Wow -- it is COLD here in Nashville, Tennessee. It's going to get down to single digits tonight. Now for you North Easterners, etc., that might not seem so cold to you, but for this California girl it is just too cold to do anything other than bundle up by the fire.;)
Amy was back in the studio today putting down some guitar tracks on some of the new songs. I spoke to her this morning and reminded her that there is a lot of interest from all of you in hearing directly from her and she promised to post a blog soon. I'll stay after her. And I'll keep blogging...
We've hit the ground running to start 2009 and we should be making some new announcements in the next couple of weeks. One thing I am working on is uploading some of the Lead Me On Anniversary shows on to the FOA Radio Amy... as well as the BIG FOA announcement I hinted at earlier...
Also, in addition to working on the new album we are also looking at releasing some special catalogue projects and would love to hear back from you as to what you would most enjoy having in your collections? A remix (dance) collection? A remix (non-dance) collection? Rarities, b-sides? A complete box set of everything she has done? Cover songs? Lullabye songs? Collections of songs with certain themes and adding new liner notes and pictures? It would be interesting to hear what you most want. I'm listening...
More to come....
God bless,
Jen
I'd say since Amy's revitalized with an upbeat and fun attitude (thank you LMO), yet still profound, a remix of both dance and non-dance would be in order. Something similiar to what Madonna (Ray of Light, Miles Away) and Plumb (In My Arms, Cut) have been doing - heartfelt lyrics and sound w/hypnotic beats.
Amy has never done this and it would be nice to surprise the critics and audience.
Posted by: otter4771 | January 16, 2009 at 12:36 AM
As many have already mentioned, I'd love a 'rarities and b-sides' type compilation or box set of unreleased music from Amy from the the '80's all the way up through her more current hymns and 'Simple Things' releases. This of course includes all of the unreleased music from the 'Heart in Motion' and 'Behind the Eyes' era as well. Fans have been asking for this for over a decade now, and it would be great to see it finally come to fruition. Also, someone mentioned that she should record the song that she wrote, titled "Who I Am" and I'm in agreement with that as well. :-) I know we're all anxiously anticipating Amy's new music, but thank you so much Jennifer for asking us for our input regarding future projects from Amy also. Btw, some have mentioned that they would also like some new dance, etc remixes of some of her older material so that a new generation of listeners are able to enjoy some of her pop 'golden oldies' so to speak. That doesn't interest me as much, but undoubtedly that would be great for some of the dance enthusiasts and the Miley/JoBros generation. :-) For me, it would be something great to exercise to. (lol)
Posted by: sfr | January 16, 2009 at 01:27 AM
Hi Jen,
I would love to finally be able to have some of Amy's b-sides and rarities. For years we have been hearing about alot of these songs. It would be so nice to finally have a collection of them.
Thank you for your time,
Nadine
Posted by: Nadine | January 16, 2009 at 02:25 AM
Jen, definitely a boxed set of all unreleased, that would be awesome! Live Lead Me On Tour Reunion Cd, cool too! There was also a song she wrote back in the early 90's i believe! Kim Boyce recorded it "Right For Me"! Love to hear her record that as well as "what the angels see", "true love", "threaten me with heaven", "Find", "Same Things"{please,don't make me beg}, "give me jesus", "who i am", "come into my world", "wind in the fire", "i wanna love you", "I Got You", "i feel fine", "wallet song", etc, etc, etc... GO AMY.....
Posted by: wayne allen | January 16, 2009 at 03:22 AM
I would love to have a collection of dance remixes of Amy's songs. It would put such a neat twist on the Amy classics and I would appreciate them in a whole new light.
I would most be interested in hearing remixes that sort of update the Heart In Motion/House of Love era. However, it would be so cool to hear a Cascada-esque version of "Takes A Little Time" and "Simple Things."
I don't know about all of you, but I enjoy listening to Amy's music when I'm trying to relax...but it would be cool to have a dozen songs remixed that I can listen to while I'm at the gym!
Posted by: Billy | January 16, 2009 at 03:37 AM
1- A cover album of Amys favorite pop/light rocks songs using a new producer- a new sound for Amy.
Posted by: David | January 16, 2009 at 04:12 AM
Hi Jen, We really appreciate the personal nature the new website has taken with the fans. It means so much to feel like you have some insight into Amy's process of recording and touring, almost as exciting as getting to sit and watch her in the studio live! As far as special projects go, here is my list of wishes in order of desirability:
1. Disc of Rarities/B-sides: All of Amy's fans really look forward to hearing these tracks. There are many on the internet but to have them in high definition and a compressed format would be awesome. I think this would be a gift to Amy's core fans that love her music and draw insight from her lyrics.
2. Disc of dance remixes of Amy's favorite Christian & pop songs - this would be like another "greatest hits" compilation but I think it would give a new feel to some really great songs and something to dance around to. I love some of the dance remixes that are floating around on teh net and I think it would be awesome to have an official collection on CD.
3. A live DVD of the Lead Me On Reunion concert tour. The original tour was my first Amy concert and I was unable to attend the reunion shows because there were no dates in the Southeast other than Greenville. I was very disappointed that I was unable to attend because I knew it would be a special occasion. My friend Chad from Nashville made it to the Greenville show and said it was amazing. It would be great to relive a special time in Amy's music and to see her really rock again like in the 80's.
4. DVD or Blu-ray of rare Amy long-form videos like building the house of love, her two christmas specials, Three wishes, "A Song From the Heart" etc...
5. Honestly, anything Amy will do. She is the best! She is such a down to earth, compassionate, individual. I have two people that I could sit and just chat with for hours and feel like I could never take in all of the wisdom and grace they have to offer and they are Maya Angelou & Amy Grant. Thank you for sharing your heart in such a beatiful way. She really has made an impact on her fans that goes beyond music.
Thank you Jen for reaching out to the fans. Here's to many more years of great music and fun!!!
Posted by: Ray | January 16, 2009 at 05:05 AM
Jen,
Thanks for asking our thoughts and wishes about an upcoming release from Amy. I implore you -- please don't release a remix album. In many ways it is a rehash of what we've already heard.
Many of us Amy fans would truly love a project filled with the unreleased tracks from Amy's album sessions, along with liner notes from Amy...the lost tracks that never made it on her records. That is my heartfelt suggestion...
Cheers,
Barry
Posted by: Barry | January 16, 2009 at 05:43 AM
I love the remixes and alternate versions of songs. A boxed set of ALL Amy's music would be awesome! Maybe something like what MWS did a few years ago with unreleased and rare music thrown in. It could start with her early career and go up to the new songs she sang on the LMO tour last year. Maybe some more live recordings and a DVD. Also, maybe
a collectable booklet of photos of Amy over the years and tour photos. Sounds like a lot, I know. I just think it's time for something like this to honor Amy's incredible career. Looking forward to the big announcement!! :-D
Posted by: Janice | January 16, 2009 at 06:29 AM
You should do a DVD of all of the pre-Next Time I Fall In Love video footage such as the 5 music videos on the "Find a Way" VHS, the Age To Age Concert, the Old Fashioned Christmas special, plus reissue the Building The House of Love VHS/LaserDisc on DVD. I would also like a DVD of the first Good For Me music video and not the one that is more commonly seen.
Posted by: Bradley Olson | January 16, 2009 at 06:35 AM
Oops...One more thing, you should acquire the rights to reissue the Greatest Videos 1986-2004 DVD as well.
Posted by: Bradley Olson | January 16, 2009 at 06:36 AM
1. I would love to have a hard copy of all those wonderful B-Sides and Rarities from Amy's Online radio... Come into my world...watching the waves... and maybe you could include a few rare Christmas tunes like "let the season take wing" and "wonderful christmastime"...
2. I would love to have a new remix album...non of the remixes that are already out there, but brand new ones... let's get ready to dance again
Looks like 2009 is shaping up to be a fun year... Thanks for your blogs Jen...
Posted by: Jayson | January 16, 2009 at 06:45 AM
I posted this on the message board, but I will post it here too:
I think all of the things Jennifer mentioned in her blog would be great. I have less interest in the dance remix collections (I feel like they have limited appeal and we already got a decent sampling of them on Greatest Hits | 1986 - 2004... unless these would be new remixes, a la the new Maroon 5 Call and Response CD... that would be pretty cool, and in that case I personally prefer non-dance remixes!)
The thing I most want from Amy in the way of special collections is a Rarities/B-sides collection. I seem to remember something called "Under the Roof" being discussed years ago, which was to be basically a collection of hard-to-come-by or never-before-heard recordings. That would be SO amazing. In fact, just today I bought something similar by Aerosmith called Pandora's Box and was thinking how great such a collection would be from Amy.
I'd also like to see a proper Greatest Hits package of Amy's Christian hits. We've had several high-profile compilations of her pop radio and holiay successes but most of her major post-1986 Christian radio hits (including quite a few #1s) haven't been represented on a Greatest Hits package. Some have never even appeared on an official Amy CD (like "Lover of My Soul").
I think a record of jazz/blues standards would be really cool. I'd much prefer those to lullabyes. I hear songs like "My Buddy" (which is itself kind of like a lullaby), "O Love That Will Not Let Me Go", and her brass-and-bass-heavy Christmas stuff and think that the smoky, almost bluesy side of Amy's voice would be perfectly suited for that sort of thing. With Bublé, Jamie Cullum, Diana Krall, etc., swing is back en vogue too!
As for a complete box set of everything she has done... it's completely unnecessary for someone like me who owns it all already BUT I would absolutely buy it. It would be really cool if it had some really nice, display-friendly packaging. I remember something called "Pieces of Heaven... Pieces of Earth" being discussed a while back and I believe it was along these lines. (Of course, I'm sure such a release would only be met with complaints and accusations of 'double-dipping' by some ).
If there's any kind of compilation/collection, I think an updated "Ageless Medley" would be a really cool track. Same concept as the original one, but with different/newer songs in a completely new medley.
I'd also really like to see Amy's music videos and/or concerts released in hi-def on Blu-ray disc. There are still a handful of her videos that haven't made it to DVD yet either; there are also the old VHS releases like Building the House of Love and the Age to Age concert that would be cool to have on the digital medium. Perhaps they could even be sold as AmyGrant.com exclusives (I've seen some artists do this -- Hanson is an example, but then they run their own label so that may have an impact on the practicality of such a thing). "Three Wishes": The Complete Series on DVD/Blu-ray would rock my world. Oh -- and A Song From the Heart too; but I know distribution rights would probably be an issue with many of these.
-Aaron
Posted by: Aaron Wallace | January 16, 2009 at 06:48 AM
The post-1986 Christian radio hits comp is another great idea.
Posted by: Bradley Olson | January 16, 2009 at 06:55 AM
Aside from something totally NEW (I can't wait for completly NEW music)!!!
My wish list echos many others:
1. Rarities and B-sides,
2. Dance remixes that as another member mentioned are radio friendly and appeal to a younger crowd.
I can't wait!!!
Michael
Posted by: Michael | January 16, 2009 at 07:31 AM
I can't wait for the new material (!!), but if you're re-releasing older stuff, my vote would be for previously unreleased, or B-side songs, with stories or comments by Amy about what she was thinking or feeling about the material. I am inspired by her words as much as her music, and having a little "insider" material is probably as close as most of us will get to dropping by her house for coffee!
Posted by: Jen Norton | January 16, 2009 at 09:23 AM
What a cool idea to ask our opinion!
Let me add my voice to the chorus requesting a Rarities/b-sides collection. In my humble point of view, the days of iTunes and the lot allow us as listeners to create our own mixes of available songs by theme. I'd really love access to unavailable songs--unreleased finds, live rarities, obsure covers, soundtrack contributions,studio session stuff, etc. What a treat for those that love Amy...and what an opportunity for a new audience to see her in a different light.
Posted by: Kristofer | January 16, 2009 at 09:28 AM
I would love remixes. Not so much Techno dance mixes, but reworkings. So many times dance mixes are techno and are monotonous and it's just not enjoyable to listen to. I was looking forward to Avalon's remix album and it was just a dissappointment - too much techno and sometimes no words! I don't like that. I want to still sing along.
I love when you turn the tapes over to new people and they rework the sound of a song or beef it up - Like the Every Heartbeat remix that was on the bonus disc of the Greatest hits released in 2004.
That's my humble opinion. OH! And I like that song "Day and Night" on the FOA radio. Some rarities like that would be cool.
Posted by: Eric Kisner | January 16, 2009 at 10:54 AM
Rarities, new music and lullabies.
Posted by: Myra | January 16, 2009 at 10:57 AM
Deluxe edition of Amy's biggest selling albums....released on SACD, including rare tracks, demos, and B-sides.
Posted by: Danny | January 16, 2009 at 11:17 AM
forget the dance stuff, just the girl and the guitar is what we love.
Posted by: Briana | January 16, 2009 at 11:21 AM
I would love to hear some dance re-mixes of Amy's songs. I think there's a huge market that would be perfect for them. She has a great catalog and so much to work with! Please do!
Posted by: Mary Lee | January 16, 2009 at 11:46 AM
Here are my thoughts:
1) A dance/remix would be so exciting, but I also feel that such a project should further be support by new upbeat/Top 40ish material.
2) Iwould love to hear Amy do praise and worship album (after all Amy was one of the first to put out such an album with Songs from the Loft) that would included “Be Still” and “Give me Jesus”.
3) Side B and other materials would be so exciting, however from a business stand point I think it would need to packages with DVD material/photos/box set, something to give it more appeal to the non-Grantheads.
4) I think a lullaby album would appeal to such a small group of listeners that I can’t imagine sales would justify the efforts (although I know most of us who visit the web site would buy it in a hearbeat).
Posted by: Andrew | January 16, 2009 at 12:01 PM
Hi Jen,
I would buy anything that Amy puts her hand to, she's one classy lady!
I have recently enjoyed Alison Krauss: Live at the Tracking Room and would love to see Amy record some tracks there. Living over in England it's very rare to see Amy perform live on t.v. or watch her being interviewed so perhaps a dvd of some memorable t.v. slots or a dvd her christmas shows would be fantastic. Perhaps a visit to England and record at Abby Road studios would appeal to Amy?
Whatever you decide, all the best.... and keep us posted!
Andrew
Posted by: Andrew Stevens | January 16, 2009 at 02:58 PM
Hi Jen,
I would buy anything that Amy puts her hand to, she's one classy lady!
I have recently enjoyed Alison Krauss: Live at the Tracking Room and would love to see Amy record some tracks there. Living over in England it's very rare to see Amy perform live on t.v. or watch her being interviewed so perhaps a dvd of some memorable t.v. slots or a dvd her christmas shows would be fantastic. Perhaps a visit to England and record at Abby Road studios would appeal to Amy?
Whatever you decide, all the best.... and keep us posted!
Andrew
Posted by: Andrew Stevens | January 16, 2009 at 03:02 PM