Susan Tedeschi

"I think it's a pivotal record for me - I like this one a lot,” Susan Tedeschi says of her new Verve Forecast release Back to the River. “I think it's really emotional, but it's not really a blues record. The blues is still in there, but there's a lot of other stuff too. I definitely put a lot into this one and worked really hard to put a lot of ideas across."

Indeed, Back to the River—produced by George Drakoulias, whose resume includes work with the Black Crowes, the Jayhawks and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers—is a mature, soulful work that demonstrates how much singer/guitarist/songwriter Tedeschi has grown in the decade since she burst onto the scene.

Back to the River's 11 songs encompass a broad musical and emotional palette, and showcase Tedeschi’s multiple talents as a deeply expressive singer, a soulful and melodic guitarist and a distinctive, evolving songwriter. The album is partially the product of Tedeschi's work with a stellar assortment of songwriting collaborators. She journeyed to Nashville to work with legendary swamp-rock godfather Tony Joe White, with whom she co-wrote the album's raucous title track (whose homesick lyrics refer to her home on the St John's River in her adopted hometown of Jacksonville, Florida). She went to Minneapolis to write “Learning the Hard Way" with the insightful Jayhawks leader Gary Louris.

The album's assertive opening track "Talking About" was written by Tedeschi and stellar guitarist Doyle Bramhall II, who also plays guitar (and sings) on that song and plays guitar on two more Back to the River tracks. She composed the rousing, socially conscious "People" with acclaimed young singer/songwriter Sonya Kitchell, and wrote the anthem "Revolutionize Your Soul" with noted musician/producer John Leventhal (of Rosanne Cash/Shawn Colvin fame). They also collaborated on “700 Houses," written as a reminder of the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina with relevance to all natural disasters. "True” conveys a significant message of universal truths and how each person's actions have an effect on the harmony of the world. The chord and guitar parts on that song mix a Carlos Santana feel with a Stevie Ray Vaughan rhythmic approach. Another highlight of Back to the River is Tedeschi's fiery take on the Allen Toussaint-penned New Orleans soul classic "There’s a Break in the Road," originally recorded in 1969 by Betty Harris.

Tedeschi co-wrote the exotic funk workout “Butterfly" with husband and fellow guitar-slinger Derek Trucks, (of The Allman Brothers Band and his own Derek Trucks Band). Derek—who plays slide guitar on four Back to the River tracks and co-leads the part-time combo Soul Stew Revival with Susan—produced "Butterfly" in the couple's home studio prior to the commencement of the album's main recording sessions at L.A. Sunset Sound studios. Trucks also co-wrote the infectious "Love Will" with Tedeschi and renowned lyricist/bassist Tommy Sims (who co-wrote Eric Clapton’s “Change the World,” winner of 1997’s Grammy® for Song of the Year).

Tedeschi and Trucks are also the parents of a young son and daughter. Becoming a mother, Susan says, was an influence upon some of Back to the River's more thoughtful, introspective lyrics, which take a humanistic view of a variety of sociopolitical issues.

"These songs," she says, "are about real life issues that have been on my mind. I don't think it's my job to impose my opinion on people, but I do feel it's my responsibility to write songs that reflect the times and how I feel about them. Becoming a parent makes you start to think on a different scale, and it made me realize that you can write more than love songs. Even if a song can't change the world, you can still capture a little tiny bit of truth and deliver it to people."

Tedeschi's knack for musical truth-telling has been apparent in the years since she first captured the public's musical imagination. Growing up in the Boston suburb of Norwell, Massachusetts, she began singing with local bands at the age of 13, and subsequently pursued her passion for music while studying at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. After establishing herself as one of New England's top-drawing live acts, and making her recording debut with her embryonic 1995 album Better Days, Tedeschi achieved an impressive musical and commercial breakthrough with her 1998 indie release Just Won't Burn. The album became a massive grass-roots success, with a minimum of hype and plenty of old-fashioned word of mouth. Just Won't Burn achieved Gold sales status and won Tedeschi a Grammy® nomination for Best New Artist, alongside such unlikely company as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Macy Gray and Kid Rock. Her next release, 2002's acclaimed, Grammy®-nominated Wait for Me, was produced by legendary studio veteran Tom Dowd. She moved to Verve Forecast for her fourth album Hope and Desire, which marked a substantial departure for the versatile artist, presenting her in the role of interpretive vocalist.

Now, with Back to the River, Susan Tedeschi takes a major musical leap forward. "I worked really hard on this one," she states. "I've enjoyed writing with so many different songwriters and loved working together with musicians to get across my ideas and visions.” "I'm really excited about this record, and I'm anxious to have people hear it," Tedeschi concludes. "People have been waiting for new music from me for awhile, so I look forward to touring, to bring these songs to as many people as I can."

Guitarist, singer and songwriter Susan Tedeschi is part of the new generation of blues musicians looking for ways to keep the form exciting, vital and evolving. Tedeschi's live shows are by no means straight-ahead urban blues. Instead, she freely mixes classic R&B, blues and her own gospel and blues-flavored original songs into her sets. She's a young, sexy, sassy blues belter with musical sensibilities that belie her years.

Tedeschi began singing when she was four and was active in local choir and theater in Norwell, a southern suburb of Boston. She began singing at 13 with local bands and continued her music studies at Berklee, honing her guitar skills and also joining the Reverence Gospel Ensemble. She started the first incarnation of her blues band upon graduating in 1991, with vocalist/guitarist Adrienne Hayes, a fellow blues enthusiast whom she met at the House of Blues in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Bonnie Raitt, Janis Joplin and Boston-area singer Toni Lynn Washington were Tedeschi's most important influences; in starting her band, in fact, she used Washington's backing band and hustled up gigs on nights when Washington and her band were not already booked. Since they began performing around Boston's fertile blues scene, Tedeschi and her band developed into a tightly knit, road-ready group, and have played several major blues festivals. Guitarist Sean Costello has since replaced original guitarist and co-vocalist Hayes, who left the group to pursue her own musical interests.

The Susan Tedeschi Band's first album, Just Won't Burn, was released on the Boston-based Tone-Cool Records in early 1998. The band for her debut on Tone-Cool includes guitarist Costello, bassist Jim Lamond and drummer Tom Hambridge; guitarist Hayes also contributes. Just Won't Burn is a powerful collection of originals, plus a sparkling cover of John Prine's "Angel From Montgomery." Tedeschi and band also do justice to a tune Ruth Brown popularized, "Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean," and Junior Wells' "Little By Little." The appropriately titled Wait for Me appeared in 2002 and was followed two years later by the CD and DVD Live From Austin TX. Hope and Desire from 2005 found Tedeschi on the Verve label. ~ Richard Skelly, All Music Guide