Tag: Caroline Spence

LISTEN: Robby Hecht & Caroline Spence, ‘Over You’

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Artist: Robby Hecht & Caroline Spence
Hometown: Nashville, TN
Song: “Over You”
Album: Two People
Release Date: June 8, 2018

In Their Words: “‘Over You’ is the last song Caroline and I wrote before going in to record the album, and I think the comfort level we’ve reached writing together shows in the honesty of the lyrics.” — Robby Hecht

“We talk about blind curves in this song, and I remember chasing the melody of this one blindly, as we wrote it. That can be the gift of co-writing: chasing down an unfamiliar idea and, when you find it, it’s yours. Robby and I write well together because we are both open to that chase.” — Caroline Spence

Photo credit: Ryan Newman

WATCH: Caroline Spence, ‘I Can’t Complain’

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Artist: Caroline Spence
Hometown: Nashville, TN / Charlottesville, VA
Song: “I Can’t Complain”
Album: Spades & Roses

In Their Words: “I was a fan of the artwork of Jane Beaird — aka Quiet Creature — on social media and loved the videos she would post of her painting. I found it fascinating and satisfying to see the process of how she makes her art. I wanted that for this video because that simple act of painting — the concept of building something beautiful out of nothing, of going from black and white to color — fit perfectly with the sense of grounded wonder in the song.

Writing this song made me late to a party on New Year’s Eve, 2015. It was the year that my first record came out and the first year I got to spend most of my time making and playing music rather than working other jobs. I was feeling reflective and thankful, and this is what came out. I knew I wasn’t exactly where I wanted to be, but I was close to the road I wanted to be on, and that realization filled me with overwhelming gratitude. I play this song most nights at the end of my set as a way to settle back into myself and realize what a gift it is to be on a stage singing any song for anybody.” — Caroline Spence

Photo credit: Kate McGaffin

Caroline Spence, ‘All the Beds I’ve Made’ (acoustic)

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There are only so many words and casual phrases in the English language, but a great song can challenge the way we think about the finality of the tools we are given. Sometimes, if it’s smart enough, it can even unfold new meanings within repeated listens or flip a cliché on its head. “All the Beds I’ve Made,” a track from the Nashville-based songwriter Caroline Spence, does both.

Appearing on the Secret Garden EP, her forthcoming collection of B-sides from March’s Spades and Roses, “All the Beds I’ve Made” thinks about the multi-faceted meaning of this phrase. It’s a metaphor we all know — making our own beds and lying in them — but it’s a physical act, too — tucking in the sheets to cover the multitude of sins that exist beneath those cotton fibers and pulling the blankets over one too many mistakes. It’s the mornings we’ve woken up in a bed not our own, and it’s the dark roads of our own making, with the streetlights smashed at our own hand.

“There’s no wrong side to get up on,” she sings, her vocals crystalline and striking to the core. “No ghost keeping me awake. Honey, this love’s gonna make up for all the beds I’ve made.” Spence uses carefully curated language to get across an entire backstory: Rough roads and mistakes have led her here, to a place of romantic contentment, and that’s all part of a story. She’s made her bed, but she’s not trying to smooth out the wrinkles, either. Life is beautiful, but it’s messy, too.

WATCH: Korby Lenker, ‘Uh-Oh’ (featuring Caroline Spence)

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Artist: Korby Lenker (featuring Caroline Spence)
Hometown: Twin Falls, ID
Song: “Uh-Oh”
Album: Thousand Springs
Release Date: July 14, 2017
Label: Soundly Music

In Their Words: “I wrote this song with Holiday Mathis about the feeling of being in love. It’s only happened for me twice, that sense of being so connected with someone it’s electric. Like, actual electricity. It leaves a mark on you forever.

A lot of my songs have some kind of twist in them or maybe a slightly complicated idea, but for this one, I just wanted to express something really simple. We only used three instruments and a lot of space, and Caroline Spence’s delicate burn of a voice. Caroline and I got together a few weeks ago to shoot the video, directed by Cody Duncum. The whole thing was filmed in one take, and speaking of twists, we added one at the end.” — Korby Lenker

Photo credit: Anthony Shafer

Caroline Spence:
Fun Is Always in Fashion

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“It just makes me happy, I guess. I love wearing things that I think are beautiful or fun. It’s hard to have a bad time when you are covered in polka dots.” — Caroline Spence

On the hunt for the fun and the beautiful, Caroline Spence enjoys searching for clothing items to add to her closet that will further express her personality, giving us a 20/20 view of who she is and what makes her happy.

Her approach to style is to let others know who she is, but more importantly, to bring joy to her own day with items that make her happy. I love this about Caroline. I love that she is not only self-aware enough to know what connects her to the act of style, but also transparent enough to claim it’s primarily about making herself happy. Everything else that follows is secondary.

Lately, picking out items that make her happy means she’s keeping an eye out for the timeless, yet playful and unique. Around Nashville, some of her favorite places to look include Pangea, Buffalo Exchange, and the top place to find cowboys boots and other Western goods — Goodbuy Girls.

We got together with Tanya, owner of Goodbuy Girls, to put together a few varied looks in true Caroline fashion. Keeping each outfit rooted with a timeless classic or two, Caroline tapped into a playful side of her personality with soft patterns and vintage western pieces.

Black + Tan


Caroline swings a simple long black dress into the West with tan cowboy boots, a vintage tooled leather clutch, and classic silver and turquoise jewelry.

Floral Patterns


Caroline is attracted to fun patterns that look like they could have been on her great grandmother’s china. She keeps the look simple — and far from grandma — by pairing with her favorite concho earings by Three Wolves Trading Post and tan cowboy boots creating a look that is unique to her personality.

Ruffled Up


I love the juxtaposed vintage/modern styles within this dress alone. The washed-out, muted stripe pattern on a simple cut denim dress contrasted with oversized ruffled sleeves allows this dress to make a statement on its own. Caroline tossed out the original belt this dress came with, and paired it with a vintage concho belt making it her own.

The combination of classic prep with a vintage Western twist found in Caroline’s style gives this tall beauty Modern Western vibes for days.

Thank you to Goodbuy Girls for outfitting and Black Springs Folk Art for the location.

LISTEN: Caroline Spence, ‘Southern Accident’

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Artist: Caroline Spence
Hometown: Charlottesville,VA
Song: “Southern Accident”
Album: Spades & Roses
Release Date: March 3, 2017

In Their Words: “This song existed in pieces for almost two years. It finally came together in one afternoon after having a meeting with Neilson Hubbard about producing my record (which he did.) After talking with Neilson about making music and writing and discovering so much common ground, I was feeling super inspired, empowered, and understood, and I finally wrote this song the way it was supposed to be written — honestly and nakedly, without self-pity or contempt. It all came together in about an hour.

I have said that you know a song is good when you are afraid for other people to hear it. That’s because you’ve said something true that you’ve never been able to say in any other form. I’ve felt that way about songs before, but nothing is more me and more vulnerable than this song.” — Caroline Spence

Photo Credit: Laura E. Partain

3×3: Caroline Spence on Kristen Wiig, Grapefruit LaCroix, and Her Obsession with Ryan Adams

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Artist: Caroline Spence
Hometown: Charlottesville, VA (now in Nashville, TN)
Latest Album: Somehow
Nicknames: Caro

 

My first #coffee in Switzerland. Served with chocolate (with music notes) and the world's cutest creamer.

A photo posted by Caroline Spence (@carolinespence_) on

Who is the most surprising artist in current rotation on your iTunes/Spotify?
Brothers Osborne. Their latest single, "Stay A Little Longer" is undeniably catchy. TJ's voice is just so…manly.

Who would play you in the Lifetime movie of your life?
Kristen Wiig, for sure.

If the After-Life exists, what song will be playing when you arrive?
"Heavenly Day" by Patty Griffin.

What's brand of toothpaste do you use?
Crest.

What's your beverage of choice?
Grapefruit LaCroix. Or red wine.

What's your favorite TV show? 
Parks and Recreation

 

What a treat to hear Ryan Adams and Jason Isbell sing together. Better than I could have even imagined.

A photo posted by Caroline Spence (@carolinespence_) on

Taylor Swift or Ryan Adams?
I love 1989 in both forms, but Ryan Adams is one of my all-time favorite music makers. Saw him two nights in a row at the Ryman.

Star Wars or Star Trek?
Star Wars?

Coffee or tea?
So. Much. Coffee.

WATCH: 10-String Symphony, ‘Someone to Be Good For’

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Artist: 10-String Symphony
Hometown: Nashville, TN
Song: "Someone to Be Good For"
Album: Weight of the World
Release Date: October 23 
Label: Poppychop Records

In Their Words: "'Someone to Be Good For' is probably the closest thing to a love song that I've written, although it's directed at a hypothetical person. It's largely about losing the motivation to be the best version of yourself, and wanting to find that person who will inspire you to be better, and make those moments where you chose a harder, more honest path, feel worthwhile.

I wrote this song with my good friend Caroline Spence, who is one of my favorite songwriters here in Nashville. I had the line 'someone to be good for' and a couple of the verses and I just got stuck. I couldn't finish it, even though I knew exactly what I wanted to say. I finally brought it to Caroline and she started strumming her guitar and, in about four minutes, she had transformed the chorus and come up with 'I don't need to be good / I just need someone to be good for.' It was kind of amazing. We worked through the verses together, focusing on some specific moments that the chorus could describe.

Christian and I wanted a really minimal arrangement for this one to highlight the yearning aspect of the song. Christian came up with the rhythmic chop, which is the backbone of the arrangement, and it felt really good to break into a full, old-time melodic break after all of that tension and build up." — Rachel Baiman

Photo by EJ Holmes. Video by Philip Noss. Audio by Tyler Andal.