Mary Chapin Carpenter life and biography

Mary Chapin Carpenter is an American folk and country music artist. Carpenter spent several years singing in Washington, D.C. clubs before signing in the late 1980s with Columbia Records, who marketed her as a country singer. Carpenter's first album, 1987's Hometown Girl, did not produce any singles, although 1989's State of the Heart and 1990's Shooting Straight in the Dark each produced four Top 20 hits on the Billboard country singles charts.

Mary Chapin Carpenter was born Feb. 21, 1958, in Princeton, N.J. Her father was an executive for Life magazine, and she spent part of her early life living in Japan. She grew up with a love of contemporary pop hits, although her mother's Woody Guthrie and Judy Collins records gave her some interest in country/folk music. She spent her time at home with her guitar, and her father encouraged her to perform at talent nights.

Enrolling in Brown University, Carpenter earned a degree in American civilization. By 1986, she was a local star, winning five Washington Area Music Awards. She released her 1987 debut Hometown Girl, produced by guitarist/producer John Jennings, on Columbia Records in Nashville, though it offered no hits. She also recorded John Stewart 's "Runaway Train" for her first album, but the label offered it to Rosanne Cash, who took it to No. 1 in 1988.

The 1989 album State of the Heart offered four Top 20 hits, including "Never Had It So Good" and "Quittin' Time." She followed it with the eloquent 1990 album Shooting Straight in the Dark, which featured the breezy hit "Down at the Twist and Shout." However, her career hit its commercial zenith in 1992 when Come On Come On sold 5 million copies and earned her the CMA female vocalist trophy in 1992 and 1993. The seven Top 20 hits from that album included "I Feel Lucky," "Passionate Kisses," "He Thinks He'll Keep Her" and "I Take My Chances." Finally, with the 1994 album Stones in the Road, Carpenter earned her only No. 1, "Shut Up and Kiss Me." She also earned a Grammy for best country album.

Future albums failed to yield a Top 10 hit, though she remains a consistent favorite on the road. She also toured with Lilith Fair and Concerts for a Landmine Free World and embarked on a songwriter tour with Shawn Colvin, Patty Griffin and Dar Williams in 2003. The album Between Here and Gone arrived in 2004.

Mary Chapin Carpenter - Shut Up And Kiss Me :

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