Mary Chapin Carpenter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Chapin Carpenter
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Carpenter in 1995
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| Born | February 21, 1958 Princeton, New Jersey, U.S.
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| Alma mater | Brown University |
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| Awards | Full list |
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| Years active | 1987–present |
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Mary Chapin Carpenter (born February 21, 1958) is an American singer and songwriter. She is famous for her country and folk music songs. Before becoming a big star, Mary sang in clubs around Washington, D.C.. In the late 1980s, she signed with Columbia Records.
Her first album, Hometown Girl (1987), didn't have any hit songs. But she became well-known with her albums State of the Heart (1989) and Shooting Straight in the Dark (1990).
Mary's most successful album is Come On Come On (1992). It had seven hit songs and sold over four million copies in the United States! Her next album, Stones in the Road, came out two years later. It won her a Grammy Award for Best Country Album and sold over two million copies. Later, she moved to a new record label, Zoë Records, and then started her own label, Lambent Light.
Mary Chapin Carpenter has won five Grammy Awards. Four of these were for Best Female Country Vocal Performance, which she won four years in a row! Her song "Shut Up and Kiss Me" (1994) was her only song to reach number one on the country music charts. Her songs often mix country and folk styles and sometimes talk about themes of women's independence.
Contents
Early Life and Music Beginnings
Mary Chapin Carpenter was born on February 21, 1958, in Princeton, New Jersey. Her father worked for Life magazine. When she was 12, her family moved to Tokyo, Japan, for about two years. Her mother, Mary Bowie Robertson, was a folk singer and guitarist.
As a child, Mary learned to play her mother's ukulele and classical guitar. She also started writing her own songs. A science teacher who played guitar also inspired her. After her family moved to Washington, D.C., in 1974, Mary began performing in folk clubs.
She went to Brown University and studied American civilization. She started by singing cover songs, but by 1981, she was adding her own music to her shows. She became friends with John Jennings, a songwriter and musician. They worked together and made a demo cassette of Mary's songs, which she sold at her concerts.
Musical Career Highlights
Starting with Columbia Records (1987-1991)
John Jennings had planned for Mary to sign with a small record label. But a club owner in Washington, D.C., sent Mary's demo songs to Columbia Records in Nashville. This led to her signing with Columbia in 1987.
Columbia released her first album, Hometown Girl, in 1987. The record label added a hyphen to her name, "Mary-Chapin," to show it was one full first name. She wrote or co-wrote most of the songs on this album. Even though it didn't have any hit singles, people in folk music circles started talking about it. This helped her get invited to play at the Philadelphia Folk Festival and open for famous singer Emmylou Harris.
Mary wanted her next album to be more popular on country radio. In 1989, her song "How Do" became her first song to appear on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. It was the first song from her second album, State of the Heart. This album had three more hit songs. "Never Had It So Good" became her first top-ten hit. Other songs like "Quittin' Time" and "Something of a Dreamer" also did well.
Her third album, Shooting Straight in the Dark, came out in 1990. Songs like "You Win Again" and "Right Now" were popular. Her song "Down at the Twist and Shout" was a big hit in 1991, reaching number two on the charts. This song featured the Cajun band BeauSoleil.
"Down at the Twist and Shout" won Mary her first Grammy Award in 1992 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. She also won Top Female Vocalist from the Academy of Country Music in 1992. The Country Music Association (CMA) named her Female Vocalist of the Year in both 1992 and 1993.
Big Success with Come On Come On and Stones in the Road (1992-1995)
Come On Come On, released in 1992, was Mary's most successful album. It sold four million copies in the United States. This album had seven hit songs. "I Feel Lucky" reached number four on the country charts.
She also had a duet with Joe Diffie called "Not Too Much to Ask". Her cover of Lucinda Williams' song "Passionate Kisses" was a top-five country hit and also became popular on other music charts. Other popular songs from the album included "The Hard Way", "The Bug" (a cover of a Dire Straits song), "He Thinks He'll Keep Her", and "I Take My Chances".
Come On Come On brought Mary more Grammy Awards. "I Feel Lucky" won in 1993, and "Passionate Kisses" won in 1994 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. The album was praised for its strong songs about women's lives.
In 1994, Mary released Stones in the Road. This album went to number one on the Billboard country albums charts. The first song from the album, "Shut Up and Kiss Me", became her only number one hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. "Tender When I Want to Be" also reached the top ten.
Stones in the Road sold two million copies. Mary wrote every song on this album herself. The title track was inspired by her memories of seeing Robert F. Kennedy's funeral when she was young. This album won Mary her first Grammy Award for Best Country Album. "Shut Up and Kiss Me" also won Best Female Country Vocal Performance, making it her fourth win in a row for that award!
Later Albums and New Labels (2000s-Present)
After her big success, Mary released A Place in the World in 1997. She wrote all the songs on this album too. The song "Let Me into Your Heart" was a hit. After this album, Mary decided to slow down her career and spend more time with family and friends.
In 1999, she released her first collection of hit songs, Party Doll and Other Favorites. It included live recordings and some new studio songs. "Almost Home" was one of the new songs and became her last top-40 country hit.
Her album Time*...*Love* came out in 2001. She wrote all the songs, sometimes with other songwriters. Mary wanted to make an album she truly enjoyed, not just one for radio success.
In 2004, her album Between Here and Gone was released. The title song was inspired by the death of a songwriter friend. Other songs on the album were influenced by her feelings after the September 11 attacks.
After leaving Columbia Records, Mary signed with Zoë Records in 2006. Her first album with them was The Calling (2007). It was nominated for a Grammy Award. Soon after this album came out, Mary had to go to the hospital for a serious health issue, which made her cancel concerts. She recovered and released her first Christmas album, Come Darkness, Come Light: Twelve Songs of Christmas, in 2008.
Her next album, The Age of Miracles (2010), had songs inspired by her health recovery. It included duets with Alison Krauss and Vince Gill.
In 2012, she released Ashes and Roses. The songs on this album were influenced by sad personal events, like the death of her father and her divorce. It included a duet with famous singer James Taylor.
In 2015, Mary started her own record label called Lambent Light Records. Her album The Things That We Are Made Of was released on this label in 2016. Sadly, her longtime friend and music partner, John Jennings, passed away that same year.
Her 2018 album, Sometimes Just the Sky, featured new versions of her older songs, plus one new song. In 2020, she released The Dirt and the Stars. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she performed a solo concert without an audience, which was released as an album and DVD called One Night Lonely. This also received a Grammy nomination.
Working with Other Artists
Mary Chapin Carpenter has sung on many other artists' albums. She sang on the Indigo Girls' album Nomads Indians Saints in 1990. She also sang with Shawn Colvin and Radney Foster in 1992.
In 1993, she joined Billy Ray Cyrus, Kathy Mattea, Tanya Tucker, and Pam Tillis on Dolly Parton's song "Romeo". This song was nominated for a Grammy Award. She also sang with Shawn Colvin on "One Cool Remove" in 1994.
Mary has also covered songs by other artists. She sang John Lennon's "Grow Old with Me" for a tribute album in 1996. She also sang "Dead Man Walking (A Dream Like This)" for the movie Dead Man Walking and Dionne Warwick's "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" for the movie My Best Friend's Wedding. In 2002, she, Sheryl Crow, and Emmylou Harris covered Johnny Cash's "Flesh and Blood" for a tribute album.
Besides singing, Mary has written songs for other artists too. These include "Sally's Pigeons" for Cyndi Lauper, "Girls with Guitars" for Wynonna Judd, and "No Fear" for Terri Clark.
Mary's Musical Style
Mary Chapin Carpenter's music is known for its folk music influences and thoughtful lyrics. She became popular on country radio in the 1980s and 90s by sharing her emotional songs with a large audience. Her early albums had a soft, folky sound.
Music experts have noted that she uses electric guitar in her more upbeat songs, like "Passionate Kisses." She is also praised for bringing new melodies to country music. Unlike many country artists, Mary usually writes her own songs instead of using songs written by others in Nashville.
Her songs often tell stories from a woman's point of view, dealing with love and heartbreak. She has said that she writes for herself, and many of her songs feature women who take charge of their lives. Her singing voice is described as clear and strong.
Personal Life
For much of her career, Mary Chapin Carpenter was unmarried. People often saw her as a voice for single women in their thirties.
On June 1, 2002, she married Timmy Smith, who was a general contractor. Famous people like actress Sissy Spacek and singer Dave Matthews attended their wedding. They lived on a farm outside Charlottesville, Virginia. The couple divorced in 2010. One of the songs on her album Ashes and Roses, "What to Keep and What to Throw Away," was inspired by her divorce.
Mary has also written columns for The Washington Times newspaper, where she talked about music and politics. She has been involved in different charities. She has said that she considers herself politically liberal.
Awards and Recognition
Mary Chapin Carpenter has won many awards for her music. She has won five Grammy Awards, three Academy of Country Music awards, and two Country Music Association awards.
Discography
Mary Chapin Carpenter has released many studio albums since 1987.
- Selected studio albums
- Hometown Girl (1987)
- State of the Heart (1989)
- Shooting Straight in the Dark (1990)
- Come On Come On (1992)
- Stones in the Road (1994)
- A Place in the World (1996)
- Between Here and Gone (2004)
- The Calling (2007)
- Come Darkness, Come Light: Twelve Songs of Christmas (2008)
- The Age of Miracles (2010)
- Ashes and Roses (2012)
- Songs from the Movie (2014)
- The Things That We Are Made Of (2016)
- Sometimes Just the Sky (2018)
- The Dirt and the Stars (2020)
- Looking for the Thread (2025) (with Julie Fowlis and Karine Polwart)
See also
In Spanish: Mary Chapin Carpenter para niños
