Hi:)In 2000, Loretta Lynn enjoyed some attention at radio with a song called “Country In My Genes.” If the format could actually be a part of someone’s genetic makeup, Amber Digby might very well be that person. Country music has been a part of her life and upbringing for as long as she can remember. “That’s true,” she says. “I was brought up in Nashville, born and raised there, and my parents were in the business as pickers and back-up singers, and also aunts and uncles. It was my normal. It was normal for me to be around music all the time.”
Her father, Dennis, played bass for Lynn for many years, and that experience offered her a birds-eye view of life from the road. “As far back as I can remember, when a child starts to have their first memories at three or four years old—that’s when my vivid memories begin, and I would go on the road with my dad sometimes, and ride on the bus. That was normal to me. I knew it was special. It was exciting for me, but to what extent I didn’t know yet until I grew up looked back and thought ‘Wow, there’s a lot of people that can’t begin to imagine growing up in that environment.’ I got to, and I don’t’ take it for granted at all. It taught me a lot. Especially me getting into the business myself—I was learning the business, and didn’t even know it.”
In addition to her father’s career, her mother Dee sang harmony for many singers of the day, including Connie Smith, and she also worked in Ronnie Milsap’s office for many years. Her stepfather, Dicky Overbey, was one of the more influential steel players of his time, spending time in the bands of greats such as Milsap and Faron Young. But there’s even more honky-tonk lineage in her family tree. Her uncle, Darrell McCall, is one of the more revered traditional-minded singers in Music City.
With those links to the heritage of country music, it should come as no big surprise to anyone that Amber Digby has made a name for herself as one of the most respected traditional singers in the business. Her new album, Another Way To Live, promises to kick her career into an even higher gear. “Things are moving along fairly quickly,” she tells LimeWire Music Blog. “We stay really busy—not just working on the road every weekend at different venues, but there’s some festivals in there too. I don’t just work the road, but I also do some session work for some labels down here,” referring to her home state of Texas, where she is especially revered. She also takes her music outside of the United States every now and then. “I go overseas once in a while. I’m getting ready to go Scotland in April.”
“I made my debut on the Grand Ole Opry, and that was a big deal for me, to say the least. That was icing on the cake. I can’t even begin to put it into words.”
She’s also no stranger to Nashville audiences, becoming a favorite at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop Midnite Jamboree. And then, there was another performance that will be a career highlight. “Back in December,” she says with pride, “I made my debut on the Grand Ole Opry, and that was a big deal for me, to say the least. That was icing on the cake. I can’t even begin to put it into words. It was such an exciting night, and I thoroughly enjoyed my moment. I took it all in, and everybody was so great to me. It was so incredible. I’ll never forget it, and being at the Ryman was so magical.”
Another Way To Live is another stunning showcase for her gorgeous vocals. One of the highlights is a re-make of the Porter & Dolly 1968 classic “Just Someone I Used To Know,” which she performs with her husband. “It’s a song I’ve always loved, and I wanted to record a couple of duets with my husband, Randy Lindley, who is also my guitar player. He comes from a bluegrass background, and this is one of those songs that could be done either bluegrass or country. The harmony straddles the fence, and I thought it was the perfect song for us to do.”
While there are a few remakes on the new disc, Digby feels there is a little bit different of a feel on the album, as it showcases some of her songwriting. “This is kind of the closing of a chapter, and the beginning of another so to speak. I’m finally putting myself out there, and letting people hear the songwriting. That took a long time for me to get the courage up to say ‘OK, I’m going to put my songwriting out there for people to listen to.’ I’m real proud of myself for going for it and doing that. I’ve been really lucky to write with some great songwriters both in Nashville and in Texas. It makes it fun. I’ve discovered that I have another area of creativity. I’m having a blast with it. With that comes a little bit more of me than on previous albums where it was all covers or originals written by other people. So this album shows a little more of who Amber Digby really is.”
One of the writers she has collaborated with as of late is Country Music Hall Of Fame member Vince Gill. “That was amazing,” she says of the experience. “It tickled me to death that he’s a fan of my music, and wanted to write with me. It was exciting. We churned out a really good song, one that I’m really proud of. I’m looking forward to it getting out there. Vince is a sweetheart, and has become one of my mentors, that’s for sure.”
She includes a song originally recorded by Ronnie Milsap on the new album, which has been a trademark of sorts for the singer. “Ronnie is not only a mentor, but I am a huge Milsap fan. He cut some great Country records in the ’70s. I think I have all of his LP’s. I collect vinyl albums, and every once in a while, I just go through them and listen to them. I think he is one of the best country vocalists ever. He just delivers. You can totally feel what he’s singing, and that’s important to me. As an artist, you love the ones who are believable and the ones that have soul, and he’s got all of that.”
The song she covered on Another Way To Live, “Silent Night (After The Fight),” is one of the legend’s more obscure offerings. “I was just in one of those modes where I was listening to nothing but Milsap. Dickey had worked for Ronnie in the 70s and then again in the ’80s and the ’90s. He asked me if I remembered ‘Silent Night,’ so I got on eBay and found a record of that song, and when I played it, I remembered it. I remembered my mom playing the song on the record player at our house. It was actually a later record…a very country song, but released in 1980. When I heard it again, I thought ‘I have to cut this song, It is awesome…..so I did!”
Hailed as one of the keepers of the honky-tonk flame, Digby simply says that her vocal approach simply represents who she is. It’s all about being real, for me. I listen to all kinds of music. When I tell people that, a lot of them are surprised. Just because of the records I put out. My heart is definitely in classic and traditional country, but I think good music is good music. What genre it is really doesn’t matter. The albums I make are exactly what I want to do. Nobody is telling me that I have to do it that way or this way, and that’s a great freedom that I love. I’m definitely spoiled in that regard. At the same time, it’s still traditional country, but there’s some growing going on. There’s some expansion there, and that’s cool. I’m coming into my own, but it’s still traditional!”
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