Elizabeth Cook
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Cook is an American
country music singer who made her debut on the Grand Ole Opry
on March 17, 2000. She has released five albums to date. Balls was produced by Rodney Crowell
, and nine of the album's 11 tracks were written or co-written by Elizabeth – including the single "Sometimes It Takes Balls To Be A Woman". Her next album, "Welder", released May 11, 2010, was produced by Don Was
. The album received rave reviews.
. Her mother Joyce played mandolin
and guitar
and performed on radio and local television in her younger years. Her father Thomas also played string instruments. He honed his skills playing upright bass in the prison band while serving time for running moonshine
. Also while serving time at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary for the crime, he learned the welding trade to which Elizabeth paid tribute in the title of her 2010 album. After her father was released, he and Joyce began playing in local country bands together. Elizabeth was on stage with them at age four, singing such inappropriate songs as 'I'm Having Daydreams About Night Things'. At the age of nine, she had her own band.
Cook graduated from Georgia Southern University
in 1996 with dual degrees in Accounting and Computer Information Systems. In 2000, she independently released The Blue Album; she made her major label debut in 2002 with Hey Y'All. But following a corporate re-structuring that left the album virtually abandoned and stagnant on sales, Elizabeth fought back with her 2004 independent release This Side Of The Moon, which received positive reviews from The New York Times
and No Depression
. Her album Balls was released May 2007. It has been her most successful album to date, thanks to glowing press reviews and significant video play for the song "Sometimes It Takes Balls To Be A Woman." Her 2010 album Welder features appearances by an all-star roster of guests including Dwight Yoakam
, Crowell and Buddy Miller
. Two songs on the album featured in an NPR
report at the time of its release were "El Camino" and "Heroin Addict Sister."
Through it all, Elizabeth maintained a relentless touring schedule, playing shows in America, as well as South Korea
, Japan
, Norway
, Sweden
, Poland
France
and the UK, the last of these including memorable appearances at the Cambridge Folk Festival, the Maverick Festival and the Borderline in London. She has continued appearing on stage at the Grand Ole Opry
- indeed, she has appeared over 300 times and yet is still a "non-member".
She toured the UK in support of her Welder LP performing 18 dates with her husband Tim Carroll and her upright bass player Bones Hillman, formerly of Midnight Oil
, who had relocated to Nashville, Tennessee after hearing nothing out of Midnight Oil for a year.
Welder was number 23 on Rolling Stone
Cook was invited by the Atlanta Braves
to sing the national anthem
before their 2011
home opener
on April 8, 2011.
The Back Road Radio Show, Indianapolis, IN 91.9FM WITT, Cook did a Live Interview/>
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country music singer who made her debut on the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
on March 17, 2000. She has released five albums to date. Balls was produced by Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
, and nine of the album's 11 tracks were written or co-written by Elizabeth – including the single "Sometimes It Takes Balls To Be A Woman". Her next album, "Welder", released May 11, 2010, was produced by Don Was
Don Was
Don Was is an American musician, bassist and record producer.-Life and career:Was was born in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Oak Park High School in the Detroit suburb of Oak Park, then attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor but dropped out after the first year...
. The album received rave reviews.
Biography
The youngest of 11, Cook was born in Wildwood, FloridaWildwood, Florida
Wildwood is a city in Sumter County, Florida, United States. The population was 3,924 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, the city had a population of 3,598.-Geography:Wildwood is located at ....
. Her mother Joyce played mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
and performed on radio and local television in her younger years. Her father Thomas also played string instruments. He honed his skills playing upright bass in the prison band while serving time for running moonshine
Moonshine
Moonshine is an illegally produced distilled beverage...
. Also while serving time at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary for the crime, he learned the welding trade to which Elizabeth paid tribute in the title of her 2010 album. After her father was released, he and Joyce began playing in local country bands together. Elizabeth was on stage with them at age four, singing such inappropriate songs as 'I'm Having Daydreams About Night Things'. At the age of nine, she had her own band.
Cook graduated from Georgia Southern University
Georgia Southern University
Georgia Southern University is a national public university located on a campus in Statesboro, Georgia, USA. Founded in 1906, it is part of the University System of Georgia and is the largest center of higher education in the southern half of Georgia offering 117 academic majors in a comprehensive...
in 1996 with dual degrees in Accounting and Computer Information Systems. In 2000, she independently released The Blue Album; she made her major label debut in 2002 with Hey Y'All. But following a corporate re-structuring that left the album virtually abandoned and stagnant on sales, Elizabeth fought back with her 2004 independent release This Side Of The Moon, which received positive reviews from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and No Depression
No Depression
No Depression may refer to:* No Depression , a bi-monthly roots and Americana music magazine and now a music website.* "No Depression in Heaven", a 1936 song popularized by the Carter Family...
. Her album Balls was released May 2007. It has been her most successful album to date, thanks to glowing press reviews and significant video play for the song "Sometimes It Takes Balls To Be A Woman." Her 2010 album Welder features appearances by an all-star roster of guests including Dwight Yoakam
Dwight Yoakam
Dwight David Yoakam is an American singer-songwriter, actor and film director, most famous for his pioneering country music...
, Crowell and Buddy Miller
Buddy Miller
Buddy Miller is a country singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist and producer, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee...
. Two songs on the album featured in an NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
report at the time of its release were "El Camino" and "Heroin Addict Sister."
Through it all, Elizabeth maintained a relentless touring schedule, playing shows in America, as well as South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and the UK, the last of these including memorable appearances at the Cambridge Folk Festival, the Maverick Festival and the Borderline in London. She has continued appearing on stage at the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
- indeed, she has appeared over 300 times and yet is still a "non-member".
She toured the UK in support of her Welder LP performing 18 dates with her husband Tim Carroll and her upright bass player Bones Hillman, formerly of Midnight Oil
Midnight Oil
Midnight Oil , were an Australian rock band from Sydney originally performing as Farm from 1972 with drummer Rob Hirst, bass guitarist Andrew James and keyboard player/lead guitarist Jim Moginie...
, who had relocated to Nashville, Tennessee after hearing nothing out of Midnight Oil for a year.
Welder was number 23 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
Cook was invited by the Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
to sing the national anthem
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defence of Fort McHenry", a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships...
before their 2011
2011 Major League Baseball season
The 2011 Major League Baseball season began on Thursday, March 31, and ended on Wednesday, September 28. This marked the first time a season began on a Thursday since , and the first time a regular season ended on a Wednesday since...
home opener
Opening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball and most of the minor leagues, this day falls during the first week of April. For baseball fans, Opening Day serves as a symbol of rebirth; writer Thomas Boswell once penned a book...
on April 8, 2011.
Radio Show
Cook hosts the morning radio show "Elizabeth Cook's Apron Strings" on the Sirius XM radio station Outlaw Country on Channel 60. The show airs weekdays from 10:00 AM until 2:00 PM (Eastern Time). The show format is a mix of music, recipes and household cleaning tips.Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Heat Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical... |
||
| The Blue Album |
|
— | — |
| Hey, Y'all Hey, Y'all Hey, Y'all is the first major-label album of country music singer Elizabeth Cook. It was released August 27, 2002.-Track listing:All songs composed by Elizabeth Cook and Hardie McGehee except where noted.#"Stupid Things" - 2:24... |
|
— | — |
| This Side of the Moon This Side of the Moon This Side of the Moon is the second major-label album of country music singer Elizabeth Cook. It was released May 17, 2005.-Track listing:#"Cupid" - 2:52#"Funny Side of Love" - 2:09... |
|
— | — |
| Balls Balls (Elizabeth Cook album) Balls is the third major-label album of country music singer Elizabeth Cook. It was released May 1, 2007.-Track listing:All songs written by Elizabeth Cook except where noted.#"Times Are Tough in Rock 'N Roll" - 2:05... |
|
72 | — |
| Welder |
|
43 | 23 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
|||
| 2002 | "Stupid Things" | — | Hey, Y'all |
| 2004 | "Before I Go That Far" | — | This Side of the Moon |
| "Heather Are You with Me Tonight" | — | ||
| 2005 | "Ruthless" | — | |
| 2007 | "Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman" | — | Balls |
| 2008 | "Sunday Morning Sunday Morning (The Velvet Underground song) "Sunday Morning" is a song by The Velvet Underground. It is the opening track on their 1967 debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico. It was also released as a single in 1966 with "Femme Fatale".-Recording:... " |
— | |
| 2010 | "All The Time" | — | Welder |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "Stupid Things" | Chris Rogers |
| 2005 | "Before I Go That Far" | |
| 2007 | "Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman" | Roger Pistole |
| 2008 | "Sunday Morning" | George Nicholas |
| 2010 | "All the Time" | Kristin Barlowe |
live radio appearances
Bob Harris Country, BBC Radio 2, July 8, 2010. Cook performed 3 songs live: "All The Time", "El Camino", "My Heroin Addict Sister".The Back Road Radio Show, Indianapolis, IN 91.9FM WITT, Cook did a Live Interview/>