sounds so different than when I was a fetus basically to now. My whole approach and appreciation for the song has changed. I really do love that song. I don't get sick of singing it, especially now. We recorded it with The Time Jumpers, who Vince records with a lot. It swings differently and it is a little more uptempo. It is a thank-you to my fans as a bonus track to the record. It is cool that we don't make it an actual bonus track but part of the CD. It is such a classic that it fits so well within all of these other classic songs.
WCT: What other covers can people listen for on the new album?
LR: "Give" is the new single. "Give" and "Crazy Women" are the bonus tracks with "Give" as the kickoff single on the radio. We had about 75 songs then we narrowed it down to 12. We paid homage to the original but definitely twisted them and made them my own. You can hear with "Swingin" how we really did make it my own. We took the old John Conlee song "Rose Colored Glasses" and made it a western swing. We sped it up. We did "He Stopped Loving Her Today" and it is very much like the original.
Vince played and sang on the album, so most of the guitar stuff is him. He put a Latin flair to it, which was very cool. We did two Merle Haggard songs "The Bottle Let Me Down" and "I Can't Be Myself When I Am With You." What I love about all of these songs is that they are so real. I love the fact that these men were never afraid to write reality and what was going on in their lives, then live it and sing it. They are so honest. I think it is the most authentic album that I have ever done, even though they are not my songs completely.
I have such an appreciation for that kind of music. That kind of country music is dead. No one sings it. I am bringing it to a new generation of people by twisting it and making it my own. I am so excited because Merle had the album in his hand a couple of days ago. His road manager said he is over the moon. To have people that are that iconic and have pleased them in rerecording their music by capturing the essence of their music is important to me. To make "Good Hearted Woman" from a woman's perspective is interesting. We sang in Spanish on "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights." It is a very diverse record. We even did one of Vince's songs "When I Call Your Name" with a blues sound to it. It gave me a space to find completely new melodies. I am really proud of the album.
WCT: I look forward to hearing it. You are playing with Crystal Bowersox at Joe's on Weed Street.
LR: I have never met her before. I am excited to meet her. She is from Chicago, right?
WCT: Yes; she used to play in train tunnels before she landed American Idol.
LR: Very cool.
WCT: You just did some acting on the Lifetime show Drop Dead Diva.
LR: Yes, I did. It was really fun. I got to play such a bitch. It was great. I never get to play that kind of role. Every time I walked of the set the creator said I played a bitch so well. I didn't know whether to take that as a compliment or not.
WCT: Are you going to focus on more roles after this album?
LR: Definitely. I just shot a film that will come out in November for CMT where Burt Reynolds plays my dad. It is called Reel Love. We just finished that in May. I saw some of it the other day and I am really pleased with it. It is a really cute little film. I am sure I will be doing something on Playboy Club soon. I want to do more acting. I am falling in love with it.
WCT: How was playing Milwaukee Pridefest?
LR: It was awesome. I had such an amazing time there. My gay fans totally support me and always have. It was very emotional because I sang "What I Cannot Change." I knew I shouldn't have opened my eyes. I sometimes get lost in myself when I sing especially with such an emotional song like that that I wrote. When I opened my eyes not just one person was crying but the whole crowd was crying. I lost it. I totally lost it. It means a lot to people. When you can touch people like that it makes it a special show.
WCT: You were also emotional when singing "The Rose" with The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles recently.
LR: Yes; I am just a wimp onstage. If I think about what I am really singing about it is difficult sometimes. Since Adele has been sick, she is such a great friend and sweetheart, I wanted to sing something in my show of hers. I have been covering "Someone Like You" and God knows I can barely make it through that song. We play it right after "What I Cannot Change" so the two of those things together kill me.
WCT: You have been hosting the Colgate Country Showdown for five years now.
LR: I don't know if I am doing this coming season in January. I did it this year though. I started there in a way because I did those regional competitions in the beginning. It is always fun to see new talent. It is another great avenue to have a platform to show off their talent. This business is so hard. I am a little jaded for doing it so long but to see these kids that are my age—wide-eyed and that is all they want. I remember that time and they come up and ask for advice. It is sweet and a nurturing environment at that talent show.
WCT: [This] seems like your year, with a new marriage and album.
LR: It is a milestone year for me. I have been in this business so long and you ride a rollercoaster. You go down and go up. I have been fortunate enough to maintain a great career and my personal life is on the upswing. Eddie and I are both on that rise. It is nice to have you and your spouse on the upswing together. I will be 30 next year so I think 2012 will be even better!
Join LeAnn and Crystal at Joe's Bar Chicago, 940 W. Weed St., for the first-ever AMC Lifting Lives Benefit Concert Aug. 15. Purchase tickets at www.ticketweb.com; more information is at www.acmliftinglives.org .
For more on LeAnn Rimes' world visit www.leannrimesworld.com .
