Mcbride Thrives Atop Charts
Women rule.
The country album chart, that is. And they’ve had a tight grip for two years.
Martina McBride, who’ll perform Saturday at the Silver Mountain Amphitheater, is one of those rulers. Her most recent album, the outstanding “Evolution,” holds five hit songs, has sold 2 million copies and been a mainstay in the top 20 for 102 weeks.
That’s longer than Shania Twain’s “Come on Over” (92), the Dixie Chicks’ “Wide Open Spaces” (80), Jo Dee Messina’s “I’m Alright” (73) and Faith Hill’s “Faith” (68), though each remains in the top 10.
The first guy in their rear-view mirror is Garth Brooks, whose “Double Live” only musters a meager 38 weeks aboard the list.
McBride has fresh material as well — a new single, “I Love You,” which is on the soundtrack to the Julia Roberts/Richard Gere flick “Runaway Bride.” The song will also be on McBride’s new album, titled “Emotion,” scheduled for release in mid-September.
Born in Kansas 33 years ago, she began singing in her family’s country band at age 8.
In 1988, she married sound technician John McBride and they moved to Nashville two years later.
She hit the big-time in 1991 with Garth Brooks, though she was selling his T-shirts at first. A year later, McBride got a record deal, put out her first album (“The Time Has Come”), and then began opening shows for Garth.
Her second album, “The Way That I Am,” came out in ‘93 and held her breakthrough hits, the catchy “My Baby Loves Me” and the risky “Independence Day,” a tough song about domestic violence that won awards as both a song and a video.
As her professional life was taking off, so too did her personal life. Just before Christmas in 1994, McBride gave birth to a girl, Delaney Katherine.
McBride melded both those lives in her next album, 1995’s “Wild Angels,” which featured her first chart-topper, the title cut.
“With this album,” McBride said, “I feel like I’ve found songs about me. It’s coming from a more personal place, and I connect more with the songs on this album than I ever have before.
“Motherhood changes your outlook… . I think the songs I sing should stand for what I believe, and the people who buy my albums should get a sense of who I am from my music. They can get that in this album.”
That personal touch continued with “Evolution” in 1997. The album’s first single, a tune with pianist Jim Brickman titled “Valentine,” reached No. 1 on the adult contemporary chart. “A Broken Wing” followed as No. 1 on the country list. The album’s fifth hit and third No. 1, “Wrong Again,” came out earlier this year.
In between, in 1998, McBride gave birth to another girl, Emma Justine, and released a yuletide album, “White Christmas.”
This year, she’s performed some dates on the Lilith Tour, though not the one at The Gorge. She’s also found time to pursue her acting interests, appearing as herself on an episode of “Early Edition.”
Seems that McBride is indeed a ruler — of a thriving and expanding life.
This sidebar appeared with the story: ON STAGE Martina McBride Martina McBride will perform Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Silver Mountain Amphitheater. Tickets are $21.50 and $28.50, available at G&B Select-a-Seat outlets or call (800) 325-SEAT.