Dixie Chicks

This box contains a 2CD interview and audio-biography set with a glossy 6 page full color booklet together with free extras including mini poster & 5 portrait shots complete with their own display case. The discs & booklet are housed in a slipcase. 2002. Chrome Dreams.

Audio CD book on a full color picture CD. Contains a biography, complete with comments and interview excerpts. Comes in a full color slipcase with an eight page photo booklet and a one-sided, 10 inch x 10 inch full color poster. 60 mins (approx). 2001 release.

This enhanced package includes the full CD Taking the Long Way, plus a new bonus DVD. The special DVD features live performances of the Dixie Chicks from AOL Sessions, new interview footage with record producer Rick Rubin, and the hit video for "Not Ready to Make Nice". Check out www.dixiechicks.com for more updates on the Dixie Chicks.

Recorded during their controversial 2003 tour, these two discs romp through an ample sampling of hits ("Wide Open Spaces," "There's Your Trouble," "Goodbye Earl," "Travelin' Soldier") as well as beloved album cuts ("Hello Mr. Heartache," "Some Days You Gotta Dance"). Twangy and cheeky all the way, the group rides an energy wave that continues through the stunning two-song encore of "Top of the World" and "Sin Wagon." Yet as powerful as the full-band performances are, the trio's true essence emerges during the acoustic moments--"White Trash Wedding," "Ready to Run," and "Lil' Jack Slade" among them--as well as the Texas shuffler "Hello Mr. Heartache." Some acts might have tried to gloss over a flap like the one Natalie Maines's anti-Bush administration remarks caused. Not here. Patty Griffin's "Truth No. 2" (from the Chicks' Home album) faces that issue head-on. But beyond the political tempests--and Music Row's still-bruised feelings over their contractual firefights with their label--this collection affirms one truth: the Chicks remain the best hope of bringing country into the 21st century with postmodern vitality and its traditions intact. --Rich Kienzle

After the roaring success of Wide Open Spaces--a blend of turn-of-the-century pop and country traditionalism--what do you do for an encore? Rather than deliver more of the same, the Chicks have chosen instead to up the ante in country radio with a follow-up that's both poppier and twangier than its predecessor, and just plain better too. Some of it we've heard before: "Hello Mr. Heartache," for example, adheres pretty closely to the honky-tonk model of "Tonight the Heartache's On Me." Mostly, though, the record lights out for new territories. "Without You" is driven by an in-your-face string arrangement that's downright fierce, and the rootsy "Sin Wagon" may rock harder--and with more solos--than any mainstream country since Buck Owens held forth. That's not to say Fly's perfect. A couple of songs miss the mark, particularly "Goodbye Earl," an abusive-husband murder song that's sure to get criticized (wrongly) for being anti-male but actually fails because it can't decide if it's a moral lesson, a horror movie, or a joke. Still, even in this failure, the Chicks are bravely pushing the envelope. If they push hard enough, maybe Young Country radio will open up some wider spaces. --David Cantwell

The Dixie Chicks aren't old enough to remember when radio programmed pop records next to country, rock, folk, and beyond, but their Texas DNA tells them that's the way music was meant to be heard. On Home, which they coproduced in Austin with Lloyd Maines, the father of lead singer Natalie Maines, they strip off the star-making gloss of Nashville and get down to the meat of the matter, turning out an acoustic record that gives a big Texas howdy to bluegrass. But that's only the framework they use to salute all their influences, from the raggedy rock of Little Feat (on Darrell Scott's irresistible "Long Time Gone") to the pained ballads of Stevie Nicks (covering her melancholy "Landslide") to the confessional Texas singer-songwriters who straddle the country-folk line (Patty Griffin, Bruce Robison). Maines's raw, irrepressible soprano remains a thing of wonder, as do the threesome's exquisite harmonies, which seem tighter and more organic than ever before. Still, the jaw-dropping thrills come from the passionate and masterful picking of Emily Robison on banjo, bluegrass guitarist Bryan Sutton, and Adam Steffey, whose fluid mandolin does Bill Monroe proud. Home, the Chicks' first release on their own record label, puts the front porch back into mainstream music, whatever the genre. And not a minute too soon. --Alanna Nash

The major-label debut from this Texas trio proves their instrumental abilities, blending more traditional twang with slow melodic blues, foot-tapping rockabilly, and bluegrass-inspired pop harmonies. From the opener, "I Can Love You Better," the Chicks let their love of music and genuine joy shine through while the energy on this album reminds one of Carlene Carter. Solid musicianship, topnotch vocal performances, and infectious pop hooks make this a stellar project. --Paula Ghergia

With Taking The Long Way, one of the most anticipated albums in recent years, the Dixie Chicks are putting themselves out there like never before. For the first time, every one of the disc's fourteen songs are co-written by the Chicks themselves, exploring themes both deeply private and resoundingly political. Collaborating with legendary producer Rick Rubin (who has worked with everyone from Johnny Cash to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, from Run DMC to Neil Diamond), the biggest-selling female band in history has truly pushed themselves to new heights both as writers and as performers.

"Everything felt more personal this time," says Maines. "I go back to songs we've done in the past and there's just more maturity, depth, intelligence on these. They just feel more grown-up." Inspired by such classic rock artists as the Eagles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and the Mamas and the Papas, Taking The Long Way adds a sweeping, Southern California vibe to the Chicks' down-home intimacy. That ambition is matched with lyrics addressing everything from small-town narrow-mindedness ("Lubbock or Leave It") to the psychology of celebrity ("Everybody Knows"). "This album was about finding a balance in the different aspects of our lives," says Emily Robison, "but there's something thematic there, too--it's really about being bold."

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