Emmylou Harris photo by Rocky Schenck, courtesy of Nonesuch Records.

"Most of my career," says Emmylou Emmylou, "I've been a finder of songs, a gatherer of songs, so this showcases, in part, that side of what I do."

All I Intended To Be, its simple but evocative title borrowed from the lyric of a Billy Joe Shaver song, does far more than that. Her first solo album since 2003's Stumble Into Grace, it is indeed a catalogue of Emmylou' many gifts—as an interpreter, as an eloquent composer herself, as an inveterate musical explorer who's been able to discover, rescue, and/or give new life to many a beautiful but overlooked country, bluegrass or folk tune.

But the album also offers a living portrait of Emmylou, a recounting of her extraordinary history, through the many musicians and fellow singers she has collaborated with since the start of her solo career, so many of whom make appearances on these tracks. The all-star cast includes Dolly Parton, Vince Gill, the McGarrigle sisters, old friends from the Seldom Scene, Glenn D. Hardin of her legendary Hot Band, as well as some of the most versatile studio players around. It's produced by Brian Ahern and engineered by Donivan Cowart, both of whom collaborated with Emmylou on such groundbreaking albums as Elite Hotel, Luxury Liner, and Blue Kentucky Girl.

Emmylou Harris' 2008 CD, All I Intended To Be. Photo courtesy of Nonesuch Records.

Emmylou admits she had to grab studio time in between all of her other projects and commitments—hitting the road with Neil Young and Elvis Costello, cutting All the Roadrunning and performing live with Mark Knopfler, assembling her Songbird boxed set of rarities, and going out with Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, and Buddy Miller for their Three Girls and a Buddy Tour. Yet All I Intended To Be, recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles between October 2005 and March 2008, manages to have a seamless quality. Emmylou says, "I'd have to credit Brian and Donivan, their sense of sound, their integrity and their ability to keep all those pieces together—things that were recorded in Canada, overdubbed in L.A., and brought back to Nashville, stuff done one guitar and vocal at a time, all the different layers, all the different charts. They know what they're doing and know how to make things sound good without smoke and mirrors."

Perhaps it's also because Emmylou has chosen songs that, no matter how disparate their sources, illustrate similar themes of perseverance, faith, and fortitude. They range in tone from the intimate to the anthemic, united by Emmylou's ability to channel the emotions of so many compelling characters. There's grit, sadness, and just a touch of regret in tracks like Mark Germino's "Broken Man's Lament" and Merle Haggard's "Kern River" that's balanced by strength, wisdom and a healthy amount of hindsight on Tracy Chapman's "All That You Have Is Your Soul" and Jude Johnstone's "Hold On."