Gretchen Wilson performs at the Riverfront Park stage during the 2013 CMA Music Festival on Sunday. (photo: Shelley Mays / The Tennessean)
Gretchen Wilson recently released “Under the Covers,” a collection of some of her favorite 70s rock songs that she recorded, engineered and produced at her home studio under the imprint of her own record label Redneck Records.
While much of the corporate red tape was eliminated by making the album herself, there was still another obstacle she had to face: choosing the songs.
Wilson reminded her band that she was a woman, and didn’t want to sing anything raunchy. Then she asked the band members to write down their five favorite rock songs. She chose the 12 she thought they could cover the best. When she did, she realized they were all from the ‘70s.
“These are all songs we loved and grew up with,” she says.
Songs on the album include Foreigner’s “Hot Blooded,” Cheap Trick’s “I Want You to Want Me” and Bad Company’s “Bad Company.”
With the discovery that all the songs were from the ‘70s, Wilson says it sparked the idea for subsequent ‘80s and ‘90s cover albums in the next couple of years.
To read more about Wilson, see Sunday’s Portfolio section in The Tennessean.
