Brigitte DeMeyer Hits “Savannah Road”

Nashville, TN—There’s no shortage of music celebrating the mysteries and gothic beauty of the Deep South; however, singer-songwriter Brigitte DeMeyer has proved herself one of the rare masters at guiding listeners down those romantic, often tricky, Southern paths. In fact, her latest single, aptly titled “Savannah Road,” is currently winding its way toward the top of the Americana chart, having entered the Top 40 shortly after its April 29 release.

The enigmatic tune also sits in the Top 5 of the current EuroAmericana chart, alongside songs by John Fullbright, Rodney Crowell, and Natalie Merchant.

DeMeyer’s skill as an aural tour guide has been carefully crafted over the years, not only in the studio, but from her time spent on stage supporting fellow storytelling experts ranging from Bob Dylan to Buddy Miller. In short, Savannah Road marks DeMeyer’s sixth album in a career spent honing a storyteller’s soul.

Each song on the new set has its own inspiration; not surprisingly, her chart-climbing title track has one of the most interesting backgrounds: “It was inspired by meeting Greg Allman, and then reading his biography after,” she explains. “He lives in Savannah, and in reading his book, it took me in all different directions musically and geographically.”

“I became curious about Georgia,” the California-raised singer muses. “It’s a spooky old place, and that made me want to write spooky, old-feeling songs.”

Indeed, the sonic flavor of the album is seeped in a hard-to-obtain, minimal, almost eerie vibe which DeMeyer says “is probably closest to the sound I’ve been looking for my whole life.” She adds that finding the perfect groove was an organic process. “It wasn’t forced…it is stripped down and spare. You can hear my voice better; so, the lyrics and stories better. It’s more intimate.”

DeMeyer explores deep inside herself for other songs on the set, using her skills to create customized narratives. “Some of the songs are based on personal feelings or experiences mixed with fiction,” she notes.

For example? “’Build me a Fire’ is a tribute to my mom’s journey through World War II Nazi Germany. It is not literal in content, but a mixture of some of her quotes and images of what I imagined was like for a little girl to go through that.”

Of course, on a technical note, the album’s startling purity isn’t hurt one bit by DeMeyer’s astute choices for supporting musicians and producers, including frequent collaborator Will Kimbrough, the McCrary Sisters, Ricky and Micol Davis of Blue Mother Tupelo, Brady Blade, Wood Brother’s Jano Rix, and renowned engineer David Z (Prince, Etta James, Jonny Lang), among others.

“I learned from my prior recordings that it’s all about chemistry and vibe and listening to your gut,” she says. The creative process is best if you get the right people in the room with you–people you have a vibe with. From there the music takes on a life of its own.”

DeMeyer, who is based in Nashville, is currently supporting the success of “Savannah Road” with a string of select dates domestically through the end of August. She’ll be traveling to the United Kingdom for several shows in October.  For full tour dates and more information, please visit www.brigittedemeyer.com orwww.facebook.com/brigittedemeyer