Rodney Crowell: "I'm a Better Singer Now"

Rodney Crowell photo by Alan Messer, courtesy of Work Song/Yep Roc Records.

Oct. 23, 2008 — Rodney Crowell created a classic country album 20 years ago with Diamonds & Dirt, a CD that yielded five No. 1 singles.

Of late, Rodney’s considered an Americana artist rather than a mainstream country singer-songwriter, and while that format generally attracts less attention, Rodney’s demonstrated a depth and maturity as an artist that represents a significant advance. The critics generally agree on that assessment, and so does Rodney.

"I honestly think I make better records now than I did then," he told The Washington Post. "I say that carefully because there are people who will argue with me and say, ‘I like your old records better.’ Fine, then listen to them. But I know what I'm doing. And when I say I do better work now, I'm not talking about the songwriting so much. I'm talking about the recording artist. I'm a better singer. As a younger singer, I was scared to death to hear my voice. It sounded like Minnie Mouse to me. I hated it. And you can't do good work when that's going on. I gotta be honest: I hear my voice now, and I go, ‘Daggum, that's pretty cool.’"

The Minnie Mouse reference is particularly amusing since Rodney once said "She’s Crazy For Leaving," one of the No. 1 singles from Diamonds & Dirt, was "almost like a cartoon."

Rodney recently released a new album, Sex And Gasoline. And he joined Emmylou Harris and Vince Gill, among others, to help raise $50,000 for the Country Music Hall of Fame at a benefit concert in New York.