Emmylou Harris

Artists that have joined Harris on the road for these dates include Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Bruce Cockburn, Steve Earle, Joan Baez, Patty Griffin and Nanci Griffith. The band also made a movie called Gift, a modern gothic tragedy. The tour also benefits the VVAF's work to raise America's awareness of the global landmine crisis. Although details surrounding the band's demise are sparse, guitarist Dave Navarro claimed that the reasons for the breakup were essentially the same as they were in 1991. All proceeds from the tours support the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation's (VVAF) efforts to assist innocent victims of conflicts around the world. Shortly after the release of Strays, Jane's Addiction broke up again. Since 1999, Harris has been organizing an annual benefit tour called Concerts for a Landmine Free World. During the recording process, Lenoble was fired from the band, and replaced by Chris Chaney, a friend of Perkins.

In 2002, Harris joined many of the same artists on the road for the Down From The Mountain Tour. The result was their final album, "Strays". A documentary/concert film was also released about the making of the soundtrack, which is entitled Down From The Mountain. They entered the studio with legendary producer Bob Ezrin in 2001, recording as a band for the first time in over 10 years. The same year she joined an all star group of traditional country, folk and blues artists for the T-Bone Burnett produced soundtrack to the Coen Brothers film, O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Following the success of this tour, the band decided to record a follow-up album to 1991's Ritual De Lo Habitual. In 2000, Harris guested on Alternative country singer Ryan Adams' solo debut Heartbreaker. With Flea Busy with the Chili Peppers, Porno for Pyros bassist, Martyn Lenoble was brought in to fill the gap.

Also, in 1998, Tara MacLean eventually recorded the cover of the Emmylou Harris christmas single Light of the Stable. Again, Avery declined involvement. In 1998, Harris released Spyboy, backed with a new band which included Nashville producer and songwriter Buddy Miller. Four years later, Jane's Addiction rose from the ashes again for a full blown tour. An experimental album for Harris to say the least, the record included Harris' rendition of the Neil Young penned title track, Julie Miller's "All My Tears", Jimi Hendrix's "May This Be Love" and Gillian Welch's "Orphan Girl." U2's Larry Mullen, Jr showed up to play drums for the project. The band briefly reformed in 1997 for the Jane's Relapse tour, with Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea replacing Avery, after he declined an invitation to rejoin the band. In 1995, Harris released Wrecking Ball, produced by Daniel Lanois, best known for his work with U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan. Internal strife and rampant drug usage lead the band to break up in 1991 after playing two nights at Hawaii's Aloha Tower.

They recorded a Grammy-winning live album at the Ryman Auditorium that led to the 8 million dollars restoration of the facility into a premium concert and event venue. The Ripple single that the band produced for the Grateful Dead tribute album Deadicated was the final studio track for this incarnation of the band. In the early 1990s, she dissolved The Hot Band in favour of a carefully selected group of acoustic musicians she named The Nash Ramblers. In their hey-day, Farrell created Lollapalooza ? the alternative rock festival that revolutionized the concert promotion world by bringing together an ecclectic mix of musicians, exhibitors and attractions for a high energy weekend of music and alternative life-styles. In 1980, she recorded "That Lovin' You Feelin' Again" with rock legend Roy Orbison for which they would win the Grammy Award for best vocal duo. They became the poster children for a new wave of artful and thoughtful rockers who were eschewing the confinements of commercial rock music and stretching out, expresing themselves both musically and theatrically. About ten years later, Harris would team up once again with Parton and Ronstadt for the album Trio. Though the band had only released three albums, their effect on the rock and alternative music scenes was enormous.

In the mid-1970s, Harris began to work on albums for other major artists including Young, Rondstadt and Bob Dylan. With this lineup, the band released three major albums Live at the Roxy, Nothing's Shocking, and Ritual De Lo Habitual. A Christmas single, "Light of the Stable," was released shortly after which featured backing vocals from singers Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, and Neil Young. Following this fortuitous introduction, Perkins suggested his friend (and Dizatre bandmate) Dave Navarro might be a suitable guitar player for the new band, dubbed Jane's Addiction (in honor of Farell's housemate, Jane Bainter). The album included a number of cover songs, including The Beatles' "For No One," and Harris's first hit single, The Louvin Brothers' "If I Could Only Win Your Love." She created The Hot Band, a groups of studio and touring musicians that included Elvis Presley band alumni Glen D. Hardin and James Burton. Later, Eric's sister introduced the duo to Stephen Perkins. He produced her debut album, released in 1975 on Reprise Records, entitled Pieces of the Sky. Although Farrell and Avery worked well together, Psi-com disbanded before they managed to play live with their new bassist.

Eventually, her path crossed with Canadian producer and future husband Brian Ahern (with whom she had another daughter, Meghann). In the summer of 1985 Farrell was searching for a new bass player for the faltering Psi-com when he was introduced to Eric Avery. Parsons was found dead in his hotel room on September 19, 1973, from an overdose of drugs including alcohol. Formed out of the ashes of frontman Perry Farrell's previous band, Psi-com, Jane's Addiction are often compared to iconic '70s rockers Led Zeppelin. Harris toured as a member of Parsons' "Fallen Angels" band, and in 1973, Harris returned to the studio with Parsons to record Grievous Angel. The band was influenced by punk, Gothic rock, metal, hard rock and psychedelic styles. Instead, in 1972, Hillman ended up recommending her to Parsons, who was looking for a female vocalist to work with on his first solo album. Jane's Addiction is an American band which began in the late 1980s, and returned in the early 2000s.

Hillman was so impressed by Harris that he briefly considered asking her to join the band. One night, in 1971, members of the country group the Flying Burrito Brothers happened to be in the audience, including former Byrds member Chris Hillman, who took over the band after the departure of its founder Gram Parsons. Harris soon returned to performing, as part of a trio with local musicians Gerry Mule and Tom Guidera. Harris, who lived for a brief time on her own with her newborn daughter Hallie in Nashville, Tennessee, was forced, after struggling financially, to move back in with her parents, who were now living in Washington, D.C..

Around that same time, Harris' marriage to Slocum began to fall apart and the couple were soon divorced. After the album's release, Harris' record label declared bankruptcy. Harris married fellow songwriter Tom Slocum in 1969, and recorded her first album the following year, Gliding Bird. It was around that time that Harris began to study music seriously, heavily influenced by artists like Bob Dylan and Joan Baez.

Harris graduated high school as class valedictorian and won a dramatic scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is a country music singer, songwriter and musician from Birmingham, Alabama, USA. ISBN 067941567X. In The Country of Country: A Journey to the Roots of American Music, Nicholas Dawidoff, Vintage Books, 1998.