Kathy Mattea facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kathy Mattea
Mattea in 2000
Born	Kathleen Alice Mattea (1959-06-21) June 21, 1959 (age 66) South Charleston, West Virginia, U.S.
Alma mater	West Virginia University
Occupation	Singer songwriter producer
Years active	1983–present
Spouse(s)	Jon Vezner ​ (m. 1988)​
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Country country folk bluegrass
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Labels	Mercury Nashville Narada Captain Potato Sugar Hill Thirty Tigers

Kathleen Alice Mattea (born June 21, 1959) is an American country music and bluegrass singer. She started recording music in 1984. She has had more than 30 songs on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. Four of her songs reached number one: "Goin' Gone", "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses", "Come from the Heart", and "Burnin' Old Memories". She also had 12 other songs in the top ten.

Kathy Mattea has released 14 studio albums, two Christmas albums, and one greatest hits album. Most of her music was released by Universal Music Group Nashville's Mercury Records Nashville division between 1984 and 2000. Later albums came out on other labels like Narada Productions and Sugar Hill Records. Her albums have earned five gold and one platinum awards from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). She has worked with famous artists like Dolly Parton and Michael McDonald. Mattea has won two Grammy Awards: one in 1990 for "Where've You Been" and another in 1993 for her Christmas album Good News. Her music style mixes traditional country, bluegrass, folk, and Celtic music.

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Kathleen Alice Mattea was born on June 21, 1959, in South Charleston, West Virginia. She grew up in Cross Lanes with her two brothers. Her father worked in a chemical plant, and her mother was a homemaker.

When she was a child, Mattea's mother would ask her to play piano for family and friends. She also sang in her parents' church. In high school, she performed in school shows and at family gatherings. Mattea started playing guitar as a teenager after discovering folk music. She also loved bluegrass music, which she later said "formed [her] roots" as an artist.

In 1976, while attending West Virginia University, she joined a bluegrass band. Later, a songwriter friend moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and Mattea decided to go with him. She left college to pursue music. Her friend eventually left Nashville, but Mattea stayed. She worked as a tour guide at the Country Music Hall of Fame. She also worked as a secretary and a waitress to support herself while singing demos for new songs. In 1983, record producer Byron Hill discovered her and helped her sign with Mercury Records.

Music Career Highlights

Starting Out: First Albums

Kathy Mattea's first album, Kathy Mattea, came out in 1984. She later said that making the album was tough because there wasn't much money. She even bought a jacket for the album cover from Kmart. At this time, she was still figuring out her own musical style.

Four songs from this album became singles on the Hot Country Songs charts. "Street Talk" reached number 25. "Someone Is Falling in Love" (written by Pebe Sebert) reached number 26. Music critics said her first album had good songs and praised her voice.

Her second album, From My Heart, was released in 1985. This album was produced by Allen Reynolds, who worked with other famous artists. Songs like "It's Your Reputation Talkin'" and "He Won't Give In" were released from this album. Critics thought this album was better than her first, saying it had a "more focused direction."

Finding Her Sound and Big Hits

Mattea's music style really grew with her third album, Walk the Way the Wind Blows (1986). This album brought in more folk and acoustic sounds, inspired by her childhood. It was a big success for her. Four singles from this album reached the top ten on the country music charts. These included "Love at the Five and Dime" and the title track.

An autographed photo of Mattea live in concert, 1989.

In 1987, Mattea had her first number one song, "Goin' Gone". This was the first single from her fourth album, Untasted Honey. After that, "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" became her longest-running number one hit, staying there for two weeks. Other songs like "Untold Stories" and "Life as We Knew It" also reached the top four.

Her 1989 album, Willow in the Wind, also had two number one hits: "Come from the Heart" and "Burnin' Old Memories". Her song "Where've You Been" (co-written by her husband, Jon Vezner) became a top-ten hit. Mattea won the Country Music Association's Female Vocalist of the Year award in both 1989 and 1990. She also won a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 1990 for "Where've You Been."

Continued Success and Challenges

In 1990, Mattea released her first greatest hits album, A Collection of Hits. It included a new song, "A Few Good Things Remain", which also reached the Top 10. Her next studio album, Time Passes By (1991), included Celtic music influences and was partly recorded in Scotland. The title track from this album reached the top ten.

Tim O'Brien sang duet vocals on Mattea's 1990 single "The Battle Hymn of Love".

Her 1992 album, Lonesome Standard Time, had a hit song with its title track, which reached number 11. In June 1992, Mattea had a problem with her singing voice. She needed to rest her voice and have surgery to fix years of overuse.

After recovering, she released her first Christmas album, Good News, in 1993. This album won a Grammy Award for Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album.

Later Music and New Directions

In 1994, Mattea released Walking Away a Winner. The title track was a big hit, reaching number three on the country charts. This album had more rock and pop influences. She also appeared in the movie Maverick that year.

After a break, she returned in 1997 with Love Travels. The song "455 Rocket" from this album reached number 21. Her last album with Mercury Records was The Innocent Years in 2000. She wrote two songs on this album with her husband.

In 2002, Mattea moved to a new record label, Narada Productions, and released the album Roses. She wanted to keep her contemporary folk and Celtic influences. Her second Christmas album, Joy for Christmas Day, came out in 2003. Her album Right Out of Nowhere (2005) included covers of songs by The Rolling Stones and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Mattea at the 2010 Cambridge Folk Festival in England

In 2008, she released the bluegrass album Coal. This album was inspired by the Sago Mine disaster and focused on coal mining themes. She worked with country and bluegrass singer Marty Stuart on this project. A second album with similar themes, Calling Me Home, followed in 2014.

In the mid-2010s, Mattea faced new challenges with her singing voice. She worked with a vocal coach to regain control. This led to her 2018 album, Pretty Bird.

In 2021, Kathy Mattea became the host of Mountain Stage, a radio program on West Virginia's NPR network.

Musical Style and Collaborations

Kathy Mattea's music is known as country, but she also includes elements of bluegrass, Celtic, and folk. She was part of a group of country artists who brought modern ideas to their music. After her album Coal, her music started to focus more on Appalachian music.

Mattea has worked with many other artists. In 1991, she was part of "Voices That Care", a charity song to support U.S. troops. In 1993, she sang with Dolly Parton, Tanya Tucker, and others on Parton's song "Romeo".

She also participated in the Red Hot + Country project in 1994, which raised money for AIDS awareness. She sang on a cover of "Teach Your Children" with Suzy Bogguss and Alison Krauss. She also sang a duet with Jackson Browne. In 1998, Mattea recorded "Among the Missing" with Michael McDonald. This song helped the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Personal Life

Mattea has been married to Jon Vezner since 1988; he has also written several of her singles.

Kathy Mattea married songwriter Jon Vezner on February 14, 1988. They met because he started a music publishing company below her apartment in the 1980s. Vezner has written four of Mattea's hit songs, including "Where've You Been." The couple lives in Nashville, Tennessee. They do not have children but have had cats and dogs.

Mattea's father passed away in 2003 after battling colon cancer. Her mother passed away in 2005 due to complications from Alzheimer's disease.

Mattea is also known for her work in AIDS activism. In 1992, at an awards show, she chose to wear three red ribbons to honor friends who had died from AIDS, along with a green ribbon for environmental awareness. She has participated in charity concerts and public campaigns to raise awareness. In 1994, she received an award from the Harvard AIDS Initiative.

Discography

Studio albums

• Kathy Mattea (1984)
• From My Heart (1985)
• Walk the Way the Wind Blows (1986)
• Untasted Honey (1987)
• Willow in the Wind (1989)
• Time Passes By (1991)
• Lonesome Standard Time (1992)
• Good News (1993)
• Walking Away a Winner (1994)
• Love Travels (1997)
• The Innocent Years (2000)
• Roses (2002)
• Joy for Christmas Day (2003)
• Right Out of Nowhere (2005)
• Coal (2008)
• Calling Me Home (2012)
• Pretty Bird (2018)

Billboard Number-One Hits

• "Goin' Gone" (1 week, 1987-1988)
• "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" (2 weeks, 1988)
• "Come From the Heart" (1 week, 1989)
• "Burnin' Old Memories" (1 week, 1989)

Film and TV Appearances

Awards and Nominations

Kathy Mattea has won many awards, including four from the Country Music Association and two from the Grammy Awards.

See also

In Spanish: Kathy Mattea para niños