These days, it’s a musical tour de force
       for Vince Gill

By Dan Rogers

Vince Gill never intended to create a four-CD, 43-track boxed set of new self-penned songs. It just turned out that way.

To hear Gill tell it, he was thoroughly enjoying the process of writing and recording new material last year when he looked back to discover he’d written and recorded a lot of new material—more, in fact, than would fit on even a 20-song CD most would consider generous these days. “I thought, ‘man, I’m gonna have to kill and bury 20 songs!’” Gill says.

The tunes, it turns out, had nothing to fear. “As we recorded more music,’ Gill says, “I began to think, ‘what if I took this bunch of songs and made a record of all ballads and took this bunch of songs and made a bluegrass record?’ I thought it would be a new way to do things and a neat way for people who’ve enjoyed my music to find some new stuff from me.” He took the idea to executives at his record label who gave his concept the thumbs-up, saying, “keep going and see where you wind up.”

Where he wound up was “These Days,” a musical tour de force in which he pays homage in four different CDs to four distinct music styles he loves and audiences have loved hearing him play and sing for more than 20 years: straight-ahead country, bluegrass, jazz/pop/blues sounds, and rock ‘n’ roll. More specifically, the CDs are titled: “Some Things Never Get Old—The Country & Western Record,” “Little Brother—The Acoustic Record,” “The Reason Why—The Groovy Record,” and “Workin’ On A Big Chill—The Rockin’ Record.”

Few artists in Nashville would look at such a project as anything less than daunting.
Fewer still would likely argue that if such a project could be completed and completed flawlessly in Nashville in 2006, Gill would be the best man for the job-- or for the music, as the case may be.

His credentials speak for themselves. 17 Grammy Awards. 18 Country Music Association Awards (more than anyone in history, and nominated again this year for his work with Brooks & Dunn and Sheryl Crow on the current radio hit “Building Bridges”), More than 22 million of albums sold.

Yet the variety of styles showcased in “These Days” is as much about hard-earned experience as it is about Gill’s by-the-numbers highlights above. The Norman, Oklahoma native has been at it as a full-time musician since graduating high school in 1975. He first earned a living in Kentucky as a member of the Bluegrass Alliance before working in Ricky Skaggs’ bluegrass band, Boone Creek. A move to Los Angeles in 1976 led to a stint as the lead singer of country-rock group Pure Prairie League with which he recorded the chart-topper “Let Me Love You Tonight.” He continued a journey across the musical landscape with artists such as Rosanne Cash, Rodney Crowell, and Emmylou Harris even after he’d moved to Nashville and landed a solo recording contract in the mid ‘80s. With the release of “When I Call Your Name” in 1991 came country music superstardom and the opportunity to eventually record with artists running the gamut from country great Loretta Lynn to pop icon Barbra Streisand. He won his most recent Grammy earlier this year for his work in the gospel field, co-producing the album “Rock Of Ages… Hymns And Faith” for his bride of six years, Amy Grant.

Gill enlisted the help of artists from across multiple genres for “These Days,” including Sheryl Crow, Diana Krall, Rodney Crowell, Guy Clark, Trisha Yearwood, Bekka Bramlett, Michael McDonald, Lee Ann Womack, Phil Everly, the Del McCoury Band, Emmylou Harris, Gretchen Wilson, John Anderson, LeAnn Rimes, Bonnie Raitt,
and his wife, without whom the Raitt appearance would likely not have come to pass.

“I honestly didn’t think that was going to happen,” Gill says. “We’d tried to get together different times, and it just didn’t work out. … I was sitting around whining about it, and Amy said, ‘try it one more time. Call one more time.’”

The Amy Grant School of Perseverance paid off. Though Raitt was in Europe, the Grammy-winner recorded her portions of the Gill/Raitt collaboration across the pond and sent it half-way around the world to a very receptive Gill.

An appearance by jazz vocalist Diana Krall, who joins Gill on “Faint of Heart,” was equally pleasing. “Honestly, I had her in mind the entire time Big Al [Anderson] and I were writing that song,” he says. “It was a big dream to have her on the record.” Just when it looked as if the schedules of the two artists were never going to be conducive to the pair meeting in the studio, Krall visited Nashville one Saturday last February when her husband Elvis Costello was making his Opry debut alongside Emmylou Harris. Gill and Krall got together early in the day, recorded the tune, then delighted a surprised Opry crowd that night by performing the song together in front of a live audience for the first time.

It wasn’t the first time Gill had wowed an Opry crowd with either a musical style they might not have necessarily expected from the hit-maker or a duet with a special guest. The Opry has through the years provided Gill the stage to showcase many of the same musical styles and collaborations found on “These Days.” He delivered soulful versions of “Bye, Bye Love” and “Mess Around” during an Opry tribute to Ray Charles in June, has added a little extra rock to fan favorites such as “Liza Jane,” and has joined in on Opry bluegrass performances by everyone from the Del McCoury Band (dubbing himself “Vinny McCoury,” no less) to Ralph Stanley.

“It feels like family,” Gill says of his Opry home where he’s also played traditional country material with fellow Opry members Little Jimmy Dickens, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Patty Loveless, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, Brad Paisley, Dolly Parton, Ricky Skaggs, Pam Tillis, Porter Wagoner, and The Whites, to name a few. “It feels closer than just music.”

Listening to Gill talk about “These Days” and his respect for the Opry might make one consider if the concept of “These Days” borrows a bit from a successful page in the proverbial Grand Ole Opry handbook. The page which might read something like, “Occasionally showcase musical styles that don’t walk an absolutely straight and narrow country/bluegrass line, but be sure to remain true to your musical heritage.” Gill says, “I love that this record is going to cover so many musical bases and is diverse as it is. Yet it is equally eloquently pointed to the country and bluegrass music I revere.”

Those seemingly shared philosophies is likely one reason Gill and the Opry have become so closely connected in the 15 years since he was inducted into the show by late Opry patriarch Roy Acuff, whose former dressing room Gill is usually assigned during his frequent Opry visits. “Mr. Acuff always left his door open,” Gill says, recalling that it was common practice for Opry members, backing musicians, family members, and fans to drop by Dressing Room No. 1 to jam with Acuff or just to say hello. “Now I always leave the door open. I make ‘em leave the door open,” he says.

It’s just one part of the great Opry story Gill plans to carry on along with his music—his many styles of music.

“I’m gonna be there for ‘em,” he says. And the sincerity in his voice gives you the idea he’ll be there both these days and for years to come.