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'''Martha Elenor Erwin''' was born in [[York, Pennsylvania]], but was raised in [[Addison, Texas|Addison]], a northern suburban town on the edge of [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas Texas]], with an older sister, Julia, and younger sister, Emily, to parents Paul Erwin and Barbara Trask. Martha was later in her teenaged years nicknamed "Martie". Encouraged by her parents-- both educators at private schools, she began playing [[violin]] at age five.<ref name="Maguire">Maguire, Martie (3 September 2005) [http://www.chicksrockchicksrule.com audio interview] Chicks Chat</ref> By age 12, she was experimenting with playing "fiddle style", and was in the school orchestra. [[Emily Erwin]], (later known as [[Emily Robison]]), three years her junior, followed close behind, and shared both an early talent and interest in music, and the two were provided with as much musical instruction as was felt they could handle. Because of this, although Maguire became famous for her ability in [[vocal]] [[harmony]], and mastery of the [[fiddle]], she also plays a variety of [[stringed instruments]]: the [[viola]], [[guitar]], [[mandolin]], and [[upright bass|bass]].
'''Martha Elenor Erwin''' was born in [[York, Pennsylvania]], but was raised in [[Addison, Texas|Addison]], a northern suburban town on the edge of [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas Texas]], with an older sister, Julia, and younger sister, Emily, to parents Paul Erwin and Barbara Trask. Martha was later in her teenaged years nicknamed "Martie". Encouraged by her parents-- both educators at private schools, she began playing [[violin]] at age five.<ref name="Maguire">Maguire, Martie (3 September 2005) [http://www.chicksrockchicksrule.com audio interview] Chicks Chat</ref> By age 12, she was experimenting with playing "fiddle style", and was in the school orchestra. [[Emily Erwin]], (later known as [[Emily Robison]]), three years her junior, followed close behind, and shared both an early talent and interest in music, and the two were provided with as much musical instruction as was felt they could handle. Because of this, although Maguire became famous for her ability in [[vocal]] [[harmony]], and mastery of the [[fiddle]], she also plays a variety of [[stringed instruments]]: the [[viola]], [[guitar]], [[mandolin]], and [[upright bass|bass]].


By [[1983]] Maguire was touring with her sister Emily and friends; siblings Sharon and Troy Gilchrist. The sisters showed an "almost obsessive" interest in [[busking]] at small venues and attending [[bluegrass music|bluegrass festivals]].<ref name="Frost">Frost, Jane. (15 July, 1999)[http://www.dixie-chicks.com/stories.shtml Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS, Early 1980s] The All-Inclusive Dixie Chicks Page. Accessed 3 December 2007.</ref> The four students formed the teenage [[bluegrass music|bluegrass]] group Blue Night Express, while attending private [[Greenhill School]] in [[Addison, Texas]]. While Robison was still in high school, after Maguire graduated, during the year from [[1988]] to [[1989]] she continued to refine her skills, performing in the orchestra while attending school at [[Southwestern University]] in [[Georgetown, Texas]], in addition to taking home the award for placing third in the National Fiddle Championships.<ref name="Ankeny">Ankeny, Jason. (2007) [http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/dixie_chicks/bio.jhtml Vh1 Dixie Chicks Biography All-Music Guide.]</ref><ref name="Walnut Valley Association">http://www.wvfest.com/ Walnut Valley Association 1989 National Fiddle Championships]</ref>
By [[1983]] Maguire was touring with her sister Emily and friends; siblings Sharon and Troy Gilchrist. The sisters showed an "almost obsessive" interest in [[busking]] at small venues and attending [[bluegrass music|bluegrass festivals]].<ref name="Frost">Frost, Jane. (15 July, 1999)[http://www.dixie-chicks.com/stories.shtml Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS, Early 1980s] The All-Inclusive Dixie Chicks Page. Accessed 3 December 2007.</ref> The four students formed the teenage [[bluegrass music|bluegrass]] group Blue Night Express, while attending private [[Greenhill School]] in [[Addison, Texas]]. While Robison was still in high school, after Maguire graduated, during the year from [[1988]] to [[1989]] she continued to refine her skills, performing in the orchestra while attending school at [[Southwestern University]] in [[Georgetown, Texas]], in addition to taking home the award for placing third in the National Fiddle Championships.<ref name="Ankeny">Ankeny, Jason. (2007) [http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/dixie_chicks/bio.jhtml Vh1 Dixie Chicks Biography All-Music Guide.]</ref><ref name="Walnut Valley Association">[http://www.wvfest.com/ Walnut Valley Association 1989 National Fiddle Championships]</ref>


===Early Dixie Chicks===
===Early Dixie Chicks===

Revision as of 00:02, 21 January 2008

Martie Maguire

Martie Maguire (born October 12, 1969) is an American country music songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and a founding member of the Grammy Award-winning female country rock band the Dixie Chicks.

Biography

Early years

Martha Elenor Erwin was born in York, Pennsylvania, but was raised in Addison, a northern suburban town on the edge of Dallas Texas, with an older sister, Julia, and younger sister, Emily, to parents Paul Erwin and Barbara Trask. Martha was later in her teenaged years nicknamed "Martie". Encouraged by her parents-- both educators at private schools, she began playing violin at age five.[1] By age 12, she was experimenting with playing "fiddle style", and was in the school orchestra. Emily Erwin, (later known as Emily Robison), three years her junior, followed close behind, and shared both an early talent and interest in music, and the two were provided with as much musical instruction as was felt they could handle. Because of this, although Maguire became famous for her ability in vocal harmony, and mastery of the fiddle, she also plays a variety of stringed instruments: the viola, guitar, mandolin, and bass.

By 1983 Maguire was touring with her sister Emily and friends; siblings Sharon and Troy Gilchrist. The sisters showed an "almost obsessive" interest in busking at small venues and attending bluegrass festivals.[2] The four students formed the teenage bluegrass group Blue Night Express, while attending private Greenhill School in Addison, Texas. While Robison was still in high school, after Maguire graduated, during the year from 1988 to 1989 she continued to refine her skills, performing in the orchestra while attending school at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, in addition to taking home the award for placing third in the National Fiddle Championships.[3][4]

Early Dixie Chicks

In 1989, Maguire and Robison teamed up with guitarist Robin Lynn Macy and Laura Lynch on bass playing what was at the time predominantly bluegrass music and a beguiling mix of country music standards. Jane Frost, Director of the Patsy Montana Museum and the Walnut Valley Festival held in Winfield, Kansas recalls being privy to the discussion that the four women had about a the possibility of a successful career as musicians together. Martie felt they could do well. Robin said, ".. It's going to be a 'hot' band," to which Emily responded, "I give it six months, and if we aren't making money by then, I'm out of here!"[2] When they were at last booked for paid appearances, they decided to call themselves the Dixie Chicks after a song, "Dixie Chicken" written by Lowell George of the band Little Feat.[5] Originally billed as Martie Erwin, Maguire played fiddle, mandolin, viola and harmonized with Robison on backup vocals within the band.

In 1990, the Dixie Chicks paid for a first independent studio album with the name,Thank Heavens for Dale Evans, and in 1991 a Christmas single at the end of the year: "Home on the Radar Range", with the song on the flip side named, in a clever play on words, "The Flip Side". The album titles were significant; during that period of time, the women dressed up as "cowgirls", and publicity photos reflected this image. However, even with appearances at the Grand Ole Opry, they didn't get much airplay, with a few exceptions, such as Garrison Keillor's radio program, on PBS; A Prarie Home Companion.

In 1992 the women had opened for other big name country musicians like George Strait, as well as releasing a second independent studio album,Little Ol' Cowgirl. Although they had originally been billed as an "all cowgirl" or "all-girl" band, they dropped that description as they enlisted the assistance of sidemen to produce a fuller, richer sound in their music. One of these was accomplished steel guitarist Lloyd Maines, in nearby Lubbock, Texas, who played on both their second (and third) independent albums, and with whom they developed a mutual respect as musicians. In doing so, they met Lloyd's daughter, Natalie, who was also an aspiring musician. However, not all of the band members were pleased in the direction that the music was taking. Macy left, seeking a "purer bluegrass sound". Lynch, thrust into the role of sole lead singer on their third album, Shouldn't a Told You That, in 1993, was replaced by the sisters in 1995 with Natalie Maines after the group was unable to garner anything more than local interest.[6] The change left the cowgirl dresses in the past, leaving the band with a more contemporary look, and a sound that was broader in appeal.[5]

A New Lead Singer And Success

After Natalie Maines assumed the position of lead vocalist, the band was revitalized. Maguire said of their music, "It's very rootsy, but then Natalie comes in with a rock and blues influence. That gave Emily and I a chance to branch out, because we loved those kinds of music but felt limited by our instruments." [7] The new Dixie Chicks took to the road, and were signed by SONY's Monument Records in 1997 recording with the result released on January 27, 1998. Although it was their fourth album, many fans still consider it a first, because with Maines, the band had changed dramatically). This album added a widespread audience to their original loyal following with initial sales of 12 million copies in the country music arena alone, took the record for the best-selling duo or group album in country music history.[5]

Both as a single and an album, Wide Open Spaces flowed musically and harmoniously. The title song, although written by folksinger Susan Gibson, provided lyrics that all three members felt were so semi-biographical in nature, that they commented on it on a "Vh1 Storytellers" program, before performing the song. (reference Vh1 Storytellers)

"Many precede and many will follow,

A young girl's dream no longer hollow, It takes the shape of a place out west; But what it holds for her, she hasn't yet guessed- She needs wide open spaces, Room to make her big mistakes, She needs new faces,

She knows the high stakes."[8]

Country music took note of the Chicks, awarding them the Horizon Award for new artists in 1998. By 1999 the album won the new line up their first Grammy Awards as well as acclaim from the Country Music Association and other high profile awards. The album yielded five singles ranking in the top ten in the United States, and of them, three became number one hits. Maguire was singled out by BMI in 2000, and awarded Songwriter of the Year for writing and/or co-writing "Cowboy Take Me Away," "Ready To Run" and "You Were Mine".

Composing Songs And Touring

Martie co-wrote the song "Cowboy Take Me Away" on the Dixie Chicks fifth album Fly for her sister Emily, during her courtship to country music singer Charlie Robison. Martie was so happy for Emily, who subsequently married, changing her name to Emily Robison in 1999, that she introduced it years later, on a Vh1 "Storytellers" program, saying that "Charlie is a 'real' cowboy", and that the song was their wedding waltz.

Personal life

Martie married pharmaceutical representative Ted Seidel on June 17, 1995, after which she was billed as Martie Seidel. During the marriage she met her new step-son, Carter. She took a sense of responsibilty as a parent seriously, and was touched by a song written by a new country music musician, Brad Paisely, who wrote a song about having a stepfather that cared for him as if he was his own son, and she wrote him to tell him how moved she had been hearing it because of her own experiences. The song was called, "He Didn't Have To Be", and Maguire joined him onstage in one of his concerts to sing this song. She said the song "struck a chord" in her because she not only had a stepson, but also a step-father, and "when you are a step-parent, you love that child as if he were your own."[9] However, her marriage did not last, and she and Ted Seidel were divorced in November, 1999.

At bandmate Natalie Maines' sister's wedding Martie met Irish Professor Gareth Maguire, a Roman Catholic from Northern Ireland. The couple became engaged in June, 2001, and married August 10, 2001, in a civil ceremony in Hawaii. Later they had a Catholic "blessing" ceremony in the groom's hometown, Carnlough in County Antrim, Ireland, on March 9, 2002, for all the guests that were not able to attend the first wedding. She said of the ceremony that the Catholic Church would not permit a wedding service due to her prior divorce. After her marriage, Martie changed her name to that of her new husband, which is why in her musical career she has had the surnames of Erwin, Seidel, and now, Maguire. Maguire says ruefully that there were so many "special" people that they'd wanted to include, but that they just couldn't wait to marry.[1]

Infertility and Motherhood

Maguire has been frank about their decision to use IVF to conceive their twins. Speaking in an interview in Conceive Magazine, "All my paperwork said 'unspecified origin,'" she says. "We spent three years of active trying before we went to IVF. First I went on Clomid. Then I had some dye tests and found I had a collapsed tube, so I had laparoscopic surgery; the tube wasn't blocked, just spasming." After three attempts at intrauterine insemination, she said, she and her husband didn't think it was worth continuing in that manner, and switched to invitro fertilization. Martie and Gareth now have two children, twin daughters Eva Ruth and Kathleen Emilie, born April 27, 2004.[10] Maguire and Robison co-wrote a song, "So Hard", about their own personal experiences, because both sisters found they shared problems with inferility and had to rely on other methods to conceive. They speak out about the difficulties they faced, feel fortunate that in their cases, having children wasn't financially prohibitive. Maguire mentions the stigma attached to IVF, and she and Robison feel strongly that the issue needs more candid discussion.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b Maguire, Martie (3 September 2005) audio interview Chicks Chat Cite error: The named reference "Maguire" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Frost, Jane. (15 July, 1999)Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS, Early 1980s The All-Inclusive Dixie Chicks Page. Accessed 3 December 2007. Cite error: The named reference "Frost" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ Ankeny, Jason. (2007) Vh1 Dixie Chicks Biography All-Music Guide.
  4. ^ Walnut Valley Association 1989 National Fiddle Championships
  5. ^ a b c Arkeny, Jason (accessed 13 January 2008)[1] Dixie Chicks View the Music Artists Biography Online
  6. ^ Dickerson, James L. (2000) Dixie Chicks: Down-Home and Backstage. Taylor Trade Publishing, Dallas, Texas. ISBN 0-87833-189-1.
  7. ^ Malkin, Nina (retrieved 31 December 2007)[2]
  8. ^ Lyrics, Wide Open Spaces by Susan Gibson
  9. ^ Paisely, Brad [3] Song, "He Didn't Have To Be" From On The Verge CMT]
  10. ^ Weinhouse, Beth. (Fall 2007) Conceive Magazine Online The Dixie Chicks Taking The Long Way...To Motherhood
  11. ^ PBS ExclusivePBS Exclusive "So Hard"

Awards

Academy of Country Music Awards

  • (1999) New Vocal Duo or Group
  • (1999) Top Vocal Duo/Group
  • (1999) Album of the Year
  • (2000) Album Of The Year
  • (2000) Vocal Duo/Group Of The Year
  • (2001) Entertainer of The Year
  • (2001) Vocal Group of The Year
  • (2001) Video of the Year

Country Music Association Awards

  • (1998) Vocal Group Of The Year
  • (1999) Horizon Music Video of the Year "Wide Open Spaces"
  • (1999) Single of the Year "Wide Open Spaces"
  • (1999) Vocal Group of the Year
  • (2000) Album of the Year Fly
  • (2000) Vocal Group, Video "Goodbye Earl"
  • (2000) Entertainer of the Year
  • (2002) Vocal Group of the Year
  • (2003) International Artist Achievement Award
  • (2007) Nomination: Group of the Year

Grammy Awards

Juno Awards

Personal Awards

Discography

See also: Dixie Chicks discography

External links

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