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Welcome to the website for all in the Uk who love the music of Tia McGraff
She loves hearing from her fans!
Transcript of Radio Interview for BBC RADIO Shropshire by Marie Crichton which took place on Sunday 22nd May 2005 before the gig at the Marrs Barr, Worcester.
You can listen to Marie's Country Show every Monday evening 19.00-21.00 on BBC Radio Shropshire, BBC Radio Stoke and BBC Hereford & Worcester on FM or listen in Live on the Internet.
Check out this link - http://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/music/country_playlist.shtml
Marie: Here we are at a venue in Worcester and I'm joined by Tia McGraff
Tia : Hi Marie ..How are you tonight?
Marie: I'm fine thank you J …Were going to talk about how you first got going and what inspired you to become a singer-songwriter?
Tia: When I was a little girl my parents had taken me to see Camelot and I was sitting in the audience and the orchestra started playing the overture and I got this incredible rush and I remember leaning over to my mother and saying "When I grew up I want to be on stage..I want to be a singer" Years went by and I started singing in school & everything and then when I was about 19 I won the Canadian Open Country contest and that’s where I won some recording time, money and I bought a guitar and wrote my first song and recorded my first single.
Marie: So your debut album 'Small Town Life' that came out in 1994 so can you tell us a bit about that one? J
Tia: 'Small Town Life' was my first album, full album. Up to that point I had released singles in Canada and it was written and recorded in Ontario where I'm from; just on the north side of Lake Erie. At the time Mary Chapin Carpenter had her album out and really inspired me for my 'Small Town Life' album. So we wrote the songs about life in small towns & finding positive stuff and ended up releasing 3 videos to CMT Canada from that as well. So it was a really growing experience. It was fun, just a ball recording it and getting my name out there as an artist.
Marie: I think the favourite of mine on that album is called 'The Tree House Song' ..I think it's so beautiful and before we play it do you want to tell a bit about that one?
Tia: I'm glad you like that J cos' I wrote it on my own and my cousin Rob had just passed away - he'd been killed in an industrial accident. And when he was he was a little boy we used to play in this tree house and so when I was writing the album I all of a sudden was driving along to the studio and I started to think about the tree house that Rob and my sister and I used to play in when he was just a little a boy. So I got to the studio and I'd already started the song and I sat down and I said to the producer I've started this song and I wrote it like that afternoon and when we went in to record it I wanted to capture that whimsical thing on it, so we started the beginning of it with what sounds like an old fashioned recording and when we were done, we ended up doing the video to it as well. So it’s a beautiful video, the video we shot in a tree house and there's children playing around it and everything
Marie: Well that's got even more meaning for me now, so were gonna play that song for you now….
Marie The follow up album that’s called Jewel's Café and I have to say that was probably my first real introduction to it and I put it into my machine to play it and was very surprised that the opener was a ballad, cos' normally you expect the first track to be quite upbeat so I thought I'm gonna like this! J I absolutely love that track, so can you tell us a bit about that one?
Tia: Jewels Café was a special album for me; we decided I would do another album in Canada and I had gotten together with a producer called Gary O'Connor, so we sat down, I said I want to write an album that talks about life in small towns but from a perspective of people going to clubs or going to bars, some place where they shared life's experiences. So that's what Jewels Café is about; it takes place in any kind of club or bar or café that everyone just goes to and shares life's moments and whether it be good things, bad things and the other night we were playing down Ashford ….called 'Oranges' and so at the very end Tommy and I were playing it the last song of the night and all of a sudden I sang 'Oranges Café' and there was a gasp and everyone started crying and everything (… Tia laughs J ) so it was really fun to do that.
Marie: Its much like the one where sitting in now really, so were gonna play that song of you now 'Jewels Café…
Marie: And your new album the one you've come over to the UK to promote so we couldn't go without mentioning that one; its called 'Outside Of The Circle' and it’s a stunning album - some really good upbeat ones on there and some lovely ballads as well. I'm a sucker for ballads, absolutely love them and the one that really touched me was the one called 'What A Life', I think its so beautiful, I just want to hear a bit about the meaning behind that one?
Tia: You’re a girl after my own heart cos' I love ballads I would do an entire albums of ballads if I could (… Tia laughs J ). I had moved to Nashville from Canada and about 6 years ago and Tommy and I had been co-writing together and sharing life together and one day I left just after Christmas and I had left seeing my parents in Canada and drove back down to Nashville and by the time I got home to Tommy I was crying, I was homesick already and I came in and about a week later we were sitting down to write a song and that just came out 'What A Life' and it was really about the first song to inspire us to do the album 'Outside Of The Circle' . That’s the one were promoting and were just so excited about all the wonderful things happening here in the UK with the new album.
Marie: And before we play that song, I'd just like to hear who your influences were who you sort of listened to when you were growing up who shaped your music?
Tia: My favourite singer growing up I guess was Linda Ronstadt, Barbara Streisand ..I love Elton John and some bands that I really like..'The Eagles'..Tonight were playing and guy whose headlining is from the band ELO ..I was a huge ELO fan I loved them, so this is really exciting for us too.
Marie: So I'm sure everybody's gonna of fallen in love with your music, so do you want to tell us how we can get hold of your music?
Tia: Marie, They go to my website which is www.tiamcgraff.com and that's McGraff ….M C G R A double "F" as in FRANK J and there you can listen to our songs and read the bio and see the tour schedule where were performing.
Marie: I've been on there myself it’s a beautiful website and I highly recommend going on there and I thank you very much for your time and we're going to leave this now with that beautiful song 'What A Life'..
Tia: Thank You Marie and Thank you to all your listeners.
Andy Writes.. May I personally thank Marie for embracing Tia's music, making the effort to see her in Worcester and putting together such a delightful feature for the show and most importantly getting Tia heard on BBC Radio! Thanks for bringing so much fantastic music to my attention these past 3 years.
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