Entertainment, Music - Army Times

Bluegrass star Krauss hits road with new disc

Two decades after signing a record deal as a 14-year-old fiddler and singer from Illinois, Alison Krauss has become one of the most recognizable faces — and voices — in contemporary bluegrass music.

Recording solo and with Union Station, a top-tier group that includes dobro wizard Jerry Douglas and guitarist Dan Tyminski, Krauss has won 20 Grammys, more than any female artist.

She’s also won acclaim for her work on movie soundtracks and as a producer for such artists as country superstar Alan Jackson. And for good measure, she’s just recorded an album with Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant.

Krauss, 35, called to talk about her music and tour that continues through late August.

Q. Your latest CD, “A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection,” assembles special projects that include movie soundtracks (“O Brother, Where Art Thou?” and “Cold Mountain”) and duets (with James Taylor, Brad Paisley and others). What does it take to reel you into a project?

A. If the tune moves me, if the story moves me. If I have some sort of emotional connection to it, then it’s appealing.

Q. Your duet with John Waite on “Missing You” is intriguing.

A. I was a fan, but I didn’t know him. That tune was perfection and it was very scary to get that call. I thought, “What am I going to do on that?” But it all worked good. I think it turned into something different when it became a duet.

Q. Have you always been curious about all kinds of music?

A. I always have been. But there was a period of time where the core of what I listened to was bluegrass and then rock and roll.

Q. Is it fun to watch Union Station put its spin on other people’s work in concert?

A. Yeah, it’s fun to see. My favorite stuff is the stuff we’ve done as a band. That’s the stuff that makes me go, “Yeaaahhh,” bringing out old tunes that we’ve done that I loved through the years. When you choose material that you have a connection to, when you bring it back, it’s interesting in a whole different way, depending on where you are in your life.

Q. With all this talent assembled onstage, is it almost a jazz-type situation, where everyone gets the chance to improvise?

A. Everybody does. I probably do less than everybody, but the guys do. I used to do more, and now I don’t. It’s a little safer.

Q. Jerry Douglas has said, “When we all feel the safest and most secure is when we’re all together in the bus or on the stage.” Do you agree?

A. I feel the same way. It’s like, “Ah, there we are.” (Laughs)

Q. You’re in demand as a producer, including your recent work on Alan Jackson’s torch-song CD, “Like Red on a Rose.” Do you enjoy that challenge?

A. I do, to some degree. If you have nothing else to do in your life, it’s fine. But you’re on somebody else’s time. It was a very emotional experience. Alan is a wonderful singer and couldn’t have been more generous with [the approach of] “Do what you want to do.” But I have a family ... and the hours were tough. I learned a tremendous amount from watching him sing. He’s such a natural singer, and it opened my eyes more than they’ve been opened since I was 14.

Q. How have you changed as a musician, with a few decades under your belt?

A. I’ve become less self-conscious. You start to realize this is what you sound like. ... The best part of a singer is when they let go of what they think they’re supposed to sound like ... or thinking about who’s listening.

Q. It seems you are thrilled to be a part of this band and have no desire to do a solo thing full-time.

A. No, this is where I belong.

Q. Does it ever freak you out to think you’ve won more Grammys than any other female artist?

A. It’s really remarkable, amazing. When you make a record, you always feel like it’s the last one you’re going to make and the only one you’ve ever made. When people recognize it in such a generous way, it’s really remarkable.