Diamond in the Rough: A Memoir

Named for the breakthrough hit on her first Grammy Award–winning album of 1989 (Steady On) this charming, modest memoir tracks songwriter Colvin’s roots solidly in the Midwest and the determination to pursue the folksy, acoustic-guitar style that suited her. Born on the South Dakota prairie in 1956, she grew up singing in the church, moving around from Vermillion, S.D., to Carbondale, Ill., as her father pursued graduate studies in psychology and her mother eventually got a law degree. Seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show galvanized her small world, and while prone to panic attacks and dread of school, she found that learning to play guitar, singing and songwriting, and sewing her own clothes were the only ways to motivate her. The 1970s blew in, and with it the magical folk songwriting of Judy Collins, James Taylor, and Joni Mitchell, among others; once graduated from high school, Colvin fronted bands from Austin, Tex., to New York City, and was nearly derailed by drinking until she went sober in 1983. By sticking with the community of folk writers and singers, such as those congregating at Cambridge, Mass.’s Passim coffeehouse, she toured as a backup singer for Suzanne Vega, whose managers introduced Colvin’s original songs to Columbia Records—and she was signed. Colvin chronicles an impressive array of accompanists and backup, two husbands, and myriad awards such as her gold record with the 1997 hit “Sunny Came Home,” all the while maintaining a low-key, sweet humility that is truly endearing. Agent: David Vigliano. (June)