Texas singer-songwriter Ruthie Foster performs at the Bartlett Arboretum in Belle Plaine on Sunday, Aug. 25, as she supports her new album, “Mileage,” which came out Friday.
Foster’s blend of American music, from gospel and soul to jazz and folk, has earned her multiple Grammy nominations, an induction into the Texas Music Hall of Fame and numerous Blues Music Awards.
She has recorded with Warren Haynes as well as with his band Gov’t Mule, performed live with the Allman Brothers Band and toured with the Blind Boys of Alabama, while gaining audiences in both the U.S. and Europe.
Foster recently spoke with KMUW about “Mileage,” her connection with her audience and her most important fan.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Do your records reflect what’s been going on in your life during the time in which they were written?
This album really is about the last five years of my touring life, my personal, my professional life as a bandleader, as a business owner. I put it all in this one. There’s been a lot that’s happened. I lost a band member; I’ve been in and out of a relationship. Life on the road is always surprising. [Laughs.] I put a little bit of everything in there. This is the gumbo of the last five years of my life, for sure. Having great songwriters around me -- my co-writers, Rebecca Lovell from Larkin Poe and Tyler Bryant -- my producer, having young minds around me, smart enough and quick enough to catch me while I’m talking about my life and being there to help me put these songs together … that was huge.
Based on what you’ve said, I would guess that the album title “Mileage” is reflected in the album’s themes.
In every way. That particular title came about after I had just been to a doctor’s appointment. I was talking with my doctor about age. I was talking about feeling old on that particular day. She whipped around and said, “Oh, no, honey. It’s not about that. You just have more mileage than most!” [Laughs.]
[Laughs.] You do a version of Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s “That’s All Right,” which was recorded by Elvis Presley. What inspired that?
That was a last minute add to one of our sessions that I went up [to Nashville for]. I did maybe two or three days at a time every month. I was due to go catch my flight on this particular night and Tyler mentioned, “You know, we should probably grab something.” He’s a big Elvis fan. He has a big picture of Elvis in his studio, right in front of the board. Gorgeous picture. He said, “You know, it’d be great if we could do something with the song ‘That’s All Right.’ Have you ever even thought about doing that song?” I said, “No, I never have but let’s play with it and see what happens.” I sat in front of a microphone; he played a little bit. That’s how we came up with our particular version. It was really, mostly him. For me, I just stand there and sing and try to figure out where it goes while he’s just noodling around with some chords. I think it really turned out great, and I am really proud of our version.
Plus, it gives me a chance to talk about Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup in a way that brings more light to him as the writer of the song. That’s important to me. In my own sets, even last night, I talked about Mississippi John Hurt and going down to Mississippi and talking to his granddaughter who still puts on a festival in his name. As a woman and as a woman of color, and a woman who was born and raised in the South, I think it’s important that that song was done by myself and should still continue to be recorded by people and credited to Arthur Crudup.
Thinking about the title “Mileage” also made me think about your career a little bit. You had this kind of steady build. It took hard work and patience.
I have been out here a while. I do get people that ask me, “Why aren’t you famous?” [Laughs.]
[Laughs.]
I get such a kick out of that because at home I am. I have a 13-year-old daughter who thinks I’m the bomb. I’m good with that. I am so good with just that, to have a 13-year-old who thinks you’re cool? That’s huge. Trust me. Parents out there know.
It has been a journey. I have to say that I’ve got a lot of road behind me, and I know I have a lot of road in front of me, whether that is in music or not, I’m OK with that. But I have enjoyed my ride. I am enjoying my ride. [When I’m on tour], I try to get a chance to talk to people at the merch table. That’s my opportunity to actually have conversations with people and see and hear their stories wrapped around my songs and how they include my songs in their own lives, whether they use my songs in childbirth or going through cancer treatment. That, to me, says a lot about why I get up at 3, 4, 5, 6 to catch another flight, to just be part of their lives for those 60, 70, 90 minutes.
It's the little steps, the little chunks of life that are jewels in my journey. I’m proud of that. I know that I’ve put my footprint in this industry of music in a way that will carry on. That’s so important to me.
Absolutely. And, really, congratulations on having a child who thinks you’re cool.
[Laughs.] It’s big, right?
