When movie stars have a new movie, they go on Jay Leno.
When singers have a new CD, they go on the road.For the next few weeks, singer Anne Murray will be on the road promoting "An Intimate Evening With Anne Murray - Live," her new album. And she says the "intimacy" of the title doesn't come from the size of the crowds but the size of her band. Murray is touring with a couple of guitarists this time around. At one point in her show she's even going to take requests.
Pretty intimate stuff.
And on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 8 p.m., Utahns can catch the local edition of it at Abravanel Hall.
Call 355-ARTS for tickets.
"The Western Tour will start in North Dakota," Murray said in a interview from her home in Canada. "Then we'll be in Las Vegas and Reno, a few dates in California. And, of course, Salt Lake City."
As for the music she'll be bringing around this time, Murray says she has pulled from a variety of albums. Her new CD - as well as her concert - trades on old favorites like "You Needed Me," "Snowbird" and "Danny's Song." But there are also a few surprises tossed in. And Murray's milk and honey voice has never sounded better.
"I think the intimacy of the show comes from just doing it so much," she says. "An audience can tell if a performer is with them. When the audience feels that, it doesn't matter if it's a large or a small hall. The only difference is people can see better in a small hall."
A native of Nova Scotia, Murray made her mark in the music industry by doing "soft-rock favorites" before the term "soft rock" was even coined. In the '70s and '80s her versions of "Could I Have This Dance?" "Just Another Woman in Love" and "You Needed Me" set the mood for a million romantic encounters. Country music fans embraced her for a while, as did the lounge set in Las Vegas. But at heart, Murray has always been a smokey-voiced pop diva, along the lines of one of her idols, Rosemary Clooney.
In the '40s, Murray would have likely been a torch singer. In the early '60s, she had the makings of a folkie. Today, her casual style and her ability to sing from the heart has made her adaptable to a dozens genres of music and has given her a stable of fans ranging from the cradle to the grave.
And her music keeps coming back around.
"I've had a lot of albums re-released here in Canada," she says. "It's nice to have all those songs on CD after all these years. I was afraid they'll all simply waste away."
Fans, of course, have their own favorite Anne Murray album. When asked about "Croonin' " - a CD full of easy-listening classics - she's pleased to hear it mentioned.
"That album didn't get a fair shake in the United States," she says. "The record company didn't push it, but I think it's one of those albums that will always be around."
Like the singer who recorded it.
As for those requests the audience will be shouting, Murray isn't worried about being stumped.
"The two guitarists I'm with can do just about anything," she says. "And so what if we make a mistake? Nobody will really care. As I get older I get more relaxed about it all."
That relaxed quality has always played well in Salt Lake. And it will likely play just as well this time around.